Sri Lanka says ‘nothing to hide’ despite pressure before summit
COLOMBO (Reuters) – Sri Lanka’s president defended his government’s human rights record on Thursday, saying he had “nothing to hide”, but on the eve of a Commonwealth summit in Colombo he faced fresh questions over the treatment of ethnic minority Tami…
Turkish decision on China defense deal to take at least six months
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey’s decision on whether to co-produce an air and missile defense system with a Chinese firm under U.S. sanctions is likely to take at least six months, a senior Turkish defense official said on Thursday.
Singapore lifts death penalty on drug trafficker for first time
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – The wealthy city-state of Singapore has for the first time lifted the death penalty given to a drug trafficker, commuting his sentence to life in prison and 15 strokes of the cane.
Leader’s death plunges Pakistan Taliban into dangerous disarray
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – The killing of one of Pakistan’s most wanted Islamic militants in a U.S. drone strike has exposed centuries-old rivalries within the group he led, the Pakistani Taliban, making the insurgency ever more unpredictable and probably m…
Insight: Russia fears return of fighters waging jihad in Syria
NOVOSASITLI, Russia (Reuters) – A scrawny 15-year-old this summer became the first from his deeply religious Muslim village in Russia’s southern Dagestan province to die fighting alongside rebels in Syria.
Police beat back supporters in sensitive China land grab case
BEIJING (Reuters) – Police in China’s Inner Mongolia beat back supporters at the start of a sensitive land grab case, a family member said, where six nomadic herders are on trial for refusing to give up grazing land to a state-run forestry firm.
Japan readies 1,000 troops, naval ships for Philippines relief
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan is preparing to send up to 1,000 troops as well as naval vessels and aircraft to the Philippines to help with disaster relief following Typhoon Haiyan, in what could be Tokyo’s biggest postwar military deployment.
With bailout risk building, Slovenian PM seeks to shore up support
LJUBLJANA (Reuters) – Slovenia’s efforts to avert a bailout are likely to win the government a confidence vote on Thursday, even though the cost of a bank clean-up risks tipping the euro zone country’s finances over the edge.
Toronto City Council asks Mayor Rob Ford to go away
TORONTO (Reuters) – Toronto City Council asked embattled Mayor Rob Ford on Wednesday to take a break from his job to deal with “personal issues”, which he admits include both buying illegal drugs and smoking crack cocaine.
Sudanese man killed as foreign workers clash with Saudi police
RIYADH (Reuters) – A Sudanese man was killed in a second flare of clashes since Saturday between Saudi riot police, citizens and foreign workers in Riyadh amid a clampdown on visas, state media said late on Wednesday.
