China to start regular patrols from island in South China Sea
BEIJING (Reuters) – China will base a 5,000-tonne civilian patrol ship on one of the main islands it controls in the disputed South China Sea and begin regular patrols, an official newspaper said on Tuesday, a move likely to add fuel to territorial dis…
Japan’s scrambles against Chinese planes soar
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese fighter jets scrambled against Chinese planes a record number of times in April-December, the Defence Ministry said on Tuesday, as Sino-Japanese ties are strained by an island spat and disputes stemming from Tokyo’s wartime p…
Gunmen kill leading figure of Yemeni Shi’ite group
SANAA (Reuters) – Unknown assailants shot dead a leader of the Yemeni Shi’ite Muslim Houthi group in Sanaa on Tuesday while driving to attend the final session of reconciliation talks aimed at tackling the country’s political and security challenges.
China executes man for raping, murdering sex slaves
BEIJING (Reuters) – China on Tuesday executed a man who held six women as sex slaves in an underground prison and killed two of them, state news agency Xinhua said, in a crime which shocked the nation.
Japan fishermen take cover to slaughter dolphins in face of Western criticism
TAIJI, Japan (Reuters) – Japanese fishermen drove a large group of dolphins into the shallows and killed at least 30 on Tuesday, hiding themselves behind a tarpaulin, as the annual dolphin hunt that sparked protest in the West entered its final stages….
Super typhoon victims flee again as rains flood southern Philippines
BUTUAN CITY, Philippines (Reuters) – Emergency workers evacuated thousands of people across the southern Philippines on Tuesday, including many already made homeless by a typhoon in November, after three days of rain flooded towns and farmland.
Detained Iraqi Shi’ite militia chief threatens to kill politicians
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – A Shi’ite militia leader arrested in Iraq after his group fired mortars into Saudi Arabia has said leaders of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s political bloc will be killed unless he is released within 24 hours.
U.S. drones killed no more than four civilians in Pakistan in 2013: study
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – U.S. CIA drone strikes against militants in Pakistan killed no more than four civilians last year, according to an annual study by a British-based organization, the lowest number of reported civilian deaths since the drone program…
South Koreans seethe, sue as credit card details swiped
SEOUL (Reuters) – The theft of personal information from more than 100 million South Korean credit cards and accounts, reportedly including those of President Park Geun-hye and UN chief Ban Ki-moon, has ignited a storm of anger and litigation against c…
U.S. offers to send envoy to North Korea to free jailed missionary
SEOUL (Reuters) – The United States has offered to send a special envoy to North Korea to win the release of a jailed missionary, but signaled that any meaningful talks with Pyongyang will require it to give up its pursuit of nuclear weapons.
