Brazil probe sees no mechanical failure in judge’s plane crash
RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) – A small plane carrying a Brazilian Supreme Court justice overseeing a political bribery investigation did not suffer any obvious mechanical failure when it crashed into a bay amid heavy rain and killed all five on board, inve…
German SPD chief Gabriel makes way for Schulz to run against Merkel
BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany’s centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) nominated former European Parliament president Martin Schulz on Tuesday as their candidate to run against Angela Merkel for the post of chancellor in September’s national election.
Parliament must vote before UK can trigger Brexit, top court rules
LONDON (Reuters) – Prime Minister Theresa May must give parliament a vote before she can formally start Britain’s exit from the European Union, the UK Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday, giving lawmakers who oppose her Brexit plans a shot at amending them….
Kuwait to deliver message to Iran on dialogue with Gulf Arab states
DOHA (Reuters) – Kuwait’s foreign minister will make a rare visit to Tehran on Wednesday to deliver a message to President Hassan Rouhani on a “basis of dialogue” between Gulf Arab states and arch-rival Iran, Kuwait’s state news agency reported.
Italian court reviews vote law; Renzi keen for early election
ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s highest court will rule on Wednesday on the legality of its latest electoral legislation, a court spokesman said on Tuesday, a decision likely to influence the timing of the next election.
Saris swirl at rare transgender ‘birthday’ party in Pakistan
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) – At a party in Peshawar, the guests’ saris twirled as they danced to the music and fed each other pieces of cake, but armed police guarding the door indicated this was no normal carefree birthday gathering.
China says hopes Mongolia learned lesson after Dalai Lama visit
BEIJING (Reuters) – China said on Tuesday it hopes Mongolia has learned a lesson and will keep a promise not to invite the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama again after his visit in November led to a chill in relations.
Tensions rise in Austrian coalition with do-or-die talk
VIENNA (Reuters) – Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern said on Tuesday he was losing patience with his conservative coalition partners, raising the prospect of a government collapse that could play into the hands of the far-right Freedom Party.
U.N. ‘racing’ to prepare aid for civilians ahead of battle for west Mosul
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – The United Nations said on Tuesday it is “racing against the clock” to prepare emergency aid for hundreds of thousands of endangered civilians in Mosul with an Iraqi army offensive looming to oust Islamic State from the western half…
Trump administration offers to increase assistance to Iraq: Abadi
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – The new U.S. administration under Donald Trump has sent messages offering to increase the level of assistance to Iraq, Iraqi state television cited Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi as saying on Tuesday.
