MANAMA (Reuters) – Bahraini police fired tear gas and blocked roads to stop thousands of Shi’ite Muslims joining prayers led by one of their spiritual leaders on Friday, witnesses said, amid worsening strife in the Gulf Arab kingdom and U.S. ally. The island country has been volatile since majority Shi’ite Muslims began protesting last year against what they say is widespread discrimination, a charge the Sunni-led government denies. …
Ex-oilman Welby named archbishop of Canterbury
A former oil executive with experience in conflict resolution has been chosen to lead a global Anglican Communion riven by sharply divided views on gay people and their place in the church. Diplomats: Iran to meet UN nuke agency next month
Diplomats say that officials from Iran and the U.N. nuclear watchdog will meet in Tehran next month in an attempt to restart stalled nuclear talks.
Iran lawmaker: US drone violated airspace
A prominent Iranian parliament member said Friday that a U.S. drone violated Iran’s airspace a week ago, when the Pentagon says it was fired on. The U.S. maintains the pilotless craft was over international waters.
Thatcher's party treasurer denies child abuse
LONDON (Reuters) – The treasurer of the Conservative Party under former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher on Friday denied allegations he had sexually abused children in the 1970s and 1980s and warned he may sue to protect his reputation. Lord Alistair McAlpine, who served as party treasurer from 1975 to 1990, said in a statement that he had been named by ill-informed commentators on the Internet and in the media as the unidentified man accused by one paedophile victim of abusing children in social care. …
Foreign air power is crucial to Mali battle plan: sources
BAMAKO (Reuters) – Malian troops backed by foreign air power will lead the assault to recapture Timbuktu and other northern cities from al Qaeda-linked militants, under a battle plan now being considered, Malian army sources said. West African bloc ECOWAS is expected to submit a version of the plan to the United Nations Security Council for approval, paving the way for war in Mali’s vast desert amid fears the region could become a new terrorist training ground. …
Transgender Pakistanis face society's scorn
Dressed up in elaborate, feminine outfits and artfully applied makeup, they are showered with money while dancing at all-male wedding parties. But the lives of transgender peopl e in Pakistan are also marked by harassment, rejection and poverty. Thatcher's party treasurer denies UK child abuse
LONDON (Reuters) – The treasurer of the Conservative Party under former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher on Friday denied allegations he had sexually abused children in the 1970s and 1980s and warned he may sue to protect his reputation. Lord Alistair McAlpine, who served as party treasurer from 1975 to 1990, said in a statement that he had been named by ill-informed commentators on the Internet and in the media as the unidentified man accused by one pedophile victim of abusing children in social care. …
Pope denounces organized crime at Interpol meeting
Pope Benedict XVI has denounced organized crime as a "gravely destabilizing threat" to society during an address to members of Interpol. Russia's Putin fires chief of general staff
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has fired the chief of hi s defense staff, the Kremlin said on Friday, days after sacking his defense minister over a corruption and sleaze scandal. Putin dismissed General Nikolai Makarov and replaced him with General Valery Gerasimov, the commander of Russia's forces in the central military district who has seen active service in Chechnya. (Reporting by Douglas Busvine; Editing by Lidia Kelly) Bahrain security boosted around opposition mosque
Bahraini security forces set up checkpoints and fired tear gas Friday in apparent efforts to block worshippers from reaching weekly prayers led by a cleric fiercely opposing rulers in the embattled Gulf nation. Egyptian Islamists rally for Shariah law
Thousands of ultraconservative Muslims are rallying in the Egyptian capital, demanding the country’s new constitution be based on the rulings of Islamic law, or Shariah.
Iran, U.N. nuclear agency plan December talks: sources
VIENNA (Reuters) – Iran and the U.N. nuclear agency are planning to hold a new round of talks in mid-December in Tehran over the Islamic state’s disputed atomic program, diplomatic sources said on Friday. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) hoped to use the talks to reach an agreement that would allow it to resume a long-stalled investigation into possible military dimensions of Iran’s nuclear program, a senior diplomatic source said. Iran denies Western allegations that it is trying to develop the capability to make nuclear weapons. …
No breakthrough in Afghan peace efforts before 2014: official
KABUL (Reuters) – Afghanistan’s government has failed to secure direct talks with the Taliban and no significant progress is expected before 2014, when most NATO combat troops withdraw, a senior Afghan official closely involved with reconciliation efforts said on Friday. “No breakthrough is expected before the 2014 election,” the official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity. A political settlement between the Afghan government and insurgents is widely seen as the best way of delivering stability to the country before most NATO combat troops pull out at the end of 2014. …
UK to end aid spending in India by 2015
Britain will halt all aid spending in India in 2015 in a significant shift in relations between the emerging economic giant and its former colonial ruler, Prime Minister David Cameron's government announced Friday. 
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