Bomb hits convoy of Iraq's Sunni finance minister

BAGHDAD (AP) — Attackers detonated a bomb Sunday next to a convoy carrying the Iraqi finance minister, a central figure in more than two weeks of protests by minority Sunnis against the Shiite-dominated Baghdad government, police said.The minister, Rafia al-Issawi, was not hurt in the bombing. The device exploded as the last car in his convoy was passing by.Al-Issawi is one of the senior Sunni officials...

Read More..

Potential impact of Mubarak retrial

CAIRO (AP) — Egypt's highest appeals court on Sunday overturned Hosni Mubarak's conviction and ordered a retrial of the former president for failing to prevent the killing of nearly 900 protesters during the 2011 uprising that toppled his 29-year regime. A look at the potential impact of the decision:— A retrial can produce a not-guilty verdict, uphold Mubarak's life sentence or reduce it. It cannot...

Read More..

Egypt's Mubarak to get new trial over killings

CAIRO (AP) — An Egyptian appeals court on Sunday overturnedHosni Mubarak's life sentence and ordered a retrial of the ousted leader in the killing of hundreds of protesters, a ruling likely to further unsettle a nation still reeling from political turmoil and complicate the struggle of his Islamist successor to assert his authority. The court's decision put the spotlight back on the highly...

Read More..

US drone strike in Pakistan kills influential Taliban commander

Key Pakistani Taliban commander Maulvi Nazir – considered a "good" Taliban by some among the Pakistani military – died in a US drone strike that left at least six dead on Thursday, according to local reports.According to Pakistan's Dawn newspaper, Taliban and local government officials confirm that Mr. Nazir and at least two of his deputies were killed when a US drone hit their vehicle in South Waziristan,...

Read More..

Russia plans biggest war games since Soviet era

The Russian navy has announced that it will hold its biggest war games since Soviet times in the Mediterranean and Black seas later this month.The ambitious exercises, which will involve ships from all four major Russian fleets, are a sign of growing confidence on the part of Russia's military as it begins to enjoy the benefits of President Vladimir Putin's huge budget allocations for renewing and...

Read More..

Taiwan undersea oil plans raise neighbors' eyebrows

Taiwan, a normally quiet claimant to portions of the disputed South China Sea, plans to explore for undersea oil there, a move likely to test fragile relations with China and upset major Southeast Asian nations.Ringed by China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and others, the waters are believed to hold as many as 213 billion barrels of oil but competing claims from the six bordering nations have...

Read More..

Iran warns foreign planes near Strait of Hormuz

Iran's navy issued dozens of warnings to foreign planes and warships that approached its forces during a five-day sea maneuver near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a semi-official news agency reported Tuesday.Mehr quoted Adm. Amir Rastgari, spokesman for the exercise, as saying that naval and air defense forces on 30 occasions warned off reconnaissance planes, drones and warships belonging to "extraregional...

Read More..

Saudis flee dry kingdom to Bahrain for New Year

 Residents of Saudi Arabia, where booze and New Year's celebrations are banned, flooded into neighboring Bahrain in search of festivities to ring in 2013.More than 80,000 cars crossed a causeway over the Gulf to Bahrain Monday night to celebrate New Year's Eve, the Saudi newspaper Al-Youm reported on Tuesday. Saudi Arabia adheres to a strict interpretation of Islam and bans alcohol as well as...

Read More..

Iraqi Shiite cleric lends support to Sunni protest

 A top anti-American Shiite cleric lent support Tuesday to Sunni protesters who have been rallying against Iraq's Shiite-dominated central government, increasing pressure on the leadership in Baghdad.Hard-line religious leader Muqtada al-Sadr told reporters in the Shiite holy city of Najaf that the demonstrators have the right to protest as long as they are peaceful. He stopped short of calling...

Read More..

Heavy clashes in suburbs of Syrian capital

 Activists and state media are reporting heavy clashes and shelling in suburbs of the Syrian capital of Damascus and other parts of the country.The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says some of the heaviest fighting is taking place in the Damascus suburb of Daraya.The fighting showed rebel strength in the area of capital as the 22-month civil war drags on.The Observatory and...

Read More..

Clashes near Syrian capital, Aleppo airport closed

BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian troops and rebels fought Tuesday in suburbs of Damascus as well as near Aleppo's airport, stopping all flights in and out of the northern city, activists and state media said.The intense fighting underlined the rebels' tenacity in the capital and around Aleppo, Syria's largest city, but also the determination of the Bashar Assad regime to carry on fighting. Activists say more...

Read More..

Delhi police say they will protect women on buses

Indian officials announced Friday a broad campaign to protect women in New Delhi following the gang rape and brutal beating of a 23-year-old student on a moving bus in the capital.Police arrested a boy Thursday night, the fifth person detained in connection with the crime, Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar said. Authorities were hunting for the final assailant, he said. Those arrested were being...

Read More..

Russia's Gazprom to buy Kyrgyz state gas company

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (AP) — Kyrgyzstan's state-owned natural gas company says it is to be sold to Russia's energy monopoly Gazprom, raising hopes of an end to debilitating energy shortages in the impoverished Central Asian nation.Kyrgyzgaz general director Turgunbek Kulmurzayev said Friday that the sale of the company to the Russian gas giant would be completed by April 1.Last week, gas and electricity...

Read More..

Coalition soldier missing in Afghanistan

A search is under way in southern Afghanistan for a soldier from the NATO-led coalition, believed to be the first to have gone missing since a U.S. Army sergeant was captured by the Taliban more than three years ago, a military spokesman said Friday. U.S. Army Maj. Martyn Crighton said the soldier was among the 1,560 troops from the former Soviet republic of Georgia serving in the country. A statement...

Read More..

US budget negotiations setback drives stocks down

A failed attempt find a compromise in U.S. budget negotiations sent global stock markets plummeting Friday, as investors feared the world's largest economy could teeter into recession if no deal is found. Without an agreement, the U.S. economy will fall off the so-called "fiscal cliff" on Jan. 1 when Bush-era tax cuts expire and spending cuts kick in automatically. The measures were designed to have...

Read More..

Japan's next leader wants freer rein for military

Imagine that North Korea launched a missile at Japan. Tokyo could — and would certainly try to — shoot it down. But if the missile were flying overhead toward Hawaii or the continental United States, Japan would have to sit idly by. Japan's military is kept on a very short leash under a war-renouncing constitution written by U.S. officials whose main concern was keeping Japan from rearming soon after...

Read More..

Moving Mali forward

Every year since 2001 the Festival au Desert has been held near Timbuktu, drawing musicians and listeners from around the world – until now. Next year’s event, according to its Website, is planned as a “Festival in Exile” held in stages in various other countries.Mali, long considered an island of stability in a turbulent region, was turned upside down last spring as armed groups overran the north...

Read More..