White House: deadline for Afghan security pact could slip into January
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House would like Afghan President Hamid Karzai to sign a bilateral security agreement by the end of the year, but the deadline could slip into early January, a spokesman said on Wednesday.
Russia seeks trade talks with Washington: Russian official
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Russia on Wednesday proposed a series of bilateral trade negotiations with the United States under the umbrella of a hoped-for new trade agenda between the two countries, a senior Russian official said.
Blood donation collectors thrown out of Israeli parliament
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – The speaker of Israel’s parliament ordered a blood-collection crew to leave the legislature’s premises on Wednesday after it turned down an offer of a blood donation from an Ethiopian-born lawmaker.
Rwandan Hutu fighters in Congo surrendering in large numbers: U.N.
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – Members of a Rwandan Hutu militia in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo have been surrendering in large numbers to U.N. peacekeepers trying to neutralize armed groups in the region, a senior U.N. official sa…
Italian PM Letta wins confidence votes, vows reforms
ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s Prime Minister Enrico Letta won a confidence vote in the Senate on Wednesday, confirming his government’s majority after promising sweeping reforms and urging lawmakers to back him or risk chaos.
U.S., Britain suspend aid to north Syria after Islamists seize weapons store
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – The United States and Britain suspended non-lethal aid to northern Syria after Islamist fighters seized Western-backed rebel weapons warehouses, highlighting fears that supplies could end up in the wrong hands.
Thai crisis deepens as PM’s supporters weigh in
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s red-shirted supporters said on Wednesday they were ready to defend her government in the streets from an elite-backed protest movement seeking to install an unelected “People’s Council”.
France’s Greens start fight against new surveillance powers
PARIS (Reuters) – France’s Green Party said it would back a campaign to force the constitutional court to review a new law that expands the government’s powers to monitor phone and Internet connection data without authorization from a judge.
Media urge Syrian rebels to stop kidnappings
LONDON (Reuters) – International news organizations called on Syrian rebel leaders on Wednesday to stop armed groups kidnapping journalists, saying dozens of abductions were preventing full media coverage of the civil war.
Mexico Senate passes energy bill; goes to lower house
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexico’s Senate on Wednesday passed an energy bill that aims to lure private capital into the state-run oil and gas industry, in the biggest strategic shift since the world’s No. 10 oil producer nationalized the sector in 1938.
