AFP, Kuala Lumpur
Two women arrested over the nerve agent assassination of Kim Jong Nam are to be charged with his murder, Malaysia said Tuesday, as North Korea sent a senior diplomat to retrieve the body from the morgue.
The spectacular killing of Kim Jong-Un’s half-brother with VX, a fast-acting poison developed for warfare, sparked an international probe and lurid stories of Pyongyang’s Cold War-style tradecraft.
Eleven Afghan police killed in insider attack
Reuters, Lashkar
Taliban fighters in the southern Afghan province of Helmand attacked a checkpoint with silenced weapons and hand grenades early on Tuesday killing 12 policemen and stealing weapons and ammunition, officials said.
But a provincial official said that it could be an insider attack as one of the guards was still missing.
“An investigation is ongoing to find out if someone from inside has defected to the Taliban and paved the way for this crime,” he said.
Georgia wins visa-free EU
travel for citizens
AFP, Brussels
European Union member states on Monday approved visa-free travel for Georgia, after agreeing safeguards to prevent any upsurge in arrivals from the former Soviet satellite.
Georgia, along with much larger Ukraine, has been urging the EU to grant visa-free travel so as to show its citizens that close ties with Europe can deliver concrete benefits. EU Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos said the decision marked “a historic day for Georgia and its citizens.”
US urges Russia to observe Ukraine ceasefire
AFP, Washington
The United States called on Russia Sunday to “immediately” observe the ceasefire in Ukraine, accusing combined Russian and separatist forces of targeting international monitors.
“We call on Russia and the separatist forces it backs to immediately observe the ceasefire, withdraw all heavy weapons, and allow full and unfettered access to the OSCE monitors,” the State Department said.
