May 6th, 2013
08:01 AM ET
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U.N.: Syria rebels may have used sarin

A U.N. official says there are strong suspicions that Syrian rebel forces have used the deadly nerve agent sarin gas in the country's civil war.

Carla Del Ponte told an Italian-Swiss TV station that the findings come after interviews with doctors and Syrian victims now in neighboring countries.

Del Ponte, the commissioner of the U.N. Independent International Commission of Inquiry for Syria, said the notion isn't surprising, given the infiltration of foreign fighters into the Syrian opposition.

But rebel Free Syrian Army spokesman Louay Almokdad said rebels don't even have unconventional weapons, nor do they want any.

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May 2nd, 2013
08:01 AM ET
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Syria: Obama and Assad share 'red line'

Chemical weapons are a "red line" for Syria, too, a top government official said Thursday.

Syrian Information Minister Omran al Zoubi said in an exclusive interview with CNN that a hard-line Islamist rebel group has used chemical weapons during the civil war and his government "would never use" such munitions "if we had them."

"President Obama says chemical weapons are a red line," al Zoubi said. "Then he is in direct accordance with President (Bashar al-) Assad who also thinks that chemical weapons are a red line."

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February 27th, 2013
06:04 AM ET
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Reports: Dead, injured in Switzerland shooting

[Updated at 9:14 a.m. ET] A gunman killed two people and himself, and injured seven other people, in Wednesday's shooting at a lumber plant near Lucerne, Switzerland, local media reported.

[Updated at 6:34 a.m. ET] Several people were killed in a shooting at a wood manufacturing factory on the outskirts of the central Swiss city of Lucerne on Wednesday, police said. Several others were wounded.

Rescuers flew four critically wounded people to two area hospitals, according to air rescue spokeswoman Karine Hoerhager.

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January 16th, 2013
08:38 AM ET
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Germany, Italy to aid French mission in Mali

Germany will contribute two transport planes to the French-led military offensive against Islamist rebels in Mali, the German Defense Ministry announced Wednesday.

Italy also is ready for "a logistical support operation" in the West African nation, Italian Foreign Minister Giulio Terzi said, according to the state-run ANSA news agency.

Read more: France vows to halt jihadist charge in Mali

What's behind the fighting?

U.S. weighs Mali policy options

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Filed under: Africa • Mali • World
November 16th, 2012
05:16 AM ET
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Planned cease-fire fails as Egypt's prime minister visit Gaza

Explosions rumbled through Gaza all night into Friday, as Palestinian health officials reported an additional death in the conflict with Israel, bringing the total toll to 20.

The fighting left 235 wounded, Palestinian officials said, as Israeli officials reported no new deaths Friday, saying a total of three have died from rocket fire since fighting broke out.

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September 13th, 2012
02:47 PM ET
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Libyan official: Suspect in consulate attack arrested

Editor's note: Several protests stemming at least in part from an anti-Islam film produced in the United States are unfolding outside U.S. embassies around the world. Thursday's protests follow ones in Cairo and Benghazi and an attack on the U.S. Consulate in Libya on Tuesday night that killed the U.S. ambassador and three others. Follow along with the live blog below for all of the developments around the world.

[Updated at 5:18 p.m. ET] Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, said the U.S. government should bring to justice those behind the anti-Islam film.

Khameini on Thursday called the making of the film a "criminal act," according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency. His comments came the same day university students protested outside the Swiss Embassy in Tehran, blaming the United States and Israel for the American-made film. The Swiss Embassy represents U.S. interests in Iran.

[Updated at 3:59 p.m. ET] At least one person has been arrested in the killings of U.S. Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens and three other Americans, Libya's prime minister said Thursday.

One person was arrested early Thursday in Benghazi, Mustafa Abushagur said on CNNI's "Amanpour." "Three or four are currently being pursued," he said.

Earlier, the Libyan state-run news agency LANA said more than one person had been arrested. It cited the deputy minister of interior in the eastern region, Wanees al-Sharif, as its source.

The announcement came as the United States is struggling to determine whether a militant group planned the attack that killed the four Americans, even as warships head toward the north African country as part of a mission to hunt down and punish the killers.

[Updated at 3:11 p.m. ET] Four people were killed Thursday during protests near the U.S. Embassy in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, according to two Yemeni security officials. They reported 11 injuries among protesters.

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December 8th, 2011
06:47 AM ET
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Bomb sent to German bank executive, officials say

A suspicious package sent to the chief executive of Deutsche Bank in Germany contained a functioning bomb, law enforcement officials in the state of Hesse announced Thursday.

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Gadhafi accepts 'road map' to end Libyan conflict, Zuma says
April 10th, 2011
05:34 PM ET
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Gadhafi accepts 'road map' to end Libyan conflict, Zuma says

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi has accepted the terms of a "road map" aimed at ending the conflict in his nation as part of negotiations with the African Union, South African President Jacob Zuma told reporters Sunday.

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