From Falluja to Maghreb, a new, diffuse al Qaeda
LONDON, Jan 16 – More than two years after the death of Osama bin Laden, the turbulent aftermath of the “Arab Spring” has helped his group – or more accurately, its offshoots and successors – gain ground.
Spanish ruling party rebels launch new conservative party
MADRID (Reuters) – Rebels from Spain’s ruling conservative People’s Party launched a new political party on Thursday, hoping to tap into public discontent over sky-high unemployment, graft scandals and surging separatism in Catalonia.
Analysis: What next for Algeria after new Bouteflika hospital visit?
ALGIERS/TUNIS (Reuters) – Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s second visit to Paris for hospital treatment has reignited speculation the president who oversaw Algeria’s emergence from almost a decade of civil war may be unable to run for reelection in April.
South Sudan rebels demand Uganda end support for president
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – South Sudan’s rebels have demanded that Uganda stop supporting government forces as a condition for signing a ceasefire to end fighting that has riven Africa’s youngest nation, a spokesman said on Thursday.
Turkish prosecutors removed as judicial purge intensifies
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey’s government removed a series of high-profile prosecutors on Thursday stepping up a purge of a judiciary Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan considers embroiled in a plot to undermine him with specious corruption allegations.
UK’s Cameron denies that army is no longer full U.S. partner
LONDON (Reuters) – Prime Minister David Cameron said on Thursday former U.S. defense secretary Robert Gates was wrong to say that spending cuts meant Britain’s armed forces were no longer able be a full military partner of the United States.
Internal Syrian opposition group rejects Geneva 2 talks
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syria’s centrist internal opposition group, which rejects the armed insurgency against President Bashar al-Assad, said on Thursday that it will not attend peace talks in Switzerland next week, in a setback for the negotiations.
UK swing to the right could lift Scottish independence campaign
LONDON (Reuters) – The struggling campaign for Scottish independence could get a lift from an expected swing to an anti-EU party in Britain’s European parliament elections in May, the leader of Scotland’s Green Party said on Thursday.
Bouteflika “fine”, back in Algeria after health checks -source
ALGIERS (Reuters) – Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s health is “fine” and he has returned to Algeria after a checkup at a Paris hospital this week, a source close to the presidency said on Thursday.
Prosecutors build Hariri bomb plot case on cellphone logs
THE HAGUE (Reuters) – Four men accused of assassinating Lebanese statesman Rafik al-Hariri used dozens of mobile phones during the last weeks of his life to coordinate the massive car bombing that killed him and 21 others in 2005, prosecutors said on T…
