April, 2016

• 26 April

  Regime air raids in Aleppo province kill 19

    Aleppo / AFP Air strikes on rebel-held areas of Syria’s second city Aleppo and a town to its west killed at least 19 people on Tuesday, emergency workers said. The strikes came after rebel shelling killed at least 19 civilians in government-held districts of Aleppo on Monday and are the latest in a surge of violence in and around ...

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• 26 April

  Indonesia to hold talks after kidnappings at sea

    JAKARTA / AP Indonesia’s president says the country will host talks with Malaysia and the Philippines this week to boost maritime security following the kidnappings at sea of Indonesians by suspected Abu Sayyaf militants. President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said Tuesday that the meeting of foreign ministers and military chiefs will discuss joint patrols to protect shipping in waters between ...

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• 26 April

  Visa deal if Turkey meets all criteria: EU

  

    Paris / AFP The EU’s top diplomat Federica Mogherini said on Tuesday that Turkey would only get visa-free travel to the bloc once it has met all the required criteria. Turkey has demanded its citizens be allowed to enter the European Union’s passport free Schengen zone without a visa by June, in exchange for it taking back migrants from ...

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• 26 April

  Ankara to use US rocket system in fight against IS

    Ankara / AFP Turkey has struck a deal with the United States to deploy American light multiple rocket launchers on its border with Syria to combat the IS group, according to the foreign ministry. The High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) “will be deployed on the Turkish border in May as part of an agreement” with Washington, Foreign Minister ...

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• 26 April

  India asks Pakistan to curb ‘terror groups’

  

    NEW DELHI / AP India on Tuesday asked Pakistan to rein in terrorist groups operating from its soil and targeting India, expressing dissatisfaction with action taken so far against suspects of an attack on an Indian air force base in January. During a meeting with visiting Pakistani Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry in New Delhi, India said it emphasized ...

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• 26 April

  Trump, Clinton aim for sweeps of Northeastern primaries

  

    PHILADELPHIA / AP Donald Trump is aiming for a sweep of all five Northeastern states holding primaries on Tuesday, including Pennsylvania, leaving his rivals pinning their hopes of stopping the Republican front-runner on a fragile coordination strategy in the next rounds of voting. For Democratic leader Hillary Clinton, wins in most of Tuesday’s contests would leave little doubt that ...

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• 26 April

  2 Armenian soldiers killed in Karabakh despite truce

    Yerevan / AFP Two ethnic Armenian soldiers have been killed in a new upsurge in fighting between Azerbaijani forces and separatists from the breakaway region of Nagorny Karabakh, the separatist statelet said on Tuesday. “On the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Karabakh forces, the enemy violated a ceasefire 80 times using all types of artillery and armoured vehicles,” ...

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• 26 April

  Gambia court denies bail to opposition protesters

    Banjul / AFP A Gambian court denied bail to 37 opposition activists accused of rioting, illegal protest and other offences and ordered their lawyers to present a written bail application on Thursday, lawyers said. After Monday’s hearing in the High Court in Banjul, the secretary general of the main opposition United Democratic Party (UDP), Ousainou Darboe, and 31 others ...

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• 26 April

  Spanish political parties throw up surprise, restart coalition talks

  

    Madrid / AFP Spanish parties restarted coalition negotiations on Tuesday in a surprise, eleventh-hour move just as the deadline to form a government draws to a close and fresh elections threaten. The negotiations kicked off again after Compromis—a small, regional grouping involved in coalition talks—submitted a last-ditch proposal for a government that includes measures to fight corruption and poverty. ...

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• 26 April

  Vietnam thwarts election bid by dissidents, pop star

  Hanoi / AFP Communist Vietnam has blocked a motley crew of independent candidates from running for its rubber-stamp parliament, according to official results released Tuesday, a move activists said highlights its empty gestures towards democracy. In an unprecedented showing this year more than 100 independent candidates — including dissidents, a taxi driver and a pop star — tried to run ...

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