| | |
| Gunfire by night becomes new norm in downtown Bangkok Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 07:48 PM PST  By Pairat Temphairojana and Amy Sawitta Lefevre BANGKOK (Reuters) - Shots fired by unknown gunmen on Wednesday rattled parts of the Thai capital where anti-government protesters have set up camp for weeks, with small but occasionally deadly bombs and gunfire fast becoming the new norm in the city. No one was wounded in the shootings in the central commercial area of Bangkok, although five people were killed in weekend violence in the city and the eastern province of Trat, four of them young children. National security chief Paradorn Pattanathabutr said there had been no reported deaths or injuries in the incidents in the early hours of Wednesday. "Recently we have been seeing more incidents like this happening more frequently ... It is noticeable that there are incidents like this every day." The protesters, whose disruption of a general election this month left polarized Thailand in political paralysis, aim to topple Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and erase the influence of her brother, ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra, seen by many as the real power in the country. Full Story | Top |
| Ecuador's president will seek cabinet shuffle, change to party Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 07:19 PM PST  By Yuri Garcia GUAYAQUIL, Ecuador (Reuters) - Ecuador's President Rafael Correa on Tuesday said he will ask for his cabinet's resignation and reshape his political party after the loss of the capital city of the oil-producing Andean nation to the opposition in local elections. Opposition candidates on Sunday won elections to run the local governments of Quito and industrial city Cuenca, and maintained control of the economic capital and port city of Guayaquil in an unsettling result for the government. "There will be a cabinet crisis," Correa told reporters in the port city of Guayaquil, adding that he had considered changing his government ministers prior to the vote. Correa said the loss of Quito was painful and could make the country ungovernable. Full Story | Top |
| China stresses rule of law in reform of age-old petitions system Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 07:16 PM PST  China has issued new guidelines to strictly enforce the rule of law for those exercising an ancient tradition of seeking justice through petitions to higher authorities, as the central government tightens its grip on a system often marred by abuse. Petitioning in China dates back to imperial times, with the courts being seen as inaccessible by ordinary people, who often use the method to draw the attention of officials to local disputes, ranging from corruption to land grabs. "Any malpractice that constrains the public from legal petitioning will be rectified and prohibited." At the same time, petitioners must not "leapfrog" their complaints to higher authorities, say the guidelines released by the central committee of the Communist Party of China and the State Council, or cabinet. Full Story | Top |
| Mexican drug kingpin Guzman dodges U.S. extradition for now Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 06:59 PM PST  By Anahi Rama MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin "Shorty" Guzman won a temporary injunction to block his extradition to the United States where he faces narcotics and arms trafficking charges, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday. Guzman, who was Mexico's most wanted criminal and boss of the feared Sinaloa Cartel, was caught in the beach resort of Mazatlan with help from U.S. agents in a pre-dawn raid on Saturday. The day after Guzman's arrest, the spokesman for a U.S. federal prosecutor said he planned to seek the capo's extradition to face trial in the United States, but it is still unclear whether that will happen, and extradition proceedings can take years to complete. On Monday, Guzman's lawyers filed an injunction to block any move to extradite him to the United States. Full Story | Top |
| Eyeing Afghan exit, U.S. intensifies campaign against Haqqani militants Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 05:35 PM PST  By Missy Ryan and Phil Stewart KABUL/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has intensified its drive against the Taliban-linked Haqqani network in an attempt to deal a lasting blow to the militants in Afghanistan before foreign combat forces depart this year, according to multiple U.S. officials. The effort is taking on added urgency as the clock ticks down on a NATO combat mission in Afghanistan set to end in December, and as questions persist about whether Pakistan will take action against a group some U.S. officials believe is quietly supported by Pakistani intelligence. The Obama administration has created a special new unit based in Kabul to coordinate efforts against the militant group, according to officials familiar with the matter. It was set up late last year, as part of a new strategy that involves multiple government agencies, The unit, headed by a colonel and known in military parlance as a "fusion cell," brings together special forces, conventional forces, intelligence personnel, and some civilians to improve targeting of Haqqani members and to heighten the focus on the group, the officials said. Full Story | Top |
