LA Times News

LA Times News

U.S. troop pullout points up Karzai's woes

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

Afghan President Hamid Karzai is locked in a fight over his bid to oust dozens of lawmakers and is grappling with a scandal surrounding Kabul Bank that has curtailed foreign aid. Then there are allegations that he's trying to claim a third term.

As U.S. commanders prepare to bring home 10,000 troops from Afghanistan by year's end, the drawdown is calling fresh attention to the tangle of woes confronting the administration of Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

Mexico captures alleged Zetas gang founder 'El Mamito'

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

Jesus Rejon Aguilar, a Mexican army deserter, was wanted in the slaying of U.S. federal agent Jaime Zapata. Officials say he helped create the brutal paramilitary Zetas gang.

Mexican officials on Monday announced the capture of one of the country's most wanted fugitives, an army deserter who authorities say helped create the vicious Zetas gang and is suspected in the slaying of a U.S. federal agent.

Syrian troops roll into Hama, a symbol of antigovernment activity

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

Witnesses and activists say at least three people are killed and dozens injured as security forces sweep into the outskirts of Hama. Three days ago, the city held one of the largest protests in the 3 1/2-month uprising against Syrian President Bashar Assad's rule.

Syrian tanks, troops and bulldozers on Monday swept into a city that has long been a potent symbol of the nation's pro-democracy movement, raiding houses and hunting down activists opposed to President Bashar Assad's rule.

Defiant Ratko Mladic is tossed out of court at war crimes hearing

Posted: 05 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

A judge at The Hague ejects the former Bosnian Serb general as he rejected the court's authority, saying: 'I'm not going to listen anymore. You're talking in vain.'

War crimes suspect Ratko Mladic was thrown out of court Monday at The Hague after he shouted in protest and refused to hear the allegations against him. The court entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf to charges that he oversaw unspeakable acts of genocide during the 1992-95 Balkans conflict.

Statue of Ronald Reagan unveiled in London

Posted: 04 Jul 2011 11:01 AM PDT

Ronald Reagan was hailed as "a great American hero" Monday as his admirers unveiled a 10-foot-tall (3-meter-tall) statue of the former U.S. president near the American embassy in London.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn faces new sexual assault suit

Posted: 04 Jul 2011 07:35 AM PDT

The French political world was hit by a new shock when the lawyer for writer Tristane Banon announced she planned to file the complaint in Paris within a day.

A French novelist will file a criminal complaint on Tuesday accusing Dominique Strauss-Kahn of attempted rape, her lawyer said, throwing fresh uncertainty into a fierce national debate about whether the former International Monetary Fund chief can return to his country's presidential race.

Japanese retirees volunteer to work in stricken nuclear plant

Posted: 04 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

A pair of 72-year-old scientists, saying they have much to be grateful for and little to lose, have formed the Skilled Veterans Corps, enlisting volunteers willing to venture into the radioactive Fukushima Daiichi plant. Officials have accepted their offer.

They were two old friends catching up over coffee, retirees swapping stories and gasping at the unfolding nuclear nightmare at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant.

Coffee percolates through Iraq's cultural history

Posted: 04 Jul 2011 12:00 AM PDT

Coffee is more than a beverage. It links Iraqis to their ancient hospitality and serves as an entry to small talk when visiting a tribal sheik, as an excuse to sit and argue, as a comfort in times of death.

Abdullah Saadi fingers the fine brown leather belt with holsters for thimble-sized coffee cups and a dagger. He is a keeper of customs, Baghdad's professional server of coffee.