Indonesia’s Widodo skips Australia trip as unrest simmers at home
JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo postponed a visit to Australia on Saturday after a mass protest in Jakarta that briefly turned violent as Muslim extremists pressed for the resignation of the capital’s governor, a Christian they sa…
Bombs hit convoy of displaced people in Iraq, kills 18: police
TIKRIT, Iraq (Reuters) – Two roadside bombs struck a convoy carrying Iraqi families fleeing an Islamic State-controlled town in the north of the country late on Friday, killing 18 people, a police officer said.
Australia’s far-right groups protest Syrian refugee housing
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Several hundred people rallied in the suburbs of Melbourne on Saturday, after a proposal to house refugees locally drew protest by far right anti-Islam groups and counter protests.
Australia’s proposed visa-ban likely breaches Refugee Convention: U.N. official
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – A United Nations official said Australia would probably be in breach of the Refugee Convention if it enacted a proposal for a permanent visa-ban for asylum seekers who attempted to reach the country by boat, Fairfax media reported…
China to weigh up Hong Kong allegiance rules amid independence row
HONG KONG (Reuters) – China’s top parliamentary panel will discuss Hong Kong’s mini-constitution and how it should be interpreted, the Chinese-ruled city government said on Friday, to try to end a crisis over a fledgling independence movement but raisi…
Indonesian president says ‘no compromise’ on South China Sea
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Indonesian President Joko Widodo said there will be “no compromise” to his country’s sovereignty in the contested South China Sea, ahead of a visit to staunch U.S. ally Australia.
Iraqi forces push deeper into eastern Mosul
MOSUL, Iraq (Reuters) – Iraqi special forces said they recaptured six districts of eastern Mosul on Friday, expanding the army’s foothold in the Islamic State bastion a day after its leader told his jihadist followers there could be no retreat.
Turkey draws Western condemnation over arrest of Kurdish lawmakers
DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) – Turkish authorities arrested the leaders of the country’s main pro-Kurdish opposition party in a terrorism investigation on Friday, drawing strong international condemnation of a widening crackdown on dissent under Presid…
Thousands of Moroccans keep up pressure over fishmonger’s death
AL-HOCEIMA, Morocco (Reuters) – Thousands of chanting, flag-waving Moroccans protested in a northern city on Friday, keeping up pressure on authorities a week after a fishmonger was crushed to death in a garbage truck in a confrontation with police.
Three U.S. trainers shot dead at Jordan base – military source
AMMAN (Reuters) – Three U.S. military trainers were shot dead in Jordan on Friday when their car failed to stop at the gate of a military base and was fired on by Jordanian security forces, a Jordanian military source said.
