Pakistan blocks Twitter over contentious material
The chairman of Pakistan's telecommunications authority says the government has blocked the social networking website Twitter because of material considered offensive to Islam.
General strike freezes Nepal as constitution deadline looms
KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Thousands of schools closed, roads were empty and businesses shuttered across Nepal on Sunday at the start of a three-day general strike over a state boundary dispute that could push lawmakers past a May 27 deadline to write a new constitution. At least two dozen vehicles were damaged by stone-throwing activists, police said, and 46 people were detained in the capital Kathmandu, where children played football on normally traffic-choked streets. Instability has plagued Nepal since the end of a Maoist-led civil war in 2006, and the subsequent overthrow of the monarchy. ...
Indian star ends mystery over granddaughter's name
Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan says his superstar son and daughter-in-law have named their baby girl Aaradhya.
Israel blasts foreign proposal on settlement goods
The Palestinian campaign to boycott goods produced in Jewish settlements in the West Bank has received a boost from abroad with an unprecedented South African proposal to have the name of Israel dropped from labels on merchandise made in the settlements.
Germany's Schaeuble says Greek euro zone exit preventable
BERLIN (Reuters) - German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said Greece's exit from the euro zone could definitely be prevented but that it was up to Greece to abide by its agreements. "European solidarity isn't a one-way street," Schaeuble told Bild am Sonntag newspaper. "You can't have one without the other. If anyone in Greece thinks that's the case, then they're massively fooling themselves and the voters. ...
Italy bomb attack was probably isolated act: investigator
BRINDISI, Italy (Reuters) - The bomb attack which killed a teenage girl and injured 10 others in the southern Italian town of Brindisi was probably the work of an individual with no links to the mafia, a senior official said on Sunday. "It seems to be the work of a single person," Marco Dinapoli, the Brindisi chief prosecutor, who is leading the investigation, told reporters on Sunday, saying that a suspect had already been identified. "The most probable hypothesis is that it was an isolated act," he said but gave no details about the suspect. ...
Ex-president seeks comeback in Dominican Republic
A former president whose term ended with the worst economic crisis in the modern history of the Dominican Republic will seek to make a comeback Sunday as he faces an old rival in a race to lead the Caribbean's top tourist destination.
Flash flood kills 19 in Afghanistan; many missing
Flood waters ravaged a provincial capital in northern Afghanistan, killing at least 19 people and destroying hundreds of homes, officials said Sunday.
Powerful quake kills at least 4 in northern Italy
One of the strongest earthquakes to shake northern Italy rattled the region around Bologna early Sunday, a magnitude-6.0 temblor that killed at least four people, toppled buildings and sent residents running into the streets, emergency services and news reports said.
Russia forces kill two suspected militants in Dagestan raid
MOSCOW, Russia (Reuters) - 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. Police stormed the house in a village near Khasavyurt, a town about 80 km (50 miles) west of the provincial capital of Makhachkala. Two unidentified gunmen were killed in a shootout with security forces, a local law enforcement official said. "They opened fire in response to calls for surrender," the official was quoted as saying. ...
World leaders set to tackle Afghanistan's future
World leaders weary of war will tackle Afghanistan's post-conflict future — from funding for security forces to upcoming elections — when the NATO summit opens Sunday.
Tropical storm Alberto churns off Southeast coast
Forecasters say Tropical Storm Alberto is churning off the Southeastern U.S. seaboard as a tropical storm watch continues on a stretch of South Carolina coast.
After Italy bombing, no claim of responsibility
A bomb blast outside a high school in southern Italy that killed a 16-year-old student has stirred memories of the dark days decades ago when terrorists, anarchists and organized crime carried out dozens of bloody attacks.
Rare 'Ring of Fire' Solar Eclipse Visible from China to Texas Today
Astronauts May See Solar Eclipse Shadow From Space
