Iran’s Revolutionary Guards position for power
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Iran’s Revolutionary Guards look set to entrench their power and shift the country to more hardline, isolationist policies for years to come following the death of influential powerbroker Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.
U.N. alarmed at migrants dying of cold, ‘dire’ situation in Greece
GENEVA (Reuters) – Refugees and migrants are dying in Europe’s cold snap and governments must do more to help them rather than pushing them back from borders and subjecting them to violence, the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR said on Friday.
Syrian army says Israel fires rockets at airbase near Damascus
AMMAN (Reuters) – Syrian army command said on Friday that Israeli artillery fired rockets at a major military airbase outside Damascus, and warned Israel of repercussions for what it called a “flagrant” attack.
Cyprus president foresees ‘radical’ reform of island’s security
GENEVA (Reuters) – Talks on reunifying Cyprus should produce a “radical” change in the island’s security situation, which is currently guaranteed by Greece, Turkey and Britain, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades told a news conference in Geneva on Fri…
Erdogan says early Turkish election not desirable, but not unthinkable
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday early elections would not be out of the question if parliament becomes unable to do its job, as lawmakers debate constitutional changes which would introduce a full presidential syste…
Rights watchdog raps Nepal over war crimes
KATHMANDU (Reuters) – Ten years after the end of Nepal’s bloody civil war, the Himalayan republic has failed to punish perpetrators of human rights abuses during the conflict, a leading international watchdog said on Friday.
Merkel to chair first Brexit committee meeting next week
BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel will next Wednesday chair a meeting of a cabinet committee on Brexit at which ministers will discuss organizational and structural issues related to Britain’s departure from the European Union.
Kerry says he’s confident Trump administration will stick to peaceful policies in Asia
HO CHI MINH CITY (Reuters) – Outgoing U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday he was confident the next administration would stick to the same peaceful principles on Asian security as the current one, despite hawkish comments from President-e…
Hungarian camerawoman gets probation for tripping migrants
BUDAPEST (Reuters) – A Hungarian camerawoman was sentenced to three years’ probation late on Thursday for kicking and tripping migrants fleeing police near the border with Serbia in September 2015, the news website Index.hu reported.
Samsung leader quizzed for over 22 hours in South Korea corruption scandal
SEOUL (Reuters) – Samsung Group leader Jay Y. Lee left the South Korean special prosecutor’s office early on Friday after more than 22 hours of questioning on bribery suspicions in an influence-peddling scandal that could topple President Park Geun-hye…
