Suicide bomber in Iraqi town of Balad kills eight: medics
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Eight people were killed and 25 wounded in a suicide bomb attack on Monday on a cafe in Balad, 80 km (50 miles) north of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, medical sources said.
German ministers say Russian gay law smacks of dictatorship
BERLIN (Reuters) – Two German cabinet ministers have added to criticism of Russia’s anti-“gay propaganda” law, saying President Vladimir Putin appeared to be leading his country into a “flawless dictatorship”.
Russian opposition leader faces accusations of foreign funding
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian prosecutors accused opposition leader Alexei Navalny on Monday of illegally receiving foreign funding for his campaign to oust an ally of President Vladimir Putin as Moscow mayor in an election next month.
Libyan strikes shut oil terminals again, hit new fields
TRIPOLI/LONDON (Reuters) – Striking security guards reimposed a two-week-old shutdown at Libya’s two biggest crude export terminals on Monday, hours after they had reopened, and more oilfields closed in a wave of protest that is propping up world oil p…
Rouhani defends cabinet choices in Iran parliament debate
DUBAI (Reuters) – President Hassan Rouhani said on Monday he had chosen a cabinet to overcome Iran’s economic crisis and diplomatic isolation as parliament began debating whether to approve his proposed ministers.
Two people get death sentence for violence in China’s Xinjiang
BEIJING (Reuters) – A court in China’s Xinjiang has sentenced two people to death and another to life imprisonment over deadly violence in the far western region where the government often blames what it calls Muslim separatists for causing unrest.
Hospitalized American jailed in North Korea appears well: Swedish diplomat
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Sweden confirmed on Monday it had visited a hospitalized U.S. Christian missionary imprisoned in North Korea and said that he was well, considering the circumstances.
Fresh Myanmar clashes signal growing Muslim desperation
(Reuters) – Attempts to bring stability to Myanmar’s strategic northwest Rakhine State could be unraveling after police opened fire on Rohingya Muslims for the third time in two months, reviving tensions in a region beset by religious violence last yea…
Zimbabwe’s Mugabe tells election critics to ‘go hang’
HARARE (Reuters) – Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe told critics of his re-election to “go hang” on Monday, making clear he would brook no questioning of his disputed victory either from the West or his main rival, who is challenging the result in co…
Benin president scraps PM’s post in new government
COTONOU (Reuters) – Benin President Boni Yayi has removed the post of prime minister in a new 26-member cabinet announced late on Sunday, fanning speculation about a leadership rift in the cotton-producing West African state.
