Iraqi ex-soldiers make miniature models to stay in touch with army days
KERBALA, Iraq (Reuters) – A small group of Iraqis including a soldier who fought in the civil war have turned to model making to deal with their memories of conflict and maintain touch with the military phase of their lives.
Russian rocket tests force partial closing of Baltic Sea, airspace
RIGA (Reuters) – Russia began testing missiles with live munitions in the Baltic Sea on Wednesday, alarming Latvia, a member of NATO, which says the drills have forced it to partly shut down Baltic commercial airspace.
Russian proposal for joint Salisbury toxin inquiry ‘perverse’: Britain
THE HAGUE (Reuters) – Russia’s proposal for a joint inquiry into the poisoning of a former Russian double agent in England is a “perverse” attempt to escape blame, Britain told an emergency meeting on Wednesday of the global chemical weapons watchdog.
Islamic groups report Indonesian politician for reciting ‘blasphemous’ poem
JAKARTA (Reuters) – Hardline Islamic groups on Wednesday filed a blasphemy complaint against a daughter of Indonesia’s first president, accusing her of reciting a poem insulting Islam and prompting fresh concerns over intolerance in the world’s most po…
France hit by second day of rail chaos as strike bites
PARIS (Reuters) – Millions of French commuters suffered a second consecutive day of travel chaos on Wednesday as striking rail workers locked horns with President Emmanuel Macron’s government in a dispute over reforming the state-owned SNCF railways.
Lawyers for Reuters reporters argue for Myanmar court to dismiss case
YANGON (Reuters) – Lawyers for two Reuters reporters jailed in Myanmar asked a judge on Wednesday to dismiss the case against them, arguing there was insufficient evidence to support charges of obtaining secret government papers.
Britain: Russian proposal for joint Salisbury probe ‘perverse’
THE HAGUE (Reuters) – The British delegation to the global chemical weapons body on Wednesday dismissed a Russian proposal for a joint U.K.-Russian investigation into the Salisbury poisoning of former spy Sergei Skripal as “perverse”.
Mali war crimes suspect to appear before war crimes judges in The Hague
THE HAGUE (Reuters) – An Islamist militant suspected of committing war crimes in Mali is due to appear before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague on Wednesday, three days after the Malian authorities handed him over into the court’s cus…
Rebels release five prisoners in Syria’s Ghouta: monitor, state TV
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syrian rebel group Jaish al-Islam released five prisoners on Wednesday as part of a deal over the eastern Ghouta town of Douma, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
Italy’s 5-Star seeks governing contract with rivals as talks begin
ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s anti-establishment 5-Star Movement proposed a German-style governing contract with two of its rivals as formal talks aimed at seating a government began on Wednesday, a month after an election ended with a hung parliament.
