Developing

  • South Sudan president suspends two ministers in fraud inquiry

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    By Andrew Green JUBA (Reuters) - South Sudanese President Salva Kiir has suspended two key ministers in a fraud investigation, the government said on Wednesday. Western donors have warned South Sudan's government that aid payments are at risk unless it tackles the corruption undermining development in a country devastated from decades of civil war with Sudan, from which it seceded in 2011. Last year, Kiir wrote to 75 current and former officials to ask them to return $4 billion in "stolen" public money, but no senior figure had been publicly put under investigation until now. ... More »South Sudan president suspends two ministers in fraud inquiry

  • Protests continue in Sao Paulo, troops sent to 5 Brazilian cities

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    By Asher Levine SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Demonstrators blocked a major highway and other roads in Sao Paulo on Wednesday, crippling transportation in Brazil's largest city and financial hub, in an ongoing wave of protests against poor public services, inflation and police violence. The protests, the biggest in Brazil in over two decades, followed overnight demonstrations that led to sporadic looting and vandalism. ... More »Protests continue in Sao Paulo, troops sent to 5 Brazilian cities

  • Taliban confirms talks with U.S. in Qatar on Thursday

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    DUBAI (Reuters) - The Taliban's spokesman in Qatar said representatives of the Afghan insurgency would meet U.S. officials for preliminary peace talks on Thursday but no time had been set. The spokesman, Mohammed Naeem, told Reuters by telephone that no Afghan government officials would be at the meeting. A team of U.S. negotiators arrived in Qatar earlier on Wednesday and held a meeting with Afghan diplomats in the Qatari capital. U.S. ... More »Taliban confirms talks with U.S. in Qatar on Thursday

  • New U.S. climate strategy coming within weeks - Obama adviser

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    By Valerie Volcovici WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will target carbon emissions from power plants as part of a second-term climate change agenda expected to be rolled out in the next few weeks, his top energy and climate adviser said on Wednesday. Obama will take several steps to make tackling climate change a "second-term priority" that builds on first-term policies, Heather Zichal, deputy assistant to the president for energy and climate change, said at a forum sponsored by the New Republic magazine. ... More »New U.S. climate strategy coming within weeks - Obama adviser

  • Greek coalition parties meet to try to settle state TV row

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    By Lefteris Papadimas and Renee Maltezou ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece's ruling party leaders met on Wednesday to try to agree when and how to resume state TV broadcasts, two days after a top court ordered the immediate reopening of the state broadcaster ERT, abruptly closed by the government a week ago. ERT's screens were black or showing colour bars for an eighth straight day after Prime Minister Antonis Samaras' unexpected decision to pull the plug at a few hours' notice to save money and help shore up Greece's bankrupt state finances. ... More »Greek coalition parties meet to try to settle state TV row

  • Bombs destroy police station in Libya's Benghazi

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - Bombs flattened a police station in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi on Wednesday but there were no casualties as the building had been emptied for repairs following previous attacks, security officials said. The al-Hadaiq station in downtown Benghazi was completely destroyed by explosives at around 0300 a.m. (2:00 a.m. British time). The blast was so loud it could be heard across the city. Smashed furniture littered the ground and nearby shop fronts were damaged. ... More »Bombs destroy police station in Libya's Benghazi

  • Russia says U.S. missile defence a big barrier to nuclear cuts

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) - A senior Russian official said on Wednesday that the U.S. deployment of anti-missile shields was a huge hurdle to any further cuts in the offensive nuclear arsenals of the former Cold War foes, because of concerns the interceptors could shoot down Russian missiles. "How can we take the idea of strategic nuclear weapons reductions seriously when the United States is building up its ability to intercept these ... weapons?" Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin told reporters after U.S. President Barack Obama said he would seek to negotiate cuts with Russia. ... More »Russia says U.S. missile defence a big barrier to nuclear cuts

  • Russia says U.S. missile defense a big barrier to nuclear cuts

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) - A senior Russian official said on Wednesday that the U.S. deployment of anti-missile shields was a huge hurdle to any further cuts in the offensive nuclear arsenals of the former Cold War foes, because of concerns the interceptors could shoot down Russian missiles. "How can we take the idea of strategic nuclear weapons reductions seriously when the United States is building up its ability to intercept these ... weapons?" Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin told reporters after U.S. President Barack Obama said he would seek to negotiate cuts with Russia. ... More »Russia says U.S. missile defense a big barrier to nuclear cuts

