SANAA - Renewed fighting in Yemen's capital between a powerful tribal group and President Ali Abdullah Saleh's forces has killed at least 19 people this week and rocked Sanaa with explosions, officials said on Wednesday.
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THE HAGUE - Former Bosnian Serb military commander Ratko Mladic used his power to commit atrocities that tore a nation apart and destroyed communities, and must be held to account, a U.N. war crimes prosecutor said on Wednesday.
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TRIPOLI/ROME - Libya's top oil official became the latest leading figure to desert Muammar Gaddafi on Wednesday, complaining of "unbearable" violence and adding political momentum to a revolt against the leader's long rule.
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MANAMA - Bahrain lifted martial law on Wednesday in what the government hopes will be a sign to tourists and business of a return to normal, but the opposition fears repression will continue in the Gulf island kingdom.
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WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama pressed Republicans to back an increase in the U.S. debt limit on Wednesday in a bid to end a standoff that the White House warns could upset financial markets.
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TEHRAN - Iran's parliament said on Wednesday that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad acted illegally by declaring himself caretaker oil minister and referred the case to the judiciary, increasing pressure on him to quit the post.
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CAIRO - Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, overthrown by a popular uprising this year, was ordered on Wednesday to stand trial in August for the killing of protesters on charges that could carry the death penalty.
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ISLAMABAD - Speculation that Pakistan's military spy agency had a hand in the death of a prominent journalist has further discredited the organisation already facing one of its worst crises after the killing of Osama bin Laden on Pakistani soil.
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BEIRUT - A Syrian boy, who activists say was tortured and killed by security forces, has emerged as a powerful symbol in protests against the rule of President Bashar al-Assad which have been met with a bloody crackdown.
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ATHENS - Greece should complete talks by the end of the week with inspectors from the EU and IMF on a medium-term budget plan plus a vital next slice of international aid, sources close to the negotiations said on Wednesday.
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TOKYO - A former Japanese prime minister joined the swelling ranks of ruling party rebels trying to oust leader Naoto Kan, raising the risk that a no-confidence vote will pass in parliament on Thursday, forcing him to quit.
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MOSCOW - Vladimir Putin's tightly controlled political system is so weakened by corruption that Russia's paramount leader could face a revolt within five years, the country's most prominent whistleblower told Reuters.
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ZURICH - Sepp Blatter was re-elected unopposed as FIFA president on Wednesday, promising to use his final term to radically reform soccer's ailing world governing body.
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