Latest Reuters Headlines

• Australia's bushfire-stricken east welcomes drenching rain

  Intense thunderstorms with heavy rains dampened bushfires on Australia's east coast on Friday, to the relief of exhausted firefighters and farmers battling years of drought, and granting a reprieve to the organizers of next week's Australian Open.
  
  

• Don't turn plane crash into political issue: Iran foreign ministry spokesman

  All countries involved in the Ukrainian airliner crash in Iran should avoid turning it into a political issue, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Friday.
  
  

• Iranian representative coming to Ukraine next week, Kiev says

  An Iranian representative will travel to Ukraine next week following the shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger plane near Tehran last week, Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko told parliament on Friday.