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G8 puts oil stocks to pressure Iran

Leaders of the Group of Eight major economies raised the pressure on Iran on Saturday, signaling their readiness to tap into emergency oil stockpiles quickly this summer if tougher new sanctions... Full story

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18 killed as Yemen army battles rebels

Clashes between the army and militants on the outskirts of the Islamist stronghold of Jaar in southern Yemen left 18 people dead overnight, military and tribal sources said on Sunday. Full story

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Jordan approves austerity moves

The Jordanian cabinet approved an austerity package that includes plans to raise taxes on banks and mining firms but avoids controversial fuel and electricity price rises to hold down the rise in the budget deficit, officials said on Sunday. Full story

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Mexico youths protest at former rulers’ comeback

Thousands of demonstrators protested in Mexico City on Saturday against opposition presidential candidate Enrique Pena Nieto, who is far ahead in polls and poised to lead the party that... Full story

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Two NATO soldiers killed in Afghanistan

Two NATO soldiers were killed in an attack in Afghanistan Sunday as alliance leaders gathered in Chicago for a summit dominated by plans to pull troops out of the Afghan war. Full story

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Knife fish infests Philippine waters

The Philippine fisheries chief on Sunday said he had ordered a study into a foreign species called the ‘knife fish’ that was posing a threat to the local fishing industry at the country’s largest lake. Full story

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Pakistan wants $5,000 per truck into Afghanistan

US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta suggested that Islamabad was demanding too high a price to resume the NATO supplies across its territory to Afghanistan. Quoting a senior US official, the Los... Full story

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Pakistan blocks Twitter over Prophet cartoons

Pakistan blocked Twitter on Sunday, saying the website had refused to remove posts promoting a Facebook competition involving caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed. Full story

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Sri Lanka’s former army chief freed

Sri Lanka’s president has ordered the release of his jailed electoral rival, ex-army chief Sarath Fonseka, bowing to US-led international pressure three years after the end of the island’s long ethnic war. Full story

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Turkish colonel held over coup plot

A colonel in the Turkish army was arrested on Saturday in connection with a suspected conspiracy to destabilise the government by staging attacks against ethnic minorities, Sabah newspaper said on its website. Full story

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Six killed in Italy quake

About 3,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in northeast Italy’s Emilia Romagna region, where a magnitude 6.0 quake struck early Sunday killing at least six, civil defence services said. Full story

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Army kills Sunni cleric in Lebanon

Army troops shot dead a Sunni cleric on Sunday when his convoy failed to stop at a checkpoint in north Lebanon, the scene of deadly clashes linked to the uprising in Syria, a security official said. Full story

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Facebook founder Zuckerberg gets married

Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg wed longtime girlfriend Priscilla Chan on Saturday, announcing the nuptials through a status update on the social networking site. Full story

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2 militants killed in Dagestan

Russian security forces killed two suspected militants in a gunfight at a private house in its restive North Caucasus province of Dagestan, Interfax reported on Sunday, quoting local authorities. Full story

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Jail warden shot dead in Pakistan

Gunmen on a motorcycle have shot dead a senior prison official in Pakistan’s troubled southwestern city of Quetta, police said Sunday. Imtiaz Ahmad, chief warden of the district prison, was targeted... Full story

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