Italian government wins all five confidence votes on electoral law
ROME (Reuters) – The Italian government won all five confidence votes it had called in the upper house of parliament on Wednesday on a new electoral law that looks unlikely to produce a clear-cut result at national elections due by next May.
Fear of Iranian general left Iraqi Kurdish oil fields deserted
BAGHDAD/LONDON (Reuters) – When the Iraqi army and Iranian-backed Shi’ite militia entered a key oil processing facility in Iraq’s north to retake it from Kurdish Peshmerga forces last week, the installation was deserted and its alarm bells ringing.
Pinera keeps lead in Chile’s presidential race: CEP poll
SANTIAGO (Reuters) – Chilean conservative presidential candidate Sebastian Pinera kept his lead in voter preference ahead of next months’ first round election, and was seen beating his two closest rivals in a likely run-off, pollster CEP said Wednesday…
U.S., Gulf nations target Yemen terrorism financing
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States and six Gulf nations have targeted 13 accused al Qaeda and ISIS militants in an action administration officials say will disrupt terrorism financing in Yemen, U.S. administration officials said on Wednesday.
French opposition struggles to emerge from rubble of Macron victory
PARIS (Reuters) – Battered and bruised from electoral defeat by Emmanuel Macron’s centrists, France’s Socialist Party is laying off most of its staff and selling its Paris base, while the centre-right Republicans limp on in search of a leader.
Kenya opposition leader urges vote boycott, civil disobedience
NAIROBI (Reuters) – Kenya opposition leader Raila Odinga urged supporters to boycott Thursday’s repeat presidential election and persuade their friends to do the same, saying he would lead a campaign of civil disobedience against the government.
German president tells Putin: we need to work on our relationship
MOSCOW (Reuters) – German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday he was unhappy about the state of relations between Moscow and Berlin and that both sides needed to work to improve it.
Bosnian pensioners stage street protests for pension rise
SARAJEVO (Reuters) – Thousands of pensioners from across Bosnia’s Bosniak-Croat Federation, most of whom live on the edge of poverty, took to the streets in Sarajevo on Wednesday to protest for a rise in pensions and better social and health care.
No rest, high tempo – energetic Macron keeps Elysee agenda ticking
PARIS (Reuters) – From text messages at 2 a.m. to clockwork meetings and tight deadlines, 39-year-old Emmanuel Macron is shaking up how the French presidency is run, raising the tempo and stretching the limits of the largely youthful team around him.
BBC complains to U.N. over alleged harassment by Iran of its Persian staff
LONDON (Reuters) – The BBC said on Wednesday it had filed an urgent complaint to the United Nations after Iran began a criminal investigation into 152 BBC Persian staff and contributors, accusing them of “conspiracy against national security” in Iran …
