Egypt presidential election run-off between Morsi, Shafiq
The Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Morsi and Ahmed Shafiq, Hosni Mubarak's last prime minister and a former air force commander, will compete in the run-off in Egypt's presidential poll, the chairman of the country's presidential election commission said on Monday. Farouq Sultan said Morsi won 5.76 million votes, while Shafiq garnered 5.5 million votes, AP reports. Third-placed Hamdeen Sabahi finished with 4.82 million votes. All appeals had reportedly been rejected by the commission.
Vatican says no cardinal suspect in leaks scandal
The Vatican has denied media reports that a cardinal was among those being investigated in a scandal over leaked documents of the Roman Catholic Church. Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi also said on Monday that the Holy See would not allow media pressure to rush the investigation, Reuters reports. The probe has led to the arrest of Pope Benedict's butler over the leaks. A lawyer for butler Paolo Gabriele, 46, said his client would cooperate with investigators.
South Sudan says Sudan bombs it on eve of peace talks
South Sudan on Monday accused Sudan of bombarding its territory on the eve of peace talks. “They are bombing South Sudan, attacking South Sudan,” the country's top negotiator Pagan Amum said, as cited by AFP. “These are not the signs of peace,” he stressed. Southern officials set off to attend African Union-led negotiations in Ethiopia.
Ten Al Qaeda fighters killed in Yemen clashes, US drone strike
A US drone strike and clashes between Yemeni troops and Al Qaeda-linked fighters killed at least 10 militants in Yemen, according to officials and tribesmen. A US drone struck a convoy carrying Al Qaeda's leader in Bayda province, Qaed al-Dahab, a tribal source told AFP. Dahab reportedly survived but five of his guards were killed. Five other Al Qaeda fighters and a civilian were killed in overnight clashes as Yemeni troops moved closer to capturing the city of Jaar in the southern province of Abyan, a military official said.
Egypt court to rule on Shafiq poll ban on June 11
Egypt's top court will rule on June 11 in a case examining the constitutionality of a law barring Mubarak-era officials from running for office, the Al-Ahkbar newspaper said on Monday. Mubarak's former premier Ahmed Shafiq, who is expected to compete in a presidential run-off, was initially barred from running for president. The political isolation law was adopted by the Islamist-dominated parliament in April.
3 NATO troops killed in crash and attack in Afghanistan
Two NATO service members were killed in a helicopter crash in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, the US-led coalition has said. There was no enemy activity in the area at the time the helicopter went down, AP said, citing initial reports. A third died in an insurgent attack in the south, the coalition said. Also on Monday, a second coalition aircraft crashed in eastern Afghanistan, no fatalities were reported.
Iran arrests man who ‘spied on' Ahmadinejad
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps has announced the arrest of a spy who allegedly worked for the intelligence service of an Arab country. The person was arrested entering the landing area of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s helicopter during the president’s recent trip to the eastern city of Sabzevar, the state-run Fars news agency said on Monday. The Guards also said they had found ammunition, weapons and telecommunication tools during the operation. The individual reportedly admitted to transferring “sensitive information” to contacts in an Arab nation, which was not named.
Libya to delay elections due to appeal process
Libya's first free elections, scheduled to take place on June 19, will be delayed, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, head of Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC), has said. The decision will allow candidates to appeal if they have been disallowed due to the vetting process, he told Reuters. "All depends on the appeal process for the election candidates,” the council’s head said. “This appeal process will result in a postponement of the elections.”
Blast hits downtown Nairobi
An explosion ripped through a building full of small shops in downtown Nairobi on Monday, wounding at least 28 people, AP reports. Al-Shabab militants from neighboring Somalia have threatened to carry out substantial attacks in Kenya after the country sent troops last October into Somalia to pursue the group. Kenya has suffered a series of grenade attacks in recent months.
Bahraini rights activist Rajab released on bail
Bahraini human rights activist Nabeel Rajab who was arrested this month was released on bail on Monday, his Bahrain Center for Human Rights has said. Rajab was reportedly released on nearly $1,600 bail and will probably face a travel ban. He was arrested on May 5 after returning to the kingdom from Lebanon and is facing charges of “inciting illegal activities and defamation.”
France detains suspected Basque military leader
The suspected military leader of Basque separatist group ETA has been arrested in southwestern France, along with an alleged accomplice, Spain's Interior Ministry said on Monday. Oroitz Gurruchaga Gogorza, along with Xabier Aramburu, was recruiting new members to join the armed militant group, Reuters reports. Gurruchaga and Aramburu were armed and traveling in a stolen car with fake license plates when they were arrested on Sunday in Cauna, police said.
African Union, Somali troops secure aid corridor near capital
African Union and Somali government troops have secured an aid corridor between Mogadishu and a former rebel stronghold close to the capital, the AU said. The African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and Somali forces will now control a strip of land believed to hold 400,000 internally displaced people, Reuters reports. The AU and government forces late last week seized the town of Afgoye from the Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab insurgents and then took control of Elasha Biyaha. The area is now safe for aid groups to operate in.
Japan government to be blamed for Fukushima - ex-PM Kan
The government and its push for nuclear energy bore most of the responsibility for the Fukushima nuclear crisis, former Prime Minister Naoto Kan said on Monday. “I believe the biggest portion of blame lies with the state,” he told a parliamentary inquiry into the cause of the disaster. “The nuclear accident was caused by a nuclear plant which operated as national policy,” he was quoted by AFP as saying. “As the person who was in charge of the country at the time of the accident, I sincerely apologize for my failure to stop it,” he noted.
