Al Qaeda splinter group withdraws from Syrian town near Turkey
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Fighters from an al Qaeda splinter group, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), withdrew from a rebel-held Syrian town near the border with Turkey on Friday, a monitoring group said.
Cambodian jailed over poll protests, lawyer says he was tortured
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) – A Cambodian court sentenced a man to a year in prison on Friday for attacking police and destroying public property during protests over election results last year, but his lawyer said torture was used to extract a confession fro…
China swipes back at U.S. in annual rights report
BEIJING (Reuters) – China on Friday accused the United States of widespread human rights abuses, including cyber-surveillance and child labor, in Beijing’s annual rebuttal of Washington’s criticism of its rights record.
Generations on, Christians fleeing Syria return to Turkish homeland
MIDYAT, Turkey (Reuters) – When Louis Bandak fled the violence in Syria, he sought refuge in the country his grandfather was forced to abandon exactly 90 years ago this week.
Chinese criticize state firm behind Three Gorges dam over graft probe
BEIJING (Reuters) – A scathing report on corruption at the company that built China’s $59-billion Three Gorges dam, the world’s biggest hydropower scheme, has reignited public anger over a project funded through a special levy paid by all citizens.
Burundi crisis may stir unrest but not by me, says ex-rebel
NAIROBI (Reuters) – Burundi’s worst political crisis since the end of its 12-year civil war risks unleashing a new wave of unrest before next year’s presidential election, the main opposition leader said on Thursday.
Cyprus faces fresh bailout uncertainty after privatization vote
NICOSIA (Reuters) – Cyprus faced fresh uncertainty on Friday over the future of its bailout program after lawmakers rejected privatization plans, casting doubt on a new tranche of financial aid due in March.
North Korea condemns Australian judge behind U.N. rights report
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea on Friday condemned an Australian judge who led a U.N. investigation that concluded that North Korean security chiefs and possibly its leader should face justice for torture and killings comparable to Nazi-era atrocities.
China paves way to charge ally of former security tsar in graft crackdown
BEIJING (Reuters) – A former vice minister of public security and ally of China’s retired domestic security chief, Zhou Yongkang, has resigned from his position as a national lawmaker, state media said, possibly opening the way for criminal charges aga…
Mexican kingpin’s fall clouds future of drug heartland
LA TUNA, Mexico (Reuters) – In villages nestled amid the jagged mountains where captured Mexican kingpin Joaquin “Shorty” Guzman was born, the drug trade that dominates the local economy is already breeding the next generation of smugglers and gunsling…
