Assad says Trump travel ban targets terrorists, not Syria’s people
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad said President Donald Trump’s ban on Syrians entering the United States targeted terrorists, not the Syrian people, appearing to defend the logic of the measure in an interview broadcast on Thursday….
Scuffles, tear gas as anti-police protests reach Paris
PARIS (Reuters) – Anti-police protests in the aftermath of alleged police brutality in a Paris suburb earlier this month descended into violence in the French capital on Wednesday night.
Pakistan raids hideout of militants behind surge of attacks; six dead
LAHORE, Pakistan (Reuters) – Pakistani counter-terrorism police raided a militant hideout and killed six suspected members of a Taliban faction that has launched a new campaign of violence against the government, police said on Thursday.
Germany’s Schaeuble, U.S. Treasury Secretary Mnuchin agree to cooperate
BERLIN (Reuters) – German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble and his new U.S. counterpart Steven Mnuchin spoke on the phone on Wednesday and agreed to work together closely, a spokeswoman in Berlin said on Thursday.
Russia says Pentagon should not seek to build ties from position of strength: agencies
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Wednesday Russia was prepared to improve ties with the Pentagon, but warned this could not happen if the United States seeks to cooperate from a “position of strength,” news agency TASS …
Displaced people of Syria’s “beehive” villages dream of return
ALEPPO, Syria (Reuters) – The sculpted mud domes of the villages southeast of Aleppo are collapsing from war damage and neglect after years on the front line between Syria’s army and Islamic State militants, their inhabitants long since gone.
South Korea court rejects prosecution request on raid to presidential office: Yonhap
SEOUL (Reuters) – A South Korean court rejected a request by the special prosecutor’s office to raid the presidential Blue House, Yonhap News Agency said on Thursday, as part of a widening influence-peddling scandal that could topple President Park Gue…
Venezuela Catholic Church feels backlash after chiding Socialists
CARACAS (Reuters) – On a recent Sunday morning, several hundred Catholic worshippers were at Mass inside a hillside church of a poor Caracas neighborhood when there was a sudden commotion at the back.
Samsung chief questioned behind closed doors in arrest warrant hearing
SEOUL (Reuters) – A South Korean judge questioned Samsung Group leader Jay Y. Lee and another executive behind closed doors on Thursday to decide whether they should be arrested over their roles in a corruption scandal that has engulfed President Park …
Australia’s Catholic Church paid $213 million in abuse compensation, costs
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s Catholic Church has paid A$276 million ($213 million) in compensation to thousands of child abuse victims since 1980, a government inquiry heard on Thursday — the first time the total compensation paid by the church’s sc…
