German parties urge referendums on major EU decisions
BERLIN (Reuters) – German parties negotiating a coalition deal have recommended holding nationwide referendums for major decisions on Europe in what would be a dramatic shift in policy, but Chancellor Angela Merkel looks likely to quash the proposal.
Colombian president ratings move up again, would win election
BOGOTA (Reuters) – Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos’ popularity rose for a second straight month in November and a poll published on Tuesday showed he would be re-elected next year in a second-round vote.
Congo blames mediator Uganda for collapse of rebel talks
KINSHASA/KAMPALA (Reuters) – The Congolese government delegation has quit Ugandan-hosted talks with M23 rebels, saying Kampala’s support for insurgents was to blame for the failure to sign a document due to officially end Congo’s latest rebellion.
Ukraine parliament deadlocked on Tymoshenko as EU summit nears
KIEV (Reuters) – EU negotiators flew to Ukraine on Tuesday in what looked like a final attempt to secure the release of jailed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko, but parliament was far from agreeing a law that could allow her go to Germany.
Israel has initial plans for 24,000 more settler homes
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel is making plans to build nearly 24,000 more settler homes in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, an anti-settlement group said on Tuesday, questioning the government’s commitment to peace talks with the Palestinians….
Torture claims cast shadow over Sri Lanka’s Commonwealth summit
COLOMBO (Reuters) – Allegations of abuses against ethnic minority Tamils in Sri Lanka four years after the army won a civil war against separatist rebels have put pressure on the government as it prepares to host a Commonwealth summit.
Students try to blockade Bulgaria’s parliament, five detained
SOFIA (Reuters) – Hundreds of Bulgarian students tried to blockade lawmakers inside parliament on Tuesday, escalating their street demonstrations against the Socialist-led government.
Italian anarchists jailed for shooting businessman
MILAN (Reuters) – Two members of an Italian anarchist group were jailed on Tuesday for shooting a businessman in 2012, judicial sources said, a crime that revived fears of a return to the type of political violence common in the 1970s.
European rights body urges Russia to reform judiciary
MOSCOW (Reuters) – A leading European human rights body urged President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to overhaul Russia’s creaking judicial system, long criticized as vulnerable to political meddling and as an obstacle to business.
Pro-Mursi students, police, residents clash at Egyptian university
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egyptian police fired tear gas on Tuesday at student supporters of ousted Islamist President Mohamed Mursi who were protesting at the university in the Nile Delta town of Mansoura, witnesses said.