| NASA to use space images to help monitor California drought Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 03:44 PM PST  By Laila Kearney SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - NASA scientists plan to use images shot from space and within the Earth's atmosphere to help California monitor one of the worst droughts in its recorded history, officials said on Tuesday. Scientists said they would deploy imaging tools to measure snowpack and groundwater levels and use a host of other technologies to help better map and assess the water resources in a state that produces half the nation's fruits and vegetables. "We're on the verge of being able to put all of these different kinds of instruments together, these measurements together, and start looking at the concept of perhaps closing the water budget of California," Tom Farr, a NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory geologist, told reporters at a news conference. While much of the United States has experienced torrential rains and heavy snowfall this winter, California is in the midst of a drought threatening to inflict the biggest water crisis in its modern history. Full Story | Top |
| UK's Hague says Ukraine must show determination to tackle graft Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 03:35 PM PST By Lesley Wroughton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ukraine's new leadership will need to show it is willing to tackle reforms and pervasive corruption in exchange for long-term support from the international community, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Tuesday. Hague was speaking after talks with his U.S. counterpart, Secretary of State John Kerry, in a hastily arranged trip to Washington to discuss events in Ukraine where the parliament ousted president Viktor Yanukovich on Saturday and handed the reins to acting president Oleksander Turchinov. Hague said he and Kerry discussed urgent financial help for Ukraine, whose economy has been hit by months of street protests and violence. He said he will meet officials from the International Monetary Fund on Wednesday. Full Story | Top |
| Italy's Renzi wins final confidence vote, pledging reform Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 03:20 PM PST  By Naomi O'Leary and Gavin Jones ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi won a final parliamentary vote of confidence on Tuesday after pledging to slash red tape and "revolutionize" the economy. The Chamber of Deputies approved the confidence motion by the comfortable margin of 378 in favor to 220 against, fully empowering the coalition consisting of Renzi's Democratic Party (PD), the New Centre Right party, centrists and other small groups. The 39-year-old Renzi, Italy's youngest prime minister, said radical steps were needed to revive an economy that has barely grown for the past 15 years and restore citizens' confidence in politics. In his first address to the lower house ahead of the vote, Renzi said "Italy's finest page has yet to be written", in a speech that produced many of his trademark rhetorical flourishes but few specific policy commitments. Full Story | Top |
| Q&A-What do protests in Venezuela mean for the oil industry? Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 02:38 PM PST Two weeks of violent protests in Venezuela have killed at least 13 people and raised doubts about what the unrest could mean for the oil industry, which accounts for 96 percent of the OPEC member nation's hard currency income. Rampant crime, a deteriorating economy with rocketing inflation and shortages of staple consumer goods are putting pressure on President Nicolas Maduro, who narrowly won an election last April. Maduro has promised to extend the socialist "revolution" of his late mentor, Hugo Chavez, who put state oil company PDVSA in charge of the entire industry in the country with the world's largest crude reserves. He also nationalized the assets of foreign firms and landed Venezuela in multiple international arbitration cases. Full Story | Top |
| Syrians set to replace Afghans as largest refugee population: U.N. Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 02:38 PM PST  By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Syrians are about to replace Afghans as the world's largest refugee population, fleeing a conflict where barrel bombs leave bodies in pieces and a generation of children are physically and emotionally scarred, top U.N. officials said on Tuesday. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the U.N. General Assembly that the world body would do everything to implement a U.N. Security Council resolution - adopted on Saturday to boost humanitarian aid access - and get help to millions in need. "What we need is guaranteed safe passage for humanitarian supplies along key routes." "It is incumbent on the Syrian government and all parties to the conflict to reach these agreements," he said. "Five years ago Syria was the world's second-largest refugee hosting country. Full Story | Top |
