QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Tomorrow we will go forward together. And if it’s a bullet in the forehead, then it’s a bullet in the forehead, but in an honest, fair and brave way.”
Ukrainian opposition leader Arseniy Yatsenyuk, who asked protesters to halt clashes with police for 24 hours to give President Viktor Yanukovych a chance to respond to their demands Article this page
Anti-gay Nigerians toss rocks at court
BAUCHI, Nigeria - Thousands of protesters threw stones into the Shariah court in a north Nigerian city Wednesday, urging the speedy convictions and executions of 11 men arrested for reportedly belonging to gay organizations.
Security officials fired into the air to disperse protesters in Bauchi city so the accused men could be safely returned to the prison. Judge El-Yakubu Aliyu closed the court abruptly.
The court was arraigning seven of 11 accused men Wednesday. Only three had given testimony when the mayhem began. The defense counsel was unable to submit an application for bail, and the rest of the defendants were unable to give testimony. It was unclear when the arraignments would resume.
The same court last week convicted a young man of sodomy, and it had him publicly whipped with 20 lashes and fined before it freed him.
Though he was tried under Islamic law, his was the first conviction of a gay man in Nigeria since President Goodluck Jonathan signed a bill that further criminalizes homosexuality under the penal code.
Thais hit street as crisis state starts
BANGKOK - As a state of emergency went into effect Wednesday in the Thai capital, protesters marched on government offices and defaced the wall of the national police’s headquarters, while a prominent government supporter in the country’s northeast was the target of a shooting attack.
The government said it enacted the emergency decree to improve security and ensure that Feb. 2 elections, opposed by the protesters, are held without disruption.
Officials said there would be no crackdown on the demonstrators, who have seized several patches of the capital to show their opposition to Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra.
Gunmen on Wednesday wounded Kwanchai Praipana, a top leader of a pro-government movement, in what many fear is a portent of increased violence.
Greek terror bounty set at $5.4 million
ATHENS, Greece - Greek authorities announced rewards totaling $5.4 million Wednesday for information leading to the capture of fugitives in four terrorism-related cases, days after an escaped convict posted a video statement on the Internet vowing to resume attacks.
Anti-terrorist police have been conducting a nationwide manhunt since Jan. 7, when Christodoulos Xiros, 55, serving six life sentences for carrying out killings as part of the November 17 group, vanished while on furlough from prison.
In a video uploaded Monday, Xiros criticized the handling of Greece’s financial crisis, threatened politicians and journalists and vowed further attacks.
Professing a mix of Marxism and nationalism, the November 17 group killed 23 people from 1975 to 2000.
Five people were arrested this week in Athens and Thessaloniki in terrorism-related raids, police said.
Front Section, Pages 5 on 01/23/2014