29 April 2014 Last updated at 08:51
High court hearing comes ahead of case due to be brought next year by Bodo community in fight for compensation
Allawi's elaborately secured residence, a former educational center of the Baath Party, is located in the upscale neighborhood of Mansour, outside the sealed Green Zone in which the government, international organizations and US Embassy have fortified themselves. Allawi drags his right leg: "A greeting from Saddam Hussein," he says. He claims that in 1978, Saddam's henchmen had wanted to dispose of him because he had demanded freedom and democracy. He points to his family's democratic tradition: His ancestors, he says, revolted against the British occupiers and were involved in the founding of Iraq, becoming ministers and lawmakers.
Ukraine crisis: Russia alarmed over US-Nato military moves
Moscow has voiced concern over an "unprecedented" increase in US and Nato military activity near Russian borders, amid an escalating crisis in Ukraine.
Russia's defence minister condemned "provocative" US and Nato comments.
Pro-Russia activists have seized buildings in more than a dozen towns in east Ukraine and hold seven European military observers in Sloviansk.
The EU has stepped up its sanctions, naming 15 new targets on Tuesday, a day after the US ordered similar measures.
The US sanctions targeted seven Russian individuals and 17 companies which Washington says are linked to President Vladimir Putin's "inner circle".
Nigerian community fights Shell in UK court over oil spills
High court hearing comes ahead of case due to be brought next year by Bodo community in fight for compensation
Britain's high court will on Tuesday hold a pre-trial hearing ahead of a court case due to be held next year brought by around 15,000 members of Nigeria's Bodo community against oil giant Shell.
The residents are seeking compensation from the British-Dutch company over two oil spills in 2008, having failed to reach a compensation deal last year.
London-based law firm Leigh Day, which represented Bodo residents in the talks and will do so in next year's court case, called Shell's initial offer "insulting."
Sources familiar with the talks said Shell proposed a settlement of 7.5 billion naira ($46 million, 35 million euros).
Alleged police gang rape sends shock waves through Paris
Two senior French officers arrested on suspicion of assaulting Canadian tourist
Lara Marlowe
The crime brigade at number 36 Quai des Orfèvres was a legendary institution, immortalised by Inspector Maigret, the character created by Belgian writer Georges Simenon. Last year the brigade celebrated its 100th anniversary with an exhibition sponsored by actor Jean-Paul Belmondo.
In the early hours of April 23rd the brigade’s headquarters, contiguous to the Palais de Justice, became a crime scene. Two senior officers have been placed under investigation on suspicion they gang-raped a Canadian tourist, then tampered with evidence.
There was insufficient proof to charge a third officer. He has been given the status of an “assisted witness” who must be available for questioning at all times. All three have been suspended.
Iraqi Election Fear: 'No One Is Safe Anymore'
Iraq's former interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi, is hoping to oust the current government in this week's elections. He speaks to SPIEGEL about his belief that the Americans robbed him of power and about the country's escalating violence.
Ayad Allawi has only just seen off a delegation of Shiite clerics from Basra, and already emissaries from the autonomous region of Kurdistan are waiting for him in the parlor. A long list of supporters and activists come to visit the 69-year-old here, in the campaign office of his Iraqi National Accord Party, despite the dangers involved in a trip to Baghdad. Bomb attacks still rock the country, and the capital, every day.
Political activist Gao Yu feared missing ahead of Tiananmen Square Massacre anniversary
April 29, 2014 - 2:44PMPhilip Wen
China correspondent for Fairfax Media
Beijing: Prominent journalist and political analyst Gao Yu has been reported missing, prompting concern for her welfare in the lead-up to the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre.
Friends of Ms Gao have been unable to reach the outspoken 70-year-old journalist - who was jailed twice for her political writings linked to the pro-democracy movement in 1989 - since Thursday night.
Her lawyer, Teng Biao, and other Chinese publishers and activists have said they have been unable to reach her or find her at home. On Tuesday, her home phone rang unanswered and her mobile phone was switched off.
Sugar war could sour US-Mexico trade ties
The US sugar industry is seething over soaring competition from Mexico. But if the US imposes punitive duties on Mexican sugar, observers say Mexico could reciprocate.
There’s nothing sweet in the sugar war that’s unfolding between Mexico and the United States.
The US industry, sometimes called Big Sugar, simmers over soaring competition from Mexico and argues that a doubling of Mexican exports triggered a collapse in the market price of sugar.
A reluctant Obama administration has opened a formal investigation into those exports that could result in new import duties on Mexican sugar – and ignite a broader trade dispute over sweeteners that might affect other US industries.
A spokesman for the American Sugar Alliance, Phillip Hayes, says the sugar industry faces losses of up to $1 billion this year because of what it alleges is dumping – selling at prices lower than what it costs to produce – by Mexican sugar producers.
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