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West Asia
Israel agrees to free 104 Palestinian prisoners for resumption of peace talk
Israel’s Cabinet approved the release of 104 long-held Palestinian prisoners Sunday, clearing a hurdle toward a possible resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks after five years of paralysis. The prisoner release is part of a push by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to bring the two sides back to the…
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Politics
Tunisian people protest against assassination of leftist opposition leader
Angry anti-government demonstrations broke out Thursday across Tunisia after gunmen killed the leader of a leftist opposition party, raising fears of new chaos on the difficult road to democracy in the cradle of the Arab Spring. Just five months after a similar assassination plunged the country into crisis, two gunmen…
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East Asia
Chinese Vice-President visits N.Korea to attend 60th anniv.of Korean War armistice
Kim Jong Un, top leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), met here Thursday with visiting Chinese Vice-President Li Yuanchao to discuss relations between their two countries. Li arrived here earlier in the day to pay a visit to the DPRK and to attend activities marking the 60th…
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South East Asia
Vietnamese President Sang visits US to discuss ‘comprehensive partnership’
U.S. President Barack Obama and his Vietnamese counterpart Truong Tan Sang on Thursday spoke of a “comprehensive partnership” between their countries aiming for even greater cooperation. After his talks with Truong Tan Sang, the second Vietnamese head of state to visit the White House since the normalization of relations in…
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East Asia
Japanese FM visits Palestine to discuss grant aid, infrastructure development
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (R) meets with Japan’s foreign minister Fumio Kishida in the West Bank City of Ramallah on July 24, 2013. <Xinhua/NEWSis/Fadi Arouri> Palestinian foreign minister Riyad Al-Malki (L) shakes hands with his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida upon his arrival to meet Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the…
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West Asia
Egyptian Defense Minister calls for mass demonstrations to support for military
Egypt’s armed forces chief and Defense Minister Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi on Wednesday called on Egyptians to take to streets on Friday, to show support for the army’s fighting against “violence and terrorism.” Following Sisi’s statement, Egypt’s presidency said that the country “has started a war against terrorism.” “The call of defense…
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South Asia
Pakistan’s presidential candidates submit nomination papers for July 30 election
Candidates for election to the office of the President in Pakistan Wednesday submitted nomination papers that marks formal beginning of the process for the presidential elections. The elections were previously scheduled to be held on August 6, however, the Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the Election Commission of Pakistan to…
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South Asia
US Vice President Biden visits India to boost trade and regional security ties
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held talks in the Indian capital Tuesday as part of a renewed effort to strengthen ties between the two countries. The meeting came just weeks after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry came to India to lead a strategic…
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East Asia
Japan joins US-led TPP negotiation as 12th member at trade talk held in Malaysia
Japan became the 12th member of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations on Tuesday as it officially joined the ongoing free trade talks in Malaysia. The Japanese delegation of more than 100 officials was only able to join the 18th round of negotiations in Malaysia’s resort city of Kota Kinabalu after…
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South East Asia
Cambodian national election body rejects opposition leader’s bid to vote and run
Cambodia’s national election body on Monday rejected a late bid by the country’s opposition leader to register as a candidate and vote in the general election this coming weekend. The National Election Committee said in a letter to Sam Rainsy, head of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, that he had…
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