Senegal failing on pledge to halt abuse in Koranic schools: HRW
DAKAR, March 19 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – A year after a fire killed eight children when it ripped through a Koranic school in Senegal, the government has failed to prosecute those responsible and to halt the abuse of young boys in Islamic educati…
France puts Equatorial Guinea leader’s son under formal investigation
PARIS (Reuters) – The son of Equatorial Guinea’s president has been put under formal investigation in France for money laundering, his lawyer said on Wednesday.
Turkish president contradicts Erdogan, dismissing foreign plot
ANKARA (Reuters) – President Abdullah Gul has dismissed suggestions that outside forces are conspiring against Turkey, openly contradicting Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s assertions that a corruption scandal shaking the country is part of a foreign-ba…
Two army officers, teenager killed in violence in Egypt
CAIRO (Reuters) – Ten people were killed in violence across Egypt on Wednesday, months ahead of a presidential vote meant to put Egypt back on a democratic path after last July’s army takeover.
Colombia should stop Bogota mayor’s ouster: rights commission
BOGOTA (Reuters) – The Inter-American Commission of Human Rights has called on Colombia to suspend a decision to oust the mayor of its capital, putting pressure on President Juan Manuel Santos to intervene in the sensitive case just as his re-election …
Convicted Berlusconi relinquishes “Knight of Labour” title
ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s four-time former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on Wednesday relinquished the honorary “Knight of Labour” title that gave him his nickname of “il Cavaliere” in 1977 as he prepares to serve a one-year sentence for tax fraud.
EU pledges action after 1.9 million citizens demand ‘right’ to water
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union’s executive pledged on Wednesday to improve access to clean water across the region, responding to a 1.9-million-strong petition from citizens demanding recognition of their right to water.
Iran, six powers lock horns over nuclear reactor that could yield plutonium
VIENNA (Reuters) – Iran and world powers locked horns on Wednesday over the future of a planned Iranian nuclear reactor that could yield plutonium for bombs as the United States warned “hard work” will be needed to overcome differences when the sides r…
World Bank releases $70 million to help Rwanda combat poverty
KIGALI (Reuters) – The World Bank signed off on a $70 million financing package for Rwanda on Wednesday, the last tranche of a three-year aid program, which will be partly used to make poverty-fighting programs more effective at combating natural disas…
World War One shell kills two workers in Belgium’s Ypres
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – A World War One shell exploded and killed two construction workers in the Belgian town of Ypres on Wednesday, nearly 100 years after the conflict began.