Metro stations were closed in Barcelona, pickets blocked roads and state workers walked out on Tuesday in protests across Catalonia over a Spanish police crackdown on an independence referendum.The stoppages, in response to a call for a general strike by pro-independence groups and trade unions, affected the public sector, public transport and basic services, Reuters […]

US President Donald Trump has refused to certify the international nuclear agreement with Iran and warned he might ultimately terminate it, in defiance of other world powers and undermining a landmark victory of multilateral diplomacy. Speaking from the White House on Friday, Trump said he will choose not to certify that Tehran is complying with […]

Rohingya Muslims in Bangladesh were skeptical on Tuesday about their chances of ever going home to Myanmar, even though the government there has given an assurance it would accept people verified as refugees.More than half a million Rohingya have fled from a Myanmar military crackdown in Rakhine State launched in late August that has been […]

Russia is set to step up close cooperation with Turkey and Iran to counter terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview with Pan-Arab newspaper Asharq Al-Awasat on Wednesday.Lavrov said Moscow’s daily practical cooperation with Ankara and Tehran at all levels illustrates that “Turkey and Iran play, in […]

Scotland’s Brexit minister believes there is a “pretty strong” chance Britain will leave the European Union with no deal, but that the UK government could collapse before then.Michael Russell said the devolved pro-independence Scottish administration is trying to prepare for Brexit, despite Scots having voted against it, but possible outcomes are “legion”, Reuters reported.“I think […]

Four Turkish soldiers were killed and four others were injured in a roadside bomb blast staged by Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants on Wednesday in southeastern Turkey The explosion took place in Hakkari Province, the Daily Sabah said, adding that the injured soldiers were taken to a local hospital, Sputnik reported. A counter-terror operation was […]

A confidential draft United Nations blacklist seen by Reuters on Tuesday names a US-backed Saudi Arabia military coalition for killing and maiming children in Yemen, though it notes that the alliance has put in place measures to improve child protection.In an effort to dampen controversy surrounding the annual children and armed conflict report, the draft […]

Iraqi forces pushed into the self-styled Islamic State terrorist group stronghold of Hawija on Wednesday, commanders said, stepping up their assault against one of the militants’ last enclaves in the country.Government and allied forces backed by a US-led coalition launched an offensive last month to oust IS from Hawija, a longtime insurgent bastion, AFP reported.The […]

Tension mounted in Spain on Wednesday after Catalonia’s leader vowed that the region would declare independence within days, defying a stern warning from the country’s king that national stability was in peril.The courts meanwhile placed Catalan police officials and pro-independence civil leaders under investigation for alleged “sedition” as Spain sank deeper into its worst political […]

More than half of Germans, 57%, want a three-way coalition between Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives, the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) and Greens to govern their country, a Forsa survey for Stern magazine showed on Wednesday.Merkel’s conservatives emerged from a Sept. 24 national election as the biggest party but in need of a partner or partners […]