Ukraine's unilateral ceasefire hung in the balance Sunday after clashes engulfed the separatist east and Russian President Vladimir Putin put troops on "full combat alert".
The resurgence of violence in the 11-week pro-Russian uprising threatening to splinter the ex-Soviet state came as Washington accused the Kremlin of covertly arming the rebels and sternly warned Putin against sending troops into Ukraine.
Full StoryBrazilian President Dilma Rousseff formally launched her re-election bid Saturday, leading in opinion polls despite lingering discontent over World Cup costs.
Rousseff's leftist Workers Party (PT) approved her candidacy in a voice vote of 800 members meeting at a convention in Brasilia, with the popular former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on hand.
Full StoryNigeria has trained 167,000 police officers to manage an election next year in which President Goodluck Jonathan is widely expected to seek another term, an official said on Saturday.
In an effort to ensure a fair and peaceful vote in a country with a chequered electoral past, authorities have been trained "on various aspects of policing elections," national police spokesman Frank Mba told Agence France Presse.
Full StoryA ceasefire announced by Ukraine's new president had barely begun when residents of Andrivka, caught in the crossfire between government and rebel forces in eastern Ukraine, heard mortar fire.
"Nothing has changed," said Lila Ivanova, head of the village council in Andriyivka.
Full StoryAt least 10 people were killed Saturday in raids by suspected Boko Haram gunmen on two villages near the town of Chibok where Islamists abducted more than 200 girls in April, residents and local leaders said.
Military fighter jets dropped bombs on the insurgents, halting the attacks after nine hours, said Enoch Mark, a Christian priest in Chibok, some 11 kilometers (six miles) from the attacked villages.
Full StoryThe new king and queen of Spain, Felipe VI and Letizia, carried out their first official function on Saturday, meeting "victims of terrorist violence".
In somber dress -- the queen in white, the king with a blue tie -- the new monarchs spent an hour with representatives of around 20 victims' groups in the Zurbano Palace in Madrid.
Full StoryBrazil's President Dilma Rousseff formally launched her re-election bid on Saturday, leading in opinion polls despite lingering discontent over World Cup costs.
Her leftist Workers Party (PT) approved her candidacy in a voice vote of 800 members meeting at a convention in Brasilia, with the popular former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on hand.
Full StoryThe U.S. ambassador to Kenya on Saturday moved to dismiss what he said were "false and misleading" rumors, asserting that embassy staff were not evacuating and the facility would remain open.
"A number of rumors have circulated regarding the U.S. embassy and our relationship with Kenya that are false and misleading. The U.S. embassy in Nairobi has not closed and is not closing. embassy personnel are not evacuating," Ambassador Robert F. Godec said in a statement.
Full StoryAround a thousand tourists from Romania have been left stranded by flash floods in Bulgaria which left 14 dead around the Black Sea resort of Varna, the Romanian government said on Saturday.
Most of the Romanians affected were in the seaside town of Albena, near Varna.
Full StoryHundreds protested against Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the French city of Lyon on Saturday as he visited Europe ahead of an expected bid for the presidency.
Organizers said 1,000 people took part in the protest organized by pro-democracy and minority groups near a local government office, where Erdogan met regional officials. Police said there were about 500 protesters.
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