UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki Moon and U.N. official Shashi Tharoor received the most endorsements in the Security Council’s straw poll for the next U.N. secretary-general, diplomats said on Monday.

SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea said on Monday its test-firing of missiles this month was conducted in a “completely safe” way because it made sure ships and aircraft were not in the area before the launch.

ABUJA (Reuters) – The latest violence linked to next year’s elections in Nigeria has killed at least 15 people in two southern states, local leaders and police said on Monday.