‘Gold-obsessed’ Chinese officer’s graft case worth $5 billion: magazine
BEIJING (Reuters) – A former senior Chinese military officer was obsessed with gold and often ferried gold bars for bribes in a luxury car, a Hong Kong magazine reported on Monday, in connection with a graft case which investigators estimate is worth s…
Spain abandons sea search for more than 20 migrants
MADRID (Reuters) – Spanish rescue teams said they had called off their search for more than 20 migrants who fell off their boat into the Mediterranean on Friday.
Anglican leader says plight of hungry in Britain more shocking than in Africa
LONDON (Reuters) – The Archbishop of Canterbury has said he found seeing the hungry in Britain to be less serious but more shocking than the plight of those starving in some places in Africa.
Indonesian maid says tortured with vacuum cleaner tube in Hong Kong abuse case
HONG KONG (Reuters) – An Indonesian domestic helper told a Hong Kong court on Monday that she had been tortured by her employer, with a vacuum cleaner tube placed in her mouth and twisted to cause lacerations, public broadcaster RTHK said.
Hong Kong splinter groups fast-track rearguard action ahead of camp clearance
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Splinter protest groups calling for democracy for Hong Kong are springing up and fast-tracking action plans as student-led demonstrators consider a retreat from the main campsite which has blocked key downtown arteries for more th…
China angered by U.S. bill allowing Taiwan warship sale
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s foreign ministry rebuked the U.S. Congress on Monday after legislators passed a bill allowing the sale of second-hand warships to Taiwan, the self-ruled island which Beijing claims as a renegade province.
Kosovo lawmakers to vote in new government led by capital’s ex-mayor
PRISTINA (Reuters) – Lawmakers in Kosovo will vote in a new government on Monday led by former Pristina mayor Isa Mustafa, with outgoing Prime Minister Hashim Thaci becoming foreign minister, a senior aide to Thaci said.
Rich countries urged to take 5 percent of Syrian refugees: TRFN
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Rich countries should agree to take at least 5 percent of all Syrian refugees by the end of 2015, aid agencies said as pressure mounts ahead of a major conference on the crisis.
Myanmar men plead not guilty to murder of British tourists
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Two Myanmar workers have pleaded not guilty to charges including murder over the killing of two British tourists in Thailand, their lawyer said on Monday, in a case that has hit tourism and attracted widespread criticism.
Methamphetamine use soars in Iran as lifestyles speed up
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Women in headscarves and men in tatty clothes puff on a glass pipe as smoke swirls around their faces. The pictures published by Iranian media and blogs in recent months are a sign of a new drug epidemic: shishe, or methamphetamine.
