ISLAMABAD – Bombers struck in two Pakistani cities yesterday killing 43 people and wounding more than 100 as the Supreme Court began a hearing that could deepen political tension in the nuclear-armed country.
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LONDON – When Defense Secretary Robert Gates said last week al Qaeda and its allies might try to provoke a conflict between India and Pakistan, he articulated what many see as the biggest risk to US plans for the region.
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BAGHDAD – Iraq’s vice president has gained prestige through his controversial veto of a long delayed law allowing a national vote next year, but the move has done little to improve the lot of his once dominant Sunni Arab countrymen.
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WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama will lay out policy proposals to combat double-digit unemployment in a speech today tackling an economic problem that has become a political drain on his young administration.
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BRUSSELS – European Union foreign ministers agreed to lift an obstacle in the path of Serbia’s entry to the bloc, but also urged Belgrade to do more to catch suspected war criminals, diplomats said.
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BUCHAREST – The razor-thin victory of incumbent President Traian Basescu is not enough of a mandate to solve Romania’s economic and political woes and prolongs uncertainty over the fate of reforms and an IMF rescue deal.
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CHISINAU – Moldova was plunged into a year of uncertainty after the Western-leaning coalition failed to get parliament to elect Marian Lupu as president due to a walkout by the powerful opposition communists.
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LA PAZ – Bolivia’s President Evo Morales wants to launch state-run paper and cement ventures and develop lithium, petrochemical and iron projects in his second term but a lack of foreign investment and know-how could hamper his ambitious plans.
