U.S. urges Syria rebels to attend peace talks, slams government
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States urged Syria’s opposition on Thursday to attend January 22 peace talks and criticized its government for suggesting the meeting should be about fighting terrorism rather than forging a political settlement.
White House releases summary of six-month Iran nuclear plan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The White House on Thursday released a summary of the deal reached between six major world powers and Iran to curb its nuclear program, responding to calls from the U.S. Congress and other groups for more transparency about what …
Bodies of 14 kidnapped Sunni tribesmen found in Iraq
BAGHDAD (Reuters) – The bodies of 14 Sunni Muslim tribesmen were found in date palm groves north of Baghdad on Thursday, a day after they were kidnapped by uniformed men in security forces vehicles, Iraqi police and medics said.
Netanyahu says EU states summon Israeli envoys over settlements
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday some European Union states had called in Israeli ambassadors to hear protests at Israel’s latest announcement of settlement-building and he criticized the move as “hypocri…
Security forces dismiss reports Russia’s top militant is dead
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Chechnya’s Moscow-backed leader said on Thursday he believed police had killed Russia’s most wanted man Doku Umarov, who has called for attacks on the Winter Olympics, but security sources suggested Umarov is still alive.
Speed up deployment of peacekeepers to Mali: U.N. official
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The U.N. peacekeeping chief in Mali appealed on Thursday for a quicker deployment of troops to boost the force, which is operating at half its mandated strength of 11,200, so it can better tackle extremist groups in the north…
Mexican official pledges swift return to order in troubled state
APATZINGAN, Mexico (Reuters) – Mexico will deliver “immediate change” to a troubled state in the west of the country that has been shaken by conflict between a powerful drug gang and heavily armed vigilantes, a newly named government official said on T…
‘Seeds of genocide’ in Central African Republic, U.N. warns
BANGUI/GENEVA (Reuters) – A senior U.N. official warned on Thursday of the risk of genocide in Central African Republic without a more robust international response to communal bloodshed in which at least eight more people were killed overnight.
Egyptians back constitution, opening way to Sisi presidential run
CAIRO (Reuters) – Egyptians overwhelmingly approved a new constitution by referendum, state media reported on Thursday, a widely expected outcome that nudges army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ever closer to a bid for the presidency.
From Falluja to Maghreb, a new, diffuse al Qaeda
LONDON, Jan 16 – More than two years after the death of Osama bin Laden, the turbulent aftermath of the “Arab Spring” has helped his group – or more accurately, its offshoots and successors – gain ground.
