At Iraq refinery, sniper trained in Syria awaits Islamic State
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – After Iraqi sniper Ali al-Tulaibawi returned from his training on the battlefields of Syria his commander sent him on a months-long mission to shoot Islamic State militants from the towers of Iraq’s biggest oil refinery.
France mulls military deployment in Jordan for Islamic State fight
PARIS (Reuters) – France will decide in the coming weeks whether to send fighter jets to Jordan to strike Islamic State militants in Iraq in an effort to increase the number of missions and reduce the cost, the army spokesman and officials said on Thur…
Kurds again become focus of Western intervention in Middle East
(Reuters) – Saddam Hussein’s use of chemical weapons against Iraqi Kurds in the 1980s was cited by Western powers as one of the justifications for the 2003 invasion that toppled him.
China offers ASEAN friendship, loans as South China Sea tension bubbles
NAYPYITAW (Reuters) – China’s Prime Minister Li Keqiang proposed a friendship treaty with Southeast Asian countries and offered $20 billion in loans on Thursday but held firm on the line that Beijing will only settle South China Sea disputes directly w…
Pakistan court issues arrest warrants for protest leaders Khan, Qadri
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistani opposition leaders reacted with outrage on Thursday after a court issued arrest warrants for a top politician and a firebrand cleric who led protests in the capital of Islamabad aiming to topple the government.
Central African Republic rebels block key highways in capital
BANGUI (Reuters) – Seleka rebels in Central African Republic blocked two highways through the capital Bangui on Thursday and exchanged gunfire with U.N. peacekeepers, witnesses said, in a further bout of the violent disorder plaguing the country.
U.S.-India deal is major step for WTO trade talks: Azevedo
GENEVA (Reuters) – A breakthrough in trade talks between India and the United States is a significant step in efforts to get the world trading system “back on track”, World Trade Organization Director General Roberto Azevedo said on Thursday.
Tainted drugs suspected in Indian sterilization surgery deaths
PANDARI India (Reuters) – Tainted or sub-standard drugs probably led to the deaths of 13 Indian women after sterilization surgery at a family-planning “camp”, and owners of the factories that produced them have been summoned for questioning, a senior o…
With new team in place, India’s Modi tightens grip on power
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Anil Swarup is just the kind of man Prime Minister Narendra Modi is relying on to fix India – a high-flying civil servant with a taste for complex policy and swift decisions.
Lebanon’s politics paralyzed by regional conflict
BEIRUT (Reuters) – With Lebanon’s most powerful political parties funded and often directed by regional powers, the country has for decades been affected by events in the Middle East.
