Gulf states seek to host Yemen talks in Riyadh
It is not clear who will take part in the negotiations reportedly requested by Yemeni President Hadi.
Saudi Arabia has said the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) had agreed to host talks in Riyadh to end the Yemen crisis, according to the state news agency SPA.
The announcement by the Saudi king's office came on Monday, following a request from Yemen's President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, but it was not clear who would take part in the talks.
"The security of Yemen is part and parcel of the security of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries," the statement said.
"The GCC countries have expressed their agreement to the request of Yemen's president to hold a conference under the umbrella of the GCC in Riyadh."
Yemen, a neighbour of Saudi Arabia and a global security hotspot because of a strong al-Qaeda presence, is caught in a stand-off between Hadi and the Shia Houthi, now the country's de facto rulers who are supported by Iran.
US ambassador leaves South Korea hospital after knife attack
Ambassador says attack strengthens ‘unbreakable bond’ between Seoul and Washington
The US ambassador to South Korea, Mark Lippert, has left a South Korean hospital after five days of treatment because of a knife attack by a man screaming about Korean unification, vowing not to change his “open and friendly” approach to diplomacy.
Mr Lippert told reporters assembled at Seoul’s Severance Hospital that he felt “pretty darn good, all things considered” after the “scary incident” on Thursday, when police say an anti-US activist slashed his face and left arm during a breakfast forum in Seoul.
Mr Lippert, his face bandaged and his arm in a brace, would not comment on the specifics of the attack because of the police investigation.
The Isolation of Donetsk: A Visit to Europe's Absurd New Border
By Christian Neef
The heavy fighting may have stopped for the time being, but Donetsk is more isolated than ever. Those wishing to enter and leave the city need difficult-to-obtain special IDs. Meanwhile, food and other supplies are only trickling into the metropolis.
Borders can be annoying, but largely predictable -- in Europe at least. That is what truck driver Yevgeny believed until recently. Many of them are no longer monitored at all, but even those that are guarded rarely hold surprises for those wishing to cross them. "You know if you can zip across them or if you have to plan for a five-hour wait. But this one? I have no idea how it works."
The border he is referring to is that of a wartime stronghold on the edge of a largely borderless European continent. At the first checkpoint after Kurakhove, travelers must present their papers, open the trunks of their cars and submit to pat-downs as guards search for weapons. Another 500 meters down the road, there are blocks of concrete, barricades, antitank barriers and signs that curtly order travelers to switch off their headlights and stop immediately. After that, there are containers and hooded soldiers, their Kalashnikovs at the ready.
Indonesian protesters leave coins at Australian embassy to repay Boxing Day tsunami aid
Jewel Topsfield
Indonesia correspondent for Fairfax
Indonesian demonstrators have returned five bags of coins to the Australian embassy to 'repay' Australian aid after the 2004 tsunami and warned they would bring their government down if the Bali nine executions were cancelled.
The noisy but small protest was part of the #coinforAustralia campaign that was launched after Tony Abbott asked Indonesia to reciprocate for the$1billion in aid money. The Prime Minister's comments caused widespread offence across Indonesia.
About 20 protesters, some of whom were from a Muslim students' organisation called PII, called on Tony Abbott "aka the big mouth" to apologise to the Indonesian people.
Notes from a Venezuelan supermarket: Is it all empty shelves and long lines?
There's food - it just may not be what shoppers need.
My wife and I went grocery shopping for a family of four last night, in a chain supermarket in Eastern Caracas.
There were fruits and vegetables of all kinds. There was also plenty of: cheese, yogurt, lunchmeat, sausages, bacon, pasta, bread, crackers, cookies, nuts, wine, beer, and soy oil. From the meat cooler we got a nice pork loin and some smoked pork chops. We passed on the turkey drumsticks. The “fresh” fish all looked like it was from distant times or places; so we passed on it too.
Not available were: chicken, beef, milk, coffee, rice, sugar, corn oil, laundry soap, dish soap, paper towels, and toilet paper. Fortunately we have all but the first two in stock at home (getting low on coffee and paper towels though). We’ll keep an eye out for beef and chicken.
Southeast Asia
Mar 10, '15
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Myanmar to repatriate Kachin Rakhines
By Min Thein Aung and Khet Mar
By Min Thein Aung and Khet Mar
Western Myanmar's Rakhine state will repatriate more than 100,000 ethnic Rakhine Buddhists from the country's Kachin state, where fighting between rebels and government troops have threatened their livelihoods, officials said Monday.
Phyu Thar Che, vice-chairman of the Rakhine Literature and Cultural Association, said the Rakhine state government had pledged to assist in repatriating around half of the more than 200,000 Rakhines living in northern Myanmar's resource-rich Kachin state.
"During our discussion, Rakhine state chief minister [Major General Maung Maung Ohn] agreed to arrange shelters for them
Phyu Thar Che, vice-chairman of the Rakhine Literature and Cultural Association, said the Rakhine state government had pledged to assist in repatriating around half of the more than 200,000 Rakhines living in northern Myanmar's resource-rich Kachin state.
"During our discussion, Rakhine state chief minister [Major General Maung Maung Ohn] agreed to arrange shelters for them
and provide them with job opportunities in the region," he told RFA's Myanmar Service.
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