CA-NEWS Summary

U.S., Russia seek new Syria peace talks; rebels skeptical

MOSCOW/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Russia and the United States agreed to seek new peace talks with both sides to end Syria's civil war, but opposition leaders were skeptical on Wednesday of an initiative they fear might let President Bashar al-Assad to cling to power. Visiting Moscow after Israel bombed targets near Damascus and as President Barack Obama faces renewed calls to arm the rebels, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Russia had agreed to try to arrange a conference as early as this month.

Algerian army kills seven militants in al Qaeda stronghold

ALGIERS (Reuters) - The Algerian army killed seven Islamist militants in their stronghold east of Algiers, the defense ministry said on Wednesday, as government forces stepped up operations against suspected al Qaeda-linked fighters. It was the largest government offensive against militants since an audacious assault on a desert gas plant in January in which 37 foreigners died.

Guinea indicts gendarme for rape in 2009 stadium massacre

CONAKRY (Reuters) - Guinea has indicted a gendarme officer on rape charges related to a stadium massacre of pro-democracy protesters by forces linked to the military junta in September 2009. Rights groups have criticized President Alpha Conde, elected in 2010 in Guinea's first democratic handover of power since independence from France in 1958, for not moving fast enough to bring those responsible to justice.

Putin says Russia needs stronger defense against Afghan threats

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday Russia must strengthen its defenses in the south and work with Central Asian allies to protect itself against the threat of extremist violence emerging from Afghanistan. Putin told a meeting of his Security Council that U.S. and NATO-led forces "have not yet achieved a breakthrough in the fight against terrorist and radical groups" in Afghanistan and that these groups have become more active recently.

Spain's Rajoy balks at making deeper reforms

MADRID (Reuters) - After a year of radical reforms that made Spain more competitive but also exacerbated a deep recession, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has largely lost his appetite for aggressive and unpopular cuts to pensions or state bureaucracy. His plunging approval rating at home is holding him back as unemployment soars to 27 percent. Sources within the government say he has also reached the view that deeper reforms at home will win him few points in negotiations with European partners.

Sanctions help to stoke Iran property boom but bubble feared

(Reuters) - The Iranian property developer leant back in his chair, drew hard on a shisha pipe and looked down at photographs of a Tehran apartment block on his tablet computer. "I designed it myself," he said proudly as he blew a cloud of scented smoke out into Dubai's night air.

Kuwait making tentative steps to connect with youth

KUWAIT (Reuters) - On a January afternoon in Kuwait City, a group of bloggers gathered around three men they would not normally expect to see in a downtown coffee shop, clutching lattes and mochas. Education Minister Nayef al-Hajraf, Commerce and Industry Minister Anas al-Saleh and Sheikh Mohammad al-Mubarak al-Sabah, all in their early 40s, had come for an informal meeting with some 30 Kuwaiti bloggers and online journalists to discuss issues that concern young people.

Hamas looks to root out Israel's spy networks

GAZA (Reuters) - The alleged spy buried his face in his hands inside a Gaza jail as he admitted passing intelligence to Israel during its battles with armed Palestinian groups. "My handlers in Israel called me and told me that collaborators in Gaza don't know one another and that each worked alone, so hide and stay as you are," the man told visiting reporters, under the watchful eye of a plainclothed Hamas security officer.

Israeli police detain top Jerusalem Muslim cleric for six hours

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli police arrested on Wednesday the top Palestinian Muslim religious leader in Jerusalem but released him without charge after questioning him about a fracas between Palestinians and Israelis at al-Aqsa mosque. Israel's rare move against Sheikh Mohammad Hussein, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, came a day after it celebrated the anniversary of its 1967 capture of East Jerusalem. Husseini's detention was widely condemned by Palestinian leaders as an infringement of religious freedom in the holy city.

Suicide bombers target Kurds in Iraq's disputed areas

KIRKUK, Iraq (Reuters) - Three suicide bombers struck at Kurdish security forces and the local headquarters of a Kurdish political party in the disputed area of Iraq on Wednesday, killing three people, police and medics said. Tensions between Iraq's Sunni, Shi'ite and ethnic Kurdish communities have increased since the withdrawal of U.S. troops in December 2011.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ca-news-summary-003020380.html

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