Pompeo accuses Russia of actively working to undermine North Korea sanctions
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Russia on Friday of actively working to undermine international sanctions on North Korea and said the enforcement of the steps was essential to convince Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons.
Venezuelan firemen jailed after donkey video mocking Maduro: rights groups
Two Venezuelan firefighters were detained by military officers this week as suspects behind the making of a viral video that mocked unpopular President Nicolas Maduro by likening him to a donkey touring a fire station, two rights groups said on Friday….
Mexico president-elect hails passage of public sector pay cuts
Mexico’s President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Friday hailed steps by the new Congress to cut the salaries of government officials, part of a raft of measures he promised to battle corruption and inequality.
France charges two men over suspected plot to kill Congo Republic opposition figure
French prosecutors have charged two French men over a suspected plot to assassinate an opposition politician from Congo Republic living in the Paris region, an official from the prosecutor’s office said on Friday.
Saudi says it destroyed missile fired at Aramco facility by Houthis
Yemen’s armed Houthi movement said it had launched a ballistic missile toward a Saudi Aramco oil refinery on Friday, but Saudi air defense forces said they had intercepted and destroyed the projectile.
Russia’s Orthodox Church freezes ties with Constantinople over Ukraine spat
Russia’s Orthodox Church said on Friday it would no longer participate in structures chaired by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, deepening a row in Orthodox Christianity over the Ukrainian Church’s bid to break away from Moscow’s orbit.
Kosovo indicts 12 people including government minister over war pensions fraud
Kosovo’s state prosecutor indicted 12 people including senior government officials on charges of pensions fraud on Friday, accusing them of falsely registering thousands of people as war veterans who claimed millions of euros in state benefits.
Israeli troops kill boy, two men in Gaza protests: medics
Israeli soldiers killed three Palestinians, one of them an 11-year-old boy, and wounded at least 248 others taking part on Friday in weekly protests at the fortified Gaza Strip border, Palestinian medical officials said.
Venezuela hands China more oil presence, but no mention of new funds
Venezuela gave China another stake in the OPEC nation’s oil industry and signed several other deals in the energy sector, but Beijing made no mention of new funds for Caracas during President Nicolas Maduro’s visit to his key financier on Friday.
France wants to triple bike use with better cycle lanes
France plans to more than triple the share of cycling in transport with a multi-year plan to build better bike lanes, financial incentives for bicycle commuters and measures against bike theft, the government said.
