A fighter from the Islamist Syrian rebel group Jabhat al-Nusra is seen in front of a burning vehicle, caused by what activists said were missiles fired by a Syrian Air Force fighter jet from forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, at their base in Raqqa province, east Syria, May 12, 2013. REUTERS/Hamid Khatib

How Syria's Islamists govern with guile and guns

RAQQA, Syria - Using a mix of intimidation and organization, alliances of Islamist brigades are filling the vacuum in areas where Assad's army has withdrawn and more secular rebels have failed to provide order. They administer utilities, run bakeries and in one town operate a hydroelectric dam. They are also setting up courts and imposing punishments on those judged transgressors.  Full Article 

End to Fed stimulus, China slowdown rattles swathe of world investments 5:34am EDT

LONDON - The U.S. Federal Reserve's explicit signal it will stop pumping money into the world economy and data showing China's economy slowing down swept across financial markets on Thursday, sinking bonds, shares and commodities alike.

Opponents of President Daniel Ortega's government clash with police officers during a demonstration in front of the National Assembly Building in Managua June 13, 2013. REUTERS/Oswaldo Rivas

Who wants to bet on the 'Nicaragua Canal'?

MANAGUA/PANAMA CITY - For centuries since the colonization of the New World, entrepreneurs have dreamed of building a canal spanning Nicaragua to make it easier to tap Asia's riches. Now it's the turn of the Chinese. And skepticism is as strong as ever.  Full Article 

Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi smiles to supporters as she leaves the National League for Democracy party headquarters after attending her 68th birthday ceremony in Yangon June 19, 2013. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun

Constitution likely to dash Suu Kyi's hopes

YANGON - Her adoring compatriots believe democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi is destined to become Myanmar's next president. But don't bet on it.  Full Article 

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks from behind a bulletproof glass at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, June 19, 2013.   REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

Obama seeks deeper nuclear cuts from Russia

BERLIN - U.S. President Barack Obama used a speech in Berlin on Wednesday to call on Russia to revive the push for a world without nuclear weapons, offering to cut deployed nuclear arsenals by a third, but Moscow immediately poured scorn on his proposal.  Full Article 

People queue up to make a transaction at an ATM outside a branch of Laiki Bank in Nicosia March 21, 2013. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis

Euro ministers to decide direct bank rules

BRUSSELS - Euro zone finance ministers will decide on Thursday when and how their bailout fund can invest in a bank to save it from failure, laying a cornerstone of the banking union seen as vital to restore economic growth.  Full Article 

A man checks his mobile phone near a marketplace in New Delhi June 18, 2013. REUTERS/Anindito Mukherjee

India sets up system to tap phone calls, e-mail

NEW DELHI - India has launched a wide-ranging surveillance program that will give its security agencies and even income tax officials the ability to tap directly into e-mails and phone calls without oversight by courts or parliament, several sources said.  Full Article 

Pedestrians walk past a Sprint store in New York in this December 17, 2012 file photo. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/Files

Sprint should raise Clearwire bid

NEW YORK - Sprint Nextel Corp should consider raising its offer price for Clearwire Corp or risk being saddled with a contentious relationship with Dish Network Corp, controlled by feisty billionaire Charlie Ergen.  Full Article 

Actor James Gandolfini arrives at the BAFTA Brits to Watch event in Los Angeles, California July 9, 2011. REUTERS/Fred Prouser

Sopranos star James Gandolfini dies in Italy

LOS ANGELES - James Gandolfini, the burly actor best known for his Emmy-winning portrayal of a conflicted New Jersey mob boss in the groundbreaking cable TV series "The Sopranos," died while vacationing in Italy. He was 51.  Full Article 

Reuters Today: Ben bursts the bubble

June 20 - Ben Bernanke sends bonds and stocks skittering as the Fed clears the way to start pulling the Kool Aid from the economic party.

Ian Bremmer

The new Iranian president’s restrained power

When President Hassan Rohani takes office in August, he will have the potential to bring about meaningful changes within the confines of Iran's usual restrictions.  Commentary 

David Patrikarakos

Rohani: A survivor in the snakepit of Tehran

Rohani is the Beria of the Islamic Republic: He knows how to negotiate the pit of vipers that is Iranian politics.  Commentary 

Nicholas Wapshott

David Cameron takes on the tax havens

There is nothing more likely to spark anger than an unfair tax regime. That puts Britain's prime minister David Cameron, who like most conservatives believes in low taxes, in a bind.  Commentary 

John Lloyd

Trusting in our new security state

To adapt to our new surveillance status quo we have to trust the state, the government, the politicians, the businesses, the bureaucracies, the police, the security forces, the journalists and, yes, ourselves.  Commentary 

Sheldon Whitehouse

The price of ignoring climate change

Climate change endangers much of the world economy. Economists calculate that a 3.5-degree Fahrenheit rise in global temperature would reduce global gross domestic product by 1 percent.  Commentary 

Edward Hadas

Rate rigging costs more than money

In cash terms, the manipulation of supposedly objective reference rates and prices is a petty crime: relatively small gains for a few and microscopic losses for many. Ethically, though, the tolerance of untrustworthy behaviour makes the industry look particularly bad.  Full Article