LA Times News

LA Times News

Obama's Africa visit will take him to a changed continent

Posted: 25 Jun 2013 06:19 PM PDT

Africa's euphoria over Obama's election gave way to disappointment in his focus, and its growing confidence has made diplomacy with the U.S. less important.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — When a newly elected President Obama zipped through Africa in 2009, he was given a hero's welcome on the continent of his father's birth. This week, after four years away and few major initiatives aimed at Africa, Obama will return as a prodigal son.

Russia, China reproach U.S. for Snowden remarks

Posted: 25 Jun 2013 06:25 PM PDT

Russia and China deny that they helped NSA leaker Edward Snowden, believed to be in Moscow, avoid arrest under a felony warrant for espionage.

MOSCOW — With Edward Snowden tucked away in or near a bustling international airport here, Russia and China hit back Tuesday against the United States, denying charges that they had helped him avoid arrest under a felony warrant for espionage as he fled Hong Kong and laid over in Moscow.

In Mexico, U.S. border 'surge' proposal stirs outcry

Posted: 25 Jun 2013 05:14 PM PDT

Critics see the U.S. border 'surge' plan as an affront to Mexico. Some also take aim at President Enrique Peña Nieto for not speaking out more forcefully.

MEXICO CITY — The U.S. Senate's proposal to spend $46 billion to help secure the country's southern border may or may not persuade skeptical colleagues in the House to support broader immigration reform. But the proposal is generating some serious grumbling in Mexico.

The Obama-Mandela dynamic, reflected in a photo

Posted: 25 Jun 2013 01:53 PM PDT

The two met briefly in 2005, but the South African icon was only vaguely aware of who Obama was. As Obama prepares for a major Africa tour, he hopes to reconnect.

WASHINGTON — One is standing, cutting a tall silhouette the world would soon recognize. The other, an aging icon, rests in a dimly lighted chair with a cane at his side.

India rescue chopper crashes in flood zone, killing eight people

Posted: 25 Jun 2013 10:22 AM PDT

NEW DELHI -- An Indian rescue helicopter crashed Tuesday evening, killing eight people, the air force said, as the official death toll in flood-besieged northern state of Uttarakhand rose to more than 820 people.

U.S. slams China in Edward Snowden case as mystery swirls

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 07:49 PM PDT

The NSA leaker was apparently not on the flight he booked for Cuba and was believed to be in Russia. Washington accuses China of violating an extradition pact.

WASHINGTON — The seat Edward Snowden had booked in Row 17 was empty when Aeroflot Flight SU150 roared down the runway in Moscow on Monday, leaving a tail wind of mystery about the location of America's most famous fugitive and deepening White House frustration as his embarrassing escapades chilled U.S. relations with China and Russia.

Granting Snowden asylum could help and hurt Ecuador's leader

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 08:21 PM PDT

President Rafael Correa would probably receive an image boost at home, but Ecuador could be hurt by a loss of trade preferences if the U.S. retaliates.

QUITO, Ecuador — If Ecuador grants political asylum to Edward Snowden, the move could boost President Rafael Correa's image at home as a champion of human rights, but it could also hurt his relationship with the United States, which is at a critical juncture, analysts said Monday.

Italy's Berlusconi found guilty of paying a minor for sex

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 03:46 PM PDT

The former prime minister paid a Moroccan-born dancer for sex when she was 17, judges rule. He is also found guilty of abuse of power.

ROME — Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was found guilty Monday of paying a minor for sex and of abuse of power in office. He was sentenced to seven years in jail and banned from public office for life.

These are dangerous days for Egypt's Islamist president, Mohamed Morsi

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 06:59 PM PDT

Mohamed Morsi's one-year anniversary as Egypt's president could be the riskiest time yet for his troubled Islamist government.

CAIRO — The circle is tightening around Mohamed Morsi, an accidental president turned vilified leader who, with barricades and soldiers protecting his palace, faces what may prove to be the most dangerous days of his bruising one-year rule.

Snowden's departure from Hong Kong spares China a headache

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 09:41 PM PDT

Popular sentiment had been building against extraditing the former NSA contractor to the U.S. Beijing now avoids a protracted battle with Washington.

BEIJING — By allowing, or perhaps pushing, Edward Snowden to leave Hong Kong, Chinese officials managed to show they would not kowtow to U.S. demands while still bringing a hasty end to an incident that threatened to strain ties with Washington for months or even years.

Pakistanis lament 'tragic' attack on climbers

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 10:25 PM PDT

One American, five Ukrainians, three Chinese and a Russian are slain in the Fairy Meadows region used by mountaineers. Two militant groups take responsibility.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Attackers killed 10 foreign climbers and a local guide at a remote area popular with adventure tourists in northern Pakistan on Sunday, according to police and security officials, creating an embarrassing security challenge for the newly elected government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Edward Snowden, a step ahead of the U.S. government, eludes arrest

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 09:44 PM PDT

The 30-year-old NSA leaker manages to make Washington seem stumped as he slips out of Hong Kong and lands in Russia, apparently planning to end up in Ecuador.

MOSCOW — The hunt for Edward Snowden stretched around the globe Sunday as the 30-year-old leaker of U.S. classified material flew out of Hong Kong under cover of darkness, dropped into the protective embrace of Russia and made plans to hopscotch through Cuba and Venezuela to eventual asylum in Ecuador.

Leftist is surprisingly at home in elite Mexico City borough

Posted: 23 Jun 2013 08:04 PM PDT

Victor Hugo Romo connects with people in the Miguel Hidalgo borough, where, as its president, he focuses on righting little wrongs.

MEXICO CITY — Victor Hugo Romo marches past the walled mansions of Las Lomas, surrounded by an entourage. Staffers with clipboards and tablets. Skinny men with brooms and machetes. A handful of residents. More than a few cameras.

Hezbollah's role in Syria fighting threatens to spread holy war

Posted: 22 Jun 2013 06:56 PM PDT

The involvement of the Lebanon-based Shiite militant group has infuriated Sunni-led Arab states, which have jockeyed against Shiite-dominated Iran for dominance.

CAIRO — Hezbollah's march into the Syrian civil war on behalf of President Bashar Assad is adding to tension along sectarian fault lines in a region increasingly roused by geopolitical maneuverings that are fueled by religious passions.

India rescue chopper crashes in flood zone, killing eight people

Posted: 25 Jun 2013 10:22 AM PDT

NEW DELHI -- An Indian rescue helicopter crashed Tuesday evening, killing eight people, the air force said, as the official death toll in flood-besieged northern state of Uttarakhand rose to more than 820 people.

Granting Snowden asylum could help and hurt Ecuador's leader

Posted: 24 Jun 2013 08:21 PM PDT

President Rafael Correa would probably receive an image boost at home, but Ecuador could be hurt by a loss of trade preferences if the U.S. retaliates.

QUITO, Ecuador — If Ecuador grants political asylum to Edward Snowden, the move could boost President Rafael Correa's image at home as a champion of human rights, but it could also hurt his relationship with the United States, which is at a critical juncture, analysts said Monday.