World

BANGKOK,  (Reuters) – Amid beating drums, the whistle of an ancient flute and an artillery salute, Thailand began an elaborate ceremony steeped in ancient rites to mark the start yesterday of a lavish cremation ceremony for revered late King Bhumibol Adulyadej.

LONDON,  (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Africa needs 11 million more doctors, nurses and teachers by 2030 to prevent a “social and economic disaster” that could propel millions to migrate, the United Nations said on Thursday.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – Tensions among Republicans about President Donald Trump boiled over yesterday as two senators accused Trump of debasing U.S.

RIYADH,  (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia, seeking to free itself from dependence on oil exports, announced on Tuesday a $500 billion plan to build a business and industrial zone extending into Jordan and Egypt.

DAR ES SALAAM, (Reuters) – Tanzania’s government yesterday suspended publication of an opposition-leaning newspaper for three months, the fourth newspaper to be shut down since June in what critics say is a crackdown on press freedom.

BRASILIA,  (Reuters) – Brazil’s President Michel Temer has made policy and spending concessions in an effort to survive a congressional vote on corruption charges today that has put his reform agenda at risk, analysts and political actors said.

LISBON, (Reuters) – A women’s rights group has called a rally to protest against a Portuguese court ruling that upheld a light sentence for a woman’s attackers on the grounds they may have been driven to it by her adultery, an offence punishable with death in the Bible.

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK,  (Reuters) – The Trump administration will temporarily delay processing of most refugees from 11 countries identified as high-risk, while resuming refugee admissions for other countries, government officials said on Tuesday.

HAVANA,  (Reuters) – Cuban officials investigating U.S. complaints of attacks on diplomats in Havana said talk of acoustic strikes was “science fiction” and they accused Washington of “slander” while refusing to cooperate fully with Cuba’s enquiry.

  RIYADH,  (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia announced today a $500 billion plan to create a business and industrial zone extending across its borders into Jordan and Egypt, the biggest project yet in a series of efforts to free the kingdom of its dependence on oil exports.

CARACAS,  (Reuters) – In another setback for Venezuela’s dispirited opposition, four of its five state governors broke with their coalition’s official stance on Monday to swear themselves in before a pro-government legislative superbody.

BAGHDAD,  (Reuters) – Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi defended the role of an Iranian-backed paramilitary force at a meeting with U.S.

GENEVA,  (Reuters) – Bangladesh called on Myanmar yesterday to allow nearly 1 million Rohingya Muslim refugees to return home under safe conditions, saying that the burden had become “untenable” on its territory.

LONDON,  (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Theresa May signalled yesterday that any Brexit transition deal would be put together as part of a wider trade agreement – potentially stripping companies of the time they need to prepare to leave the European Union.

  GENEVA,  (Reuters) – Nearly 1 million Rohingya refugees have fled violence in Myanmar, an “untenable situation” for neighbour Bangladesh, the country’s U.N.

NEW YORK, (Reuters) – Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter said he would be willing to travel to North Korea on behalf of the Trump administration to help diffuse rising tensions, The New York Times reported on its website yesterday.

BUENOS AIRES,  (Reuters) – Candidates allied with Argentine President Mauricio Macri enjoyed sweeping victories in yesterday’s mid-term election, strengthening his position in Congress while dimming prospects for a political comeback by his predecessor Cristina Fernandez.

WASHINGTON,  (Reuters) – U.S. senators said yesterday the White House has not been forthcoming with details about the military’s presence in Niger after the deaths of four soldiers there earlier this month and they want more answers on U.S.

TOKYO,  (Reuters) – Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s ruling bloc scored a big win in yesterday’s election, bolstering his chance of becoming the nation’s longest-serving premier and re-energising his push to revise the pacifist constitution.

GENEVA,  (Reuters) – Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has been removed as a goodwill ambassador, the World Health Organization (WHO) said today following an outrage among Western donors and rights groups at the appointment.