IS gunmen target civilians fleeing Mosul by night
MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) – Islamic State gunmen are opening fire on men, women and children as they try to flee Mosul under cover of darkness, civilians who escaped the besieged Iraqi city said on Friday.
U.S. sanctions 30 firms, individuals for aiding Iran, North Korea arms programs
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States has imposed sanctions on 30 foreign companies or individuals for transferring sensitive technology to Iran for its missile program or for violating export controls on Iran, North Korea and Syria, the State Depar…
French president’s ex-partner to run for U.N. development agency post
PARIS (Reuters) – French Environment Minister Segolene Royal said on Friday that she was running to lead the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), at a time when the U.N. could see an abrupt cut in crucial United States funding.
Five children among 11 Syrians killed as boat sinks off Turkey: DHA
ANKARA (Reuters) – Five children were among 11 Syrians killed after their plastic boat sank off Turkey’s Aegean coast on Friday, the Dogan news agency said, the first such reported incident in months on an illegal migrant route meant to have been all b…
Syria’s Ja’afari says U.S. action on Raqqa would be illegitimate
GENEVA (Reuters) – A U.S.- or Turkish-backed attack on Islamic State in the Syrian city of Raqqa would be illegitimate unless coordinated with President Bashar al-Assad’s government, the Syrian chief negotiator at peace talks in Geneva said on Friday.
Syrian militia reaches Tabqa dam: SDF official
BEIRUT (Reuters) – U.S.-backed local forces fighting Islamic State in Syria on Friday reached one side of the Tabqa dam, one of the top prizes in their campaign to drive the jihadist group from Raqqa city, local campaign officials said.
Le Pen says, if elected, will mull swift lifting of Russia sanctions
MOSCOW (Reuters) – French far-right party leader Marine Le Pen said on Friday after meeting President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin she would consider what she had to do to swiftly lift European Union sanctions imposed on Russia over the Ukraine crisis…
In eastern Ukraine, troops tiptoeing up to front line risk heavy battles
AVDIYIVKA/KIEV (Reuters) – Ukrainian government troops and separatist fighters have drawn closer to each other at several places along the tense front line in eastern Ukraine, monitors say, raising the risk of violent flare-ups that could wreck a shaky…
Shi’ite cleric Sadr says only Iraq’s military should hold land seized from IS
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Influential Shi’ite Muslim cleric Moqtada al-Sadr said on Friday that only Iraq’s military should hold territory recaptured from Islamic State, an apparent sign of concern that rival militias might use the gains to expand their infl…
Merkel concerned Israeli settlements undermine two-state solution
BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday she was concerned about Israel’s building of settlements in the occupied West Bank, which she said was undermining progress toward a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinian ter…
