Turkey arrests pro-Kurdish reporters in ‘terrorism’ probe, relative says

Istanbul — Nine Turks working for pro-Kurdish media outlets were arrested Tuesday in Turkey, their employers and lawyers said, with a relative of one saying they were accused of “terrorist activities.” Four women and five men were arrested at dawn in Istanbul, the capital Ankara, and the southeastern city of Urfa, lawyers from the Media and …

Channel tragedy spotlights Britain’s Rwanda migrant law

London — French authorities say a 7-year-old girl was among five migrants who drowned in the English Channel on Tuesday just hours after British lawmakers voted through legislation aimed at deterring asylum-seekers from making the crossing. Local officials said the inflatable dinghy carrying some 112 people hit a sandbank after leaving a beach near the village …

UK announces $620 million in new military aid for Ukraine, plan to up own defense spending

Warsaw, Poland — U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced Tuesday that the country is to increase defense spending to 2.5% of GDP by the end of the decade. Sunak made the announcement during a visit to Warsaw, where he also described a new pledge to send arms to Ukraine. He said the government is putting the …

Azerbaijan says ‘closer than ever’ to Armenia peace deal

Baku, Azerbaijan — Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on Tuesday a peace deal with Armenia was closer than ever before, as teams from both countries began demarcating the border in a bid to end decades of territorial disputes and clashes. Aliyev’s optimism comes amid progress on marking the border despite protests in Armenia, still bruised after …

UN criticizes Britain’s Rwanda migrant law, as boat tragedy shows dangers of crossing

After years of political wrangling and court battles, British lawmakers passed legislation Monday that the government hopes will allow it to deport asylum seekers arriving in small boats across the English Channel to Rwanda for processing. As Henry Ridgwell reports from London, the dangers of the migrant crossings were underlined just hours after the law …

African beats entice China and US investors

Africa’s entertainment industry is another stage where global competition between China and the U.S. is playing out. African artists see it as an opportunity. Kate Bartlett has the details from Johannesburg. Camera and video editing by Zaheer Cassim. …

Russian media: Kremlin plans to deploy ballistic missiles on Finnish border

LONDON — Russian media report that the Kremlin plans to deploy ballistic missiles close to its border with Finland. It’s the latest in a series of military and hybrid threats that Russia has made against the Nordic state since it joined NATO in April last year in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. The Russian …

Turkey hosted Hamas leader amid growing criticism over inaction in Gaza

Istanbul/Washington — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomed Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh and his delegation last weekend in Istanbul amid growing criticism in Turkey of his government’s stance on the Israel-Hamas war. There was no news conference after the meeting.  Erdogan’s office released a statement on the topics discussed with Haniyeh, who lives in exile …

International flotilla hopes to break Israel’s blockade on Gaza

A group of activists hopes to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza with a flotilla of vessels carrying aid. It is set to sail from Istanbul in the coming days. In a similar mission 14 years ago, Israeli forces intercepted a Turkish flotilla in a deadly raid that resulted in the deaths of 10 people. There …

EU may suspend TikTok’s new rewards app over risks to kids

LONDON — The European Union on Monday demanded TikTok provide more information about a new app that pays users to watch videos and warned that it could order the video sharing platform to suspend addictive features that pose a risk to kids.  The 27-nation EU’s executive commission said it was opening formal proceedings to determine whether …

European Space Agency adds new astronauts in only fourth class since 1978

cologne, germany — For the past year, five fit, academically superior men and women have been spun in centrifuges, submerged for hours, deprived temporarily of oxygen, taught to camp in the snow, and schooled in physiology, anatomy, astronomy, meteorology, robotics, and Russian. On Monday, the five Europeans and an Australian graduated from basic training with a …

Armenia asks UN court to dismiss Azerbaijan’s discrimination claim

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — Lawyers for Armenia asked the top United Nations court on Monday to throw out a case filed by Azerbaijan over the Karabakh region that accuses Armenia of ethnic cleansing.  Azerbaijan launched proceedings at the International Court of Justice in 2021 in the case, less than a week after Armenia brought its own …