  • Germany agrees financing of 8 billion euro flood aid fund

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany has agreed the financing of an 8-billion euro (6.8 billion pounds) fund to help repair damage caused by the worst flooding in a decade, with both the federal government and states footing the bill, the finance ministry said on Wednesday. The federal government at the outset will itself raise the full amount for the so-called "reconstruction aid" fund because of initial disagreement with the states on how the 16 regions would contribute their share of the cost. ... More »Germany agrees financing of 8 billion euro flood aid fund

  • UAE will try 30 Emiratis, Egyptians for illegal Brotherhood cell

    Reuters - 13 hours ago

    By Yara Bayoumy DUBAI (Reuters) - The United Arab Emirates said on Wednesday it would put on trial 30 Emiratis and Egyptians accused of setting up an illegal branch of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, part of a crackdown on the Islamist organization that has soured relations with Cairo. Ties between Egypt and the UAE have been strained since the revolution that toppled veteran Egyptian ruler Hosni Mubarak, a long-time Gulf ally, in 2011, and the Muslim Brotherhood's subsequent rise to power. The U.S.-allied UAE has long been distrustful of the Muslim Brotherhood, which is banned in the country. ... More »UAE will try 30 Emiratis, Egyptians for illegal Brotherhood cell

  • Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood digs in for trouble ahead

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    By Tom Perry CAIRO (Reuters) - For the Muslim Brotherhood, running Egypt has been like crossing a minefield. As President Mohamed Mursi ends his first year in office, fortifications being erected at his group's headquarters suggest a looming war. Behind a reinforced wall and a five-inch thick iron gate, the Brotherhood's Cairo compound bears scars of a divisive year that has triggered frequent protests and bloodshed. There is the promise of more later this month: Mursi's opponents have called a mass rally on June 30 aimed at pushing him to resign. ... More »Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood digs in for trouble ahead

  • Hungary exposes huge fake sugar deal, suspected tax fraud

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary's tax authority has questioned two men over a fake contract that, if fulfilled, would have involved the sale of nearly half a million tonnes of sugar - more than the country's annual sugar consumption - and a massive tax refund. Value-added tax fraud is a serious problem in the country, which lifted the levy to 27 percent, the highest in the European Union, on many product groups in 2011. The hand-written bill for 12.7 billion forints (37 million pounds) that caught the eye of tax inspectors was made out for a mediation fee with a VAT content of 2. ... More »Hungary exposes huge fake sugar deal, suspected tax fraud

  • China threatens death penalty for serious polluters

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese authorities have given courts the powers to hand down the death penalty in serious pollution cases, state media said, as the government tries to assuage growing public anger at environmental desecration. An increasingly affluent urban population has begun to object to China's policy of growth at all costs, which has fuelled the economy for three decades, with the environment emerging as a focus of concern and protests. ... More »China threatens death penalty for serious polluters

  • Obama wants to cut nuclear arms, seeks talks with Russia

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    BERLIN (Reuters) - President Barack Obama wants to reduce deployed nuclear weapons by up to a third and revive negotiations with Russia to "move beyond Cold War nuclear postures", he said in a speech on Wednesday in Berlin. "After a comprehensive review I have determined that we can ensure the security of America and our allies, and maintain a strong and credible strategic deterrent, while reducing our deployed strategic nuclear weapons by up to one third," he said. ... More »Obama wants to cut nuclear arms, seeks talks with Russia

  • Swiss lower house committee rejects U.S. tax deal again

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    By Ruben Sprich BERNE (Reuters) - A Swiss parliamentary committee has again urged the lower house to reject a draft law aimed at protecting the country's banks from criminal charges in the United States for helping wealthy Americans to evade tax. The Swiss government has warned that the bill's failure could prompt impatient U.S. prosecutors to indict banks, though it could still use an executive order to allow them to hand over data to try to avert charges. ... More »Swiss lower house committee rejects U.S. tax deal again

  • U.S. delegation for Taliban talks arrives in Qatar - source

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    DUBAI (Reuters) - A delegation of U.S. officials has arrived in Qatar for peace talks with Afghan Taliban representatives expected to take place in the capital Doha on Thursday, a diplomatic source said. (Reporting by Amena Bakr, Writing by William Maclean; Editing by Janet Lawrence) More »U.S. delegation for Taliban talks arrives in Qatar - source

