Greek finance minister enters euro zone lion’s den
ATHENS/BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis began tense talks with euro zone finance ministers on Wednesday after his new leftist-led government won a parliamentary confidence vote for its refusal to extend an international bail…
Sri Lanka says seeking delay in U.N. war-crimes report
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera said on Wednesday his country was seeking a delay of several months in the release of a U.N. report on alleged war crimes during his country’s civil war until the government had tim…
Costa Concordia captain sentenced to 16 years for 2012 shipwreck
GROSSETO, Italy (Reuters) – The former captain of the Costa Concordia cruise liner was sentenced to 16 years in prison on Wednesday for his role in the 2012 shipwreck, which killed 32 people off the Tuscan holiday island of Giglio.
Colombia’s ELN rebels free Dutch citizen
BOGOTA (Reuters) – Colombia’s Marxist ELN rebels have freed a Dutch citizen kidnapped in January, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said on Wednesday after facilitating his liberation.
Thousands protest against Houthi rule in Yemen after embassies close
SANAA (Reuters) – Yemenis in the capital Sanaa and the central city of Taiz held the largest protests yet against a takeover by a Shi’ite Muslim militia group on Wednesday after the United States, Britain and France shut their embassies over security f…
Obama administration weighs Afghan request to slow withdrawal of U.S. troops
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama is considering a request from Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to slow the pace of the withdrawal of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, a senior administration official said on Wednesday.
Afghan Taliban now smuggle drugs and gems like mafia: U.N. report
KABUL (Reuters) – Afghanistan’s Taliban Islamist movement is increasingly financed by criminal enterprises including heroin laboratories, illegal ruby and emerald mines and kidnapping, making negotiated peace harder, according to a report for the U.N. …
Spanish court accuses officers in case of refugees who drowned
MADRID (Reuters) – A Spanish court on Thursday accused 16 law enforcement officers of using disproportionate force against African refugees who were trying to swim to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, a spokesman for Spain’s Civil Guard said on Wednesday.
Myanmar president enacts law allowing referendum on disputed constitution
YANGON (Reuters) – Myanmar’s president has approved a law allowing a referendum on changes to the constitution, lawmakers said on Wednesday, a move that could eventually lift what amounts to a ban on opposition leader and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Ky…
More than 300 migrants died this week trying to reach Italy: U.N. agency
ROME (Reuters) – More than 300 people died trying to cross the sea from Africa to Italy this week, the U.N. refugee agency said on Wednesday, adding pressure on Europe to expand a border operation that lacks a clear mandate to save lives.
