Saudi Arabia jails human rights activist for 15 years
ABU DHABI (Reuters) – A Jeddah court sentenced prominent Saudi rights lawyer Walid abu al-Khair to 15 years in prison on Sunday on charges that included seeking to undermine the state and insulting the judiciary, the state news agency reported.
Egypt’s Sisi says independence for Iraq’s Kurds would be ‘catastrophic’
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Sunday a referendum on the independence of Iraq’s Kurdish region would lead to a “catastrophic” break up of the country, which is facing an onslaught by Sunni Islamist militants.
British PM Cameron under pressure to launch child abuse inquiry
LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister David Cameron is facing calls to launch a full-scale inquiry into allegations that well-known politicians abused children in the 1980s, after an official said the government had lost files that may shed light o…
Gunmen kill at least 29 in latest raids on Kenyan coast
MOMBASA Kenya (Reuters) – Gunmen killed at least 29 people in two coastal areas of Kenya in raids the deputy president indicated on Sunday were the work of political rivals, despite Somali Islamists al Shabaab claiming responsibility.
As West, Russia talk truce, Poroshenko heeds Ukrainians’ call to arms
KIEV (Reuters) – In a country torn between Russia and western Europe, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko’s decision to resume an offensive against pro-Moscow rebels has carefully ignored both neighbors to show an ear acutely tuned to Ukrainian domest…
On eve of election results, Afghan candidate sends warning to rival
KABUL (Reuters) – Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah warned his rival on Sunday he would refuse to accept the outcome of the country’s troubled election unless he saw firm evidence that the vote was completely free of fraud.
Shi’ite cleric Sadr urges Maliki’s bloc to choose new Iraq PM candidate
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s coalition should withdraw its support for his bid for a third term and pick another candidate, Shi’ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr urged, amid parliamentary deadlock over the formation of a ne…
Tempers fray, prices rise as Egypt cuts fuel subsidies
CAIRO (Reuters) – Cairo bus driver Mohamed Salame voted for Abdel Fattah al-Sisi in the hope he would fix Egypt’s manifold problems, but now he curses the new president for making life harder by hiking the price of the state-subsidized fuel vital to hi…
Iranian pilot killed defending Iraqi shrine: IRNA
DUBAI (Reuters) – An Iranian pilot was killed defending Shi’ite Muslim holy sites in neighboring Iraq, Iran’s state news agency said, in the first official report of an Iranian death related to an upsurge in violence there since June.
Jihadist suspect arrested in Lisbon airport last week: report
LISBON (Reuters) – Portuguese police have arrested a man trained in a jihadist camp as he was trying to illegally board an Angola-bound plane via its landing gear at Lisbon international airport, local media said on Sunday.
