Catalan head fails to get backing to form new government
MADRID (Reuters) – Catalan far-left party CUP said on Sunday it would not support acting regional head Artur Mas for another term as leader, forcing a fresh round of local elections and weakening an independence movement that seeks a split from Spain.
Turkish hackers block Russian minister’s social network account
MOSCOW (Reuters) – A social network account of Russia’s communications minister was temporarily blocked on Sunday in a cyberattack carried out by hackers presenting themselves as a Turkish activist group and parading images of a warplane and Turkish fl…
U.S., allies conduct 26 strikes against Islamic State: U.S. military
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States and its allies conducted 26 strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria on Saturday, the coalition leading the operations said in a statement on Sunday.
Merkel’s Bavarian allies reignite refugee row with call for cap
BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s allies in Bavaria stepped up criticism of her open-door refugee policy on Sunday, with their leader demanding a cap of 200,000 migrants a year, about a fifth of last year’s level.
U.S. ‘deeply disappointed’ Rwandan president will seek third term
KIGALI (Reuters) – The United States is “deeply disappointed” by Rwandan President Paul Kagame’s New Year’s announcement that he would seek a third term in 2017, according to the U.S. State Department.
Erdogan backs criminal probe into Turkey’s pro-Kurdish opposition
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has said he backs a criminal investigation into leaders of the pro-Kurdish opposition over comments about Kurdish self-rule, saying those who committed constitutional crimes must pay the price.
Helicopter crash kills three Afghan air crew
KABUL (Reuters) – An Afghan Mi-17 military helicopter crashed on Sunday after a technical failure during a training exercise, killing three air crew and wounding another in Logar province, south of the capital Kabul, the Defence Ministry said.
Refugee crisis could shake up German political landscape in 2016
BERLIN (Reuters) – For the past decade, German politics has been a relatively dull affair, with Angela Merkel dominating at the national level and the major parties in agreement on all the big issues, from euro zone bailouts and refugees to the phase-o…
Syrian rebel group says exits Islamist alliance to refocus fight
BEIRUT (Reuters) – A Syrian insurgent group said on Sunday it was pulling out of a coalition of Islamist factions operating in the northwest of the country, in order to redeploy around Aleppo where pro-government forces have intensified assaults in rec…
Attack on Iraqi military base kills at least 15: sources
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Attacks by five suicide bombers on an Iraqi military base north of Baghdad on Sunday killed at least 15 members of the security forces and wounded 22 others, security sources said.
