Hightlights
Syrian chemical weapons transfer begins
Syria has started moving chemical weapons materials out of the country in a crucial phase of an internationally backed disarmament programme that ...Russian, Chinese ships free from Antarctic ice
Reports from Antarctica say a Chinese icebreaker and a Russian research vessel broke free from thick ice on Tuesday, with both vessels ...US sends troops and tanks to South Korea
The Pentagon has announced the deployment of an additional 800 troops to South Korea, along with combat tanks and other military hardware, ...Robert Gates says Barack Obama lost faith in US strategy in Afghanistan
A new book by former U.S. secretary of defense Robert Gates describes President Barack Obama as "a man of personal integrity" who ...Turkey dismisses 350 police officers in Ankara
Turkish media say Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has removed nearly 350 police from their posts in the capital, amid a widening ...US Senate confirms Janet Yellen as US Federal Reserve chief
The U.S. Senate has confirmed Janet Yellen as the new chair of the country\'s central bank, making her one of the most ...Polar freeze grips United States, disrupting travel, business
The dangerously cold weather that has turned the midwestern United States into one huge deep freeze is expected to move east and ...Iraq calls on Fallujah residents to expel al-Qaida
Iraq\'s prime minister has urged residents and tribes in the besieged city of Fallujah to "expel" al-Qaida-linked militants in order to preempt ...Deadly car bombs strikes hotel in Somali capital Mogadishu
Three car bombs have killed at least eight people outside a major hotel used by foreigners in Mogadishu, Somalia.First legal commercial Key West–Cuba flight in 50 years lands in Havana
The first commercial passenger flight from Key West to Cuba in more than 50 years has landed in Havana, capping several years ...