Switzerland has suspended an investigation into US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) agents allegedly involved in the 2003 abduction and rendition of Egyptian cleric Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr , a spokesperson from the Swiss Federal Prosecutor's Office said Friday. The Swiss Federal Council authorized the criminal proceedings in February 2007 based on alleged unlawful use of [...]

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A Chinese dissident writer will face trial next week on subversion charges related to essays exposing corruption within the Communist Party of China , the writer's wife told AP Friday. Lu Gengsong was arrested last October on charges of "inciting subversion of power," according to advocacy group Chinese Human Rights Defenders. Lu's wife said that [...]

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The Supreme Court of Thailand Friday rejected the major legal challenges brought against last month's election results. The ruling frees the People Power Party (PPP), which won 233 out of 480 parliament seats in the first election since the current interim military-backed government came to power in a September 2006 bloodless coup , to begin [...]

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Turkish President Abdullah Gul Friday signed a bill banning smoking in government buildings, offices, bars and restaurants. The bill was passed by the Turkish Grand National Assembly earlier this month. The ban includes penalties for anyone caught smoking in a prohibited area or any company advertising or distributing tobacco . The ban will not take [...]

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Niger authorities will release on bail two French journalists charged this week with threatening state security, the journalists' lawyer said Friday. Reporter Pierre Creisson and cameraman Thomas Dandois will be released when each journalist posts bail for $22,000. Passports have already been returned to the French journalists, and once they post bail they can return [...]

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