World

ISLAMABAD – Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has asked authorities to temporarily suspend the implementation of the death penalty during the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. A statement released by Sharif’s office late Thursday says Sharif ordered a pause to observe “the sanctity of the holy month”, which began …

SEOUL, South Korea – Seoul says North Korea has canceled plans to attend next month’s University Games in South Korea. North Korea earlier told South Korean organizers that it wants to send a team to the multi-sport event in the South Korean city of Gwangju. The Unification Ministry said Monday …

BEIJING – China says Southeast Asia’s lawless ‘Golden Triangle’ region remains the overwhelming source of the heroin and methamphetamine used in the country. A Cabinet report on China’s drug situation released Wednesday underscores the threat posed by the region incorporating parts of Laos, Myanmar and Thailand, despite efforts at cross-border …

SAO PAULO – Brazil’s government says unemployment continues rising in Latin America’s largest country. The country’s IBGE statistics bureau said Thursday that the jobless rate in May was 6.7 percent, against 6.4 percent in April and 4.9 percent in May of last year. IBGE said it was the highest May …

BUJUMBURA, Burundi – Witnesses say two people have been killed in overnight attacks that they believe were carried out by Burundian police. Witnesses in Jabe neighborhood in the nation’s capital of Bujumbura, reported intense gunfire Saturday night in an apparent police crackdown on areas seen as hosting anti-government protesters. Mohamed …

MOSCOW – Russian investigators say they are considering whether to charge former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky with ordering the 1998 killing of a Siberian mayor. At the time when Nefteyugansk Mayor Vladimir Petukhov was shot dead, he was in conflict with Khodorkovsky’s oil company, Yukos, over alleged tax arrears. Khodorkovsky …

LONDON – A bizarre plan to relocate the entire population of Hong Kong to Northern Ireland was considered an option in the uncertain years before Britain handed back the former British colony to Chinese rule, formerly classified government files showed. Britain’s National Archives on Friday released a 1983 government file …

BERLIN – The United Nations’ human rights chief says he is worried by the breadth and vagueness of new national security legislation approved last week by China’s legislature. Zeid Raad al-Hussein said Tuesday that the National Security Law “raises many concerns due to its extraordinarily broad scope coupled with the …

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s foreign ministry says Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will meet with his Indian counterpart on the sidelines of a summit in Russia. It’s a rare meeting for top officials from the rival countries. Ministry spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said Thursday that Sharif will meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi …

BRUSSELS – The United Nations’ refugee agency says Greece is facing an “unprecedented” emergency as people fleeing war and poverty at home continue to stream into the country’s islands in huge numbers. The UNHCR said Friday that 77,100 people have arrived to Greece by sea at an average of 1,000 …