Four Iraqi soldiers killed fighting with Islamic State in Tikrit
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Four Iraqi soldiers were killed in street fighting with Islamic State militants in Tikrit overnight as they advanced slowly into the city, a Sunni jihadist bastion, in the wake of coalition air strikes, a security official said.
Islamist insurgents take parts of Syria’s Idlib city
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Islamist groups including al Qaeda’s Nusra Front have seized major parts of Syria’s city of Idlib for the first time since the conflict in the country began, fighters and a monitoring group said on Saturday.
German eurosceptic leader says infighting won’t rip party apart
BERLIN (Reuters) – The founder of the Eurosceptic Alternative for Germany (AfD) has dismissed reports that an identity struggle between economic liberals and right-wingers is tearing the party apart.
Egypt’s Sisi backs unified Arab force to confront regional threats
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi told an Arab League summit on Saturday that Cairo backed calls for a unified Arab force to confront regional security threats.
Amanda Knox acquitted of murder by Italy’s top court
ROME/SEATTLE (Reuters) – Italy’s top court on Friday annulled the conviction of American Amanda Knox for the 2007 murder of her British flatmate and fully acquitted her in a surprise verdict capping nearly a decade of courtroom drama.
Iranian negotiator denies discussion of 2-3 page nuclear deal: IRNA
DUBAI (Reuters) – A member of Iran’s negotiating team at ongoing nuclear talks in Switzerland denied reports that the two sides are closing in a 2- to 3-page preliminary accord, state news agency IRNA reported on Saturday.
Czech PM says two Czechs kidnapped in Pakistan released
PRAGUE (Reuters) – Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said on Saturday that two Czech tourists kidnapped two years ago in Pakistan had been released and have returned to the Czech Republic.
Philippines dismisses China concerns over South China Sea military repairs
MANILA (Reuters) – The Philippines dismissed concerns by China over its plan to repair military facilities in South China Sea, a foreign ministry spokesman said on Saturday, insisting Manila has sovereign rights over territories in the disputed areas.
At least 15 dead in Somalia hotel attack, militants say end siege
MOGADISHU (Reuters) – The death toll from an attack by al Shabaab militants on a hotel in the Somali capital rose to at least 15, police said, and the attackers said they had ended the overnight siege that was punctuated by loud explosions.
Japan is set to extend sanctions on North Korea: Nikkei
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan will likely extend its sanctions against North Korea because of Pyongyang’s delay in reporting into its abductions of Japanese citizens decades ago, the Nikkei business daily reported on Saturday without citing sources.
