Israel holds off on escalating Gaza barrage; West wants truce
GAZA/JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel appeared to hold off on a threatened escalation of its week-old Gaza Strip barrage on Monday despite balking at Western calls for a ceasefire with an equally defiant Hamas.
Eight killed in blasts in Egypt’s Sinai region
CAIRO (Reuters) – One security officer and seven others were killed in two successive explosions around security areas in Egypt’s Sinai region, near the border with Israel, the Interior Ministry and security officials said.
Spain’s embattled Socialists elect new leader
MADRID (Reuters) – Spain’s opposition Socialists, besieged by upstart leftist movements and struggling to win back voters, on Sunday chose economist Pedro Sanchez to lead the party and try and revive its chances in a looming election.
Uncertainty reigns in Australian parliament as mining king holds sway
SYDNEY (Reuters) – It took mining magnate Clive Palmer only three days to show Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott just how uncomfortable life can be in a parliament in which he holds the balance of power.
Taliban survivor Malala, in Nigeria, pledges to help free girls
ABUJA (Reuters) – Pakistani rights activist Malala Yousafzai, who survived being shot in the head by the Taliban for campaigning for girls’ education, pledged while on a trip to Nigeria to help free a group of schoolgirls abducted by Islamist militants…
Political novice wins power in Slovenia, hints at revisiting economic reform plan
LJUBLJANA (Reuters) – Center-left political novice Miro Cerar led his party to victory in Slovenia’s election on Sunday, indicating he would rewrite a reform package agreed with the European Union to fix the euro zone member’s depleted finances.
Russia warns Ukraine after shell crosses border
DONETSK Ukraine/MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia threatened Ukraine on Sunday with “irreversible consequences” after a Russian man was killed by a shell fired across the border, while Kiev said Ukrainian warplanes struck again at separatist positions in the e…
U.S., Iran say disputes remain in nuclear talks as deadline looms
VIENNA (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday major differences persist between Iran and six world powers negotiating on Tehran’s nuclear program, with a week to go before a deadline for a deal.
Yemeni leader demands Shi’ite group give up captured city
SANAA (Reuters) – Yemen’s president on Sunday demanded the withdrawal of Shi’ite Muslim tribesmen from a captured provincial city, in a stand-off that threatens to intensify turmoil in the Arab country.
U.S. concerned foreign fighters in Syria are working with Yemenis
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said he is concerned fighters from Europe and the United States who are supporting violent insurgents in the Syrian civil war are joining forces with Yemeni bomb makers.
