Former president Maldives and chief justice sentenced for obstruction of justice
MALE (Reuters) – A court in the Maldives on Wednesday convicted former president Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and the sitting chief justice for obstruction of justice and sentenced them to 19 months in prison.
French parliament approves landmark bill to reform state rail company
PARIS (Reuters) – France’s National Assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of a bill to overhaul the state-run SNCF railway company on Wednesday, backing President Emmanuel Macron’s efforts to break the unions and reform the economy.
Lithuania sees fake news attempt to discredit NATO exercises
KULAUTUVA, Lithuania (Reuters) – Lithuania’s defense minister said on Wednesday a report about a U.S. armored vehicle supposedly killing a boy there was fake news and an attempt to discredit NATO exercises in the Baltics.
Top Syrian Kurd hopes Assad serious about talks
BEIRUT (Reuters) – A top Syrian Kurdish politician said he hopes President Bashar al-Assad is serious about negotiating with Kurdish-led forces and he signaled a readiness for talks without conditions.
Georgian Prime Minister Kvirikashvili resigns
TBILISI (Reuters) – Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili resigned on Wednesday amid a disagreement with the leader of his ruling party, Bidzina Ivanishvili, who is the richest man in the ex-Soviet republic.
Iran re-arrests prominent human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Iranian security forces arrested prominent human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh on Wednesday, her husband said in a Facebook post.
Russia restores Crimea power supply after blackout
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s state-controlled power grid company Rosseti said on Wednesday that it has restored power supply in Crimea after it had suffered a total blackout.
Italy summons French envoy as migration row escalates
ROME (Reuters) – Italy summoned France’s envoy on Wednesday and angrily rejected French criticism of its immigration policies, escalating a diplomatic standoff that widens one of Europe’s main political fault lines.
Furious Scots lawmakers walk out of UK parliament in Brexit row
EDINBURGH/LONDON (Reuters) – Lawmakers from the Scottish National Party (SNP) staged a dramatic walkout from the British parliament on Wednesday after their leader was ordered to leave the House of Commons in a row over Brexit.
Russia, Iran, Turkey to meet on Syrian constitutional committee: U.N.
GENEVA (Reuters) – Senior officials from Iran, Russia and Turkey will meet in Geneva on June 18-19 for consultations with the United Nations about setting up a constitutional committee for Syria, U.N. Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura said in a statement …