| Pakistan launches new strikes near Afghan border; warns militants Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 02:16 PM PST By Jibran Ahmed and David Brunnstrom PESHAWAR, Pakistan/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pakistani military launched new air strikes targeting militant hideouts in the North Waziristan tribal region on Tuesday, killing at least 30 people, and a senior government official warned of a big offensive unless the Taliban showed they were serious about negotiations. Pakistani fighter jets have been pounding targets in the region since the government's efforts to engage Taliban insurgents in peace negotiations broke down this month. North Waziristan residents have been fleeing the area on the Afghan border in recent days, anticipating a full-scale military offensive, leaving homes, shops and villages behind and settling in safer areas, such as Bannu, a town on the edge of the region. "The militants had captured a stretch between South Waziristan and North Waziristan and had established training centers where they were also preparing suicide bombers," said one military official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Full Story | Top |
| IMF likely to send technical team to Ukraine soon: Lagarde Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 01:50 PM PST  The International Monetary Fund is likely to send a technical support team to Ukraine soon in order to assist Kiev after its president was toppled by violent street protests over the weekend, IMF chief Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday. "We will probably shortly send some technical assistance support to the country," Lagarde, the IMF's managing director, said during an appearance at Stanford University in California. That is clearly what is likely to happen." Ukraine's parliament does not plan to vote on the formation of a government until February 27, and the IMF's rules do not allow it to offer financial support to a country that has not asked for it. The IMF said it has a resident representative in Ukraine who will help in assessing the country's economic situation. Full Story | Top |
| Iraqi leaders give conflicting answers on reported Iran arms deal Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 01:43 PM PST  By Ahmed Rasheed BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi officials gave contradictory accounts on Tuesday about whether or not Baghdad had agreed to buy $195 million worth of arms and ammunition from Iran as reported by Reuters, a deal that if confirmed could damage Iraqi-U.S. relations. The Defence Ministry denied any such deal had been done, while a senior Iraqi government lawmaker who heads parliament's security and defence committee said Baghdad had bought "some light weapons and ammunition" from Tehran. The United States has demanded explanations from Iraq since such a deal would violate U.S. and U.N. sanctions imposed on Iran over its disputed nuclear program. An influential U.S. senator said the sale of 24 Apache attack helicopters to Iraq should be reconsidered until the matter was cleared up. Full Story | Top |
| France's Hollande steps in to calm row with Morocco Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 01:03 PM PST  PARIS (Reuters) - President Francois Hollande telephoned the king of Morocco to try to calm a rare diplomatic row between France and its former colony about allegations of human rights abuses. In one of two incidents that upset Rabat, French police went to the Moroccan embassy in Paris seeking to question the head of the domestic intelligence over torture allegations, following lawsuits filed against him in France by Moroccan activists. Rabat summoned the French ambassador on Saturday in protest. ... Full Story | Top |
| Romania's ruling coalition ruptures as elections loom Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 12:59 PM PST  By Radu Marinas and Matthias Williams BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romania's Liberal party pulled the plug on the coalition government on Tuesday, in a break-up that might disrupt five years of economic reform backed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the European Union's second poorest state. The second-largest member of Prime Minister Victor Ponta's ruling alliance, the Liberals announced the split after crisis talks late into the evening in Bucharest. The move will force Ponta's Social Democrats to seek a vote of confidence from parliament within days which analysts expect them to win, while the Liberals will return to the opposition benches after being in power since May 2012. The exit was the culmination of a series of rows between Romania's two biggest parties, mainly over ministerial appointments, as they jockey for position before European elections in May and a presidential election in November. Full Story | Top |
| Georgia PM says he hopes Ukraine will choose Europe Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 12:35 PM PST  By Lesley Wroughton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Georgian Prime Minister Irakly Garibashvili on Tuesday urged Ukraine to consider following his country's path of integration with the West through increased trade and investment, as it grapples with its future. In an interview with Reuters in Washington, where he met President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden for talks, Garibashvili said he was concerned that the political upheaval in Ukraine could destabilize the wider region. His visit to Washington and another next week by Moldova's Prime Minister are aimed at showing U.S. support for two former Soviet republics that are undergoing a transformation and have balked at pressure from Russia. "Of course the recent developments may have implications on the wider region and that's why we are concerned," said Garibashvili. Full Story | Top |
