Greece seeks ECB funds, Germany rejects austerity roll-back
FRANKFURT/BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Greece’s new leftist government appealed to the European Central Bank on Wednesday to keep its banks afloat as it seeks to negotiate debt relief with its euro zone partners, but Germany rejected any roll-back of agreed au…
Russians present in Ukraine in specialist roles: U.S. envoy
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The U.S. ambassador to NATO said on Wednesday that Russian soldiers were present in eastern Ukraine in a command role and to operate advanced military equipment, but that another large-scale Russian intervention did not appear immi…
FBI says wanted Islamist militant possibly killed in Philippines raid
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – DNA tests indicate one of the United States’ “most wanted terrorists,” Zulkifli bin Hir, also known as Marwan, was possibly killed in a raid by police in the Philippines last week, the FBI said on Wednesday.
Ivory Coast to cancel Aeria’s concession to build ‘airport city’
ABIDJAN (Reuters) – Ivory Coast will reassign the concession to build and operate a 3,700-hectare commercial district adjacent to the country’s main airport, the government said on Wednesday, after cancelling an agreement with Aeria, the airport’s oper…
German officials to ‘cool off’ before switching to business jobs
BERLIN (Reuters) – Senior German officials from the chancellor to deputy ministers will have to observe a cooling-off period if they want to quit the government for a job in business, according to a draft law designed to avoid potential conflicts of in…
U.S. strike kills senior Shabaab leader in Somalia: government
MOGADISHU (Reuters) – A U.S. missile strike launched in Somalia last week killed Islamist group al Shabaab’s mastermind behind attacks at home and abroad, the Somali government said on Wednesday.
Nationalists imperil 35 of UK Labour’s 41 Scottish seats: poll
LONDON (Reuters) – A new opinion poll shows Britain’s opposition Labour Party risks losing 35 of its 41 seats in Scotland to nationalists, in a serious setback to its hopes of unseating David Cameron’s Conservatives in May elections.
Kurds dream of independence as they defend perilous border
VALLEY OF THE CROWS, northern Iraq, (Reuters) – The black banner of the Islamic State, fixed to a shack within sight of this frontline, is evidence of the existential threat menacing the Kurds from across the 1,000-km long frontier.
Britain hopes third time lucky for VIP child abuse inquiry chairman
LONDON (Reuters) – Britain has turned to a New Zealand High Court judge in a third attempt to find a chairman of a major inquiry into decades of child abuse and whether powerful figures covered it up.
Nigeria may delay February vote if card distribution too low: INEC
ABUJA (Reuters) – Nigeria may delay its Feb. 14 presidential election if the electoral commission cannot distribute enough voter I.D. cards by Feb. 8, an electoral commissioner told Reuters on Wednesday.
