Turkey’s Erdogan says corruption probe aims to smear government
ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday denounced a corruption crackdown on his allies months ahead of elections as a “dirty operation” to smear his administration and undermine the country’s progress.
Abbas guards intervene in confrontation between senior Palestinians
RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) – Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas’s elite guard unit surrounded parliament in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Wednesday to protect a legislator from being attacked by another senior official, witnesses said.
Lost in Melilla: Syrian refugees despair as Europe closes door
MELILLA, Spain (Reuters) – Yahya Khedr has travelled for more than two years, through five countries and with six forged passports to get his family from the war-ravaged Syrian city of Homs to Europe.
Putin gambles on Ukraine bailout
MOSCOW (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin has taken a gamble with Russia’s own fragile economy by bailing out Ukraine for the sake of keeping it in Moscow’s orbit and out of the European Union’s embrace.
Thousands demand Italian government resign in Rome rally
ROME (Reuters) – Thousands of protesters furious about high unemployment and a political class they regard as corrupt rallied in central Rome on Wednesday demanding the resignation of Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta’s government.
Iran, six powers to resume nuclear talks after snag
DUBAI/VIENNA (Reuters) – Iran and six world powers will resume talks in Geneva on Thursday about how to implement a landmark nuclear agreement, a week after Tehran broke off the discussions in anger at an expanding U.S. sanctions blacklist.
Protest wave against new Austrian government rises
VIENNA (Reuters) – A wave of protests against Austria’s new government escalated as tens of thousands of civil servants demonstrated in Vienna on Wednesday for better pay and an end to a hiring freeze.
Egypt sends Mursi to trial for international conspiracy
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt’s public prosecutor charged former President Mohamed Mursi and 35 other top Islamists on Wednesday with conspiring with foreign groups to commit terrorist acts in Egypt, in a case that could result in their execution.
Germany reacts coolly to French request on Central Africa
BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany reacted coolly on Wednesday to a French request that European countries step up support for its military mission in Central African Republic, playing down the likelihood of any financial assistance on the eve of an EU summit….
Suicide bomber kills three soldiers in attack on Pakistan checkpoint
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (Reuters) – A suicide bomb attack on a Pakistani checkpoint in the lawless region of North Waziristan killed at least three soldiers and wounded 32 people on Wednesday, intelligence and militant sources said.
