World

BOSTON, (Reuters) – Microsoft Corp said that an assault it led earlier this month on one of the world’s biggest cyber crime rings has freed at least 2 million PCs infected with a virus believed to have been used to steal more than $500 million from bank accounts worldwide.

BUENOS AIRES, (Reuters) – Argentina’s Supreme Court yesterday struck down a key part of a judicial reform law championed by President Cristina Fernandez that would have mandated the election of members of the board that chooses federal judges.

SAN JUAN,  (Reuters) – The FBI is investigating allegations that high-ranking bank officials in Puerto Rico conspired to have a former Doral Bank executive killed after he claimed he uncovered fraud, the U.S.

(Reuters) – Montreal Mayor Michael Applebaum resigned yesterday, a day after he was charged with fraud and corruption in the latest major Canadian municipal scandal.

MADRID,  (Reuters) – A fraud investigation of Spain’s Princess Cristina was thrown into disarray yesterday when the Tax Agency said it had been mistaken in reporting she had been the seller of 1.4 million euros ($1.87 million) worth of properties.

ACCRA,  (Reuters) – China is determined that its relations with Ghana will not be undermined by the arrest of some 200 Chinese illegal gold miners in a crackdown by Ghanaian authorities, a senior Beijing Foreign Ministry official said today.

KABUL, (Reuters) – Afghanistan will send a team to Qatar for peace talks with the Taliban, President Hamid Karzai said on Tuesday, as the U.S.-led

PEROL LAKE, Peru (Reuters) – Thousands of opponents of a $5 billion gold project of Newmont Mining circled a lake high in the Andes yesterday, vowing to stop the company from eventually draining it to make way for Peru’s most expensive mine.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – US entertainer Barbra Streisand yesterday took a swipe at Orthodox Jews in Israel who compel women to sit in the back of buses and assault them for following religious rituals traditionally reserved for men.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said yesterday he is holding up millions of dollars in US aid to Afghanistan until President Barack Obama’s administration explains the rationale behind more than a decade of cash payments to Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

ENNISKILLEN, Northern Ireland (Reuters) – Russia and the United States disagree on how to end the conflict in Syria but want the bloodshed to stop and the warring parties brought to the negotiating table, Russian President Vladimir Putin said yesterday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States and Cuba are exploring the possibility of resuming direct mail services between the two countries after a 50-year ban, US officials with knowledge of the talks said yesterday.

PEROL LAKE, Peru, (Reuters) – Thousands of opponents of a $5 billion gold project of Newmont Mining circled a lake high in the Andes on Monday, vowing to stop the company from eventually draining it to make way for Peru’s most expensive mine.

PRAGUE, (Reuters) – Czech Prime Minister Petr Necas was forced to quit yesterday by a graft and spying scandal involving his closest aide, pitching the European Union member state into a period of uncertainty over who will form the next government.

AMMAN/LONDON,  (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin, arriving in Britain before an international summit set to be dominated by disagreement over the U.S.

NEW DELHI,  (Reuters) – A powerful Indian regional party pulled out of the main opposition alliance yesterday, a split that could hobble the rise of a controversial Hindu nationalist leader who hopes to oust the ruling Congress party in elections due by May 2014.

LONDON,  (Reuters) – Britain intercepted phone calls and monitored computers used by officials taking part in two high-level international finance meetings in London in 2009, a British newspaper said yesterday.

DUBAI (Reuters) – Moderate cleric Hassan Rohani won Iran’s presidential election yesterday with a resounding defeat of conservative hardliners, calling it a victory of moderation over extremism and pledging a new tone of respect in international affairs.

QUETTA, Pakistan (Reuters) – Militants in a volatile region of western Pakistan bombed a bus carrying women students yesterday and then seized part of the hospital where survivors were taken, in the first major security test for the new prime minister, Nawaz Sharif.

ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkish riot police stormed an Istanbul park at the heart of two weeks of protest against Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan yesterday, firing tear gas and water cannon and sending hundreds scurrying into surrounding streets.