Italy’s Senate approves law to ease overcrowded prisons
ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s parliament on Thursday approved measures to ease some of the worst prison overcrowding in Europe by cutting pre-trial detentions and using alternative punishments for minor offences.
Politics to fore as Egyptian rivals celebrate Eid
CAIRO (Reuters) – Bitterly divided Egyptians prayed in public and children played as they celebrated the Eid al-Fitr holiday on Thursday.
Assad shown unharmed after Syria rebels report attack
AMMAN (Reuters) – Syrian rebels said on Thursday they targeted President Bashar al-Assad’s motorcade heading to a Damascus mosque to mark the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr, but state television showed him unharmed and the government denied he had been …
Nigerian policeman caught extorting money on camera is sacked
LAGOS (Reuters) – It was a crime so familiar to inhabitants of Nigeria’s corruption-ridden main metropolis that few would have batted an eyelid had the victim not managed to record the whole incident on a secret camera.
Lawyer says not allowed to represent China’s disgraced Bo Xilai
BEIJING (Reuters) – A lawyer appointed to represent disgraced Chinese politician Bo Xilai in his corruption case said on Thursday he has been denied permission to act on his behalf, a move likely to reinforce belief that Bo’s conviction is a foregone c…
Graveyard picnic bomb kills 14 women and children in Afghan east
KABUL (Reuters) – A bomb planted in an Afghan graveyard killed 14 women and children on Thursday, many of them picnicking at the graveside of a family member during the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday, officials said.
Former senior China official to be prosecuted for graft
BEIJING (Reuters) – A former deputy head of China’s top planning agency has been thrown out of the Communist Party and will be prosecuted for corruption, state media said on Thursday, after allegations against him were first posted online.
Philippines’ Aquino vows tough action after blasts in south
MANILA (Reuters) – Philippine President Benigno Aquino vowed on Thursday tough action against “enemies of peace” after a spate of bomb attacks in the south which security officials blamed on a new al Qaeda-linked militant group.
Czech Social Democrats see enough support to call early election
PRAGUE (Reuters) – Czech Social Democrat party leader Bohuslav Sobotka said on Thursday he believed there was sufficient support for a motion to dissolve parliament and hold an early election in the autumn.
Pakistan army says civilian wounded by Indian fire on Kashmir border
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – Pakistan’s military accused Indian forces on Thursday of wounding a Pakistani civilian after opening fire along the disputed Kashmir border, a security source said.
