Turkey says its troops to stay in Iraq until Islamic State cleared from Mosul
ANKARA (Reuters) – A planned U.S.-backed operation to drive Islamic State from the Iraqi city of Mosul could cause “blood and fire” in the region if not carefully handled, Turkey warned on Wednesday, saying it would keep troops nearby despite Baghdad’s…
Post-Brexit, EU’s military powers argue for common defenses
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – France, Germany, Italy and Spain have joined forces to plead for a common European defense policy, seeking to keep up momentum on a project Paris and Berlin hope can forge unity following Britain’s vote to quit the bloc.
U.N.’s Zeid cool on Syrian opposition plan to bypass Russian veto
GENEVA (Reuters) – The top U.N. human rights official repeated his call on Wednesday for a dilution of big powers’ United Nations veto in cases of serious war crimes, but he gave little support to Syrian opposition hopes of strong-arming Russia over ea…
Islamic State claims responsibility for deadly mosque attack in Afghan capital
KABUL (Reuters) – Islamic State on Wednesday claimed responsibility for an attack that killed at least 18 worshippers at a shrine in the Afghan capital, raising fears of sectarian violence after a string of attacks on the country’s Shi’ite minority.
Iraq commemorates Shi’ite mourning amid preparations to attack Mosul
KERBALA, Iraq (Reuters) – Millions of Shi’ite Muslims flocked to Iraq’s holy city of Kerbala on Wednesday to commemorate Ashura, a religious day marking the slaying of Prophet Mohammed’s grandson Hussein in the 7th century AD in a revolt against the Um…
Afghanistan blast outside mosque kills 14, wounds 24 in minority attack
MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan (Reuters) – A bomb blast outside a mosque in Afghanistan on Wednesday killed at least 14 people and wounded 24 among a gathering of worshippers, the second attack targeting the country’s Shi’ite minority in less than 24 hour…
Crowd gathers to pray for hospitalized Thai king, PM to meet prince
BANGKOK (Reuters) – About 300 people gathered at Bangkok’s Siriraj hospital on Wednesday to pray for King Bhumibol Adulyadej, three days after the palace said he was in an unstable condition, as the prime minister prepared for an audience with the crow…
EU border guard head says migrant arrivals to Italy pose main problem now
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The unabated arrivals of economic migrants by sea to Italy and the security risks these can carry are now the main problem faced by the European Union in its efforts to stem immigration, the head of the bloc’s border agency said on…
Germans hail ‘hero refugees’ who caught suspected bomber
BERLIN (Reuters) – German politicians called on Wednesday for the ‘hero refugees’ who captured a fellow Syrian migrant suspected of planning a bomb attack on a Berlin airport to be honored with a prestigious award, describing them as a model of integra…
About eight people killed by car bomb in Nigeria’s Maiduguri
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) – About eight people were killed and 15 wounded when a car laden with explosives hit a taxi in northeastern Borno state’s capital of Maiduguri, birthplace of a seven-year-old Islamist insurgency, military and medical source…
