Insight: Syria uses red tape, threats to control U.N. aid agencies
BEIRUT/GENEVA (Reuters) – It is a 15-minute drive from the five-star hotel that houses U.N. aid staff in Damascus to rebel-held suburbs where freezing children are starving to death.
Controlled blasts by Afghan army shake Kabul: government
KABUL (Reuters) – Two huge explosions in Kabul’s west on Sunday shook the city, rattling windows as far away as the diplomatic zone, 12 kms (seven miles) from the blasts.
Eleven bodies found in southern Mexico
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Ten charred bodies were found in a burnt-out truck in Mexico’s southern Oaxaca state on Saturday, the state’s prosecutor’s office said.
North Korean leader’s influential aunt remains in power after uncle Jang’s execution
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s influential aunt Kim Kyong Hui remains a part of the regime’s inner circle, even after the execution of her husband last week, the second most powerful man in the isolated nation.
Bachelet set for big win in Chile’s two-woman poll showdown
SANTIAGO (Reuters) – Former President Michelle Bachelet is virtually guaranteed to win Chile’s election runoff on Sunday and the center-left leader is gunning for a landslide triumph to bolster her reform mandate.
China detains 1,300 people suspected of making, selling fake drugs: media
BEIJING (Reuters) – Chinese police have rounded up more than 1,300 suspects nationwide for producing and selling fake medicine as part of an intensified government crackdown, state media reported.
China condemns Abe for criticizing air defense zone
BEIJING (Reuters) – China has condemned Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for “maliciously slandering” its air defense zone in an escalating war of words between the neighbors.
Venezuela suspends Air France flight after bomb warning
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan authorities took passengers off an Air France flight that was due to depart to Paris on Saturday after French officials warned of a possible bomb threat, Venezuela’s interior minister said.
Analysis: Japan PM to push security agenda next year with fresh urgency
TOKYO (Reuters) – Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will likely push with fresh urgency next year a bid to ease legal limits on the Japanese military’s ability to fight shoulder to shoulder with allies overseas, a goal that eluded him in his first troubled ter…
U.S., Britain have not helped Syrian rebels enough, Saudi prince says
MONACO (Reuters) – Opponents of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad have been at an impossible disadvantage since the start of the Syrian conflict because the United States and Britain refused to help them, an influential Saudi Arabian prince said on Satu…
