Ukrainian oligarch Firtash denies graft as he fights extradition to the U.S.
VIENNA (Reuters) – Billionaire Ukrainian industrialist Dmytro Firtash declared he was innocent of bribery and money-laundering as an Austrian court began deliberating on Thursday whether to extradite him to the United States to face corruption charges….
Germanwings pilot was briefly refused medical certificate in U.S.
BERLIN/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. authorities temporarily refused a private pilot’s medical certificate in 2010 for Andreas Lubitz, the pilot suspected of deliberately crashing a Germanwings plane last month, according to documents released by the Fed…
Hungary’s Orban climbs down on death penalty amid EU uproar
BUDAPEST/BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Prime Minister Viktor Orban backed away from suggestions Hungary might re-introduce the death penalty on Thursday after angry criticism from European Union allies.
Italy’s Renzi wins final confidence vote on electoral law
ROME (Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi won the third of three confidence votes on a fiercely contested new electoral law in parliament on Thursday, moving a step closer to passing a reform he has staked his reputation on.
IMF says to visit Kiev May 12 to review bailout program
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The International Monetary Fund is set to go to Ukraine on May 12 to review Kiev’s progress with conditions of its $17.5 billion bailout program, an IMF spokesman said on Thursday.
Ukrainian rebels expel foreign aid group IRC
DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) – Representatives of a New York-based aid group were expelled from separatist-held territories in eastern Ukraine on Thursday after rebels closed down their operational base, accusing them of spying.
German police foil planned Islamist attack near Frankfurt
FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Police in southern Germany have thwarted a planned Islamist attack after detaining a married couple with suspected links to Salafist militants, the interior minister of the state of Hesse said on Thursday.
Ten jailed in Pakistan for involvement in attack on Malala
PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) – A Pakistani court jailed 10 men for 25 years each on Thursday for involvement in the 2012 shooting of teenage activist Malala Yousafzai, targeted for her campaign against Taliban efforts to deny girls education.
Islamist fighters seize southern Syria crossing: monitor
BEIRUT (Reuters) – The hardline Ahrar al-Sham group in Syria and other insurgents seized a crossing in the southwest frontier area near Israel on Thursday from a small group of rival Islamist fighters, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring…
France’s Hollande vows no mercy to soldiers if African child abuse proven
PARIS (Reuters) – President Francois Hollande vowed on Thursday to make an example of any French troops found guilty of child sex abuse in Central African Republic as a judicial source said as many as 14 could be implicated.
