Philippines’ Aquino hopeful violence over soon; eight dead in clash
ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Reuters) – Fighting between Philippine forces and Muslim rebels in a southern city has been confined to just two areas and should be over soon, President Benigno Aquino said on Thursday.
NATO to investigate drone strike after Afghans say civilians died
KABUL (Reuters) – Afghanistan’s NATO force has launched an investigation into an attack by a drone aircraft on an al Qaeda member which a senior Afghan official said killed eight women and children.
Somalia replaces central bank chief criticised in U.N. report
NAIROBI (Reuters) – Abdusalam Omer has been replaced as Somalia’s central bank governor after seven months in the job, he said on Thursday, once again strongly denying graft allegations made by United Nations monitors.
British Conservatives draw level with Labour as economy recovers: poll
LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister David Cameron’s Conservatives have pulled level with the opposition Labour party for the first time in 18 months, according to a YouGov poll published on Thursday, as the economy shows signs of recovery.
Guantanamo computer problems worsening, defense lawyer tells judge
GUANTANAMO BAY U.S. NAVAL BASE, Cuba (Reuters) – Months of efforts to fix a file-gobbling computer system used by defense lawyers in the Guantanamo war crimes tribunal have only turned up more problems, the chief defense counsel testified on Wednesday….
Japan’s Abe orders surviving Fukushima reactors scrapped, pledges safe Olympics
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ordered the scrapping of two Fukushima nuclear reactors that survived the 2011 tsunami, a write-off that threatens to complicate a turnaround plan the operator has presented to creditors.
Children find 10 handcuffed, blindfolded corpses in Baghdad: police
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Children discovered the handcuffed and blindfolded corpses of 10 unidentified young men in eastern Baghdad on Thursday, apparently killed by gunshots to the head, Iraqi police said.
Former British PM Blair’s daughter held at gunpoint in London
LONDON (Reuters) – The daughter of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was held up at gunpoint during an attempted robbery as she was out walking in London, local media said on Thursday.
Egypt shortens curfew by two hours as of Saturday: cabinet
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egypt will shorten its curfew as of Saturday to start at midnight rather than 11 p.m., the cabinet said in an emailed statement.
EU police officer shot dead in volatile northern Kosovo
PRISTINA (Reuters) – A European Union police officer in Kosovo was shot dead on Thursday in a northern, mainly Serb region where tensions are rising over a fragile accord between the Balkan country and its former master Serbia.
