Tunisian union seeks to salvage crisis talks
TUNIS (Reuters) – Tunisia’s powerful labor union on Thursday tried to broker a last-minute agreement between the country’s ruling Islamists and secular opposition, struggling to reach consensus over forming a new government.
Bangladesh executes Islamist leader, deadly clashes on streets
DHAKA (Reuters) – Bangladesh executed Islamist opposition leader Abdul Quader Mollah on Thursday for war crimes he committed in 1971, in a move likely to spark more violent protests less than a month before elections are due to be held.
Speaking in foreign tongues? Russian lawmakers say ‘nyet’
Nationalist lawmakers want to ban foreign languages at the workplace – a rule that would leave some foreigners speechless, from menial laborers from former Soviet states to Western business executives in suits and ties.
Ukraine will ‘soon sign’ EU deal, says deputy PM
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Ukraine’s first deputy prime minister Serhiy Arbuzov said on Thursday Kiev would “soon sign” a trade and association agreement with the European Union, but declined to provide any date or deadline.
Air strike kills 15 civilians in Yemen by mistake: officials
SANAA (Reuters) – Fifteen people on their way to a wedding in Yemen were killed in an air strike after their party was mistaken for an al Qaeda convoy, local security officials said on Thursday.
Brahimi sets deadline for naming Syrian delegations to peace talks
GENEVA (Reuters) – International mediator Lakhdar Brahimi has given Syria’s warring sides until December 27 to name their delegations to planned peace negotiations next month, officials said on Thursday.
Iran, world powers work on how to implement nuclear deal
VIENNA (Reuters) – Experts from Iran and six world powers labored for a fourth day on Thursday to work out exactly how to implement last month’s breakthrough deal for Tehran to curb its nuclear program in return for limited sanctions easing.
Israel delays Bedouin resettlement plan
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has postponed a plan to resettle tens of thousands of Bedouin Arabs in the Negev desert that had ignited violent protests, an adviser to his government said on Thursday.
African traditions, military pomp for Mandela burial
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Nelson Mandela will be laid to rest on Sunday in an elaborate ceremony combining a state funeral and all its military pomp with the traditional burial rituals of his Xhosa clan to ensure he has an easy transition into the after…
Congo signs peace deal with M23 rebels: Kenya presidential spokesman
NAIROBI (Reuters) – The Congolese government has signed a peace deal with the M23 rebels it had been fighting until they laid down their arms last month, Kenya’s presidential spokesman said on his official Twitter account on Thursday.
