Jailed Kurdish rebel leader presents peace process proposals
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Jailed Kurdish militant leader Abdullah Ocalan said the peace process to end three decades of conflict had entered a second stage with his fighters’ withdrawal from Turkey and he had presented the Turkish government with new propos…
Indian PM in rare visit to Kashmir after attack on soldiers
SRINAGAR, India (Reuters) – Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made a rare visit to restive Kashmir on Tuesday, a day after militants killed eight soldiers in an ambush, the bloodiest in a series of attacks since India hanged a separatist in February.
German election puts Europe’s ambitions on ice
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – For the best part of a year, the minds of European policymakers have focused on one overriding issue – banking union.
Qatar emir hands power to son, no word on prime minister
DOHA (Reuters) – Qatar’s emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani handed power on Tuesday to his son, Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim, taking the rare step for a Gulf Arab ruler of voluntarily ceding power to try to ensure a smooth succession.
Australia seeks Triton superdrones for Indian Ocean overwatch
CANBERRA (Reuters) – Rising Indian Ocean rivalries as China seeks to safeguard key energy lifelines loom behind an Australian push for a $3 billion fleet of maritime superdrones, which will likely boost intelligence sharing with the United States.
New emir seen maintaining Qatar’s role as power broker
DOHA (Reuters) – Qatar’s new emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani is widely expected to push ahead with his father’s drive that transformed the wealthy Gulf Arab gas exporter into a regional power broker.
Qatar’s outgoing emir, a visionary for tiny Gulf state
DOHA (Reuters) – To his admirers, Qatari emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani is a champion of the common man’s struggle against tyranny, and a visionary who turned billions of dollars in energy revenues into strategic international investments.
Iran condemns Egypt’s sectarian killings as ‘contradicting Islam’
DUBAI (Reuters) – Iran’s foreign ministry condemned the killing of four Shi’ite Egyptians near Cairo, saying such extremism violated the tenets of Islam, state television reported late on Monday.
Ten car bombs kill 39 in Iraqi capital
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Ten car bombs exploded across the Iraqi capital on Monday, killing nearly 40 people in markets and garages on the evening of a Shi’ite Muslim celebration, police and medical sources said.
Singapore smog eases as Indonesian planes waterbomb fires
SINGAPORE/JAKARTA (Reuters) – Air quality in Singapore improved significantly to “moderate” pollution levels on Saturday, as Indonesian planes waterbombed raging forest fires and investigators scrambled to determine the cause of one of Southeast Asia’s…
