February 24 News International

Friday 24 February, 2012.

TOP STORY Kofi Annan to beSyria crisis envoy Former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan has been appointed as the joint United Nations-Arab League envoy to Syria tasked with engaging with all relevant interlocutors within and outside the troubled country to end the year-long violence and humanitarian crisis. HEADLINES Rudd to challenge Gillard in Oz Labor party leadership race Taking up the gauntlet, former Australian Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd on Friday said he will contest against Prime Minister Julia Gillard in Monday's leadership vote, as the two bitter rivals sparred publicly escalating the row within the ruling Labor party. Suicide bombers attack Peshawar police station; kill four cops Suicide attackers armed with guns and grenades on Friday stormed a police station in Peshawar, killing at least four policemen, including two officers, and injuring eight others, a day after a car bomb strike left 13 people dead in the northwest Pakistani city. Pak govt offers amnesty to Baloch leaders in exile Within days of a resolution introduced in US Congress seeking the right to self-determination for Balochistan, Pakistan has offered amnesty to Baloch nationalist leaders in exile, announcing that cases against them would be closed. US waiting for Pak review on bilateral ties The Obama Administration is waiting for the Pakistani Parliament to complete review of its ties with the US to address some of Islamabad's concerns, a US official has said. AFRICA & SOUTH AMERICA ASIA PACIFIC EUROPE NORTH AMERICA SOUTH ASIA WEST ASIA

OTHER TOP STORIES Widespread attacks in Iraq kill 50 ISAF promises to get to the bottom of Quran row  Gillard calls Labor leadership ballot  Iran's failure to reach agreement with IAEA regrettable: US