LA Times News

LA Times News

U.S.-Mexico drug war partnership under Calderon broke new ground

Posted: 28 Nov 2012 06:37 PM PST

The president, who steps down Saturday, essentially rewrote the rules under which foreign countries can intervene in Mexico.

MEXICO CITY — In the six years of outgoing President Felipe Calderon's war against drug gangs, the U.S. became a principal player in Mexico, sending drones and sniffer dogs, police trainers and intelligence agents to a country long suspicious of its powerful neighbor.

China sex video scandal puts website founder in spotlight

Posted: 28 Nov 2012 06:31 PM PST

Zhu Ruifeng says he was inspired to release the 2007 video of Chongqing official Lei Zhengfu by the anti-corruption pledges made at China's recent Communist Party congress.

BEIJING — Zhu Ruifeng fancies himself a Chinese version of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, a citizen journalist who is plying his trade online.

Iran blogger's death in prison sets off blame game

Posted: 28 Nov 2012 07:07 PM PST

The case of government critic Sattar Beheshti provides fuel for the bitter rivalry between loyalists to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his hard-line critics.

BEIRUT — The mysterious death of a dissident blogger while in Iranian police custody this month has generated a rare torrent of criticism from officials apparently embarrassed by a case that has drawn international condemnation and again shined a spotlight on the nation's poor human rights record.

In Egypt, court offensive is met with countermove by assembly

Posted: 28 Nov 2012 04:06 PM PST

Egypt's highest court says it will not be 'blackmailed' in deciding the constitutional assembly's fate. The latter plans to deliver a draft charter Thursday.

CAIRO — Egypt's highest court Wednesday went on the offensive against President Mohamed Morsi, saying it would not be "blackmailed" and indicating it would soon rule on whether to dissolve the Islamist-led constitutional assembly he has vowed to protect.

For Palestinian leader, stakes higher after Israel-Hamas clash

Posted: 28 Nov 2012 06:56 PM PST

After the recent conflict, Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas faces pressure to mend fences with Hamas and drop his pursuit of peace talks with Israel.

JERUSALEM — Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is virtually certain to win passage Thursday of a United Nations General Assembly resolution upgrading the status of the Palestinian territories from "observer entity" to "nonmember observer state" in the international body.