You've heard them on television and read them on POLITICO -- cheerful, defiant statements from Republican political professionals about Mitt Romney's bold masterstroke in tapping Paul Ryan as his running mate, and turning the 2012 presidential race into … Veteran police officer serving warrant among 3 killed in shootout near Texas ... - Washington Post
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- A routine serving of an eviction notice to a man living near the Texas A&M University campus turned deadly for Brazos County Constable Brian Bachmann when the resident opened fire on him, leading to the death of the law … UK inflation in surprise rise to 2.6 percent
Official figures show that Britain’s benchmark inflation rate unexpectedly rose in July, following a run of declines.
French youths fire on police in overnight clashes
AMIENS, France (Reuters) – About 100 youths opened fire and wounded 16 French police in overnight clashes where gangs set cars, a leisure center rand a nursery school ablaze in the northern city of Amiens, a local government official said. “Sixteen police were injured, some by buckshot fire,” Thomas Lavielle, an official at the prefect’s office in the region, told i TELE TV station. Police reinforcements would be sent into the city in the coming hours, he added. Local media said the clashes were apparently sparked by tension over spot police checks on residents in recent days. …
Riot engulfs troubled French district in north
Dozens of young men rioted in a troubled district in northern France, pulling drivers from their cars and stealing the vehicles, and burning a school and a youth center. The police department in Amiens says at least 16 officers were hurt by the time the riot ended Tuesday, some by buckshot and projectiles.
A murder and confession leave questions in China
The murder of a British businessman by the wife of an ousted Chinese politician was supposed to be an open-and-shut case, by the government's account. The victim threatened the life of Gu Kailai's son. Gu poisoned the Briton, was caught and confessed. End of story. Iran says foreign help for quake area now welcome
In an apparent change of heart, Iran says foreign aid is now welcome for those affected by twin earthquakes that struck the country's northwest last weekend. Syria fighting intensifies after rebels claim jet downing
Fighting intensified in Syria's two main cities on Tuesday after rebels claimed they downed a government fighter jet and captured its pilot in what would be a major coup for the opposition. Police patrol S.African mine after deathly clashes
Police were out in force on Tuesday patrolling a platinum mine run by leading producer Lonmin in South Africa where deadly clashes between rival unions left nine dead, a police spokesman said. 
DES MOINES, Iowa -- In his run for a second term, President Barack Obama had an opponent before he had an opponent: House Republicans. They shellacked him in the midterm elections, blocked much of his legislative agenda and pushed economic views that … 
LONDON (Reuters) – European shares and the euro rose on Tuesday as slightly better than expected performances by the German and French economies in the second quarter eased anxiety about wider euro zone data that are likely to show the bloc sliding back towards recession. After worrying China trade figures on Friday and Monday's report showing a slowdown in Japan's economy, investors are ready for more bad news when euro zone April-June gross domestic product data are published at 0900 GMT. Economists polled by Reuters see euro zone GDP contracting 0.2 percent quarter-on-quarter. … 
British no-frills airline easyJet on Monday fought off a bid by founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou to have the company's chairman Michael Rake removed owing to his link with scandal-hit Barclays. 
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chose a former security chief on Tuesday as his new civil defense minister amid heightened public debate over a possible strike on Iran. Avraham Dichter, who has served as internal security minister and head of the Shin Bet, Israel's domestic intelligence agency, has said in the past he would prefer Israel not to go it alone in any attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. Washington has urged Israel to allow more time for diplomacy to rein in Iran's nuclear programme, which Tehran says is peaceful. … 
Genetic mutations have been found in three generations of butterflies from near Japan's crippled Fukushima nuclear plant, scientists said Tuesday, raising fears radiation could affect other species. 
Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group is denying that one of its members was captured by Syrian rebels in Damascus. 
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Veteran fighters of last year's civil war in Libya have come to the front-line in Syria, helping to train and organize rebels under conditions far more dire than those in the battle against Muammar Gaddafi, a Libyan-Irish fighter has told Reuters. Hussam Najjar hails from Dublin, has a Libyan father and Irish mother and goes by the name of Sam. A trained sniper, he was part of the rebel unit that stormed Gaddafi's compound in Tripoli a year ago, led by Mahdi al-Harati, a powerful militia chief from Libya's western mountains. … 
By Alina Selyukh and Alexander Cohen and Sam Forgione | WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) – Paul Ryan, the Wisconsin congressman who has breathed new life into Republican Mitt Romney's bid for the White House, also brings his status as a fundraising … 
Japan is considering holding talks with North Korea over the repatriation of the remains of Japanese left behind after the occupation of the Korean peninsula, a foreign ministry official said on Tuesday. 
Malaysian NGOs, well-known bloggers and opposition politicians on Tuesday staged a one-day "Internet blackout" to protest a legal amendment that they say threatens free expression on the Web. 
LONDON (Reuters) – British airport operator BAA reported a 4.1 percent fall in July passenger traffic on last year as Britons stayed home to watch the Olympics and tourists deferred their holidays until after the Games. BAA, owned by Spanish infrastructure group Ferrovial, on Tuesday said 9.6 million passengers passed through its five UK airports last month, compared to about 9.2 million in July 2011. London Heathrow – Europe's busiest airport – handled 6.6 million passengers, down 4.4 percent year-on-year. … 
Japan and South Korea may not hold an expected summit on the sidelines of the annual APEC gathering in Russia next month as Tokyo mulls its response in an escalating territorial dispute with Seoul. 
The source of an enormous floating mass of pumice spotted this week in the South Pacific Ocean off the coast of New Zealand has been discovered: NASA satellite images and other sleuthing science have pinpointed an erupting undersea volcano called the Havre Seamount as the culprit. 
TOKYO (Reuters) – Bitter memories and current rivalries are straining Japan's ties with China and South Korea nearly seven decades after Tokyo's defeat in World War Two, raising the risk of ruptures as all three nations head for leadership changes. The three countries are linked by deep economic ties, while Japan and South Korea are close allies of the United States. …