Operator at Japan’s Fukushima starts hazardous year-long fuel removal
TOKYO (Reuters) – The operator of Japan’s wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant took the first step on Monday in the long and hazardous process of decommissioning the facility, extracting four fuel rods from their container for later removal.
Syrian delegation holds talks in Moscow on peace conference
MOSCOW (Reuters) – A Syrian government delegation met Russian officials on Monday to discuss plans for an international peace conference on the conflict in the Middle East nation.
Jordan seeks U.N. Security Council seat after Saudi rejection
AMMAN (Reuters) – Jordan has formally submitted a bid for a two-year seat on the U.N. Security Council, officials said on Monday, after its ally Saudi Arabia rejected the position partly in protest over international failure to end Syria’s civil war.
French president, in West Bank, urges Israeli settlement halt
RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) – French President Francois Hollande called on Israel on Monday to halt settlement building on occupied territory, saying it hampers chances for a peace agreement with the Palestinians.
Assailant opens fire at Paris newspaper HQ
PARIS (Reuters) – An assailant opened fire at the central Paris office of left-wing daily newspaper Liberation on Monday, seriously injuring one person before fleeing, a police official and staff at the newspaper said.
Kidnappers free Libya’s deputy spy chief: official
TRIPOLI (Reuters) – Kidnappers have freed Libya’s deputy intelligence chief a day after he was abducted from Tripoli’s international airport, a senior parliamentary security committee official said on Monday.
Egypt blames militants for officer’s killing in Cairo
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egyptian security officials have blamed Islamist militants for the shooting death of an Interior Ministry lieutenant colonel, the highest-profile killing in Cairo since the overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi in July.
Split in Berlusconi party means government more stable: Italy PM
ROME (Reuters) – A split in the center-right party of Silvio Berlusconi means the Italian government will be more stable, Prime Minister Enrico Letta said on Monday.
Markets reward China’s reform ambition, await follow-up
HONG KONG/BEIJING (Reuters) – Investors rewarded Beijing on Monday for its ambitious reform plan, sustaining a stocks rally led by consumer goods shares seen as direct beneficiaries of the promised easing of China’s one-child policy and efforts to boos…
Bachelet reforms hinge on deft handling of Chile’s tricky Congress
SANTIAGO (Reuters) – Presidential favorite Michelle Bachelet fell just short of a decisive first-round victory and her center-left bloc failed to gain major ground in Congress on Sunday, possibly snarling her ambitious plans to curb Chile’s steep incom…
