BAGHDAD / AP Iraq’s prime minister appealed on Thursday to Iraqis to postpone weekly Friday protests so that security forces can focus on a key military operation aimed at retaking the city of Fallujah from the IS group. For months, anti-government protesters, mainly followers of influential Shiite cleric Muqtada Al Sadr, have been holding protests every Friday outside Baghdad’s heavily …

  Ise-Shima / AFP Turkey must uphold its side of a deal made with the European Union over stemming the flow of migrants, a top EU official said on Thursday, warning ‘threats’ against the bloc will not work. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said Ankara must ease strict anti-terror laws if it wants its citizens to enjoy visa-free travel on …

  Ise-Shima / AFP The Taliban is unlikely to come to the table for peace talks with the government of Afghanistan ‘anytime soon’, despite the organisation’s new leadership, US President Barack Obama said on Thursday. Obama told reporters in Japan, where he is meeting with other leaders of the Group of Seven nations, that he expected the extremist movement to …