The Israeli military on Wednesday presented the conclusions of several internal investigations into its conduct during the war in Gaza and stated that it had operated in accordance with international law, countering widespread international criticism over its actions and continuing accusations of possible war crimes.
The military said in a statement that it had “maintained a high professional and moral level” during the 22-day war, which ended Jan. 18, though it faced “an enemy that aimed to terrorize Israeli civilians whilst taking cover” among Palestinian civilians and “using them as human …

Thousands more civilians surged out of Sri Lanka’s war zone on Wednesday, while soldiers and Tamil Tiger rebels fought the apparent endgame of Asia’s longest-running war despite calls to protect those still trapped.
In the third day since troops blasted through a massive earthen wall built by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and unleashed the exodus, the military said 81,420 people had been registered for onward transit to refugee camps.
The massive civilian presence in a 17 square km (6.5 sq mile) area had been the last crucial defence for …

A Somali teenager accused of being one of the pirates who held an American sea captain hostage has been flown from Africa to the US to face trial.
Abde Wale Abdul Kadhir Muse is the first person to be tried in the US on piracy charges in more than a century, the Associated Press news agency says.
He was held over the seizure off Somalia of Richard Phillips, captain of the Maersk Alabama cargo ship.
Earlier, his mother appealed to US President Barack Obama to free him.

Somali pirates in speedboats opened fire Monday on two cargo ships in the latest hijacking attempts in the notorious Gulf of Aden. Another band of brigands freed a food aid freighter but only after receiving a $100,000 “reward” from Somali businessmen. The latest attack occurred at midday when pirates fired shots at a Chinese-owned, Panama-flagged cargo ship, the MV New Legend Honor, said Cmdr. Chris Davies, from NATO’s maritime headquarters in England.
Two NATO warships — one Canadian, the other British — scrambled helicopters in defense, Davies said. No damage was …

A Tamil Tiger spokesman has accused the Sri Lankan government of shelling civilians and wreaking carnage during its military offensive in the north.
The government has denied the allegations, in turn accusing the rebel group of targeting civilians.
The army has said at least 25,000 civilians have fled the Tamil Tiger-held area.
The rebels have so far rejected government calls to surrender, or face a final assault.

Russian security forces have clashed in Chechnya with a dozen militants after Moscow formally ended a military crackdown in place for the last decade, reports said on Friday.
The Russian security forces clashed with the group outside the settlement of Dai in Chechnya and used artillery fire, the Interfax and RIA Novosti news agencies quoted security sources as saying.
There were no casualties amongst the security forces, it said. The clash took place at 10:50 am (0650 GMT) on Thursday but these were the first reports to have emerged.

Somali pirates seized ships from France, Britain, Germany, Taiwan and Yemen, defying world naval powers by prowling further out in the Indian Ocean to target victims.
Ransom-hunting pirates equipped with skiffs, guns and grapnels took five ships in 48 hours, the two latest on Monday targeting a British cargo ship and a Taiwanese fishing vessel.
At least 17 ships and more than 250 hostages are now in pirate hands.

Turkish authorities arrested a man who allegedly plotted to pose as an Arab news network journalist to kill U.S. President Obama, a Saudi newspaper said Monday.
The man, said to be of Syrian descent, was arrested Friday and allegedly confessed he intended to stab Obama with a knife during the president’s visit to Turkey, the Saudi daily Al Watan reported. The man, who was carrying a press card identifying him as an employee of al-Jazeera, allegedly said he had three accomplices.
The Jerusalem Post, which reported about the al Watan article, said …