Amanda Knox faces verdict in Italy in retrial on Kercher murder
FLORENCE, Italy (Reuters) – Amanda Knox, the American student who became tabloid fodder, will not be in court on Thursday to hear Italian judges give their verdict in her retrial for the murder of Briton Meredith Kercher when the two were roommates stu…
South Korea urges North to hasten reunions but vows to continue drills
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea urged the North on Wednesday to speed efforts for reunions of families separated since the war that divided the neighbors, but vowed to continue joint military drills with the United States, despite protests from Pyongyang…
Brahimi says no substantive progress on Syria but hopeful
GENEVA (Reuters) – International mediator Lakhdar Brahimi said on Wednesday that he does not expect to achieve anything substantive in the first round of Syria talks ending on Friday, but hoped for a more productive second round starting about a week l…
Baghdad bombs and shooting kill at least 19
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Car bombs in mainly Shi’ite districts of the Iraqi capital and a shooting killed at least 19 people on Wednesday, police said, driving the death toll so far this month to nearly 1,000, according to Iraq Body Count.
Israeli ruling coalition wobbles as U.S. peace proposal looms
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – A pending U.S. framework proposal to propel stumbling Israeli-Palestinian peace talks forward chipped away on Wednesday at a troubled alliance between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and an ultranationalist ally in his governing…
Italy vote reform moves to parliament as parties agree changes
ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s main political parties agreed adjustments to center-left leader Matteo Renzi’s electoral reform proposals that should clear the way for the closely watched package to come before parliament on Thursday.
Hoping to deter Hezbollah, Israel threatens Lebanese civilians
HERZLIYA, Israel (Reuters) – Israel accused Lebanon’s Hezbollah guerrillas on Wednesday of putting “thousands” of bases in residential buildings and said it would destroy these in a future conflict, even at the cost of civilian lives.
Czech president appoints centre-left cabinet, ending power vacuum
PRAGUE (Reuters) – President Milos Zeman appointed a new center-left cabinet on Wednesday, ending a seven-month power vacuum that has hampered policy decisions that the Czech Republic needs to boost recovery from its longest recession.
Latin Americans pledge to respect Cuba’s form of government
HAVANA (Reuters) – Latin American leaders pledged on Wednesday to respect the right of all countries in the region to choose their own political systems, a proclamation notable largely for accepting Cuba as the only one-party state in the western hemis…
El Salvador vote pits ex-rebel vs gang-fighting rightist
SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) – A former guerrilla commander hopes to keep his left-wing party in power in El Salvador’s presidential election on Sunday, but he faces a strong challenge from a right-wing rival who wants to use the army to battle powerful stre…
