Syria rebels said to kill 18 in village raid
BEIRUT -- Syrian rebels attacked a government-held village Friday, capturing parts of it after killing at least 18 soldiers and pro-government gunmen, activists said.
The assault began with a suicide bombing against an army checkpoint in government-controlled Rahjan, which is in the central province of Hama. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebels then stormed the village, killing the soldiers and pro-government gunmen and gaining control of several areas.
An activist in Hama who goes by the name of Muhannad al-Muhammad confirmed that rebels, including members of the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, broke into the village and captured large parts of it.
But there were conflicting reports on how much of the village they had seized. Rebels fighting to topple President Bashar Assad control large parts of Hama province, while the Syrian government controls the provincial capital and other areas.
Defense Minister Gen. Fahd Jassem al-Freij, who has played a major role in fighting rebels, is from Rahjan, which is 55 miles northwest of Hama city.
Girl raped by order of India town council
NEW DELHI -- A 14-year-old girl was dragged into a forest and raped on the orders of a village council in remote eastern India in retaliation for a sex assault blamed on her brother, her family and police said Friday.
Jitendra Singh, a top local police official, said two men have been arrested in the rape case. They include the village chief and the main suspect, identified as the husband of the woman who was reportedly molested by the victim's brother.
The victim's brother has been arrested on molestation charges.
The girl's mother told CNN-IBN news channel that she pleaded with the council and other villagers when they ordered the rape, but no one listened.
The attack took place early Sunday in a small village in Jharkhand state's Bokaro district.
"They attacked her in retaliation, and we are taking this case very seriously," Singh said, adding that police expect to complete the investigation and file charges in the next few days.
Across much of rural India, deeply conservative local councils wield great power. They can pass decrees on any subject they choose and usually enforce strict social norms about marriage and gender roles.
Paris court convicts 9 in terror network
PARIS -- A Paris court on Friday convicted nine people of belonging to a terrorist network that trained in Afghanistan and reportedly planned attacks in France.
The court handed down sentences ranging from two to nine years in prison. Three of the defendants were tried in absentia, including Touhami Tebourski, who is in custody in Turkey awaiting extradition to France and was sentenced to nine years. Two others are at large.
Tebourski is one of four defendants who the prosecution said spent time in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border zone, a haven for al-Qaida and Taliban militia fighters. Two of the four -- one arrested in Bulgaria, the other in Italy -- were given eight-year prison terms.
All denied they were fighters or had planned an attack.
The court ruled the group had "varying commitments" to a "perfectly organized" network but said there was no "clearly defined" project for attack.
German minister looks to mend U.S. ties
BERLIN -- Germany's foreign minister said Friday that he will tell U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at a meeting this weekend that Berlin wants to reinvigorate the two countries' friendship "on an honest basis," after asking Washington's top spy to leave.
Thursday's decision to demand the departure of the intelligence representative at the U.S. Embassy in Berlin was "the right decision, a necessary step and an appropriate reaction to the breach of trust that has taken place," Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said.
It followed reports that U.S. intelligence had recruited two Germans -- a man who worked at the country's foreign intelligence agency and a defense ministry employee. Steinmeier said those reports were "troubling."
Steinmeier said he will meet Kerry on the sidelines of talks in Vienna about Iran's nuclear program. The U.S. State Department confirmed that a bilateral meeting would take place.
A Section on 07/12/2014