WorldNews

Turkish security forces have launched an operation targeting shelters and stores believed to belong to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), the military said on Tuesday, days after the group's jailed leader called its armed struggle "unsustainable". On Saturday jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan called for his group to hold a congress on ending its armed struggle, which he said had become "unsustainable". Continue reading...

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — The Maldives government has invited the United Nations and other international organizations to observe the former president's appeal of his 13-year jail sentence. Continue reading...

By Suleiman Al-Khalidi and Laila Bassam AMMAN/BEIRUT (Reuters) - The foreign ministers of Syria and Iraq met in Damascus on Tuesday to discuss ways to tackle militant groups in their countries and Iraq called for greater international cooperation to combat the violence, Syrian state media said. The Shi'ite Muslim-led government in Baghdad, together with Iran and the Lebanese group Hezbollah, have been important allies for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Iraq's armed forces are also the main partner on the ground for a U.S.-led coalition bombing Islamic State militants in Iraq but Washington and other Western governments have dismissed the idea of cooperating directly with Syria in the same fight. Continue reading...

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama welcomes Afghanistan's new president to the White House on Tuesday with a fraught question staring them in the face: Will the U.S. slow its departure from Afghanistan — and for how long? Continue reading...

DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) — Two intelligence officials in Pakistan say a suspected U.S. drone strike just across the border in Afghanistan has killed at least nine militants. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19340[/attach] YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Police in northwestern Myanmar have rejected a lawsuit filed by two Buddhist monks against Myanmar's home minister and police chief, saying they are protected by law. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19339[/attach] In a crumbling Khartoum sports hall, a dozen Nuba men in sweat-faded singlets practise wrestling moves under the critical gaze of their Japanese coach, 23-year old Kosuke Sunagawa. The students had to return to work to support themselves, making it difficult to find time for wrestling. Continue reading...

HONG KONG (AP) — China's manufacturing fell to the lowest level in nearly a year as new orders shrank, according to a report Tuesday that underscored the weakening outlook for the world's second biggest economy. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19335[/attach] Auckland (AFP) - South Africa won the toss and opted to bat first against New Zealand in their World Cup semi-final at Eden Park on Tuesday. Continue reading...

By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top U.S. diplomat in Yemen on Monday said Washington and its allies need to make decisions quickly to preserve the possibility of a political solution to the crisis in Yemen. Ambassador Matthew Tueller said he was optimistic that rival Yemeni factions could reach a political power-sharing agreement if a broad group of representatives could meet outside the country and without the influence of outside parties such as Iran. "We recognize that we've got to make some decisions quickly," Tueller told Reuters after a meeting of the National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce, citing rapid advances by the Iranian-allied Houthi militia toward the southern port of Aden, where Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi fled. Al-Faisal spoke after Riyadh Yaseen, named by Hadi as his interim foreign minister, called for Gulf Arab military intervention in Yemen, and notably the imposition of a no-fly zone, to stop territorial advances by Houthi fighters. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19338[/attach] An Argentine archaeologist who discovered what he thinks was a hideout built for German Nazis to flee to after World War II said more dark secrets may be buried there. Daniel Schavelzon grabbed headlines and revived uncomfortable memories for Argentina, a notorious refuge for Nazi war criminals, when he went public at the weekend with his discovery of mysterious ruins deep in the jungle that he suspects were planned as a Nazi hideout. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19337[/attach] SAPPHIRE, North Carolina (AP) — A Florida businessman who authorities say faked his own death to dodge debts while reaping millions in life insurance benefits is sitting in a North Carolina jail after allegedly applying for a passport under another man's name. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19336[/attach] African elephants could be extinct in the wild within a few decades, experts warned at a major conservation summit in Botswana that highlighted an alarming decline in numbers due to poaching for ivory. The Africa Elephant Summit, held at a tourist resort in Kasane, gathered delegates from about 20 countries across Europe, Africa and Asia, including China -- which is accused of fuelling the illegal poaching trade. Continue reading...

KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) — Jamaican health officials says air quality tests done in the wake of a massive dump fire show such high levels of a known carcinogen that they now consider it a significant public health issue. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19326[/attach] Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan Monday agreed a preliminary deal on a controversial dam project that Cairo feared would reduce its share of vital waters from the Nile. The leaders of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan all gathered in Khartoum to sign the agreement of principles on Ethiopia's Grand Renaissance Dam project. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19325[/attach] Oil company BP said on Monday it has stopped supporting conservative political group ALEC, becoming the latest corporation to end its membership in a group critics say works to deny the existence of climate change. "We have determined that we can effectively pursue policy matters of current interest to BP without renewing our membership in ALEC," a spokesman said. BP was the second large oil company to drop support of the group after Occidental Petroleum cut ties last year. Companies have come under pressure from environmental and civic groups to end their associations with the American Legislative Exchange Council, a coalition of about 2,000 state lawmakers and corporations that promotes free trade and limited government intervention. Continue reading...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Pakistan needs short-range "tactical" nuclear weapons to deter arch-rival India, a top adviser to its government said Monday, dismissing concerns it could increase the risk of a nuclear war. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19324[/attach] Karim Wade, the son of former Senegal president Abdoulaye Wade bidding to follow his father to the top office, was sentenced to six years in prison on Monday in a deeply divisive graft case. He was however cleared of the main corruption charge -- initially said to involve one billion euros but later whittled down to 105 million euros -- by a special anti-corruption court in Dakar. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19320[/attach] LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister David Cameron says he will serve a full second term if he's re-elected in May — but he won't seek a third. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19319[/attach] Ultra-conservative Republican US Senator Ted Cruz launched his White House quest on Monday, invoking his abiding faith in God as he effectively kick-started the 2016 presidential race. The 44-year-old Tea Party favorite from Texas chose Liberty University, the sprawling Christian evangelical bastion founded by Reverend Jerry Falwell, as the site of the official unveiling of his White House ambitions. Cruz is the first candidate to formally join what will be a crowded Republican field vying to be their party's champion in the marathon slog to succeed President Barack Obama. Continue reading...

ISTANBUL (AP) — A Turkish opposition lawmaker said Monday that an American and a Canadian are among a group of doctors and medical students believed to have traveled from Turkey into territory in Syria controlled by the Islamic State group. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19318[/attach] US and Israeli envoys refused to attend a UN Human Rights Council special session Monday on the situation in the Palestinian territories in the aftermath of the 2014 Gaza conflict. The US decision will disappoint those who hoped the recent disagreement between the allies over Iran policy and the Middle East peace process would see Washington withhold diplomatic cover from Israel. "As was the case last year, the United States will not engage in the debate. Neither will Israel. Continue reading...

[attach=full]19317[/attach] A candidate for Britain's ruling Conservative Party in a key seat in May's general election resigned on Monday after being accused of plotting with the far-right to stage a fake anti-mosque protest. The Mail on Sunday published a video of Afzal Amin apparently discussing a scheme with the English Defence League in which he would step in to defuse the fabricated rally in a bid to boost his support. Amin said earlier on Monday that he would mount a "robust defence" of his actions, but later a Conservative Party spokesman said he would resign as an election candidate with "immediate effect". Continue reading...

[attach=full]19306[/attach] As they advance south, Yemen's Iran-linked Huthi militiamen are moving within striking distance of the strategic Bab al-Mandab strait, a vital corridor through which much of the world's maritime trade passes. Only about 30 kilometres (20 miles) across at its narrowest point, the strait separates the Arabian Peninsula from east Africa and links the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden. Nearly 40 percent of global maritime trade is estimated to pass through the strait, much of it on its way to and from the Suez Canal. As Yemen's Shiite Huthi militiamen have moved south after seizing the capital Sanaa last year, concern has been growing about their intentions for Bab al-Mandab. Continue reading...

Kenya plans to build a new road, more border crossings and barriers on its 700 km (420 mile) border with Somalia in an attempt to thwart attacks from the Islamist militant group al Shabaab, the interior ministry said on Monday. Kenya is under heavy pressure to improve security after numerous militant attacks that have killed well over 200 people since 2013, mostly in the border counties of Mandera and Lamu. The al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab group has claimed responsibility for much of the bloodshed and has vowed revenge against Kenya for contributing troops to an African Union force battling the militants in Somalia. "The idea is to ensure that there are clear border entry points," said Mwenda Njoka, a spokesman for Interior Secretary Joseph Nkaissery. Continue reading...