Taliban appoint top official to Qatar political office
KABUL (Reuters) – Afghanistan’s Taliban have appointed a veteran official to run a political office in Qatar, a spokesman for the militant group said on Tuesday, while blaming the presence of foreign troops for stalled talks to end the 14-year war.
Russia prepares reprisals against Ukraine over Crimea blackout
MOSCOW/KIEV (Reuters) – Russia said on Tuesday it would cut off gas supplies to Ukraine and threatened to halt coal deliveries, ratcheting up a dispute over a power blackout in Crimea at a time when a ceasefire between Kiev and separatist rebels is fra…
Iran says U.S. has plan to divide Iraq, pleads with Iraqis to resist
DUBAI (Reuters) – Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday accused the United States of trying to divide Iraq along sectarian and ethnic lines and urged Iraqis to withstand any such plans.
Bahrain jails reporter on terrorism charges: rights group
RIYADH (Reuters) – Bahrain this week jailed a freelance photographer for 10 years and stripped him of his nationality after convicting him of terrorism, the media rights group Reporters sans Frontiers said on Tuesday.
French anti-terror police descend on ‘White Emir’ village
TOULOUSE, France (Reuters) – French anti-terrorist police accompanied by helicopters descended on a small southwestern French village on Tuesday searching for a Salafist preacher suspected of mentoring young jihadists, a source close to the case said.
Portuguese president names Socialist Costa as premier
LISBON (Reuters) – Portugal’s president named Socialist leader Antonio Costa as prime minister on Tuesday, ending weeks of political stalemate and paving the way for the first Socialist government backed in parliament by the far left.
Turkish President Erdogan approves new cabinet after election
ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan approved on Tuesday a new cabinet led by Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu following the Nov. 1 parliamentary election where the AK Party regained the single-party rule it had lost in a June 7 vote.
U.S. issues global travel alert as manhunt continues for Paris attackers
WASHINGTON/PARIS (Reuters) – Citing “increased terrorist threats” from militant groups in various regions of the world, the U.S. State Department issued a global alert on Monday for Americans planning to travel following deadly militant attacks in Fran…
U.S. coalition stages 26 strikes against Islamic State
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S.-led coalition targeted Islamic State in Iraq and Syria with 26 air strikes against the militant group on Monday, the Combined Joint Task Force leading the operations said.
U.S., Japan naval exercises make ‘big step forward’
USS RONALD REAGAN (Reuters) – The U.S. and Japanese navies established a new level of cooperation to resupply each others vessels during joint exercises in the seas south of Japan last week, the commander of the U.S. Seventh Fleet said on Tuesday.
