BEIRUT – Syria has accepted a U.N.-sponsored peace plan, international envoy Kofi Annan said yesterday, as troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad raided rebel forces who have taken refuge across the border in Lebanon.
– – – –
WASHINGTON – The Obama administration faced skeptical questioning from a U.S. Supreme Court dominated by conservatives yesterday during a tense two-hour showdown over a sweeping healthcare law that has divided Americans.
– – – –
JERUSALEM – Former defence chief Shaul Mofaz has unseated former diplomat Tsipi Livni as head of Kadima, Israel’s largest opposition party, results of a leadership vote showed yesterday.
– – – –
CARACAS – President Hugo Chavez has a solid 13-percentage point lead over opposition candidate Henrique Capriles in a new survey ahead of October’s election – but many Venezuelans remain undecided.
– – – –
OTTAWA – U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said yesterday it was important for NATO-led forces to continue implementing their strategy to end the conflict in Afghanistan despite growing signs of public fatigue after 10 years of war.
– – – –
WASHINGTON – More than two-thirds of Americans disapprove of the way President Barack Obama is handling high gasoline prices, although most do not blame him for them, according to a Reuters/Ipsos online poll released yesterday.
– – – –
JUBA/KHARTOUM – Sudan and South Sudan accused each other of launching fresh attacks on oil-producing areas either side of their contested border on Tuesday but Sudan said it hoped the conflict would not escalate into war.
– – – –
LONDON – A cloud of explosive natural gas boiling up from the North Sea out of a leak at Total’s evacuated Elgin platform forced another shutdown off the Scottish coast on Tuesday as the French firm warned it could take six months to halt the flow.
