Insight: Ireland’s bailout report: Good, now fix public debt
DUBLIN (Reuters) – At the height of the euro zone’s debt crisis in July 2011, Ireland’s bailout looked doomed. Its credit rating had been cut to junk and borrowing costs hiked to an eye-watering 15 percent.
Afghan businessman accused of channeling aid money to insurgency
KABUL (Reuters) – U.S. inspectors are on the trail of a successful Afghan businessman they believe has channeled millions of dollars in aid to the al Qaeda-linked Haqqani network, one of the deadliest insurgent groups in Afghanistan, but still has dono…
Luxembourg PM Juncker under threat as opponents seek coalition
LUXEMBOURG (Reuters) – Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker was facing the end of a 19-year run in power on Tuesday after the centre-right Democratic Party (DP) said it would begin coalition talks with would-be partners, the Socialists and the…
Australia firefighters prepare for worst as hot weather returns
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australian firefighters worked desperately on Tuesday to contain massive wildfires burning in mountains west of Sydney, but with forecasts of high winds and dangerously hot weather, authorities fear more houses and lives will be lost…
Osborne’s star rises along with Britain’s economy
LONDON (Reuters) – With no apparent end in sight to Britain’s economic stagnation and his 2012 budget slated as a shambles, George Osborne spent much of last year holed up behind the cream limestone walls of his finance ministry.
Bosnian soccer success sets example for healing ethnic divide
SARAJEVO (Reuters) – Bosnia’s international footballers have offered their political leaders a valuable lesson: see what you can achieve when you set aside your ethnic divisions.
China arrests five for ‘rumors’ online: Xinhua
SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China has arrested five people on charges of blackmail and spreading false information online, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported on Tuesday, as the government intensifies a campaign to banish rumors.
Twitter account of China’s state broadcaster hacked
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s state broadcaster CCTV News said on Tuesday one of its Twitter accounts had been hacked, and deleted a tweet claiming the country’s president had set up a special unit to probe corruption accusations against a former domesti…
U.S. missile attacks killed civilians in Yemen: rights group
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. missile strikes, including armed drone attacks, have killed dozens of civilians in Yemen as the United States tries to crack down on al Qaeda in the country, a prominent human rights organization said on Tuesday.
U.S. drone strikes killed Pakistani grandmother, laborers: Amnesty
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – U.S. drone strikes killed a Pakistani grandmother and 18 civilian laborers last year, Amnesty International said on Tuesday, shedding new light on a major source of tension in U.S.-Pakistani relations.
