A quiet party apparatchik rises in North Korea, but perhaps not for long
SEOUL (Reuters) – The man who has most to gain from the apparent decline of Jang Song Thaek, the second-most powerful figure in North Korea, is a party apparatchik who has been around the ruling Kim dynasty for decades but kept out of the limelight unt…
Mass grave containing soldiers found in Mali
BAMAKO (Reuters) – Malian authorities have found a mass grave containing the bodies of soldiers in the southern garrison town of Kati, military and judicial sources said on Wednesday.
Australia defends raids on E. Timor lawyer and whistleblower
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Attorney-General George Brandis said on Wednesday raids by Australia’s domestic spy agency on the Canberra offices of a lawyer representing East Timor over Australian bugging claims were justified on grounds of national security.
North Korean leader’s ousted uncle alive and safe: South Korean minister
SEOUL (Reuters) – The uncle of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is alive and appears to be safe, South Korea’s unification minister said on Wednesday, a day after the South’s National Intelligence Service said he had been removed from two powerful posit…
Ukraine ministers beat street blockade, ready for cabinet meeting: spokesman
KIEV (Reuters) – Ukrainian ministers reached the main government headquarters in Kiev on Wednesday despite attempts by protesters to block their way and were preparing to hold a regular cabinet meeting, the government press service said.
France seeks to shed policeman role at Africa meeting
PARIS (Reuters) – France will tell African leaders at a Paris summit on Friday it will no longer play policeman on the continent, even as it prepares to act in a new conflict in Central African Republic after its Mali intervention this year.
Smuggling cartels, militants hinder revival of Somali port
KISMAYU, Somalia (Reuters) – Al Qaeda-linked militants, drug smugglers and shadowy criminal networks stand in the way of the Somali federal government’s hopes of hiring a foreign firm to manage the lucrative but run-down southern port of Kismayu.
Delhi’s rubble-strewn Connaught Place mirrors ruling party’s election struggle
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – The broken paving stones and exposed cables that mar the neo-Georgian grandeur of India’s prime shopping precinct give a glimpse into why the ruling Congress party might struggle to hold on to the capital Delhi in a local election…
Mexican Senate passes electoral bill, clearing way for energy debate
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexico’s Senate on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved an electoral reform demanded by the opposition, helping pave the way for Congress to focus on an energy bill at the center of President Enrique Pena Nieto’s economic agenda.
Venezuelan president says he has proof blackout was sabotage
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Tuesday he had proof that a massive power outage was caused by saboteurs aiming to throw the country into chaos before municipal elections this weekend.