| United Nations chief urges Uganda to repeal anti-gay law Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 12:13 PM PST  U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Uganda on Tuesday to repeal a law imposing harsh penalties for homosexuality, warning it could fuel prejudice and encourage harassment and violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. Ban also conveyed his concerns to Uganda's U.N. envoy Monday, just hours after Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni signed the law in the face of protests from rights groups and criticism from Western donors. "The Secretary-General urges the Government to protect all persons from violence and discrimination, and hopes that the law can be revised or repealed at the earliest opportunity," Ban's spokesman Martin Nesirky said on Tuesday. "He offers the support of the United Nations for constructive dialogue to achieve change on this matter," he said. Full Story | Top |
| Syrian al Qaeda group gives rival Islamists ultimatum Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 12:04 PM PST By Mariam Karouny and Dominic Evans BEIRUT (Reuters) - The head of al Qaeda's Syrian arm has given rival Islamist militants five days to accept mediation to end their infighting or face a war which will "eradicate" them, according to an audio recording posted on Tuesday. Abu Mohammed al-Golani, leader of the Nusra Front, called on the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) to agree to arbitration by religious scholars to end more than a year of feuding which has turned violent. Golani's ultimatum comes two days after senior al Qaeda member Abu Khaled al-Soury was killed in a suicide attack in Syria. Nusra accused ISIL of killing him, a charge sources close to the splinter group have denied. Full Story | Top |
| Liberals withdraw from Romanian coalition government Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 11:59 AM PST Romania's ruling Liberal Party voted to pull its ministers out of the coalition government of leftist Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Tuesday, after a series of squabbles that has dogged the alliance in recent weeks. "We voted overwhelmingly by 96 percent to pull out our ministers from the cabinet," Health Minister Eugen Nicolaescu told Reuters. Full Story | Top |
| Armed groups surround thousands in Central African Republic: U.N Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 11:58 AM PST By Serge Leger Kokpakpa BANGUI (Reuters) - Over 15,000 people in Central African Republic, mostly Muslim civilians in makeshift camps, are surrounded and being threatened by armed militia groups, a spokesman for the U.N. refugee agency said on Tuesday. Adrian Edwards told a news briefing in Geneva that the refugees, dotted around 18 locations in the northwest and southwest of the landlocked country, face a high risk of attack and urgently need better security. France's parliament voted in favor on Tuesday of extending its military mission in Central African Republic, Operation Sangaris, four months after its launch. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. expels Venezuelan diplomats in tit-for-tat move over unrest Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 11:36 AM PST By Andrew Cawthorne and Eyanir Chinea CARACAS (Reuters) - The United States on Tuesday ordered three Venezuelan diplomats to leave in reprisal for President Nicolas Maduro's expulsion of three American embassy staff accused of fomenting unrest that has killed at least 13 people. Disputes between the ideologically opposed governments in Washington and Caracas were common during the 1999-2013 rule of late socialist leader Hugo Chavez and have continued under his successor Maduro. When it comes to oil, though, pragmatism trumps politics and the United States remains the OPEC member's main export market. The U.S. State Department said in a statement that two first secretaries and a second secretary at the Venezuelan embassy in Washington had been declared personae non gratae in response to Caracas' February 17 move against the three Americans. Full Story | Top |
| Bombings and shootings kill 26 around Iraq Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 11:35 AM PST By Kareem Raheem BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A parked car bomb blew up by a crowded Baghdad market on Tuesday night, killing at least 14 people and bringing the day's total death toll in political violence around Iraq to 26, security and medical sources said. The bomb went off in a side street in the Shi'ite district of Karaada in eastern Baghdad. Baghdad has been hit by wave after wave of bombings since April as the precarious peace enjoyed since the end of Iraq's sectarian war in 2008 has unraveled. In western Anbar province, where government forces are fighting rebellious Sunni tribes and an al Qaeda splinter group, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, three soldiers were killed and 18 others wounded when a car bomb rammed into the entrance of the governor's compound in the provincial capital Ramadi, according to medical and security sources. Full Story | Top |
