Chinese town trades lead poison test results for milk
DAPU China (Reuters) – After a test showed farmer Zhao Heping’s toddler grandson had high levels of lead in his blood two years ago, local officials in China’s Hunan province offered the child medicine, he says – and milk. In return, Zhao says, officials asked that he hand over his grandson’s blood test results.
Mexico rescues 458 children from squalid refuge amid abuse fears
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexico said on Tuesday it had rescued 458 children from a vermin-infested refuge for abandoned boys and girls, some of whom it believes were sexually abused.
Exclusive: U.N. monitors allege ‘conspiracy’ to divert Somali assets
VIENNA/NAIROBI (Reuters) – A United Nations panel that monitors compliance with U.N. sanctions on Somalia has accused the country’s president, a former minister, and a U.S. law firm of conspiring to divert Somali assets recovered abroad, according to a…
China oil rig finishes exploration in disputed waters off Vietnam
SHANGHAI/HANOI (Reuters) – A Chinese oil rig has finished drilling near the disputed Paracel islands in the South China Sea after finding signs of oil and gas, a top Chinese energy firm said on Wednesday, more than two months after its deployment hurt …
Obama vows intelligence cooperation to Germany’s Merkel
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama spoke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday for the first time since a new spy scandal dented relations between the two allies, and pledged to be in touch about ways to improve U.S.-German inte…
Chinese oil rig finishes exploration in waters off Vietnam: Xinhua
BEIJING (Reuters) – A Chinese oil rig has finished exploration near the Paracel islands in the South China Sea after finding signs of oil and gas, the official Xinhua news agency said, more than two months after its deployment to waters also claimed by…
Ukraine sees Russian role in air strike on town
KIEV (Reuters) – Ukraine has made fresh charges of Russian involvement in its conflict with separatist rebels, suggesting Moscow may have had a role in an air strike on Tuesday that killed 11 people.
Typhoon shuts down Philippine capital, triggers mass evacuations
MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine authorities evacuated almost 150,000 people from their homes and shuttered financial markets, government offices, businesses and schools on Wednesday as typhoon Rammasun gathered strength and hit the capital, Manila.
Israel targets top Hamas leader as cease-fire collapses
GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel resumed its air strikes in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday a day after holding its fire in deference to an Egyptian-proposed cease-fire deal that failed to get Hamas militants to halt rocket attacks.
Libyan militia tighten control of Tripoli airport
TRIPOLI Libya (Reuters) – Libyan militia fighters with anti aircraft guns and mortars fanned out on Tuesday across Tripoli’s airport, transformed into a battlefield by two days of fighting that has cut the Libyan capital off from the outside world.