Egypt's Brotherhood urges world powers to intervene in Syria
Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood called on Arab and other world powers on Monday to intervene in Syria after the killing of 108 people in the town of Houla. “The Muslim Brotherhood calls on Arab, Islamic and international governments... to intervene to stop these massacres, especially after the failure of international forces and international monitoring to stop them,” spokesman Mahmoud Ghozlan said, as cited by Reuters. He also called on Syrians to put aside their differences and unite to “bring down the regime, make the revolution succeed.”
Outgoing Serbian president Tadic poised to head new government
Former Serbian President Boris Tadic has agreed to start talks on the formation of a new government that would leave the new head of state, Tomislav Nikolic, without real power. Coalition talks start on Monday when Tadic is to meet Nikolic who edged him in the May 20 presidential election, AP said. Nikolic's Serbian Progressive Party narrowly won a May 6 parliamentary election. However, Tadic's pro-Western Democratic Party, which came second, is poised to form a coalition government with the third-placed Socialist Party. The prime minister has more powers as the president cannot draft laws or make political decisions.
Russian bikers released in Iraq flying home via Turkey
Russian bikers who were detained in Iraq and released later last week are expected to arrive in Moscow on Monday, Russian officials say. The four bikers flew to Turkey from Baghdad, representatives of the Russian Embassy in Iraq told Interfax. The motorcycles were returned and are on the embassy’s premises, but the bikers will have to solve the issue of their shipment. The men had been touring the Middle East before Iraqi authorities detained them, saying their visas were illegal.
Annan to meet Syrian leader on Tuesday – reports
The UN and Arab League envoy Kofi Annan will hold talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus on Tuesday, AFP said, citing Syrian officials. Annan will arrive in Damascus on Monday and will also meet Foreign Minister Walid Muallem, the sources say. It is Annan’s second visit to Syria since the start of his mission three months ago. The UN Security Council on Sunday condemned the Syrian government for using artillery in the central town of Houla. Syria denies allegations that its forces killed scores of people in the attack.
Coalition disputes reports of casualties in Afghan air strike
The NATO coalition disputes reports that eight civilians, including children, were killed in a NATO air strike in eastern Afghanistan. Afghan officials said an air strike on Saturday night killed eight members of a family in Paktia province. A senior NATO official said that so far, there is no evidence of any civilian casualties, AP reports. The coalition said it was working to find out more about the allegations.
US missile attack kills 5 militants in Pakistan
Five suspected Islamist militants have been killed in a US missile attack near the Afghan border, intelligence officials say. Five missiles hit a vehicle and a house in Makeene Kili village close to the town of Miran Shah, AP reports. The attack late Sunday in North Waziristan was the fourth in less than a week.
Nepal to elect new Constituent Assembly
Nepal is set to elect a new Constituent Assembly in November, the country’s Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai said. Its current legislature, elected in 2008, failed to write up a constitution by the given deadline, Monday midnight. The country's four main political parties failed to come to terms due to bickering over whether the country's regional borders should be drawn on ethnic lines. Opponents of that proposal gathered outside the parliament and clashed with police. Nepal has been struggling to write a constitution since it became a republic in 2008.
Quebec student groups to negotiate with government
Representatives from the four main student groups protesting the Quebec government’s planned tuition hikes are to meet with the province’s education minister on Monday. Leo Bureau-Blouin, head of Quebec’s College Student Federation, said the talks represent a “last chance” for the government to put an end to the conflict. Protests against tuition increases have been ongoing in the province since February. Last week the government adopted a law that limited the right to spontaneous rallies, sparking outrage not only amongst students, but also human rights activists. Since then, tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Montreal and other cities throughout Canada, resulting in 700 arrests on Wednesday. A total of 2,500 protest-related arrests have been made since the start of the movement. The government and the student unions previously held talks, but those broke down after the student unions rejected the government's offer of spacing out the increases over a period of seven years.
Three killed in Pakistan blast
At least three people have been killed and seven injured in a bomb blast on Sunday in the southwest Pakistani city of Quetta, police say. The bomb went off next to a police van and also killed a donkey. Police believe the perpetrators used a remote-controlled bomb to target policemen, but say only passersby were among the dead.
Talks fail in Canada rail strike
Talks between the Canada Pacific Railway (CP Rail) and its 4,800 striking locomotive engineers and conductors have fallen apart over the weekend, a CP Rail spokesperson said. The spokesperson indicated that the government should try to pass back-to-work legislation that would force the striking workers to return to their jobs. Earlier, Labor Minister Lisa Pratt said the strike, which began last Wednesday, was impacting farmers and the mining sector, as it had paralyzed freight service on Canada’s second-largest railroad.
Thirty killed in Hama shelling – Syrian opposition
At least 30 people have been killed during artillery shelling of the Syrian city of Hama, opposition activists say, as quoted by Reuters. The shelling purportedly began on Sunday morning in the north of the city, which has been serving as a stronghold for the opposition, from which rebels regularly attack army roadblocks. Shelling resumed in the south of the city in the evening. The alleged attacks came as the UN Security Council met to discuss the recent massacre in Houla, where as many as 116 people, including many children, were killed, according to General Robert Mood, the head of the UN observer mission. The US, the UK and France have blamed the Syrian government for the massacre, while Russia maintains that it is important not to jump to conclusions. The Syrian government denied its involvement and accused armed terrorist of perpetrating the massacre.
John McCain calls Obama foreign policy 'feckless'
In an interview with Fox News Sunday, US Senator John McCain (R-AZ) accused Barack Obama for embracing a feckless policy and punting tough decisions until after the November presidential election. Specifically, he accused the current administration of relying on Russia to find a peaceful solution to the Syrian conflict. Obama has opposed taking military action in Syria, a stance that has been criticized by a number of prominent Republicans. McCain has been one of the most outspoken critics of a lenient approach towards Russia. He heads the Senate Armed Services Committee and was Obama’s main opponent in the 2008 presidential election.
RT
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