Witnesses say Tuareg rebels have attacked a town in northern Mali, sparking a fight with government troops. Tuesday’s clashes occurred in the town of Menaka, where Tuareg nomads launched assaults in an effort to take control. Witnesses say fighting continued until about midday when military reinforcements were brought in. Hundreds of ethnic Tuaregs recently returned […]
Tuareg Rebels Attack Town in Northern Mali
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 9:55 am (UTC-5)
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Damascus Rejects Qatar’s Call For Arab Troops
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 9:50 am (UTC-5)
Syria has rejected a Qatari proposal to send Arab troops to the country to stop 10 months of unrest, saying such a move would worsen the situation and open the door for foreign interference. In a statement Tuesday, the Syrian foreign ministry says Damascus will oppose any attempt to undermine its sovereignty and wants Arab […]
Turkish Leaders, Turkish Cypriots Mourn Former Leader Denktash
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 9:20 am (UTC-5)
Turkish leaders have joined thousands of residents in northern Cyprus to bid farewell to Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash, who died Friday after a long illness. Turkish President Abdullah Gul and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan were among mourners filing past Denktash’s coffin Tuesday at the presidential palace on the Turkish Cypriot side of the […]
China Rejects US Diplomat’s Human Rights Critique
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 9:00 am (UTC-5)
China’s foreign ministry is rejecting claims made by the U.S. ambassador to Beijing that China’s human rights record is deteriorating in the face of pro-democracy protests in the Middle East. Ambassador Gary Locke told a U.S. television show (the Charlie Rose Show) late Monday that China’s human rights climate is “in a down period and […]
Oil Drilling Begins in Somalia’s Puntland
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 8:40 am (UTC-5)
A Canadian oil company says it has begun drilling for oil at two locations in Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region. In a statement Tuesday, Vancouver-based Africa Oil says Horn Petroleum, a unit of the company, is drilling wells in the Dharoor Valley and at Shabeel. It says both prospects are located along a rift system that […]
Philippine Police Arrest Suspect in Kidnapping of US Missionary Couple
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 8:40 am (UTC-5)
Philippine police say they have arrested an Islamic militant suspected of involvement in the 2001 kidnapping of an American missionary couple. Security officials said Tuesday the man, known as “Abu Ismael,” was captured on the remote southern island of Basilan. They said he is a member of the Abu Sayyaf terror group, which is linked […]
Dutch Company: Fuel Extraction From Wrecked Ship to Take Weeks
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 8:40 am (UTC-5)
A Dutch company that specializes in salvage operations says it will take weeks to remove the fuel from a cruise ship that capsized off Italy’s coast. The company says it plans to conduct a survey of the ship on Tuesday before the extraction process begins. “It is a race against time to empty the fuel […]
Karzai Urges Afghan Militants to Allow Polio Vaccination
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 8:40 am (UTC-5)
Afghan President Hamid Karzai is urging militants to allow health teams to vaccinate children against polio, after his government said the number of cases of the disease in the country had sharply increased. Mr. Karzai’s office said Tuesday that the latest Health Ministry report shows a three-fold rise in the number of polio cases last […]
Clinton, Ouattara Discuss Reconcilation in Ivory Coast
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 8:30 am (UTC-5)
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has held talks with Ivory Coast’s president about efforts to heal divisions left by the country’s disputed 2010 election. Clinton met with President Alassane Ouattara Tuesday in Abidjan, during the first visit to Ivory Coast by a U.S. secretary of state in more than 25 years. The secretary said […]
US Senators Predict No Clashes with China in Asia
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 8:25 am (UTC-5)
Two leading U.S. senators say Washington will continue to arm its allies in the Pacific region amid maritime disputes with China, but that confrontation with Beijing is not likely. Senators John McCain and Joseph Lieberman made their comments Tuesday as they started a three-day visit to Manila, where they and two other U.S. senators are […]
