Russia's Lavrov seeks peace in Syria as forces bombard Homs

AMMAN (Reuters) - Russia won a promise from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday to bring an end to bloodshed in Syria, but Western and Arab states acted to isolate Assad further after activists and rebels said his forces killed over 100 in the city of Homs.

Iran shrugs off latest U.S. sanctions, trade suffers

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran castigated its U.S. adversary on Tuesday over new financial measures to disrupt Iranian commerce, and a default on payment for rice purchases highlighted the encroachment of sanctions on the staples of everyday life.

Maldives president quits after mutiny on paradise

MALE (Reuters) - President Mohamed Nasheed of the Maldives, widely credited with bringing democracy to the hideaway resort islands, resigned on Tuesday after weeks of opposition protests erupted into a police mutiny and what an aide said amounted to a coup.

Netanyahu can't fly solo in Israel to attack Iran

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Three decades ago, an Israeli prime minister faced his cabinet and invoked the Holocaust in an emotional appeal to approve an air strike against an Arab atomic reactor.

Exclusive: Iran defaults on rice payments to India

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Iranian buyers have defaulted on payments for about 200,000 tonnes of rice from their top supplier India, exporters and rice millers said on Tuesday, a sign of the mounting pressure on Tehran from a new wave of Western sanctions.

U.S. lifts restrictions to support IFIs work in Myanmar

(Reuters) - The United States has eased some restrictions on Myanmar to support ongoing work by International Financial Institutions (IFIs) like the Asian Development Bank carrying out economic assessments and technical assistance to its new civilian government.

Italy court extends house arrest for cruise ship captain

FLORENCE, Italy (Reuters) - An Italian court ruled Tuesday that Francesco Schettino, the captain of the cruise liner that ran aground and capsized off the island of Giglio, killing at least 17 people, must remain under house arrest.

Kidnapped Chinese workers in Sudan freed

KHARTOUM/BEIJING (Reuters) - Sudanese rebel forces released 29 Chinese workers kidnapped ten days ago in the main oil-producing state of South Kordofan, where the army has been fighting insurgents for seven months, Sudan's foreign ministry said on Tuesday.

Victim urges penalties for bishops who don't tackle sex abuse

ROME (Reuters) - An Irish victim of clerical abuse said Tuesday that Catholic Church guidelines on how to root out pedophile priests and protect children needed to be backed up by penalties for bishops who fail to implement them.

Rescuers search for missing after Philippine quake

TAYASAN, Philippines (Reuters) - Philippine rescuers searched on Tuesday for 29 residents of a mountainside community feared dead after a landslide triggered by an earthquake engulfed their homes.