Russia ready to help Iraq defeat Islamic State: Lavrov
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia is ready to supply weapons to Iraq, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday, as the country struggles to halt advances by Islamic State militants.
Greece’s Varoufakis courts controversy anew with taping remark
ATHENS (Reuters) – Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis has raised a fresh furor by telling a newspaper that he taped a confidential meeting of euro zone finance ministers, drawing criticism that he was undermining Greece’s efforts to secure aid fro…
Japan takes South Korea to WTO over Fukushima-related food import restrictions
GENEVA (Reuters) – Japan launched a trade complaint at the World Trade Organization on Thursday to challenge South Korea’s import bans and additional testing requirements for Japanese food after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster.
Ukraine reports fresh casualties in east, OSCE sees violence spreading
KIEV (Reuters) – One Ukrainian serviceman has been killed and eight wounded in fresh separatist attacks, the military said in Kiev on Thursday, as the OSCE security watchdog warned of a “worrisome” spread of violence in eastern Ukraine.
Suicide car bomber kills two near Libya’s Misrata: report
TRIPOLI (Reuters) – A suicide bomber in a car blew himself up at a checkpoint near Libya’s Misrata city on Thursday, killing two guards, state news agency LANA quoted a military source as saying.
Egypt’s Copts praise Sisi but await more tangible support
AL-OUR, Egypt (Reuters) – When Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi dispatched fighter jets this year against Islamic State targets in Libya in retaliation for the beheading of 21 Copts, he sent a powerful message to his country’s Christian minority…
Italy says over 900 migrants rescued at sea, one dead
ROME (Reuters) – More than 900 migrants were rescued in one day from three overcrowded boats en route to Europe from North Africa, an Italian coast guard official said on Thursday. One body was recovered.
China air force holds drill in Western Pacific
BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s air force on Thursday conducted a drill in the western Pacific Ocean after passing through a strait near Japan, the country’s defense ministry said, as its military adopts a more assertive posture in the region.
Ukraine crisis makes EU eastern partnership more important: Merkel
BERLIN (Reuters) – The crisis in Ukraine makes the European Union’s partnership with the bloc’s eastern neighbors more important than ever, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday, insisting that the initiative is not directed against Russia.
Gaddafi’s home town falls to Islamic State in anarchic Libya
SIRTE, Libya (Reuters) – Standing guard at his frontline post, Libyan soldier Mohammed Abu Shager can see where Islamic State militants are holed up with their heavy weaponry less than a kilometer away.
