Pakistani PM denies government is holding talks with Taliban
Ministers insist there is no dialogue with the Pakistani Taliban after its deputy commander said the two sides were holding talks
Pakistan's interior minister and prime minister have both denied the government is holding peace talks with its homegrown Taliban, according to media, saying it would do so only if the militants first disarmed and surrendered.
The deputy commander of the Pakistani Taliban, who have been waging a four-year war against the government in Islamabad, said on Saturday that the two sides were holding talks, a move that could further fray the US-Pakistan relationship.
But both the prime minister, Yusuf Raza Gilani, and the interior minister, Rehman Malik, denied the reports.
Tamil rebels recruited children for last stand against Sri Lankan army
Tamil rebels holed up in ever-diminishing territory in northern Sri Lanka forcibly recruited children to take part in final defences against government troops, according to a former senior official. Some of the youngsters were sent to fight with just one day's basic training. A number of civilians who tried to escape to the government side were shot.
The official, who held a non-military position with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), said that in the spring of 2009, the rebels found themselves in an ever-worsening situation that led them to step up their forced recruitment of civilians between the age of 14 and 55. He said more than 300,000 civilians had intentionally been held to provide cover for the LTTE fighters.
Arab Spring to last for years
Acil Tabbara, Dubai
December 12, 2011
The euphoria sparked by the Arab Spring is giving way to disquiet over political instability and the growing influence of Islamists, but the democratic process still looks unstoppable, experts believe.
In 12 months, the Arab world has gone through more changes than it saw in decades, with Tunisia and Egypt staging historic elections.
A popular uprising ousted long-time Tunisian leader Zine el Abidine Ben Ali in January, sending shockwaves rippling across North Africa and the Middle East.
Ivorians tally votes after peaceful parliamentary elections
LOUCOUMANE COULIBALY AND ANGE ABOA ABIDJAN, CôTE D'IVOIRE - Dec 12 2011 06:33
Election officials said they expected most of the results from Sunday's vote would be known by Tuesday, with the outcome seen strengthening the hand of President Alassane Ouattara's ruling coalition.
"Overall, the election took place peacefully in polling stations visited in the district of Abidjan and the interior [of the country]," the United Nations secretary-general's special representative for Côte d'Ivoire, Bert Koenders, said in a statement.
The election was boycotted by the party of former president Laurent Gbagbo, who is in The Hague facing war crimes charges, over allegations of unfair treatment of his supporters
"Overall, the election took place peacefully in polling stations visited in the district of Abidjan and the interior [of the country]," the United Nations secretary-general's special representative for Côte d'Ivoire, Bert Koenders, said in a statement.
The election was boycotted by the party of former president Laurent Gbagbo, who is in The Hague facing war crimes charges, over allegations of unfair treatment of his supporters
US outed, and far from drawn down
By M K Bhadrakumar
The United States-Pakistan relationship has reached a turning point reminiscent of the run-up to October 1958, when Washington encouraged General Ayub Khan's coup, apprehending the coming into power of an elected government in Pakistan that might have refused to collaborate as the US's Cold War ally against the Soviet Union.
An innocuous-looking thing happened on Sunday - Pakistan regained possession of the Shamsi air base in Balochistan near the border with Iran after evicting the US military presence from there. The base itself had been leased to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since 1992
An innocuous-looking thing happened on Sunday - Pakistan regained possession of the Shamsi air base in Balochistan near the border with Iran after evicting the US military presence from there. The base itself had been leased to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since 1992
Why Israelis may not be thrilled by sweet nothings from Gingrich, GOP
As the GOP candidates, led by Newt Gingrich, work to outdo each other on supporting Israel, Israelis recognize the difference between campaigning and statecraft.
Israelis have grown accustomed to being the object of affection by US politicians and a stop on the campaigns of aspiring candidates over the past decade.
But the recent one-upmanship in the Republican primary on Israel has taken the debate into new territory. Newt Gingrich’s declaration that the Palestinians are an "invented" people potentially put him further to the right of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, whom Mitt Romney then name dropped in promising to stay on the same page with the government.
An embarrassment of diplomatic riches for Israel? Not necessarily.
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