| Syria, rebels trade blame over fragile U.N. ceasefire Posted:  BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian government and rebels traded blame on Thursday for a huge explosion which killed 16 people in the city of Hama, as a two-week-old U.N.-backed ceasefire looked increasingly fragile. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon accused Damascus of breaking its pledge to withdraw heavy weapons and troops from towns, saying he was "gravely alarmed by reports of continued violence and killing in Syria." Syria blamed "terrorist" bomb-makers for Wednesday's blast. ...
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| Sarkozy swings further right, Hollande holds lead Posted:  PARIS (Reuters) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy swung further to the right on Thursday, proposing a new license to shoot for police pursuing suspects, in an increasingly frantic quest to woo far-right National Front voters before a decisive election runoff. A new rise in unemployment to the highest level since September 1999 dealt another blow to the conservative Sarkozy's effort to catch up with Socialist frontrunner Francois Hollande before the May 6 second round of the presidential election. ...
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| Hague court convicts Taylor of crimes in Sierra Leone Posted:  THE HAGUE (Reuters) - A United Nations-backed court convicted former Liberian president Charles Taylor of war crimes and crimes against humanity, the first time a head of state has been found guilty by an international tribunal since the Nazi trials at Nuremberg. The first African leader to stand trial for war crimes, Taylor had been charged with 11 counts of murder, rape, conscripting child soldiers and sexual slavery during intertwined wars in Liberia and Sierra Leone, when more than 50,000 people were killed. ...
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| Bin Laden's family deported from Pakistan to Saudi Posted:  ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - The family of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, killed almost a year ago by American special forces in a military town in northwest Pakistan, left Pakistan for Saudi Arabia early on Friday morning, the family lawyer told Reuters. The move ends months of speculation about the fate of the three widows and 11 children, who were detained by Pakistani security forces after the May 2 raid. "Yes, they're being deported to Saudi Arabia," said Aamir Khalil, the family lawyer. "It is a special flight." The jet took off at around 1:30 a.m. ...
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| Dutch parties avert crisis with 2013 budget deal Posted:  THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Dutch political parties reached a deal on a 2013 budget on Thursday, averting crisis and enabling a country that has championed euro fiscal discipline to meet a European Union deadline set for Monday. The Netherlands, which has been widely seen as an advocate of fiscal discipline among euro zone members, rattled investors and financial markets when it appeared to be on the brink of failing to meet those targets itself. ...
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| West Africa bloc to send troops to Mali, Guinea-Bissau Posted:  ABIDJAN (Reuters) - The West African regional bloc ECOWAS said on Thursday it would send troops to Mali and Guinea-Bissau to help swiftly reinstate civilian rule after their coups, and threatened sanctions if junta leaders try to cling to power. The decision was one of the most forceful moves by the group in recent years, and won the immediate support of the European Union as a way to reinforce democratic reform in a part of the world known for military coups and civil wars. "Overall, we're very supportive of ECOWAS's strong response to the situation in both countries. ...
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| Islamist militants blow up Yemen gas pipeline Posted: ADEN (Reuters) - Islamist militants linked to al Qaeda blew up a gas pipeline on Thursday night in the eastern Yemeni province of Shabwa, a local official and residents said. The attack is the third against oil and gas facilities in the impoverished country within a month, and the second against the same pipeline. Resident said columns of fire and smoke could be seen from several kilometers away. ... |
| Suicide car bombs hit Nigerian newspaper offices Posted:  ABUJA/KADUNA (Reuters) - Suicide car bombers targeted the offices of Nigerian newspaper This Day in the capital Abuja and northern city of Kaduna on Thursday, killing at least four people in apparently coordinated strikes. This Day is based in southern Nigeria and is broadly supportive of President Goodluck Jonathan's government - the main target for Islamist insurgent group Boko Haram, which has killed hundreds of people this year in shootings and bombings. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks. At around 11 a.m. ...
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| U.S. draft warns Sudan, South Sudan of possible sanctions Posted:  UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United States on Thursday circulated to the U.N. Security Council a draft resolution that warns Sudan and South Sudan of sanctions if they do not comply with African Union demands to swiftly stop border clashes and resolve their many disputes. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice told reporters the Security Council would begin discussing the draft resolution on Thursday and that it would likely need at least a few days of talks among members before going to a vote. ...
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| Tens of thousands sing in protest at Breivik trial Posted:  OSLO (Reuters) - Up to 40,000 Norwegians gathered in Oslo on Thursday to sing a popular peace song derided by Anders Behring Breivik, the gunman on trial for the murder of 77 people, a protest organizers said showed he had not broken their tolerant society. "It's we who win," said guitar-strumming folk singer Lillebjoern Nilsen as he led the singing and watched the crowd sway gently in the rain. Many held roses above their heads, and some wept. ...
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| Charles Taylor conviction sends warning to tyrants Posted:  Former Liberian President Charles Taylor became the first head of state since World War II to be convicted by an international war crimes court, a historic verdict that sends a message that tyrants worldwide will be tracked down and brought to justice.
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| Pakistan deports bin Laden family to Saudi Arabia Posted:  Pakistani authorities deported Osama bin Laden's three widows and his children to Saudi Arabia early Friday, less than a week before the first anniversary of the unilateral American raid that killed the al-Qaida leader in his hideout in a military town.
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| Syrian regime, rebels trade blame for deadly blast Posted:  U.N. observers on Thursday inspected the site of an explosion that flattened a block of houses in the central Syrian city of Hama and killed at least 16 people, while the government and the opposition traded blame over the cause of the blast.
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| Murdoch: Hacking scandal changed my entire company Posted:  Rupert Murdoch used his testimony before a U.K. inquiry on Thursday to portray himself as the victim, not perpetrator, of a cover-up over phone hacking — a bold claim unlikely to be accepted by those suing his company for invading their privacy.
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| Photo: North Korea's big show visible from space Posted:  In North Korea, the choreography can be part of the geography.
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| Thousands defy Norwegian mass killer with song Posted:  They gathered by the tens of thousands in the drenching rain to face down terrorism with song.
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| Libya's ruling council fires Cabinet Posted: Libya's interim ruling council has fired the nation's Cabinet just five months after it took office, citing incompetence, two senior officials said Thursday, just two months before the country's first national election. |
| Arab League condemns South Sudan 'aggression' Posted: The Arab League on Thursday condemned South Sudan's "military aggression" against an oil-rich border region claimed by Sudan while also supporting Sudan's right to defend itself. The statement came as some fear growing disputes between the two countries may soon lead to an all-out war. |
| UK probe of slain spy said hampered by delay Posted:  A delay in reporting as missing a British spy whose naked and decomposing body was later found locked inside a sports bag frustrated police inquiries into his mysterious death, witnesses told an inquest hearing Thursday.
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| Nigeria: 7 killed in newspaper office bombings Posted:  A suicide bomber and a man armed with explosives attacked two Nigerian newspaper offices on Thursday, killing seven people and wounding at least 26. The radical Islamic sect Boko Haram claimed responsibility.
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