Libyan navy opens fire after tanker approaches mutinous port
TRIPOLI (Reuters) – Libya’s navy opened fire after a Maltese-flagged oil tanker approached to illegally load crude at a port that has been controlled for months by armed protesters demanding more autonomy from Tripoli, officials said on Monday.
Iran rejects U.S. suggestion of Syrian peace talks role
ANKARA/BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Iran on Monday appeared to rule out participation in Syrian peace talks later this month, dismissing a U.S. suggestion that it could be involved “from the sidelines” as not respecting its dignity.
China urges South Sudan ceasefire as peace talks stutter
ADDIS ABABA/KHARTOUM (Reuters) – China, the biggest investor in South Sudan’s oil industry, called on Monday for an immediate ceasefire in the world’s newest state, as rebel and government negotiators haggled over the scope of peace talks meant to end …
U.S. woman known as Jihad Jane sentenced to 10 years in plot
PHILADELPHIA (Reuters) – A U.S. judge on Monday sentenced an American woman who called herself Jihad Jane to 10 years in prison – at least a decade less than prosecutors had sought for her role in a failed plot to kill a Swedish artist who had depicted…
U.N. sending invitations to Switzerland peace talks on Syria
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is sending out invitations on Monday to potential participants in Syrian peace talks scheduled to take place in Switzerland this month, the U.N. press office said.
Bangladesh PM says new election depends on end to violence
DHAKA (Reuters) – A day after rolling to victory in an election that was boycotted by the main opposition party and marred by deadly unrest, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina held to her stance that a fresh poll can be called only if her rivals h…
Latvia’s president nominates Laimdota Straujuma to be new PM
RIGA (Reuters) – Long-time civil servant Laimdota Straujuma was nominated on Monday to become Latvia’s first female prime minister and said the Baltic state would continue tight fiscal policies leading up to parliamentary elections in October if her ca…
Merkel in skiing accident as new German coalition bickers
BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel has broken her pelvis in a cross-country skiing accident, forcing her to call off some foreign visits and official appointments just when she needs to bed down her fractious new coalition government.
African migrants protest at embassies against Israeli detention
TEL AVIV (Reuters) – Several thousand African migrants protested outside Western embassies in Tel Aviv on Monday, demanding freedom for compatriots jailed by Israel in a desert facility under a new open-ended detention law.
Remaining Armenians pray for peace at Christmas in Damascus
DAMASCUS (Reuters) – A small congregation of Armenian Orthodox Christians prayed for peace at a Christmas service in Old Damascus on Monday and reflected on the hardships of living in an uneasy middle ground in Syria’s increasingly sectarian conflict.
