Syria’s Aleppo takes first tiny steps toward recovery
ALEPPO, Syria (Reuters) – In the ruins of the Sabbagh textile factory in Aleppo’s Belleramoun Industrial Zone, one wall smashed open by shellfire, a Belgian-made weaving machine stands idle while a family carefully strips the office of wood paneling fo…
French polls pile pressure on scandal-hit Fillon
PARIS (Reuters) – Seven out of 10 French voters want conservative presidential candidate Francois Fillon to step down, an opinion poll showed on Friday, as the scandal over alleged “fake work” by his wife continued to blight his campaign.
U.S., China military planes come inadvertently close over South China Sea
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. Navy P-3 plane and a Chinese military aircraft came close to each other over the South China Sea in an incident the Navy believes was inadvertent, a U.S. official told Reuters on Thursday.
Families of victims of Philippines drug crackdown win legal challenge
MANILA (Reuters) – A Philippines court granted protection on Friday to families of five people killed or wounded by police and the right to access police case reports, in the first successful legal challenge to President Rodrigo Duterte’s deadly crackd…
Suicide bombing kills four, wounds 15 in eastern Mosul restaurant
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – A suicide bomber believed to belong to Islamic State blew himself up inside a restaurant in eastern Mosul at lunchtime on Friday, killing at least four people and wounding 15, a medical source in the northern Iraqi city said.
Islamic State shifts to Libya’s desert valleys after Sirte defeat
MISRATA, Libya (Reuters) – Islamic State militants have shifted to desert valleys and inland hills southeast of Tripoli as they seek to exploit Libya’s political divisions after defeat in their former stronghold of Sirte, security officials say.
Italy hopes Rome summit will revive flagging EU
ROME (Reuters) – EU leaders will renew their marriage vows for the troubled bloc in Rome next month but may acknowledge that in future, certain member states will move closer to some partners than to others, Italy’s top European affairs official said.
Venezuelan girl’s diphtheria death highlights country’s health crisis
PARIAGUAN, Venezuela (Reuters) – Eliannys Vivas, 9, started to get a sore throat on a Friday last month in this languid Venezuelan town where papaya trees shade poor cinder-block homes.
Afghan military would support more foreign troops, official says
KABUL (Reuters) – The Afghan Defense Ministry welcomed on Friday suggestions by the commander of international forces in Afghanistan that more troops were needed to train Afghan security forces, who are battling to hold back a growing Taliban-led insur…
Court orders review of jailed anti-Putin activist’s case, says law applied too harshly
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia’s Constitutional Court on Friday ordered a review of the conviction of prominent anti-Kremlin activist Ildar Dadin and said a law that criminalized protests had to be applied more proportionately.