  • Obama tells Merkel economic policies must improve lives

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    BERLIN (Reuters) - The need to balance budgets should not distract from the ultimate goal of economic policy, namely improving people's lives, U.S. President Barack Obama said on Wednesday in what appeared to be a dig at German Chancellor Angela Merkel's focus on austerity. Standing alongside Merkel at a news conference in Berlin, Obama said policies should be changed if they made people worse off, or led to higher unemployment.. "All of us have to make sure that our budgets are not out of control. ... More »Obama tells Merkel economic policies must improve lives

  • Obama says U.S. "will do more" to fight climate change

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    BERLIN (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said on Wednesday the United States understood it had to do more to fight climate change and he pledged that more action was coming. "Our dangerous carbon emissions have come down, but we know we have to do more. And we will do more," he told a crowd of cheering Germans in Berlin. Obama is expected to announce new U.S. measures to fight global warming in the coming weeks. (Reporting by Jeff Mason and Stephen Brown; editing by Erik Kirschbaum) More »Obama says U.S. "will do more" to fight climate change

  • Turkish government, protesters seek to draw sting from unrest

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    By Ece Toksabay ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey's deputy prime minister said on Wednesday he had no objection to silent anti-government protests inspired by a symbolic "Standing Man" vigil, comments that could help draw the sting out of three weeks of often violent demonstrations. Protests against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's government have become increasingly creative in recent days, as police and demonstrators seek to avoid the fierce clashes that have dented Turkey's reputation for stability in the volatile Middle East. ... More »Turkish government, protesters seek to draw sting from unrest

  • Singapore air pollution soars to 'very unhealthy' levels

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore's air pollution level rose to "very unhealthy" levels late on Wednesday, with the main pollution index hitting the highest on record, as smoke from Indonesian forest fires enveloped the city-state. The Pollution Standards Index (PSI) soared to 290 at 9:00 p.m. local time (2:00 p.m. British time), up from 190 just an hour earlier. A PSI reading above 300 indicates "hazardous" air quality and 201-300 means "very unhealthy". ... More »Singapore air pollution soars to 'very unhealthy' levels

  • Obama says U.S. to redouble efforts to close Guantanamo

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    BERLIN (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said on Wednesday the United States would step up its attempts to close Guantanamo Bay prison. "Even as we remain vigilant about the threat of terrorism, we must move beyond the mindset of perpetual war and in America that means redoubling our efforts to close the prison at Guantanamo," Obama said in a speech in front of Berlin's Brandenburg Gate. "It means tightly controlling our use of new technology like drones, it means balancing the pursuit of security with the protection of privacy," he added. ... More »Obama says U.S. to redouble efforts to close Guantanamo

  • Mozambique's Renamo threatens to paralyse vital coal railway

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    By Marina Lopes MAPUTO (Reuters) - The Renamo opposition party, a former guerrilla organisation, threatened on Wednesday to paralyse the only railway line out of Mozambique's vast coalfields in an effort to hurt the government. Renamo information chief Jeronimo Malagueta told a news conference in Maputo that disruption of the Sena line connecting the northwest region of Tete to the Indian Ocean port of Beira would last "as long as it takes". Renamo would "paralyse the movement of trains", he added. ... More »Mozambique's Renamo threatens to paralyse vital coal railway

  • Hamas says its Iran ties worsen over Syrian civil war

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    By Nidal al-Mughrabi GAZA (Reuters) - Hamas said on Wednesday its relations with financial backer Iran have suffered as a result of the Islamist group's support of rebels battling Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a long-time Iranian ally. Hamas was also once an Assad ally but last year endorsed the revolt against him in a shift that deprived the Syrian leader of an important Sunni Muslim supporter in the Arab world. ... More »Hamas says its Iran ties worsen over Syrian civil war

  • Russia's Putin criticises U.S. over missile defences

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed concern about U.S. missile defences and high-precision weapons on Wednesday, before a speech in which Barack Obama was expected to call for nuclear arms cuts. "High-precision conventional weapons systems are being actively developed ... States possessing such weapons strongly increase their offensive potential," Putin said without naming any nation or mentioning the proposals which the U.S. president was expected to make in Berlin. ... More »Russia's Putin criticises U.S. over missile defences

  • Putin criticizes U.S. over missile defenses

    Reuters - 14 hours ago

    ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed concern about U.S. missile defenses and high-precision weapons on Wednesday, before a speech in which Barack Obama was expected to call for nuclear arms cuts. "High-precision conventional weapons systems are being actively developed ... States possessing such weapons strongly increase their offensive potential," Putin said without naming any nation or mentioning the proposals which the U.S. president was expected to make in Berlin. ... More »Putin criticizes U.S. over missile defenses

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