Hong Kong court grants British lesbian right to spousal visa
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong’s top court ruled on Wednesday that a British lesbian should be granted a spousal visa in a landmark judgment that could open the door for expatriate same-sex partners to move to the Chinese-ruled city.
Captain of sinking Indonesian ferry sails onto reef; 31 dead
JAKARTA (Reuters) – The captain of a sinking Indonesian ferry managed to steer his ship onto a reef to enable the evacuation of more than 100 passengers, but 31 people drowned as the vessel floundered in stormy seas, officials said on Wednesday.
China’s foreign minister to visit Vienna for Iran nuclear deal talks
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s foreign minister and state councillor, Wang Yi, will go to Vienna on Friday for talks with Iran, a foreign ministry spokesman said on Wednesday, as the nations left in the Iran nuclear deal work to save the pact without the …
French minister calls for calm after night of violence in Nantes
NANTES, France (Reuters) – The French government on Wednesday called for calm after police in the western city of Nantes clashed overnight with protestors rioting over the death of a young driver who had tried to avoid a checkpoint and was shot by an o…
WhatsApp in India says partnership with government, society needed to combat misinformation
MUMBAI (Reuters) – Facebook Inc’s WhatsApp messenger service has responded to a call from India’s technology ministry to curb the spread of false information on its platform, saying such a task required a partnership between the pair as well as with s…
Pro-Brexit campaign group may have broken spending rules, former CEO says
LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s Electoral Commission is preparing to find the official campaign to leave the European Union guilty of breaking election law during the 2016 referendum, according to the former chief executive of the group.
Malaysia’s Najib pleads not guilty to charges in 1MDB graft probe
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Malaysia’s former prime minister, Najib Razak, on Wednesday pleaded not guilty to abuse of power and other charges arising from an investigation into a scandal-plagued state fund, weeks after he was ousted in a stunning electio…
Polish judge enters Supreme Court building, defying law forcing her retirement
WARSAW (Reuters) – Polish judge Malgorzata Gersdorf was seen entering the Supreme Court building in Warsaw on Wednesday, in defiance of government-sponsored legislation forcing her to retire from her post as the court’s president.
WhatsApp to India: need partnership with government, civil society to curb spread of false messages
MUMBAI (Reuters) – Facebook Inc’s WhatsApp messenger has told India that curbing the spread of false messages through its platform is a challenge that required a partnership between the tech firm, civil society and the government.
Trapped Thai team gets dive lessons as rescuers plan for extraction
CHIANG RAI, Thailand (Reuters) – Rescue teams in northern Thailand were giving crash courses in swimming and diving on Wednesday as part of preparations to extract a young soccer squad trapped in a cave and keen to end a harrowing 11-day ordeal.
