Polish opposition warns refugees could spread infectious diseases
WARSAW (Reuters) – Poland’s largest opposition party, tipped to win the country’s Oct. 25 election, rallied behind its leader on Thursday after he warned that refugees from the Middle East could bring diseases and parasites to Poland.
Russia mulls re-establishing control of Tajik-Afghan border
ASTANA (Reuters) – Russia, alarmed by increased activity by Islamist insurgents near its borders with Central Asia, may act to re-establish its control over Tajikistan’s border with Afghanistan, a senior Russian defense official said on Thursday.
China charges second former head of regional lender with graft
BEIJING (Reuters) – A former head of a local lender in China’s northern region of Inner Mongolia will be prosecuted for suspected corruption, the state prosecutor said on Thursday, following in the footsteps of another former head of the same bank.
Myanmar signs ceasefire with eight armed groups
NAYPYITAW (Reuters) – Myanmar’s government and eight armed ethnic groups signed a ceasefire agreement on Thursday, the culmination of more than two years of negotiations aimed at bringing an end to the majority of the country’s long-running conflicts.
U.S. urges release of Chinese lawyer in growing crackdown
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States on Wednesday urged China to release human rights lawyer Zhang Kai and said it was concerned over reports that the son of another detained rights lawyer had been placed under house arrest.
Pakistan says deaf-mute Indian woman to return home this month
KARACHI, Pakistan (Reuters) – A deaf-mute woman who lost her family when she wandered over one of the world’s most militarized borders as a child will return to India this month, officials at the Pakistani charity where she has been living for years sa…
World Bank may compensate Syria’s neighbors for refugee costs
GENEVA (Reuters) – The World Bank plans to talk to its member countries about compensating Syria’s neighbors for the substantial fiscal cost of hosting refugees for long periods, a World Bank official said in Geneva on Thursday.
Malaysia’s embattled PM facing stern test as parliament returns
KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak faces the toughest test of his political career so far when parliament reconvenes next week, with the leader facing questions from a growing number of establishment figures about his allege…
Finland arrests suspected traffickers bringing migrants from Turkey
HELSINKI (Reuters) – The Finnish Border Guard said on Thursday it was investigating a ring of human traffickers suspected of illegally smuggling at least 100 people from Turkey to Finland over the last year.
Germany’s Merkel says Turkey key to solving refugee crisis
BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Turkey plays a key role in solving the “historic task” of dealing with Europe’s migrant crisis and that the European Union should do more to help Ankara deal with the influx of refugees.
