Moscow bans Western food imports; Russian quits as Ukraine rebel chief
MOSCOW/DONETSK Ukraine (Reuters) – Moscow banned imports of most food from the West on Thursday in retaliation against sanctions over Ukraine, a stronger than expected measure that isolates Russian consumers from world trade to a degree unseen since So…
Islamic State surges in North Iraq, near Kurdistan border
ARBIL Iraq (Reuters) – Islamist militants surged across northern Iraq toward the capital of the Kurdish region on Thursday, sending tens of thousands of Christians fleeing for their lives, in an offensive that prompted talk of Western military action.
Exclusive: China police investigate U.S. citizen near border with North Korea – source
SEOUL/BEIJING (Reuters) – A Korean-American who runs a Christian NGO in a Chinese city on the border with North Korea is being investigated by Chinese authorities and has had his bank accounts frozen, a source with direct knowledge of the case told Reu…
Wealthy foreigners to sue Canada over end of visa plan
VANCOUVER (Reuters) – Wealthy foreigners hoping to fast-track immigration to Canada are preparing to sue Ottawa over the government’s cancellation of its immigrant investor program, which has been assailed for allowing rich Chinese to buy their way int…
Colombia president starts new term, warns FARC to halt attacks
BOGOTA (Reuters) – Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos was sworn in to a second term on Thursday promising to bring peace and equality to the nation, but warned Marxist rebels that talks to end five decades of war could rupture if hostilities again…
U.N.-backed tribunal in Cambodia jails Khmer Rouge duo for life
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) – A U.N.-backed tribunal in Cambodia sentenced the top two surviving cadres of the 1970s Khmer Rouge regime to life in jail on Thursday, delivering a semblance of justice for one of the darkest and bloodiest chapters of the twentie…
Exclusive: Liberia health system collapsing as Ebola spreads
WASHINGTON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – The health care system in Liberia is collapsing, hospitals closing down and medical workers fleeing from the Ebola epidemic, which is poised to worsen, Liberia’s foreign minister said on Thursday.
U.S., Iran have ‘constructive’ nuclear talks in Geneva: U.S.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. and Iranian officials had a “constructive discussion” about Iran’s nuclear program in Geneva on Thursday, the U.S. State Department said without providing details.
U.S. takes control of $480 million stolen by Nigerian dictator Abacha
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States has taken control of more than $480 million looted by former Nigerian dictator Sani Abacha and his associates after a court ruling, the Justice Department said on Thursday.
China frees prominent lawyer who defended religious freedom
BEIJING (Reuters) – China freed a prominent human rights lawyer after three years in prison on Thursday, his brother told Reuters, ending the latest period of detention for the religious-freedom campaigner whose treatment attracted international condem…
