U.S.-backed alliance advances against Islamist groups in Syria’s north: spokesman
BEIRUT (Reuters) – A U.S.-backed alliance of Syrian Kurdish and Arab fighters advanced against Islamist insurgents in the north of the country on Friday, capturing at least one village in Aleppo province, a spokesman and a monitoring group said.
British man arrested at Amsterdam airport for false bomb threat
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – Dutch police said they arrested a 29-year-old British man at gunpoint at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport on Friday after he shouted several times that he had a bomb.
White House delays imposing new sanctions on Iran: WSJ
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House has delayed imposing new financial sanctions on Iran over its ballistic-missile program, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.
Police says no bomb found in Moscow’s railway stations: RIA
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Security services have completed checks at two Moscow railway stations and found no bombs after they were tipped off about explosives being planted there, RIA news agency cited an emergency services source as saying.
China creates three new military units in push to modernize army
BEIJING (Reuters) – China has created three new military units and will update equipment as well as modernizing its command structure, state media said on Friday, as part of a major overhaul of the armed forces announced by President Xi Jinping in Nove…
Two Turkish police officers killed in Kurdish southeast
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Two police officers have been killed in Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish southeast during operations to push back Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants, the Dogan news agency said on Friday.
North Korea’s Kim blames South for mistrust in New Year speech
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un blamed South Korea on Friday for increased mistrust in a New Year speech after a year of heightened tension between the rival countries.
Russia says Ukraine defaulted on $3 billion Eurobond
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia will file a lawsuit against Ukraine after Kiev failed to repay a $3 billion Eurobond and $75 million of interest by Dec. 31, the Russian finance ministry said late on Thursday.
Combat ‘torrent’ of misery in world, pope says in New Year message
VATICAN CITY (Reuters) – Pope Francis, in his first message of the new year, on Friday urged people to combat the “torrent” of misery, injustice and violence in the world by overcoming all indifference to the many who are suffering.
China says extremism losing grip in restless Xinjiang
BEIJING (Reuters) – The religious atmosphere in China’s violence-prone far western region of Xinjiang became markedly less radical last year and the government was broadly successful in maintaining stability, the top official there was quoted as saying…
