LA Times News

LA Times News

China's Communists mull the party's future

Posted: 01 Jul 2011 03:04 PM PDT

The 90th anniversary celebration has some bemoaning the changes time has wrought. Oh, for the days when a man could hang a portrait of Mao above his couch.

Want to know what happens these days within a Chinese Communist Party cell?

Venezuela says Hugo Chavez will remain in charge

Posted: 01 Jul 2011 05:33 PM PDT

The president's cancer surgery won't affect his ability to govern, officials say. But uncertainty about Venezuela's future now swirls.

The Venezuelan government tried to strike a confident pose Friday after the revelation that President Hugo Chavez had a cancerous tumor removed in Cuba unleashed anxiety and uncertainty across the South American country.

24 die as Syrian forces fire on protesters

Posted: 02 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

The worst violence is seen in Idlib province as huge protests erupt across Syria, including in Homs and Hama, with people rejecting Bashar Assad's pledge of reforms and demanding that he step down.

At least 24 Syrian protesters were killed Friday when security forces fired on demonstrators in cities across the country, according to witnesses and activists.

Monaco hosts its own royal wedding

Posted: 01 Jul 2011 07:11 PM PDT

Prince Albert II weds Charlene Wittstock, a former Olympic swimmer from South Africa. The nuptials came after tense days of rumors that the bride-to-be had developed cold feet.

Royal weddings are like London buses: You wait ages, and then two come along at the same time.

Judge lifts house arrest, bail for Strauss-Kahn

Posted: 02 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

A letter from prosecutors indicates that the former IMF chief's accuser in the sexual assault case lied about having been gang-raped in the past. As a consequence, the case is 'pretty close to DOA,' one legal observer says.

In a twist that could signal the collapse of a sexual assault case against former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, a judge Friday lifted his house arrest and bail after prosecutors admitted a "substantial credibility issue" against the hotel maid who accused him of trying to rape her.

Moroccan voters approve constitutional changes

Posted: 02 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

The changes, seeking to calm unrest, will curb some powers of King Mohammed VI, but he will remain in charge of security forces and of appointing the president. Some activists reject the changes as far short of a modern constitutional monarchy.

Voters in Morocco approved constitutional changes to curb the powers of the country's 4-century-old monarchy, voting "yes" in a closely watched referendum Friday that was seen as an attempt to end months of protests demanding democratic reforms.

France abuzz with talk of comeback for Dominique Strauss-Kahn

Posted: 02 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

News that the sexual assault case against Dominique Strauss-Kahn was teetering electrifies French political circles, with his allies talking of him making a swift political comeback and possibly playing a role in next year's presidential elections.

In the space of just six weeks, Dominique Strauss-Kahn has gone through several metamorphoses in the eyes of his compatriots in France.

Case against Strauss-Kahn may be crumbling

Posted: 01 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

Questions arise about the credibility of the New York hotel maid who accuses the former IMF chief of sexual assault.

The sexual assault case in New York against former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn was in trouble Thursday night after questions surfaced about the believability of his alleged victim.

Most CIA interrogation cases won't be pursued

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 04:23 PM PDT

The Justice Department decides to continue investigating only two out of more than 100 cases in which abuses had been alleged, both of which resulted in death.

The Justice Department has decided not to file criminal charges in the vast majority of cases involving the CIA's former interrogation, detention and kidnapping program.

China feeling like No. 1 with a bullet train

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 05:13 PM PDT

A high-profile stretch of the high-speed rail system opens, an event meant to showcase national achievement as the Chinese Communist Party marks its 90th birthday. But there's been some controversial baggage to handle along the way.

It's the fastest thing on land with a "Made in China" label — a bullet train that speeds past unfinished suburbs and broken farmhouses at nearly 200 mph between Beijing and Shanghai in a blur of national pride.

U.S. to build contacts with Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood

Posted: 01 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says the move is part of U.S. efforts to open communication with important political players in Egypt's post-Mubarak landscape.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Thursday that U.S. officials intend to build contacts with Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood, a sign of American concern that the conservative Islamic group is becoming one of the most important political forces in the post-Mubarak order.

Rebels in Libya's west gain ground

Posted: 01 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

Aided by NATO airstrikes, they move within 50 miles of the capital. But they sense a bloodbath coming, with civilians caught in the crossfire.

Rebels in Libya's western Nafusa mountain range were less than 50 miles from the nation's capital Thursday and edging closer to their first significant victory outside their mountain stronghold, pounding the small town of Bir Ghanam with artillery and rockets.

Greece's Parliament implements austerity measures

Posted: 01 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

Legislation enabling swift enactment of budget cuts totaling $40 billion and the sell-off of $72 billion in state assets is passed by the Greek Parliament, the second and final piece of austerity legislation put to the test this week.

Greece's Parliament on Thursday passed crucial legislation implementing unpopular austerity measures demanded by international creditors to unbolt rescue funds and ease fears of Europe's first sovereign default.

Venezuela's Chavez says he had cancer surgery

Posted: 01 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

Hugo Chavez says he will continue unspecified treatment in Cuba, ending speculation about his condition. But it is not clear when he plans to return to Venezuela.

In a brief and somber recorded statement read over Venezuelan television, President Hugo Chavez said Thursday night that he was operated on for cancer in Cuba last month, confirming the gravity of his illness but leaving unclear what his prognosis is or when he would return to Venezuela.