As hate speech fears grow, Kenya sets 2017 elections date
NAIROBI (Reuters) – A rise in ethnically charged “hate speech” threatens the electoral process in Kenya, but the country still plans to hold the 2017 presidential and parliamentary elections on Aug. 8, the electoral commission said on Thursday.
Spanish PM promises tax cuts for pensioners if he wins election
MADRID (Reuters) – Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said on Thursday he would lower income tax for pensioners who remained in the workforce, part of efforts to shore up his elderly political base 10 days before a hotly-contested election.
Ukraine says breaks up armed insurgent group in Kiev, two killed
KIEV (Reuters) – Ukraine’s security service said on Thursday it had broken up an armed insurgent group that operated out of Kiev and other major Ukrainian cities and that two people had been killed during the operation.
Russia says Turkey’s accusations of ethnic cleansing in Syria groundless
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, said on Thursday that accusations by Turkey of Moscow allegedly conducting ethnic cleansing in Syria are “groundless”.
China rebuffs criticism from U.N. after torture report
BEIJING (Reuters) – China on Thursday rejected a call from a United Nations rights watchdog to halt torture of detainees, saying the group’s recommendations were based on unverified information and that it should “improve its work style”.
Thai police trafficking investigator seeks asylum in Australia: media
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Thailand’s former chief police investigator into human trafficking said on Thursday he is seeking political asylum in Australia, saying he fears for his life if he go home.
Fifty Afghan security forces, civilians killed in airport siege
KABUL (Reuters) – The last of 11 Taliban insurgents who infiltrated Kandahar airport was killed late on Wednesday, more than 24 hours after the attack was launched, the Defense Ministry said, with the death toll among civilians and security forces risi…
Scandal-hit Malaysian PM insists ‘I am a gentleman’
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Malaysia’s embattled Prime Minister Najib Razak vowed on Thursday he “will not surrender” to critics who say he should quit over a festering funding scandal, and said his government’s economic stewardship was not to blame for a…
Polish conservatives plan ‘patriotic’ Hollywood film to boost image
WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland’s new conservative rulers think their country faces an image problem abroad and they want Hollywood to produce a Polish equivalent of “Braveheart” or “Pearl Harbor” to promote their country’s positive place in history.
Poland says no agreement yet on UK PM Cameron’s EU welfare demands
WARSAW (Reuters) – Some of Britain’s demands for EU reform are acceptable, Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo said on Thursday, but added there was no agreement yet on Prime Minister David Cameron’s push to curb welfare payments to EU migrants.
