Turkish-led forces advance into outskirts of Syrian city
ANKARA/BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syrian rebels backed by the Turkish military have captured the outskirts of the Islamic State-held city of al-Bab in northern Syria, the Turkish government and rebel sources said on Wednesday.
U.S. commander expects recapture soon of Islamic State strongholds
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The top American commander in Iraq believes U.S.-backed forces will recapture Islamic State’s two major strongholds – the cities of Raqqa in Syria and Mosul in Iraq – within the next six months, his spokesman said on Wednesday.
Netanyahu orders reprimand of Belgian ambassador
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday ordered the reprimanding of the Belgian Ambassador over a meeting between Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel with representatives of two Israeli rights groups.
Tillerson tells Mexico counterpart he will visit in coming weeks: official
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told his Mexican counterpart, Luis Videgaray, in a meeting in Washington that he would visit Mexico in the coming weeks, a Mexican Foreign Ministry official said on Wednesday.
Family’s return to rebuild Aleppo street points to Syria’s future
ALEPPO, Syria (Reuters) – The Batash family are working with their bare hands to clear debris from Aleppo’s al-Mouassassi Street, rebuilding their wrecked neighborhood after years of fighting that came to an end in December.
Brazil judge suspends nomination of Temer ally as minister
SAO PAULO (Reuters) – A Brazilian federal judge suspended the nomination of a close ally of President Michel Temer to a ministry-level position, according to the court’s website on Wednesday.
Suspect in Louvre attack says he did not get orders from Islamic state
PARIS (Reuters) – A man who attacked soldiers with machetes at the Louvre museum in Paris has told police he identifies with the beliefs of Islamic State but said he did not carry out the attack on orders from the militant group, a judicial source said…
UK foreign minister no longer has U.S. citizenship: U.S. Treasury list
LONDON (Reuters) – British foreign minister Boris Johnson has given up his U.S. citizenship, a U.S. Treasury Department list showed on Wednesday, a move the New York-born politician had said he would make.
Red Cross suspends Afghanistan operations after six aid workers killed
MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan (Reuters) – The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) suspended operations in Afghanistan on Wednesday after gunmen killed six employees helping deliver emergency relief to a remote northern region hit by heavy sno…
Syrian jets carry out deadly strikes on rebel-held Homs district
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syrian government jets bombed a rebel-held district of Homs city in the west of the country on Wednesday, killing several people, rescue workers and a monitoring group reported.
