U.N. decries growing ‘anti-Syrian’ hostility in Egypt
GENEVA (Reuters) – Egyptian authorities have arbitrarily arrested and detained Syrian refugees as sentiment against them grows, the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday.
Syrian rebels kill dozens in offensives in north and south
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syrian rebels say they have overrun army positions in the north and south of the country this week, including an offensive in which a rights monitoring group said 51 soldiers were executed.
Russian punk band convict defiant after losing parole battle
SARANSK, Russia (Reuters) – A jailed member of Russian female punk group Pussy Riot lost a court battle to be released but remained unrepentant over last year’s protest against President Vladimir Putin in a Moscow cathedral.
Czech politicians escape graft charges thanks to immunity
PRAGUE (Reuters) – The senior Czech prosecutor withdrew bribery charges against three former members of parliament on Friday on the grounds they had immunity, weakening a wider case against corruption that led to the fall of Prime Minister Petr Necas.
Japan’s PM calls for high-level talks with China
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called on Friday for a leaders’ summit or a foreign ministers’ meeting between his country and China as soon as possible, drawing a cool reaction from Beijing which accused Japan of lacking since…
Special Report: How the Muslim Brotherhood lost Egypt
CAIRO (Reuters) – When Egyptians poured onto the streets in their millions to demand the fall of President Hosni Mubarak in 2011, few thought they would return two years later demonstrating for the overthrow of the man they elected to replace him.
Italy mafia gang made millions from car crash insurance scam
ROME (Reuters) – A mafia clan in southern Italy staged hundreds of fake car crashes every year to get millions of euros in insurance payouts to buy drugs and weapons, police said on Friday.
Police to question driver after Spanish train crash kills 80
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, Spain (Reuters) – The driver of a Spanish train that derailed, killing at least 80 people, was under police guard in hospital on Friday after the accident, which an official source said was caused by excessive speed.
Ivory Coast convicts eight for violating government cocoa price
ABIDJAN (Reuters) – Eight people have been convicted in Ivory Coast, the world’s top cocoa grower, of buying cocoa beans below the government-guaranteed price during the current mid-crop harvest, the Coffee and Cocoa Council said.
China’s vice president urges North Korea’s Kim to enter talks
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s vice president told North Korean leader Kim Jong-un that Beijing will push for talks on ridding the Korean peninsula of nuclear weapons, as he led a delegation to Pyongyang to mark the 60th anniversary of the end of the Kore…
