Mexico vigilantes refuse to lay down arms in troubled state
APATZINGAN, Mexico (Reuters) – Vigilante groups battling a powerful drug cartel in a troubled region of Mexico on Tuesday rejected a government call to lay down their arms, raising the risk of a serious security challenge to President Enrique Pena Niet…
Russia denies visa to U.S. journalist critical of Putin
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia has barred a U.S. journalist critical of President Vladimir Putin from the country for five years, in a move that could upset relations with the United States and has echoes of the Cold War.
Scores fleeing South Sudan fighting drown in Nile: officials
JUBA (Reuters) – Scores of South Sudanese drowned when a packed ferry capsized in the White Nile near the capital of an oil-producing region where government forces and rebels have fought for control, officials said on Tuesday.
Panama canal threatens to take over key expansion project
PANAMA CITY (Reuters) – The Panama Canal Authority (PCA) said on Tuesday it might take over a key part of the waterway’s expansion if the consortium in charge of the project makes good on a threat to suspend work.
Myanmar still using rape as weapon of war: women’s group
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A women’s group says that Myanmar’s military is still using rape as a weapon of war, with more than 100 women and girls raped by the army since a 2010 election brought about a nominally civilian government that has pursued rappro…
Iraq violence kills 24, militants stage big attacks near Falluja
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Sunni Muslim militants staged coordinated attacks near the western Iraqi city of Falluja on Tuesday, destroying two army tanks and capturing a police station, police said.
Syrian government forces advance as rebel infighting rages
BEIRUT (Reuters) – The Syrian government has retaken territory around the northern city of Aleppo, the military said on Tuesday, after two weeks of rebel infighting that has weakened the insurgency against President Bashar al-Assad.
Hollande stonewalls on private life to make reform pitch
PARIS (Reuters) – President Francois Hollande brushed away questions about an alleged affair with an actress on Tuesday and unveiled moves to ease company taxes, cut labor charges and trim France’s high public spending to revive a stagnant economy.
Three years after uprising, Tunisians celebrate near-model transition
TUNIS (Reuters) – Thousands of Islamist and secular Tunisians marked the third anniversary of autocrat Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali’s downfall on Tuesday, celebrating in the closest the Arab world has to a model transition to democracy.
Militiamen briefly storm Libyan parliament to demand vote
TRIPOLI (Reuters) – Former Libyan militia fighters stormed parliament on Tuesday and fired in the air to try to force assembly members to take a no-confidence vote against Prime Minister Ali Zeidan.
