U.S., allies target Islamic State with 26 air strikes: statement
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S.-led coalition has staged 26 air strikes since early Wednesday targeting Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq against, according to the Combined Joint Task Force leading the air operations.
Egyptian court clears state security officer of killing detainee
CAIRO (Reuters) – An Egyptian court on Thursday acquitted a state security officer who had been convicted of torturing to death an Islamist detainee, state media said, in a case that has fueled anger over police brutality in the weeks before the 2011 u…
Angolan gets suspended sentence for ‘Blood Diamond’ book
LUANDA (Reuters) – An Angolan journalist was given a six-month suspended sentence on Thursday after he was convicted of slander for accusing generals of human rights abuses at diamond mines, concluding a high-profile trial in one of Africa’s most repre…
EU, Burundi’s Catholic Church pull out from observing elections
BUJUMBURA (Reuters) – The European Union and Burundi’s influential Roman Catholic Church on Thursday pulled out from observing elections in the African country, saying that next month’s vote cannot be fair because of daily unrest and a crackdown on med…
Corruption is leading indicator for political unrest, study finds
WASHINGTON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Corruption is a leading indicator for political instability and 64 countries where fraud and bribery are widespread risk falling into violent upheaval, a global think tank said in a new report.
Fugitive ex-Chinese official, investigated for graft, detained in U.S.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A former senior Chinese official, who went into hiding after being sought by anti-corruption investigators in China, has been detained in the United States, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said on Thursday.
India’s Tripura state strips army of shoot-to-kill powers
GUWAHATI, India (Reuters) – Lawmakers in India’s northeastern state of Tripura on Thursday revoked a controversial law that had given the military shoot-to-kill powers and shielded soldiers from prosecution for 18 years.
African migrants risk all in Sahara to reach Europe
AGADEZ, Niger (Reuters) – In a sandy compound in the Niger desert town of Agadez, a white-turbaned imam blesses a circle of African migrants, some of them little more than boys, to protect them on the journey across the Sahara toward Europe.
Pentagon mulls improving Iraqi troop training after fall of Ramadi
ABOARD A U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT (Reuters) – Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Thursday Pentagon officials have begun to examine how the U.S. military could better equip and train Iraqi troops after the recent fall of the Iraqi city of Ramadi to Isla…
U.S. defense aid to Israel to rise over Iran deal fears: sources
TEL AVIV (Reuters) – U.S. defense aid to Israel is likely to increase after 2017, sources on both sides said on Thursday, seeing a possible link to Washington’s efforts to assuage its ally’s fears over nuclear diplomacy with Iran.
