Exclusive: Assad linked to Syrian chemical attacks for first time
(Reuters) – International investigators have said for the first time that they suspect President Bashar al-Assad and his brother are responsible for the use of chemical weapons in the Syrian conflict, according to a document seen by Reuters.
Iraqi forces make rapid gains against Islamic State in Mosul
MOSUL, Iraq/BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraqi special forces stormed a sprawling university complex in northeast Mosul on Friday and pushed Islamic State back in nearby areas to reach two more bridges across the Tigris River, the military said.
Obama administration ends special immigration policy for Cubans
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Obama administration on Thursday repealed a measure granting automatic residency to virtually every Cuban who arrived in the United States, whether or not they had visas, ending a longstanding exception to U.S. immigration po…
France places six more suspects under investigation over Kardashian heist
PARIS (Reuters) – The Paris prosecutor said on Friday that it had placed six more people suspected of involvement in last year’s armed robbery of U.S. reality TV star Kim Kardashian under formal investigation.
Swiss limit Tibetan protest against visit by Chinese president
ZURICH (Reuters) – Swiss authorities say a planned protest by pro-Tibetan groups against Xi Jinping must end before his arrival in Bern on Sunday, in a bid to avoid the kind of confrontation that marked the last visit by a Chinese president 18 years ag…
Clashes in Nigeria’s divided heartland pile pressure on president
KADUNA, Nigeria (Reuters) – Hundreds of people have died in a surge of ethnically-charged violence in Nigeria’s divided heartlands, officials said, piling pressure on a government already facing Islamist militants in its northeast and rebels in its oil…
Lone migrant children arriving in Italy by sea doubles in 2016
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – The number of lone migrant children arriving in Italy by boat more than doubled in 2016 from the previous year, an “alarming trend” that leaves thousands of young people at risk of abuse, the United Nations childre…
French prosecutor appeals against tax fraud acquittal of Wildenstein art-dealer family
PARIS (Reuters) – The French financial prosecutor’s office said on Friday that it had launched an appeal against an earlier ruling this week to acquit wealthy art dealer Guy Wildenstein and seven others of tax fraud charges.
U.S. moves to lift decades-old trade embargo against Sudan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Obama administration took steps on Friday to lift a 20-year trade embargo against Sudan, unfreeze assets and remove financial sanctions in response to the east African nation’s cooperation in fighting Islamic State and other …
Suicide bombers kill at least six in northeast Nigeria: emergency agency
YOLA/BAUCHI, Nigeria (Reuters) – Suicide bombers killed at least six people and injured 14 in a crowded market in the northeastern Nigerian town of Madagali on Friday, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said.
