South Sudan president signs peace deal despite concerns
JUBA (Reuters) – South Sudan’s president signed a peace deal on Wednesday to end a 20-month conflict with rebels, but he told regional African leaders at the ceremony that he still had “serious reservations”.
Tripoli negotiator quits day before new Libya peace talks
TRIPOLI (Reuters) – A senior negotiator from one of Libya’s two parliaments on Wednesday quit United Nations-sponsored talks on forming a unity government, a day before a new round of negotiations.
Two-day ceasefire agreed by warring sides in three Syrian towns: sources
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Syrian insurgents, the Syrian army and Lebanese group Hezbollah agreed on a 48-hour ceasefire in the rebel-held town of Zabadani near Lebanon’s border and two Shi’ite villages in Idlib province, sources close to negotiations on both …
Shaken by deportations, Colombians in Venezuela fret for future
CARACAS (Reuters) – Shaken by the deportation of over a thousand compatriots, Venezuela’s roughly 5 million Colombians are grappling with whether to stay on in the crisis-hit country that has become increasingly unlivable.
Saudi Arabia holding main suspect in 1996 Khobar Towers bombing: report
DUBAI (Reuters) – The main suspect in the 1996 bombing of the Khobar Towers residence at a U.S. military base in Saudi Arabia has been captured after nearly 20 years on the run, a Saudi-owned newspaper reported on Wednesday.
Rescuers save 3,000 migrants in Mediterranean, 55 dead
ROME (Reuters) – Rescuers saved about 3,000 migrants but found more than 50 dead on boats near the coast of Libya on Wednesday, the Italian coast guard said.
Hungary scrambles to confront migrant influx, Merkel heckled
ROSZKE, Hungary (Reuters) – Hungary made plans on Wednesday to reinforce its southern border with helicopters, mounted police and dogs, and was also considering using the army as record numbers of migrants, many of them Syrian refugees, passed through …
U.S. soldiers killed in Afghanistan, Taliban grab district
LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan (Reuters) – Taliban fighters seized a district headquarters in Afghanistan’s Helmand province on Monday despite repeated U.S. air strikes to repel them, adding to the insurgents’ recent advances in a heavily fought over region …
Tsipras softens stand on Greek debt relief before election
ATHENS (Reuters) – Outgoing Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras signaled on Wednesday he would accept an easing of Greece’s huge debt burden if he wins elections expected next month without any of the write-offs he has long demanded.
Ukraine, separatists to strive for full ceasefire from September 1
MINSK (Reuters) – Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists, in a gesture to shore up a tenuous ceasefire, agreed on Wednesday to strive for an end to all truce violations from next Tuesday, the OSCE and rebel representatives said.