| Rockets rain on Libyan power plant as militias battle Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 11:03 AM PST  By Ulf Laessing and Feras Bosalum TRIPOLI (Reuters) - More than 100 rockets fired in clashes between rival government-paid militia have knocked out a power plant in southern Libya, heightening the risk of summer blackouts, the electricity minister said on Tuesday. "This is the chaos Libya lives in," the visibly-annoyed minister, Ali Mohammed Muhairiq, told a televised news conference. Libya, an OPEC oil producer, suffers frequent blackouts in summer due to heavy use of air-conditioners. Muhairiq said the power station in Sarir, in the remote south, had been put out of action by days of fighting between militias on the payroll of the defense and interior ministries. Full Story | Top |
| Nigerian Islamists kill 59 pupils in boarding school attack Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 10:45 AM PST  By Joe Hemba DAMATURU, Nigeria (Reuters) - Gunmen from Islamist group Boko Haram shot or burned to death 59 pupils in a boarding school in northeast Nigeria overnight, a hospital official and security forces said on Tuesday. "Some of the students' bodies were burned to ashes," Police Commissioner Sanusi Rufai said of the attack on the Federal Government college of Buni Yadi, a secondary school in Yobe state, near the state's capital city of Damaturu. Bala Ajiya, an official at the Specialist Hospital Damaturu, told Reuters by phone the death toll had risen to 59. President Goodluck Jonathan called the attack "callous and senseless murder ... by deranged terrorists and fanatics who have clearly lost all human morality and descended to bestiality". Full Story | Top |
| Turkish PM says tapes of talk with son a fabrication Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 10:42 AM PST  By Samia Nakhoul and Nick Tattersall ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's Prime Minister accused political enemies of hacking encrypted state communications to fake a phone conversation suggesting he warned his son to hide large sums of money before police raids in a graft inquiry that reached into government. In a dramatic session of parliament after posting of an 11-minute audio tape on YouTube, Tayyip Erdogan described it as a shameless and treacherous "montage". He did not name those he held responsible but made it clear he was talking of a network run by former ally, Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen. Full Story | Top |
| Police fire tear gas on anti-government protesters in Istanbul Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 10:26 AM PST ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Riot police fired water cannon and tear gas to disperse several thousand protesters chanting "thief Tayyip Erdogan" and "government resign" in Istanbul on Tuesday as the fallout of a corruption scandal intensified. The protest in the Kadikoy district of Istanbul came after Erdogan accused political enemies of faking a recording of a phone conversation suggesting he had warned his son to hide large sums of money as the graft inquiry erupted. (Reporting by Ece Toksabay; Writing by Nick Tattersall; Editing by Humeyra Pamuk and Andrew Roche) Full Story | Top |
| Tanker hijacked off Angola in Jan returned, minus $8 million of diesel Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 10:23 AM PST An oil tanker hijacked for a week off Angola in January has been returned to the country's authorities, a board member at state oil firm Sonangol said on Tuesday, adding that the hijackers had stolen diesel worth $8 million from the ship. The Liberian-flagged MT Kerala was under a time charter contract for Sonangol when it vanished off the coast of the capital Luanda on January 18 before being intercepted by the Nigerian navy a week later. Angola is the continent's second-biggest crude operator and almost all of its production is offshore. "The MT Kerala was found in Nigerian waters, but as the coast there did not offer security it was taken to Ghanaian waters and then recovered with help from both countries' authorities and brought to Luanda," Sonangol board member Anabela Fonseca told a news conference. Full Story | Top |
| France draws up Central African Republic sanctions list, includes ex-leader Bozize Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 10:18 AM PST  By John Irish and Elizabeth Pineau PARIS (Reuters) - France has drawn up a list of eight citizens of Central African Republic, including former President Francois Bozize, on whom it believes the United Nations should impose sanctions, diplomatic sources said. The U.N. Security Council backed an African and French intervention in December to quell sectarian conflict in Central African Republic (CAR), which began when Muslim Seleka rebels seized power in the mostly Christian country. "France has identified eight people and has put forward that list to some members of the Security Council," said one French diplomatic source. Full Story | Top |
