Serbia’s new PM pledges painful reforms with eyes on EU
BELGRADE (Reuters) – Serbia’s parliament approved the cabinet of Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic who took office on Sunday pledging deep economic reform and a drive to get the country into the European Union by the end of the decade.
Election violence flares on South Africa’s platinum belt
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Violence erupted on South Africa’s platinum belt on Sunday when members of the striking AMCU union attacked sports minister Fikile Mbalula as he campaigned in the area for the ruling ANC in May 7 elections, union officials and …
Libyan oil port Zueitina to re-open after damage assessed
BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) – Libya’s eastern oil port of Zueitina, which had been occupied by rebels as part of an eight-month oil blockade, will reopen after damage at its facilities has been assessed, the country’s justice minister said on Sunday.
South Korean PM resigns over government response to ferry disaster
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean Prime Minister Chung Hong-won announced his resignation on Sunday over the government response to the ferry disaster, in which it was first announced that everyone had been rescued, focusing attention on poor regulatory c…
Sectarian strife threatens Iraq ahead of election
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – The Sunni militants who seized the riverside town of Buhriz late last month stayed for several hours. The next morning, after the Sunnis had left, Iraqi security forces and dozens of Shi’ite militia fighters arrived and marched from…
Syria misses self-imposed deadline for destroying chemical arms
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syria appeared to have missed a self-imposed deadline to get rid of all its chemical weapons by April 27, as the United Nations announced that more than 92 percent of the arsenal had been shipped out of the country or destroyed.
Zarif says most Iranians support nuclear deal with West
DUBAI (Reuters) – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Sunday he saw a good chance for a nuclear deal with the West because “most Iranians” were in favor of it, playing down resistance from Islamic hardliners.
Afghan presidential hopefuls rally supporters ahead of run-off
KABUL (Reuters) – The two leading candidates in the race to become Afghanistan’s next president rallied supporters and urged election officials to come clean on fraud on Sunday as the country readied for an expected grueling run-off in June.
Netanyahu tells Abbas to ‘tear up’ pact with Hamas
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday to “tear up” his pact with Hamas, saying Israel would not take part in Middle East peace talks with a Palestinian government backed by …
Germans outraged by Berlusconi’s comments on concentration camps
BERLIN (Reuters) – German politicians on Sunday condemned as “unacceptable” and “absurd” comments by former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi that Germans denied the existence of Nazi concentration camps.
