Insight: Iraq security forces outmatched as ‘open war’ returns
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – The prison guards were counting inmates after the evening meal at Abu Ghraib jail when suddenly the lights went out. By the time they realized what was going on, the biggest combat operation by Iraqi insurgents in five years was und…
Israeli-Palestinian talks begin amid deep divisions
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Israeli and Palestinian negotiators held their first peace talks in nearly three years on Monday in a U.S.-brokered effort that Secretary of State John Kerry hopes will end their conflict despite deep divisions.
Kenya jails nine Somali pirates for attacking German ship
MOMBASA, Kenya (Reuters) – A Kenyan court in the coastal city of Mombasa sentenced nine Somalis on Tuesday to five years in prison each for attempting to hijack the German merchant vessel MV Courier in the Gulf of Aden in March 2009.
Turkish troops fire tear gas to stop ‘smugglers’ from Syria
ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkish soldiers shot into the air and fired tear gas to prevent hundreds of people, many of them believed to be smugglers, from trying to cross into Turkey from Syria, the Turkish military said on Tuesday.
Car bomb kills Syrian Kurdish politician
DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) – A prominent Syrian Kurdish politician was assassinated early on Tuesday outside his home near the Turkish border when a bomb planted in his car exploded.
Veteran Pakistani politician elected president
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Mamnoon Hussain, a veteran Pakistani politician and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s trusted ally, was elected president on Tuesday in a vote by legislators for the largely ceremonial post of head of state.
India’s Congress Party agrees to create new state in south
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – India’s ruling Congress party approved on Tuesday the creation of a new southern state, a move that has revived deep political divisions and raised fears of violence in the area, home to global firms including Google.
Zimbabwean exiles stage Mandela statue ‘freedom’ protest
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – Three Zimbabwean exiles chained themselves to a statue of anti-apartheid hero Nelson Mandela in South Africa on Tuesday, saying they wanted “freedom” for their homeland on the eve of elections there.
Tunisia’s ruling party says open to creating new government
TUNIS (Reuters) – The Islamist Ennahda party, which heads Tunisia’s government, is open to creating a new government but refuses to dissolve the transitional Constituent Assembly which is only weeks away from finalizing a draft constitution, a party of…
Sarkozy’s party fundraising drive boosts comeback hopes
PARIS (Reuters) – Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy’s hopes of a political comeback got a boost on Tuesday after a fundraising campaign he spearheaded to avert a financial crisis for his conservative UMP party raised 8.3 million euros in less tha…
