Egypt activists say arrests spike ahead of general strike
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egyptian security forces have arrested dozens of activists ahead of a general strike planned for Thursday, activists and security sources say, part of what the activists describe as an unrelenting crackdown on dissent.
Loyalist of Algeria’s Bouteflika named chief of ruling coalition party
ALGIERS (Reuters) – Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s cabinet director and loyal backer Ahmed Ouyahia was elected as the new leader of one of the two ruling parties on Wednesday, confirming his status of potential presidential successor.
Azerbaijan blocks critical Amnesty visit before European Games
BAKU (Reuters) – Azerbaijan has blocked a visit by Amnesty International at which it planned to highlight human rights abuses in the south Caucasian republic as it prepares to host the inaugural European Games, Amnesty said on Wednesday.
Bombs kill eight people around Baghdad, coalition targets Islamic State
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Bomb attacks killed eight people in and around Baghdad on Wednesday as U.S.-led coalition warplanes targeted Islamic State insurgents west of the capital, police and medics said.
Uganda’s opposition groups say uniting for 2016 elections
KAMPALA (Reuters) – Uganda’s opposition said on Wednesday they had formed a coalition to back one presidential candidate in next year’s election, a move analysts say will pose a stronger challenge to the ruling party but not enough to unseat the presid…
U.N. deploys troops, helicopters to back Congo in fight with rebels
KINSHASA (Reuters) – U.N. forces have deployed ground troops, attack helicopters and drones to support a campaign by Democratic Republic of Congo’s army against rebels in the northeast of the country, the head of its U.N. peacekeeping mission said on W…
Putin is a ‘bully,’ U.S. needs to respond resolutely: Jeb Bush
BERLIN (Reuters) – Likely Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush said on Wednesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin was a “bully” and the United States and its allies in Europe should be resolute in responding to Russian aggression.
Hundreds of thousands face starvation in South Sudan: Red Cross
GENEVA (Reuters) – Hundreds of thousands of people risk starvation in South Sudan where a resurgence in fighting and deepening food shortages have left some with nothing to eat except water lilies, the International Committee of the Red Cross said on W…
Israeli NGOs feel the heat from Netanyahu’s new government
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – On a backstreet in Jerusalem sit the sparse offices of B’Tselem, an Israeli organization that has long been a bane of successive governments, tirelessly flagging military abuses in occupied Palestinian territory.
Italian PM Renzi welcomes Putin but mentions differences
MILAN (Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi welcomed visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday but showed little sign of breaking ranks with international partners over European Union sanctions against Moscow.
