The world in brief

Thursday, December 5, 2013

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“The person or people who this took out are in very great risk of dying.”

Physicist Mardonio Jimenez, on highly radioactive material that was stolen, taken from its container and found discarded in central Mexico Article, this page

Thais await king’s take on political strait

BANGKOK - As violence between anti-government protesters and police died down Wednesday in the Thai capital, people of all political persuasions waited to hear whether their king would offer advice in his annual birthday speech, to help resolve a crisis that has left the nation deeply divided.

King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who turns 86 today, has often served as a unifying figure in times of crisis.

Many people are hopeful that the king can step in to ease the standoff, which results from years of enmity between supporters and opponents of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Thaksin was deposed by a 2006 military coup after being accused of corruption and disrespect for the king.

Political street fighting that had wracked pockets of Bangkok since the weekend ended abruptly Tuesday ahead of the birthday celebrations. The protesters are seeking to bring down the government of Thaksin’s sister, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, and institute an unelected “people’s council” to administer the country.

Protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban, however, has vowed to keep up the struggle to topple Yingluck, saying that “our battle” will resume Friday.

Kerry taking security plan to Middle East

JERUSALEM - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will present the outlines of a West Bank security plan in meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders this week, stepping up American involvement in hopes of reviving faltering Mideast peace efforts, U.S. officials said Wednesday.

The proposal will mark the first time that Kerry, who was to arrive in Israel late Wednesday, has directly intervened in the talks since they began in late July. By all accounts, the negotiations have made no progress despite an April target date for reaching a deal.

The U.S. diplomatic officials said Kerry and his security adviser, retired Gen. John Allen, have been working on security issues in hopes of breaking the deadlock.

The American officials spoke on condition of anonymity because Kerry has not yet presented his proposals.

The Haaretz daily said that Allen would present his ideas at a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today. After that meeting, Kerry is to head to the West Bank for talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Germany probes far-right link to killings

BERLIN - Hundreds of unsolved killings and attempted killings in Germany over the past two decades may have been committed by far-right extremists, officials said Wednesday.

The admission comes two years after police acknowledged that a series of murders they had initially linked to immigrant criminal groups was likely the work of a secretive neo-Nazi group.

An Interior Ministry spokesman said authorities have completed an initial review of more than 3,300 unsolved cases between 1990 and 2011, looking for signs of a possible far-right motive.

“In a total of 746 cases across Germany there were leads in that direction,” Hendrik Loerges told reporters in Berlin.

“Let me stress that at the moment there are only indications that may not stand up to scrutiny,” he said, adding that officials would now begin examining each case more closely.

21 skulls deepen ex-Mali leader’s fix

BAMAKO, Mali - A mass grave containing 21 skulls has been discovered near the Kati military barracks, formerly the fiefdom of the country’s military strongman, Mali’s chief prosecutor announced Wednesday.

The remains are believed to be of soldiers who opposed the leader’s rise to power, and their discovery paves the way for Gen. Amadou Haya Sanogo to be charged with murder, said prosecutor Daniel Tessougue.

Now that the bodies have been found, Tessougue said, Sanogo will also be charged with assassination. Corinne Dufka, the senior researcher for Human Rights Watch, called Sanogo’s arrest a “big step for justice.”

Front Section, Pages 6 on 12/05/2013