| Ukraine wants fugitive president to face Hague court Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 10:14 AM PST By Timothy Heritage and Natalia Zinets KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine's parliament voted on Tuesday to send fugitive President Viktor Yanukovich to the International Criminal Court, while his acting successor expressed concern about "signs of separatism" in Russian-speaking Crimea. A resolution, overwhelmingly supported by parliament, linked Yanukovich, who was ousted by the legislature on Saturday and is now on the run, to police violence against protesters which it said had led to the deaths of more than 100 citizens of Ukraine and other states. With an early presidential election set for May 25, one of Ukraine's most prominent opposition figures, retired world boxing champion Vitaly Klitschko, confirmed he would run. Yanukovich was indicted by the new authorities for "mass murder" on Monday over the shooting of demonstrators in Kiev and is now on the wanted list, having last been seen at Balaclava in Crimea, near Russia's Sevastopol naval base. Full Story | Top |
| Romania's ruling coalition could rupture as elections loom Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 09:58 AM PST  By Radu Marinas and Matthias Williams BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romania's feuding coalition government could split in a matter of days, a break-up that might disrupt five years of economic reform backed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Liberal party, the second largest member of Prime Minister Victor Ponta's ruling alliance, was set to meet for crisis talks on Tuesday evening to decide whether to pull their ministers out of the government. That could shortly be followed by a formal split from Ponta's leftist Social Democrats. The meeting was the culmination of a series of rows between Romania's two biggest parties, mainly over ministerial appointments, as they jockey for position before European elections in May and a presidential election in November. Full Story | Top |
| Factbox: Ukraine's history with IMF bailouts Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 09:22 AM PST Ukraine appealed for urgent international aid this week after the fall of Russian-backed president Viktor Yanukovich cast doubt on whether it could get the remaining $12 billion from a bailout deal he struck with Moscow. Ukraine's acting president, Oleksander Turchinov, said Kiev would need $35 billion over the next two years, and warned the economy was "heading into the abyss. The United States and European Union said they were looking at how to help Ukraine, but they indicated any comprehensive package was likely to only take shape after elections in May and in coordination with the International Monetary Fund. Here are some facts about the IMF and Ukraine: WHY THE IMF MATTERS The IMF, made up of 188 member countries, is charged with policing global economic stability. Full Story | Top |
| Obama prepared to leave no troops in Afghanistan after 2014 Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 09:21 AM PST By Steve Holland and Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama has told the Pentagon to prepare for the possibility that the United States will not leave behind any troops in Afghanistan after its troop drawdown at the end of this year, the White House said on Tuesday. Obama said he had given the order to the Pentagon in a phone call on Tuesday to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who has refused to sign a bilateral security agreement that the United States insists it must have before agreeing to leave a contingent of troops behind. Full Story | Top |
| Egypt's liberal party leader voices fears for democracy Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 09:19 AM PST  By Asma Alsharif and Mahmoud Mourad CAIRO (Reuters) - The first woman to head a major Egyptian political party said on Tuesday she saw dangers for democracy if Egypt's wildly popular army chief becomes president, without guarantees that he will not be above the law. Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi toppled Egypt's first freely elected president, Mohamed Mursi, in July after mass protests against his rule, and the army-backed authorities have since suppressed the Islamist leader's Muslim Brotherhood. Sisi has won a fervent following in the past eight months. Hala Shokralla, a Coptic Christian, expressed fears that Sisi's popularity would overshadow efforts to lead Egypt to democracy and end political turmoil gripping the country since a popular uprising toppled autocrat Hosni Mubarak three years ago. Full Story | Top |
| Foreign companies in Turkey face squeeze Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 09:07 AM PST By Tom Bergin and Michael Shields LONDON/VIENNA (Reuters) - Foreign companies in Turkey are beginning to feel the effects of a sagging currency, rising inflation and a growing political power struggle, adding to fears the country may not be the source of future growth that some companies had hoped. As Western companies unveiled their 2013 results in recent weeks, most of those with operations in Turkey said they were committed to continuing to invest in the country. Like other developing economies, Turkey has been battered in recent months by U.S. Federal Reserve plans to reduce its monetary stimulus. But Turkey has been hit particularly badly by a power struggle between Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and an Islamic cleric he accuses of concocting a corruption scandal in an attempt to undermine him. Full Story | Top |
