Islamic State imposes media controls in Syrian province
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Islamic State, the al Qaeda splinter group which has seized parts of Syria and Iraq, has told activists in Syria’s Deir al-Zor province they must swear allegiance to it and submit to censorship, a monitoring group said on Friday.
Pakistan widows, ‘second’ wives flee fighting but are denied aid
BANNU Pakistan (Reuters) – Thousands of women displaced by fighting in Pakistan are struggling to get food and other aid because they lack identity cards and conservative Muslim elders have forbidden them from going to distribution centers.
Western sanctions do not help to de-escalate Ukraine crisis: Russian official
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Western sanctions against Russia are not helping to de-escalate the situation in Ukraine, state-run Itar-Tass news agency quoted Russia’s envoy to the European Union as saying on Friday.
Imam’s killing in China may be aimed at making Muslim Uighurs choose sides
BEIJING (Reuters) – The murder of a state-backed imam in China’s Xinjiang region underscores an escalation in 18 months of violence and could be part of a bid by extremists to persuade moderate Muslim Uighurs to turn against Beijing’s controlled curren…
Russia to slap duties on imports from Moldova
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia said on Friday it will impose import duties on products from Moldova, its latest move to limit trade with the former Soviet republic which signed a free-trade deal with the European Union in June.
Bulgaria signs nuclear deal with Westinghouse
SOFIA (Reuters) – Bulgaria, one of five EU states that depend totally on Russia for nuclear fuel, and Westinghouse Electric Company signed a shareholder agreement on Friday paving the way for construction of a new nuclear reactor estimated to cost $5 b…
At least 40 dead in Israeli shelling in Gaza Strip: hospital
GAZA (Reuters) – Israeli shelling near the southern Gaza town of Rafah killed at least 40 people on Friday, the local hospital said, as a ceasefire that went into effect only hours earlier crumbled.
Bulgarian court to decide on extradition of Putin opponent
SOFIA (Reuters) – A Bulgarian court said it would decide on Friday whether to extradite to Moscow a prominent opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was detained in Sofia earlier this week.
Ukraine premier stays on, envoys agree on crash site route
KIEV (Reuters) – Ukraine’s parliament rejected Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk’s resignation on Thursday and finally passed legislation he said was needed to finance an army offensive against a separatist rebellion in the east and avert a national defa…
Greece evacuates embassy staff, foreign nationals from Libya
ATHENS (Reuters) – Greece safely evacuated embassy staff and more than one hundred Chinese and European nationals from Libya early on Friday with a navy frigate sailing back to the Greek port of Piraeus, its defence ministry said.
