Fresh losses in Syria and Iraq push Islamic State ‘caliphate’ to the brink
BEIRUT/ERBIL (Reuters) – Islamic State’s self-proclaimed caliphate was all but reduced on Friday to a pair of border towns at the Iraq-Syria frontier, where thousands of fighters were believed to be holding out after losing nearly all other territory i…
Israel’s Netanyahu expresses hope for US peace push in Middle East
LONDON (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday he hoped a U.S. peace initiative would work and praised President Donald Trump for taking a fresh approach to bringing the Israelis and Palestinians back to negotiations.
After four months jail, Turkey’s Amnesty director says trial is ‘surreal’
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Amnesty International’s Turkey director, freed from four months detention but still facing trial on terrorism charges, said the case against her and other human rights activists was “absurd and surreal”.
Former Argentina Vice President Boudou arrested: source
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Amado Boudou, who had been former Argentine President Cristina Fernandez’s vice president, was arrested on Friday, the second major official in her government to face detention, according to a person involved in the investigati…
Fake meat, free markets ease North Koreans’ hunger
SEOUL (Reuters) – Take the dregs left from making soy bean oil, which usually go to feed the pigs. Press and roll them into a sandy-colored paste. Stuff with rice, and top with chilli sauce. The dish’s name, injogogi, means “man-made meat.”
South African prosecutors say Pistorius sentence ‘shockingly lenient’, seek appeal
BLOEMFONTEIN, South Africa (Reuters) – South Africa’s state prosecutors told the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) on Friday the six-year sentence for murder handed to Paralympic gold medalist Oscar Pistorius was “shockingly lenient” and asked for the righ…
Iraqi forces enter al-Qaim in final offensive on Islamic State-held territory
ERBIL Iraq (Reuters) – Iraqi forces have entered al-Qaim, one of the last remaining territories in the country still held by Islamic State militants, the Joint Operations Command said on Friday.
Australia has duty to take care of asylum seekers in PNG, U.N. says
GENEVA (Reuters) – The United Nations human rights office called on Australia on Friday to restore food, water and health services to some 600 interned refugees and asylum seekers in Papua New Guinea, which the government cut off three days ago.
Israel’s Netanyahu expresses hope for U.S. peace push in Middle East
LONDON (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday he hoped a U.S. peace initiative would work and praised President Donald Trump for taking a fresh approach to bringing the Israelis and Palestinians back to negotiations.
Jailed Catalonia leader Santi Vila to leave jail after paying bail
MADRID (Reuters) – Jailed Catalonia leader Santi Vila, among the nine Catalan leaders ordered to be held in custody on Thursday pending a potential trial over the region’s independence drive, was free to leave jail after paying bail, a court document s…