| Syria aid still stalled after U.N. resolution Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 08:59 AM PST  By Oliver Holmes BEIRUT (Reuters) - World powers have passed a landmark Security Council resolution demanding an end to restrictions on humanitarian operations in Syria, but aid workers doubt it has the punch to make Damascus grant access and let stuck convoys deliver vital supplies. President Bashar al-Assad's administration and to a lesser extent rebels fighting to overthrow him have been accused of preventing food and medical care from reaching a quarter of a million people in besieged areas. Saturday's resolution threatened unspecified "further steps" if Damascus does not comply. Though several Western envoys have expressed strong intent to push for Security Council action if the resolution is ignored, U.N. diplomats say Russia and China are unlikely to agree to any action if Syria's government does not comply. Full Story | Top |
| Syrian exporters try to revive businesses Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 08:56 AM PST By Maha El Dahan DUBAI (Reuters) - Three years into Syria's war, some exporters who moved to neighboring countries to escape the violence that has devastated many businesses now want to return home. While production in Syria is running at a small fraction of pre-conflict levels, advances by forces of President Bashar al-Assad against rebels in the past year have improved security in some areas for entrepreneurs who largely lean towards the government side. On top of this, bosses such as olive oil exporter Antoun Betinjaneh have found that shifting production across the border to Lebanon makes little financial sense. Betinjaneh, a newly-appointed member of the Syrian Exporters Federation, said that for all the turmoil, the state offered cheaper utilities and land on attractive terms. Full Story | Top |
| Libyan militias hit power plant with rockets, blackouts possible Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 08:42 AM PST By Ulf Laessing TRIPOLI (Reuters) - More than 100 rockets fired by government-payrolled rival gunmen rained down on a Libyan power plant and electrical blackouts could result this summer, the country's electricity minister said on Tuesday. The North African country is in turmoil as militiamen and tribespeople who helped topple Muammar Gaddafi three years ago refuse to disarm. The government has sought to co-opt militias by putting them on the payroll for the defense and interior ministries, but the recruits often still report to their local commanders. Electricity Minister Ali Mohammed Muhairiq said days of clashes between militias working for the two ministries had knocked out the power station in Sarir, in the remote south. Full Story | Top |
| Swiss government warns a minimum wage threatens economy Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 08:37 AM PST  Introducing the world's highest minimum wage would hurt Switzerland's competitiveness and lead to job cuts, harming precisely those low-income workers it is designed to help, the Swiss government said on Tuesday. Swiss voters will decide in a popular vote on May 18 if they want to introduce a minimum wage of 22 Swiss francs ($24.73)an hour, or 4,000 francs a month, much higher than in other countries. "The government is convinced it would be wrong for the state to impose a nationwide wage," economy minister Johann Schneider-Ammann told a media conference. A minimum wage of 4,000 francs could lead to job cuts and even threaten the existence of smaller companies, notably in retail, catering, agriculture and housekeeping, Schneider-Ammann. Full Story | Top |
| Egypt's new PM says to fight militancy, rebuild economy Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 08:09 AM PST  Egypt's new prime minister said on Tuesday he would seek to eradicate militant violence that has increased since the overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi, hoping improved security will lead to economic recovery. Speaking after his appointment by Adly Mansour, the army-appointed president who has been in office since Mursi's removal in July, Ibrahim Mahlab said he hoped to form his government within three or four days, "We will work together to restore security and safety to Egypt and crush terrorism in all corners of the country," said Mahlab, formerly the housing minister, expressing hope for a recovery in the crucial tourism sector. "Security and stability in the entire country and crushing terrorism will pave the way for investment." Mahlab's appointment followed the surprise resignation of Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi's government on Monday. Mahlab is a civil engineer who was formerly head of one of Egypt's biggest construction firms. Full Story | Top |
| India's regional parties seal alliance ahead of elections Tuesday, Feb 25, 2014 08:06 AM PST  India regional parties met on Tuesday to declare a political alternative to the two main national parties, the ruling Congress and the main opposition Bharatiya Janata (BJP), ahead of national elections due by May. Congress has led coalition governments in the world's largest democracy for the past decade but may struggle to win re-election this year due to a string of corruption scandals and sagging economic growth. The BJP is forecast to emerge as the single largest party but still fall short of a majority. Full Story | Top |
|
No comments:
Post a Comment