Indonesia’s presidential front-runner battles the puppet image
JAKARTA (Reuters) – When one of Indonesia’s most powerful politicians wanted to be part of a new government, he did not approach Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, the front-runner in next week’s presidential election.
Hong Kong wraps up unofficial democracy poll in defiance of Beijing
HONG KONG (Reuters) – More than 780,000 votes were cast by Sunday, the final day of an unofficial referendum on democratic reforms in Hong Kong, part of a civil campaign that has been branded illegal by local and mainland Chinese authorities.
North Korea launches two missiles, defies U.N. ban
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into seas east off its coast on Sunday, South Korea’s military said, defying a U.N. ban on the isolated country testing such weapons.
Beijing to boost police gun training amid security threats
BEIJING (Reuters) – China will boost gun training for police in its capital Beijing, a senior security official said, as it braces for what it calls an upsurge in militant violence around the country.
Man sets himself on fire in Japan in defense protest: witnesses
TOKYO (Reuters) – A man in Japan set himself on fire at a busy intersection in Tokyo on Sunday in an apparent protest against Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s plans to ease limits of the country’s pacifist constitution, police and witnesses said.
Philippine security forces in south on alert due to terror threat
MANILA (Reuters) – Security forces went on full alert in the southern Philippines on Sunday, police said, after military intelligence reported sightings of Islamist militants in the region after the detention of a top al Qaeda-linked leader.
Magnitude 7.1 quake hits near Visokoi Island, off South America
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – A magnitude 7.1 earthquake hit about 100 miles north-northwest of Visokoi Island in the South Sandwich Islands off South America, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
Iran general says ready to help Iraq against militants
DUBAI (Reuters) – Iran is ready to help Iraq fight an armed revolt using the same methods it deployed against opposition forces in Syria, an Iranian general said, suggesting Tehran is offering to take a larger role in battling Sunni militias threatenin…
Magnitude 6.2 quake hits off Iwo Jimo, Japan: USGS
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – A magnitude 6.2 earthquake hit 84 miles (167 km) east-southeast of Iwo Jim in the Volcano Islands of Japan on Sunday, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
After years off-stage, Iraq’s Sistani takes charge
NAJAF Iraq (Reuters) – Najaf is far from Baghdad’s palaces and the battlefields of northern Iraq. Its mud-brick houses, dirt alleys and concrete office blocks project little in the way of strength or sway. But it is here, where Iraq’s most influential …
