Reuters - World

Obama warns Koran-burning would boost al Qaeda

GAINESVILLE, Florida (Reuters) - President Barack Obama warned on Thursday that an obscure U.S. Christian pastor's plan to burn the Koran could provoke al Qaeda suicide bombings, as international pressure mounted on Washington to step in.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:22:23 +0000

Afghanistan seeks to dilute foreign anti-graft role

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghanistan will limit foreign involvement in two major anti-crime units in a move likely to worry its Western backers and stoke fears about President Hamid Karzai's commitment to fighting endemic graft.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 12:40:27 +0000

Israel faces Arab nuclear pressure at IAEA meetings

VIENNA (Reuters) - Arab states backed by Iran are poised to target Israel over its assumed atomic arsenal at U.N. nuclear watchdog meetings this month, despite U.S. warnings this may hamper broader steps to ban such weapons in the Middle East.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:12:22 +0000

Car bomb kills 16 at market in Russia's Caucasus

VLADIKAVKAZ, Russia (Reuters) - A suicide bomber set off a powerful blast near a busy market in Russia's restive North Caucasus on Thursday, killing at least 16 people and wounding more than 100, authorities said.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:52:10 +0000

Interpol warns Koran-burning may trigger attacks

PARIS (Reuters) - The international police agency Interpol warned governments worldwide on Thursday of an increased risk of attacks on innocent people if the planned burning of the Koran by an obscure U.S. clergyman went ahead.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 18:06:15 +0000

Iran says to free one American detainee

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran will release on Saturday one of three detained American citizens accused of espionage, an official told Reuters on Thursday.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:37:23 +0000

Suicide blasts hit Mogadishu, 2 peacekeepers killed

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Suicide bombers killed two African Union peacekeepers and a number of civilians at Mogadishu's airport on Thursday in the latest attack on the Somali capital by al Qaeda-linked rebels.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 15:21:22 +0000

Mysterious North Korea keeps world guessing on rare meeting

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea's capital is ready for its biggest political event in decades: giant billboards proclaim an event to make the country's "history shine forever," the dress rehearsals are complete and the army is ready.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 12:54:57 +0000

Police visit Sarkozy party HQ in fund scandal probe

PARIS (Reuters) - French police visited President Nicolas Sarkozy's party headquarters this week in an investigation into political donations and the financial affairs of Europe's richest woman, a police spokesman said on Thursday.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 13:44:28 +0000

Bomb blast kills 10 in Pakistan tribal region

PARACHINAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - A roadside bomb killed 10 people and wounded four in a Pakistani tribal region on the Afghan border on Thursday, a government official said, as militants linked to al Qaeda launch a new wave of attacks.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 12:03:18 +0000

Iraqi PM says U.S. should halt Koran burning

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki urged the United States on Thursday to prevent the American pastor of an obscure Christian church from burning copies of the Koran in commemoration of the September 11 attacks.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 18:06:14 +0000

Analysis - Koran burning set to stoke communal strains

LONDON (Reuters) - Television pictures of a U.S. pastor tossing Korans onto a bonfire on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks would fit neatly into al Qaeda's populist message that Islam is under assault from an imperialist West.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 17:13:10 +0000

Obama adviser nudges Russia on democracy

YAROSLAVL, Russia (Reuters) - Russia should uphold democratic rights and increase political competition if the Kremlin's plans to modernise its economy are to become reality, President Barack Obama's top adviser on Russia said on Thursday.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 16:01:18 +0000

Kagame's former allies warn of Rwanda violence

NAIROBI (Reuters) - A group of exiled Rwandans has warned that the central African nation could descend into conflict unless Tutsi President Paul Kagame shares more power with the majority ethnic Hutu.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 13:47:31 +0000

Myanmar says China top ally, vote won't affect ties

BEIJING (Reuters) - Myanmar's reclusive leader on Thursday reassured Beijing that China is a vital ally and said an upcoming election and planned power transfer to a civilian government would not affect relations.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 13:29:00 +0000

Obama says planned Koran burning is boosting Qaeda

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama warned on Thursday that a Florida pastor's plan to burn copies of the Koran is being used as an al Qaeda recruitment tool and he urged the minister to reconsider the decision.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 12:45:37 +0000

Graft hard to spot in Afghan poll-monitor group

KABUL (Reuters) - Despite some electoral reforms, detecting graft in Afghanistan's September 18 parliamentary election will be harder than in last year's presidential poll due to the current voting system, a Western observer group said on Thursday.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 12:40:25 +0000

Blast in southern Russia kills at least 4 - reports

VLADIKAVKAZ, Russia (Reuters) - A large blast hit near a market in the city of Vladikavkaz in Russia's restive North Caucasus on Thursday, killing at least four people, Russian news agencies reported.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 11:06:18 +0000

Seven Mexican gunmen arrested in migrant massacre

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexican authorities arrested seven suspected drug cartel members believed to have killed 72 migrants heading to the United States, in what is said to be the worst massacre in the country's escalating drug war, the government said on Wednesday.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 10:09:11 +0000

China warns Japan ties at risk over boat incident

BEIJING (Reuters) - China warned Japan on Thursday that ties would suffer if Tokyo mishandles a dispute over a Chinese boat seized in disputed seas, intensifying a territorial rift that could deepen discord between Asia's top two economies.
Thu, 09 Sep 2010 08:56:13 +0000