Reuters: International News

Japan says Fukushima spent-fuel risk contained

26.05.2012 18:58 FUKUSHIMA, Japan - Japanese officials said on Saturday the unprecedented effort to remove spent fuel rods from one of the crippled Fukushima nuclear reactors was on track despite lingering concerns about the structure's vulnerability to another earthquake.

Putin puts Medvedev in charge of Russia's ruling party

26.05.2012 17:29 MOSCOW - President Vladimir Putin steered Dmitry Medvedev into the chairmanship of Russia's ruling party on Saturday and demanded reforms to the flagging organization he will rely on to keep his grip on the country's far-flung regions.

Palestinian shot in West Bank clash: officials

26.05.2012 17:02 NABLUS, West Bank - A Palestinian man was shot and wounded in a clash that began when Israeli settlers set fire to fields belonging to a Palestinian village, Palestinian officials said.

No German money for Greek ''bottomless pit'': minister

26.05.2012 15:48 BERLIN - Germany will not "pour money into a bottomless pit" and patience with Greece is growing thin ahead of a new election in the Mediterranean country, a conservative member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet was quoted on Saturday as saying.

Pope's butler charged over leaks scandal

26.05.2012 14:03 VATICAN CITY - Vatican magistrates on Saturday formally charged Pope Benedict's butler with illegal possession of secret documents and said a wider investigation would take place to see if he had any accomplices who helped him leak them.

Tunisian Salafi Islamists riot, clash with police

26.05.2012 13:38 TUNIS - Hundreds of Salafi Islamists attacked bars and shops and clashed with security forces in a Tunisian town on Saturday in the latest incident to raise religious tensions in the home of the Arab Spring uprisings.

Italy PM Monti defends tax authorities as protests mount

26.05.2012 13:27 ROME - Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti faced protests and catcalls on Saturday as he defended tax authorities against attacks fuelled by his government's unpopular austerity measures.

Iran has enough uranium for five bombs: expert

26.05.2012 12:58 VIENNA - Iran has significantly stepped up its output of low-enriched uranium and total production in the last five years would be enough for at least five nuclear weapons if refined much further, a U.S. security institute said.

Yemen's army says recaptured rebel positions

26.05.2012 12:54 ADEN - The Yemeni army battled al Qaeda-linked militants deep inside Zinjibar on Saturday, recapturing key positions inside the southern rebel-held city and killing at least 62 Islamist fighters, including Somalis, a military official said.

Greek opinion poll shows pro-bailout party leading

26.05.2012 12:48 ATHENS - An opinion poll published on Saturday showed Greece's conservative New Democracy party, which backs the international bailout, having a slight lead over the leftist SYRIZA, which opposes it, ahead of the June 17 election.

Saudi envoy kidnapped in Yemen begs king for help

26.05.2012 11:22 DUBAI - A Saudi Arabian diplomat kidnapped by al Qaeda militants in Yemen urged the Saudi king to meet his captors' demand for the release of women prisoners, in a video message posted on the Internet on Saturday.

Brother of blind Chinese activist goes missing: lawyer

26.05.2012 10:07 BEIJING - The brother of blind activist Chen Guangcheng has gone missing, a lawyer said on Saturday, days after he fled his village in northeastern China to seek help for his son who has been detained in a case that has become a rallying point among rights activists.

Rooftop gunman kills 1, wounds 8 in Finland

26.05.2012 08:36 HELSINKI - A gunman opened fire from a rooftop in a Finnish town centre in the early hours of Saturday, killing an 18-year-old woman and wounding eight other people, police said.

Afghan parliament approves U.S.-Afghan security pact

26.05.2012 08:19 KABUL - Afghanistan's parliament approved on Saturday a strategic pact between Kabul and Washington, clearing the way for a U.S. presence in the country for at least a decade after most foreign combat troops leave in 2014.

Clinton to visit Scandinavia, Caucasus, Turkey

26.05.2012 05:25 WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton leaves next week on an eight-day trip to Scandinavia, the Caucasus and Turkey that will cover security issues such as Iran and Syria as well as the environment and health.