World
Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki lashed out Sunday at US Democratic Senators Hillary Clinton (N.Y.) and Carl Levin (Mich.) for their call last week for the parliament to oust him for failing to reconcile warring factions. "This is severe interference in our domestic affairs," Maliki told a news conference.
Embattled Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is expected to reshuffle his Cabinet today in order to restore confidence in his scandal-tainted government. Abe has deflected calls for his resignation since his long-dominant Liberal Democratic Party lost control of the parliament's 242-seat upper house to the opposition Democratic Part of Japan during July 29 elections.
Iran vowed Sunday to use a new 2,000-pound, guided bomb against its enemies "when the time comes," state television reported. Meanwhile, the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security said Tehran is "not moving forward in a significant way" in enriching uranium.
Sister Nirmala, who succeeded Mother Teresa as the head of Missionaries of Charity, said Sunday that recent revelations about Mother Teresa's crisis of faith would not hinder her path to sainthood. She was beatified in 2003, six years after her death.
A spike in the number of Iraqis who've left their homes, from 447,337 on Jan. 1 to 1.14 million July 31, is the result of "the security situation in general," according to the Iraqi Red Crescent Organization, a partner of the International Committee of the Red Cross. The Red Crescent said it couldn't say if the surge of American troops was contributing to the displacement. Altogether, 2 million Iraqis have fled their homes, many into neighboring Syria and Jordan, under the threat of sectarian violence.
Police in the Indian city of Hyderabad found seven more unexploded bombs, bringing the total to 19 since three blasts Saturday killed 43 people. The explosions were the latest in a series of bombings in India possibly linked to Islamic extremists.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel meets Monday in Beijing with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, then continues on to Japan Wednesday. Before beginning her week-long Asian tour, Merkel indicated that issues topping her agenda were climate change, human rights, and economic ties.
During a meeting in Manila, Southeast Asian economic ministers, including China's, agreed Sunday to strengthen product standards and safety. At the same time, Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai defended the quality of Chinese goods, saying that 99 percent of the country's exports met global standards despite recent large-scale recalls of some Chinese products, including toys, toothpaste, and pet food.
In the first official report of this month's North Korean flooding, the country's central news agency said Saturday that the death toll was at least 600, or more than double international aid group estimates.
Germany's Osnabrueck Symphony will play Beethoven and Brahms this week in Tehran during two concerts that have been hailed as a small step in improving relations between Iran and Germany. The visit, part of a cultural exchange that began last year, marks the first time such a large, highly professional Western orchestra has performed in Iran since a crackdown on secular music in 1979.
