Sweden braced for possible Russian election meddling: security service
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Russia could try to influence the outcome of national elections in Sweden in September if authorities in Moscow feel their strategic interests are threatened, the Swedish security service said on Thursday.
At country home, Britain’s May hopes to settle Brexit divisions
LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Theresa May hopes on Thursday to settle disputes over her Brexit strategy that are dividing her cabinet and party, and frustrating her negotiating partners in the European Union.
Saudis promised double the fun in 2018 drive to lure back tourist dollars
RIYADH (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia will stage more than 5,000 shows, festivals and concerts in 2018, double the number of last year, as it shakes off its conservative image in a drive to keep tourist dollars at home and lure in visitors.
Basque separatist group ETA to vote on full dissolution by summer
MADRID (Reuters) – Leaders of Basque separatist militant group ETA are asking its members to vote on whether it should dismantle itself completely by the summer, it said in a statement in newspaper Gara.
Germany’s far-right AfD set to embrace anti-Islam PEGIDA
BERLIN (Reuters) – A leader of the nationalist Alternative for Germany (AfD) is pushing to overturn the party’s ban on members joining rallies by the anti-Islam PEGIDA movement – another sign of the rightward shift of Germany’s budding main opposition …
Israeli Bezeq’s owner to remain in custody until Monday
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – The controlling shareholder of Bezeq Israel Telecom, Israel’s largest telecoms group, has been ordered to remain in police custody until Monday as part of an investigation into the firm.
EU rejects three-pronged British approach to new ties after Brexit
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union would not agree to a post-Brexit deal in which Britain would stick to the bloc’s rules in some areas, diverge moderately in others and go for distinctively different solutions for the rest, sources in Brussels sa…
Kremlin critic Navalny held, then released ahead of Russian election
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was briefly detained on Thursday and accused of organizing illegal protests, weeks before a presidential election in which he has been barred from running.
Israeli military investigating Palestinian’s death in West Bank confrontation
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – A Palestinian man died after a confrontation with Israeli troops in the occupied West Bank on Thursday that the Palestinian Authority condemned as a “cold-blooded execution”.
Death toll from Mozambique summer rains reaches 50
MAPUTO (Reuters) – The southern hemisphere summer rainy season has killed 50 people in Mozambique since October, the country’s National Institute for Disaster Management (INGC) said in its latest update on Thursday.
