Boskalis wins $30 million contract to remove wrecked Concordia
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Dutch marine salvage company Royal Boskalis Westminster won a 30 million dollar contract to remove the wrecked cruise ship Costa Concordia from the waters around the Italian island of Giglio, the company said on Thursday.
Some Egyptian Islamists on haj pray for victory against generals
MECCA (Reuters) – Saudi Arabian authorities have asked pilgrims to put politics aside during the annual haj, but amid bitter divisions in Egypt, some Islamists refuse to keep quiet.
Iranian dissidents say Tehran moving nuclear research site
PARIS (Reuters) – An exiled Iranian opposition group said on Thursday it had information about what it said was a center for nuclear weaponisation research in Tehran that the government was moving to avoid detection ahead of negotiations with world pow…
Pakistani teenager, shot by Taliban, wins EU human rights prize
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Pakistani teenager Malala Yousafzai, shot in the head by the Taliban for campaigning for education for girls, won the European Union’s annual human rights award on Thursday, beating fugitive U.S. intelligence analyst Edward Snowden…
Advisory: Zeidan tweet story withdrawn
TRIPOLI (Reuters) – Please be advised that the TRIPOLI story reporting that Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan had sent a Twitter message which said his captors wanted him to step down is wrong. The Twitter account was fake and was not Zeidan’s. The stor…
U.S. gives tacit backing to Philippines in China sea dispute
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry gave tacit backing to the Philippines’ stance in a tense maritime dispute with China on Thursday, saying that all countries had a right to seek arbitration to resolve competing territor…
Arab league, OIC call for Eid ceasefire in Syria
CAIRO (Reuters) – The Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Thursday urged Syrian government forces and fighters battling President Bashar al-Assad to stage a ceasefire during the Islamic Eid al-Adha holiday, which falls next…
Tasks for Italy’s Letta after beating Berlusconi challenge
ROME (Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta’s near term survival seems to be assured after beating an attempt by center-right leader Silvio Berlusconi to bring down his coalition government.
Myanmar takes long-awaited ASEAN chair, but can it cope?
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Brunei (Reuters) – In a room festooned with purple and yellow flowers, Myanmar took a long-coveted role on Thursday as chairman of ASEAN, the regional grouping of Southeast Asia.
Observers call Azerbaijan vote unfair, opposition plans challenge
BAKU (Reuters) – Opponents of Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev said on Thursday they would go to court to challenge his election to a third term, rejecting the result of a vote that international monitors said was seriously flawed.
