Geneva / AFP Talks to end Syria’s brutal five-year conflict were rattled on Thursday by uncertainty surrounding the arrival of a second opposition group and the declaration by Syria’s Kurds of an autonomous region. UN mediator Staffan de Mistura met for the first time late Wednesday with an umbrella delegation including the so-called Moscow Group, which is demanding an equal ...

Jerusalem / AFP Israel on Thursday ended an eight-month standoff with Brazil over its bid to appoint a controversial former settlement leader as its ambassador to the country. In a dispute that soured relations, Brazil refused to accept the nomination of Danny Dayan, made by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last August. Israel’s government initially dug in its heels, refusing to ...

United Nations / AP The United Nations has retracted a statement saying Canada will resume contributing funds to the UN relief agency that aids and protects Palestinian refugees. UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that the UN statement on the meeting of Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau welcoming the restart of funding for UNRWA was an early draft ...