Gunshot caused Venezuela power outage: Maduro
CARACAS (Reuters) – President Nicolas Maduro said on Tuesday that saboteurs used a gun to bring down a power cable and plunge more than half of Venezuela into darkness earlier this month.
Italy moves to ease prison crowding, speed justice system
ROME (Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta announced measures on Tuesday to reduce chronic prison overcrowding and speed up the notoriously slow pace of civil court cases as his government made a start on a long-promised reform of the justice…
NATO says would have to plan for Afghan pullout by spring
BERLIN (Reuters) – NATO would have to start planning for a complete withdrawal from Afghanistan by early next spring if President Hamid Karzai refuses to sign a security pact allowing foreign troops to stay on, the alliance’s top military commander sai…
Serbia to start EU accession talks on January 21
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union set a date of January 21 for the start of accession talks with Serbia on Tuesday, rewarding Belgrade for democratic reforms and its efforts to normalize relations with its former province, Kosovo.
Exclusive: West signals to Syrian opposition Assad may stay
AMMAN (Reuters) – Western nations have indicated to the Syrian opposition that peace talks next month may not lead to the removal of President Bashar al-Assad and that his Alawite minority will remain key in any transitional administration, opposition …
Italy center-left leader calls for scrapping of ‘Google Tax’
ROME (Reuters) – The leader of Italy’s Democratic Party (PD), the biggest in the ruling coalition, called on Tuesday for the government to scrap a measure that would raise revenue by making it more expensive for online companies such as Google to do bu…
Germany’s Merkel begins third term with focus on Europe
BERLIN (Reuters) – Angela Merkel was elected to a third term as chancellor in a vote in the German lower house of parliament on Tuesday, paving the way for her new government to formally take power after months of coalition talks.
South Sudan says arrests 10, hunts ex-VP over ‘foiled coup’
JUBA (Reuters) – South Sudan said on Tuesday it had arrested 10 senior political figures and was hunting for its ex-vice president, accusing him of leading a “foiled coup” in the oil-producing nation’s capital, where gunfire rang out for a second day.
Azerbaijan detains election watchdog chief
BAKU (Reuters) – Azerbaijan on Tuesday detained an activist in what his lawyer said was political retribution for his reporting of violations in elections in which President Ilham Aliyev won a third term.
Video of migrants sprayed for scabies stirs outrage in Italy
ROME (Reuters) – A video showing migrants standing naked in the cold while being sprayed for scabies stirred outrage in Italy on Tuesday and underscored what many have criticized as the European Union’s failure to tackle its immigration crisis humanely…
