Ransom likely motive for reporter kidnapping in Syria: Polish PM
WARSAW (Reuters) – Polish journalist Marcin Suder was probably taken hostage by a particularly radical and dangerous group of militants in Syria seeking ransom, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Friday.
Lawyers in Turkey seek retrial for Kurdish rebel leader Ocalan
ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Lawyers for Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan, serving a life sentence in Turkey for treason, on Friday filed a request for his retrial, arguing recent legislative changes pave the way for new legal proceedings and a fairer tria…
Libyan activist shot dead in Benghazi
TRIPOLI (Reuters) – Gunmen killed a lawyer and prominent Libyan political activist in the eastern city of Benghazi on Friday, a security official and residents said.
Bulgaria PM refuses to quit, says protests hamper reforms
SOFIA (Reuters) – Bulgaria’s prime minister pledged on Friday to stay in power despite daily street protests demanding his resignation, but said his government’s lack of broad public support would delay major reforms that the Balkan nation needs.
Profile: Spanish disaster driver grew up with trains
MONFORTE DE LEMOS, Spain (Reuters) – Francisco Garzon, driver of the train that crashed at high speed in one of Spain’s worst railway accidents, grew up around trains and spent his whole life working with them.
Israel blocks EU projects in West Bank over settlement measures
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel has blocked the European Union from aiding tens of thousands of Palestinians in the West Bank in retaliation for Brussels’ ban on financial assistance to Israeli organizations in the occupied territories.
United Nations gives Rwanda $400 million to fight hunger and poverty
KIGALI (Reuters) – The United Nations has pledged $400 million over five years to help Rwanda reduce poverty, hunger and disease, the government said.
Was ‘recklessness’ to blame for Spanish train crash?
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA (Reuters) – Spanish police were investigating on Friday if the driver of a train that crashed in Santiago de Compostela killing dozens had been driving at reckless speed when he took a tight curve.
Dutch embassy in Kenya warns of attack against foreigners
NAIROBI (Reuters) – The Dutch embassy in Kenya has warned of a possible attack against foreigners, shortly after police in the east African country discovered a large quantity of explosives on a bus in the capital Nairobi.
Islamists rally in Tunis to defend government
TUNIS (Reuters) – Several thousand Islamists took to the streets of Tunis on Friday to defend the Islamist Ennahda government against calls for it to resign in favor of a unity government after the assassination of a secular opposition figure.
