LA Times News

LA Times News

Iranians' desire for change fueled presidential upset

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 07:43 PM PDT

The landslide win by moderate Hassan Rowhani was driven largely by voters frustrated with Iran's sagging economy and his unexpected adoption of the reformist cause.

TEHRAN — The stunning landslide election of Hassan Rowhani as Iran's next president highlighted a deep frustration among many Iranians about the direction of their country, especially an economy marred by skyrocketing prices, stagnant salaries and dwindling job opportunities.

Edward Snowden wrong about Hong Kong, some in territory say

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 06:28 PM PDT

The self-declared NSA leaker says he has faith in Hong Kong justice at a time when some in the territory say freedoms are being 'stifled.'

HONG KONG — It's probably for the best that Edward Snowden didn't turn up at a weekend rally in support of him here in this former British colony. Having declared that he has faith in Hong Kong's rule of law, and that he believes the courts and people of the semiautonomous Chinese territory will decide his fate, he might have been distressed by legislator Claudia Mo's downbeat remarks.

After 20 years, hunt for fugitive Sicilian Mafia boss intensifies

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 06:24 PM PDT

Cosa Nostra boss Matteo Messina Denaro, believed to have killed 50 people, is protected by a network of family and allies, perhaps including corrupt officials. But investigators may be closing in.

ROME — Each day, Giacomo Di Giralomo makes a point of asking, "Where are you, Matteo?" on his talk radio show, which is broadcast across western Sicily.

Iran's next president called 'diplomat sheik' by supporters

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 05:54 PM PDT

Hassan Rowhani is a soft-spoken centrist with conservative tendencies who has taken on increasingly moderate viewpoints in recent weeks.

TEHRAN — A week ago, many observers viewed Iran's presidential election as a horse-race among conservative hard-liners hostile to reform. Then came an unexpected surge in support for Hassan Rowhani, a soft-spoken, bespectacled and bearded cleric who is now improbably positioned to become the next president of the Islamic Republic.

In Pakistan, attackers bomb women's university bus, hospital

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 03:54 PM PDT

At least 19 people are killed. Gun battles break out after the militants seize parts of the hospital in Quetta, and doctors and nurses are taken hostage.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Militants laid siege to a hospital and bombed a women's university bus in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta in a wave of violence that killed at least 19 people and underscored the challenge facing new Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif as he begins to tackle militancy in the troubled South Asian nation.

Obama returns to Berlin, no longer a 'superstar'

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 03:51 PM PDT

President Obama will give his first speech in Berlin since his rousing address as a candidate in 2008. This time, he comes amid lowered expectations, trying to mend transatlantic rifts.

WASHINGTON — Five years ago, when Americans had not yet made up their minds on their choice for president, Europe had. More than 200,000 people crowded the streets of Berlin — a favorite backdrop for U.S. politicians reaching for history — to hear then-candidate Barack Obama promise to turn the page on the unpopular policies of George W. Bush.

Turkish police launch assault on protesters in Istanbul park

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 03:19 PM PDT

Firing tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannon barrages, riot police drive thousands of demonstrators out of Gezi Park.

ISTANBUL, Turkey — Hundreds of riot police firing tear gas stormed a central Istanbul park Saturday, tearing down tents and clearing out demonstrators in a bold, if politically risky, move by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to stem more than two weeks of antigovernment protests.

Hassan Rowhani, cleric known as a pragmatist, wins Iran election

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 11:31 AM PDT

Rowhani, who a week ago was viewed as a long-shot candidate, was declared Iran¿s next president on Saturday after capturing more than half of the votes.

TEHRAN — Hassan Rowhani, who a week ago was viewed as a long-shot candidate, was declared Iran's next president on Saturday after capturing more than half of the votes cast Friday in national elections.

Rowhani appears headed to landslide win in Iran elections

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 09:33 AM PDT

Hassan Rowhani, a cleric embraced by reformists and moderates as an alternative to the nation's hard-line leadership, appears headed toward a victory.

TEHRAN — Hassan Rowhani, a cleric embraced by reformists and moderates as an alternative to the nation's hard-line leadership,  appeared headed  toward a landslide victory Saturday in elections  to succeed Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Iran begins counting ballots in presidential election

Posted: 15 Jun 2013 12:00 AM PDT

Centrist cleric Hassan Rowhani, considered the only moderate in the presidential race, reportedly takes a big lead in early returns. Turnout may have been as high as 80%, officials say.

TEHRAN — Electoral authorities were counting ballots Saturday after tens of millions of Iranians turned out to vote for a successor to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the first presidential election since the disputed 2009 balloting led to street protests and a major crackdown on the opposition.