FP
Top News: Vladimir Putin
rebuffed
calls from the international community to pullback troops from Crimea,
saying Russia had to protect native Russian speakers in Ukraine. A
Ukrainian official reported that there are now 30,000 Russian troops in
the region, though Putin continues to deny that the unidentified
soldiers are Russian forces.
Putin's latest moves come as the Ukrainian interim prime minster warned
Crimean MPs against a secession vote. Arseniy has called the vote,
which is scheduled for March 16, "illegitimate." The referendum has
been supported by the Russian parliament.
Jordan: Secretary of State John Kerry
met
with Jordan's King Abdullah II to discuss the peace process. Kerry
hopes to present a framework for an agreement between Israel and
Palestine authorities by the end of April. Any proposal centers on a
security plan in the Jordan Valley.
Asia
- Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was sentenced to five years
in jail on sodomy charges after a court overturned his previous acquittal.
- China expressed
"deep concern" after a North Korean ballistic missile crossed paths with a
Chinese civilian airplane.
- An explosion
on board an Indian naval vessel killed one officer after the blast led to a
toxic gas leak.
Middle East
- A son of former Libyan strongman, Muammar Gaddafi, has been extradited from Niger
and is in custody in Tripoli.
- Activists report that at least 17 rebels were killed
in a battle with Syrian government troops near the Lebanese border.
- Al Qaeda militants killed
a man in Yemen for allegedly providing information necessary to carry out U.S.
drone strikes.
Africa
- The International Criminal Court convicted Congo
militia leader Germain Katanga of war crimes.
- A former girlfriend of Oscar Pistorius testified
at his murder trial that Pistorius regularly carried a gun.
- Four Nigerian men were convicted of gay sex
in an Islamic court in the northern city of Bauchi.
Europe
- Less than two weeks after the Winter Olympics ended, the
Paralympics begin
tonight in Sochi.
- The new Ukrainian leadership has reached
out to oligarchs in the country's east, traditionally Moscow loyalists, for help.
- Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan has threatened to ban
Facebook and YouTube after a series of anonymous postings allegedly exposing
executive corruption.
Americas
- A solder and a motorcyclist died
in Caracas, bringing the death toll from almost a month of political unrest to
20.
- Cuba has agreed to begin
talks with the European Union on restoring bilateral relations.
- Venezuela expelled
Panama's ambassador and three other diplomats amid continued street
demonstrations.
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-By Jake Scobey-Thal
ALEXEY NIKOLSKY/AFP/Getty Images
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