Thai PM urges protesters to take part in election
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Her eyes welling with tears, Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra pleaded on Tuesday for anti-government protesters to clear the streets after she called a snap election, but protests leaders said she should step down within 24 h…
Spanish journalist, photographer kidnapped in Syria
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Fighters linked to al Qaeda abducted a Spanish journalist and a photographer in a rebel-held Syrian province in September, their families said on Tuesday.
Israel, others urged to join chemical arms treaty
OSLO (Reuters) – Israel, Egypt and North Korea should renounce chemical weapons, especially after Syria joined the convention banning them and three other nations plan to do so, the chief of an international watchdog said on Tuesday.
Big parties near Austrian coalition deal, avoid big changes
VIENNA (Reuters) – The two big pro-Europe parties that have dominated post-war Austrian politics are closing in on a deal to extend their coalition government by eschewing major change in favor of largely staying the course.
Israel approves detention without charges for African migrants
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel’s parliament has moved to ensure African migrants who enter the country illegally can be held without charge, despite a Supreme Court ruling that had struck down a previous detention law.
Russia amnesty could free Pussy Riot, benefit Greenpeace activists
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Two members of punk protest band Pussy Riot could be freed from prison and 30 people arrested in a Greenpeace protest could avoid jail under an amnesty proposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, lawyers said on Tuesday.
U.N. plans first aid airlift to Syria from Iraq as winter grips
GENEVA (Reuters) – The United Nations’ first relief airlift to Syria from Iraq will deliver food and winter supplies to the mostly Kurdish northeast this week with the permission of both governments, the UNHCR refugee agency said on Tuesday.
Disarray in India’s ruling party after poll drubbing
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Disarray within India’s ruling Congress party burst into the open on Tuesday after its stunning defeat in state elections, with a senior figure saying the party would lose a general election and needed time in opposition to reinve…
Maker of faulty French breast implants given four years in jail
MARSEILLE (Reuters) – The founder of a French breast implant company was sentenced to four years in prison by a Marseille criminal court on Tuesday for hiding the true nature of the sub-standard silicone used in implants sold to 300,000 women around th…
Dutch couple held hostage released in Yemen
SANAA (Reuters) – A Dutch couple held hostage in Yemen since June have been released in good health, the Yemeni and Dutch governments said on Tuesday.
