Italy PM Letta urges backing for government in no-confidence vote
ROME (Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta urged parliament to back his deputy in a no-confidence vote on Friday which threatens to plunge his fragile coalition into a political crisis.
Kurd militants give Turkey “final warning” on peace deal
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Kurdish militants issued what they said was a “final warning” to Turkey on Friday to take concrete steps to advance a peace process aimed at ending a three-decade insurgency, or be responsible for it grinding to a halt.
Thai navy denies allegation of Rohingya Muslim smuggling
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand’s navy denied on Friday a Reuters report that its personnel were involved in a lucrative smuggling and trafficking network that exploits minority Rohingya Muslims fleeing persecution and dire living conditions in Myanmar.
Kerry, Palestinians discuss peace talks in Amman, progress unlikely
AMMAN (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry met a Palestinian negotiator in Jordan to discuss resuming peace talks with Israel, officials said, with chances of an immediate breakthrough appearing slim before he leaves later on Friday.
Venezuela slams U.S. over ‘repressive regimes’ remarks
CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro demanded the United States apologize on Thursday after the Obama administration’s nominee for envoy to the United Nations said there was a crackdown on civil society in the South American country….
Egyptian Christians happy Mursi is gone but remain wary
CAIRO (Reuters) – The evening Egypt’s army ousted Islamist President Mohamed Mursi, Christian lawyer Peter Naggar celebrated on Tahrir Square with even greater joy than when autocrat Hosni Mubarak fell from power two years ago.
New Pakistan government vows to rescue ailing power sector
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan’s new energy minister promised on Thursday to fix the country’s ailing energy sector in three years, laying out an ambitious plan to tackle crippling power shortages that have devastated the economy and sparked violent pr…
Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy returns home, joins poll campaign
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) – Cambodian opposition leader Sam Rainsy returned home from exile on Friday after a royal pardon removed the threat of a jail term and he immediately joined the campaign to unseat long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen in this month’s…
BRICS joint action at G20 summit may be wishful thinking
BRASILIA (Reuters) – Plans by the world’s leading emerging economies to join forces to battle the latest bout of global financial turbulence could remain on the drawing board once again at the G20 meeting in Moscow this week.
U.S. concerned over North Korean arms ship, Panama awaits U.N
PANAMA CITY/MIAMI (Reuters) – A U.N. team is due to arrive in Panama next month to inspect a North Korean ship which was seized carrying arms from Cuba, a potential breach of U.N. sanctions that the United States said was “incredibly concerning.”
