Iran says advisers from its elite Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps are providing non-military assistance in Syria – and that Tehran may take military action if its closest ally is attacked by outside forces. The statement by guards’ commander Mohammad Ali Jafari on Sunday is the first official acknowledgement that Iran has a military presence in […]
US Defense Chief Concerned Asia Disputes Will Spread
Posted September 16th, 2012 at 9:30 am (UTC-5)
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta says he is concerned that territorial disputes in the Asia-Pacific region may result in a conflict that could spread. Panetta spoke to reporters before arriving Sunday in Tokyo, where he began a week-long visit to the region. Anti-Japan protests swept across China on Sunday in the latest showing of public […]
NATO Accused of Killing 8 Afghan Women in Airstrike
Posted September 16th, 2012 at 9:10 am (UTC-5)
Afghan officials say NATO coalition forces have killed eight women and girls in an airstrike in a remote district of the country. The deaths come after three “insider” attacks in as many days by Afghan forces against international soldiers killed eight troops, including four Americans. Sunday’s airstrike came shortly before dawn, in Laghman province’s Alingar […]
South Korea’s Opposition Picks Presidential Candidate
Posted September 16th, 2012 at 7:40 am (UTC-5)
South Korea’s main opposition party has selected its candidate for the December presidential election. The Democratic United Party picked former human rights lawyer and former presidential aide Moon Jae-in on Sunday. In his acceptance speech, Moon vowed to push for summit talks and greater economic cooperation with North Korea. The liberal party candidate served as […]
Pope Makes Peace Appeal
Posted September 16th, 2012 at 7:35 am (UTC-5)
Pope Benedict, on the final day of his trip to Lebanon, has urged Middle Eastern Christians to become peacemakers to end what he called the “grim trail of death and destruction” in the region. The 85-year-old pontiff spoke Sunday in the sweltering heat of an open-air Mass on Beirut’s Mediterranean seafront where he urged the […]
8 Police Killed in Turkey Explosion
Posted September 16th, 2012 at 6:10 am (UTC-5)
Security officials in Turkey say a roadside mine blast has killed eight police officers and wounded six. Authorities blame the attack Sunday on the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, saying the mine was detonated when a police vehicle was passing through the Karliova district of Bingol province. Rebels from the outlawed PKK are active in […]
14 Killed in Pakistan Blast
Posted September 16th, 2012 at 5:00 am (UTC-5)
Officials in northwestern Pakistan say a roadside bomb blast has hit a van, killing 14 people, including two children. Authorities say at least 10 passengers were wounded in the explosion Sunday in the Lower Dir tribal area near the Afghan border. Police officials say the bomb was detonated by remote control. Officials say they do […]
Khmer Rouge Defendant Freed
Posted September 16th, 2012 at 4:15 am (UTC-5)
One of the former Khmer Rouge’s highest-ranking leaders has been freed from detention in Cambodia after a war crimes tribunal declared her unfit for trial. Eighty-year-old Ieng Thirith was freed on a provisional release Sunday. Thirith, one of only a handful of people ever brought before a court over atrocities during the Khmer Rouge era, […]
Typhoon Hits Okinawa, Headed for Korea, China
Posted September 16th, 2012 at 4:10 am (UTC-5)
Typhoon Sanba has hit Okinawa in southern Japan. The typhoon’s torrential rain Sunday has forced authorities to cancel airline flights, close roads and stop ferry services. Sanba, with winds of nearly 200 kilometers per hour and stronger gusts, is expected to bring similar conditions to the Korean Peninsula and northeastern China in the coming days. […]
4 International Troops Killed in ‘Insider’ Afghan Attack
Posted September 16th, 2012 at 3:45 am (UTC-5)
The international coalition in Afghanistan says four service members were killed Sunday in an “insider” attack in the southern part of the country. Local authorities in Zabul province say the four were Americans, and that the killer was an Afghan police officer. Coalition officials have not identified the service personnel. Sunday’s attack comes one day […]
