Month: February 2017

Iran’s navy has begun an annual drill near the strategic Strait of Hormuz — its first major exercise in the area since the January 20 inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump. …

Kyrgyzstan’s state security service said it detained opposition politician Omurbek Tekebayev on Sunday on charges of corruption and fraud, a move that may eliminate him as a contender for presidency in the upcoming election. Tekebayev, 58, leads the Ata Meken (Fatherland) party’s parliamentary faction and is one of the most outspoken critics of President Almazbek …

Read more “Kyrgyzstan Detains Opposition Party Leader”

French President Francois Hollande fired back at Donald Trump on Saturday after the U.S. president remarked in a speech that a friend thought “Paris is no longer Paris” after attacks by Islamist militants. Hollande said Trump should show support for U.S. allies. “There is terrorism and we must fight it together. I think that it …

Read more “French President Asks Trump for Support, not Criticism”

Pope Francis has quietly reduced sanctions against a handful of pedophile priests, applying his vision of a merciful church even to its worst offenders in ways that survivors of abuse and the pope’s own advisers question. One case has come back to haunt him: An Italian priest who received the pope’s clemency was later convicted …

Read more “Pope Trims Sanctions for Some Pedophile Priests Seeking Mercy”

Japan is ready to propose a specific plan to Russia for the joint economic development of an island chain that both countries claim, The Nikkei Asia Review reports. …

Pakistan is scheduled to host a multination conference in Islamabad next week aimed at increasing trade and cooperation between regional countries. …

The Macedonian opposition Social Democratic Union (SDSM) has formally nominated Zoran Zaev to be its candidate for prime minister after securing enough support for a parliamentary majority. …

Afghan officials say 10 police officers and the wife of a police commander have been killed in an attack in the northern province of Zawzjan. …

The White House has barred several major news organizations from attending an informal press briefing. …

Turkey’s prime minister has officially launched his ruling party’s campaign for a “yes” vote in a referendum on ushering a presidential system, which critics fear will concentrate too many powers in the hands of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.   Binali Yildirim formally got campaigning going on Saturday telling supporters in a sports arena that the …

Read more “Turkish PM Launches ‘Yes’ Campaign to Boost Erdogan Powers”

The top U.S. military commander in the Middle East made a secret trip to northern Syria on February 24 to meet with allied Syrian forces fighting the Islamic State (IS) group. …

Launching a startup is no easy feat. Launching one outside your native country is even harder. But for certain French startups, the French government is there to help. A government-sponsored competition that began last year offers startups marketing and promotional assistance.   The Creative Next Challenge is a series of competitions sponsored by Business France, …

Read more “French Startups Venture Abroad for Chance at Global Recognition, Investment”

Indonesian President Joko Widodo is making his first visit to Australia Saturday, in a sign that tensions early this year have eased and relations between the two Asia-Pacific neighbors are stable. Australia’s relationship with its heavily populated northern neighbor is often turbulent. It soured when Australia supported East Timorese independence from Indonesia in 2002.  More …

Read more “Indonesian President to Visit Australia for Talks on Trade, Security”

A second suicide car bomber hit the location that an earlier of an explosion Friday near a Syrian village near al-Bab just one day after Turkish forces and their rebel allies took much of the strategic town from Islamic State (IS) fighters. The death toll has reached 65 people, including many civilians, rebel fighters and …

Read more “2 Syria Suicide Blasts Kill Scores Near Al-Bab”

The International Organization for Migration reports a surge in the number of migrant deaths on the Mediterranean Sea’s central route linking Libya to Italy in the first two months of the year. The IOM estimates 326 migrants and refugees have died this year while transiting by sea from Libya to Italy, compared to just 97 …

Read more “Migrant Fatalities Surge on Libya-Italy Mediterranean Route”

Top Turkish officials are increasing pressure on the United States to dissolve the American military partnership with Syrian Kurds in the battle against Islamic State. With just days to go before the Pentagon is expected to deliver to U.S. President Donald Trump a new war plan to defeat Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, Turkey, …

Read more “Turkey Ramps Up Pressure on Washington to Abandon Syrian Kurds”