Turkey detains refugee smugglers, stops 120 Syrians from sailing to Greece
DIKILI, Turkey (Reuters) – Turkish authorities on Saturday detained at least two human traffickers after they shuttled some 120 Syrian refugees to the Aegean coast in a sign Turkey may be stepping up efforts to curb the flow of migrants to Europe.
Islamic State is losing; coalition to step up pressure: U.S. envoy
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Islamic State is losing a battle against forces arraigned against if from many sides in Iraq and Syria and the focus would turn to stabilizing cities seized back from them, the U.S. envoy to a coalition fighting the group said on Sa…
U.S., allies conduct 14 strikes against Islamic State: U.S. military
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States and its allies targeted Islamic State militants in Iraq with 12 strikes on Friday and two in Syria, the U.S. military said on Saturday.
Police colonel, aide killed in attack in Yemen’s Aden
ADEN (Reuters) – Gunmen opened fire and killed a police colonel and his aide as their vehicle was passing through a roundabout in the southern Yemeni city of Aden on Saturday, a local security official and witnesses said.
Spain’s acting PM to renew push for coalition with Socialists
MADRID (Reuters) – Spanish acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Saturday renewed his push for a coalition between his People’s Party (PP) and the Socialists after their leader Pedro Sanchez failed to win the backing of parliament to form a government…
Kurdish YPG says Turkish troops fired on it in northeast Syria
BEIRUT (Reuters) – A official from the Kurdish YPG militia said on Saturday the Turkish army had fired on YPG members near Qamishli city in northeast Syria, close to the Turkish border.
Saudi foreign minister says Assad should leave sooner, not later
PARIS (Reuters) – Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said on Saturday that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad must leave at the beginning of a political transition, not at the end.
West Africa’s Sahel nations to set up anti-Islamist units
N’DJAMENA (Reuters) – Defense ministers from West Africa’s arid Sahel region have agreed to work together to establish special rapid reaction forces to counter the growing threat from al Qaeda and Islamic State-linked militants.
EU needs to boost refugee funds to Turkey beyond current pledges: German EU Commissioner
BERLIN (Reuters) – The European Union may need to more than double financial aid already pledged to Turkey to help it keep millions of Syrian refugees on its soil, Germany’s European Union Commissioner Guenther Oettinger was quoted as saying on Saturda…
Brazil’s Lula detained in corruption probe; Rousseff objects
SAO PAULO/BRASILIA (Reuters) – Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was briefly detained for questioning on Friday in a federal investigation of a vast corruption scheme, fanning a political crisis that threatens to topple his successor…
