EU agrees funding for Turkey to curb migrant flows after Italy drops objections
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union countries on Wednesday approved a 3 billion euro ($3.32 billion) fund for Turkey to improve living conditions for refugees there in exchange for Ankara ensuring fewer of them migrate on to Europe.
Support for Merkel at four-and-a-half year low, doubts grow over refugee policy
BERLIN/HAMBURG (Reuters) – Popular support for German Chancellor Angela Merkel has tumbled to its lowest level for 4 1/2 years, a poll showed on Wednesday, with a large majority of voters skeptical that her government has the refugee crisis under contr…
Mortar bombs from Syria land near Turkish soldiers clearing mines
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Several mortar bombs and gunfire from a part of Syria controlled by Islamic State hit a Turkish border town on Wednesday, close to where Turkish soldiers were clearing landmines, local residents and media reports said.
Israeli officer dies in Palestinian attack, three assailants killed
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Three Palestinians armed with guns, knives and explosives killed an Israeli border policewoman and seriously wounded another before being shot dead by nearby officers at an entrance to Jerusalem’s walled Old City on Wednesday, Isr…
Second batch of U.S. F-16 jets arrives in Iraq
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Iraq has received a second batch of F-16 fighter jets from the United States, a U.S. military spokesman said on Wednesday.
Cameron deflects criticism from party eurosceptics over EU plan
LONDON (Reuters) – Prime Minister David Cameron stood firm on Wednesday against eurosceptic members of his own party who criticized a plan to keep Britain in the European Union as a watered down “thin gruel” of broken promises.
Differences in Islam play role in refugee crisis, says UK ex-foreign minister
LONDON (Reuters) – Civil wars crippling many Muslim states and fuelling a global refugee crisis are driven in part by major struggles within Islam that cannot be ignored, former British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said on Wednesday.
Myanmar’s Suu Kyi lauds choice of ethnic and army-backed parliamentary speakers
NAYPYITAW (Reuters) – Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi pushed the message of national reconciliation on Wednesday, lauding the choice of representatives from ethnic minorities and the army-backed party as parliamentary speakers in a chamber dominated by her …
Trying to stem refugee influx, Sweden asks: When is a child not a child?
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Under huge strain from an influx of unaccompanied children seeking asylum, the Swedish government faces political pressure to undertake medical tests like X-rays to vet the age of young refugees despite opposition from doctors and…
Iraq building security wall around Baghdad: military commander
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraqi security forces have begun building a concrete wall surrounding the capital Baghdad in a bid to prevent attacks by Islamic State militants, a military statement said on Wednesday.
