ISTANBUL, Turkey (AFP) — Thirteen suspects, including 10 Turks, were charged Sunday over the Istanbul airport suicide bombings, the deadliest of several attacks to strike Turkey’s biggest city this year, the Dogan news agency reported. Turkish officials have pointed blame at the Islamic State jihadist group for Tuesday’s gun and bomb spree at Ataturk airport, which left 45 people dead including 19 foreigners. The suspects, who are in police custody, were charged with belonging to […]
International
British PM frontrunner vows to limit immigration
by James PHEBY LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The favorite to become Britain’s next prime minister on Sunday vowed to push for an EU trade deal that limits immigration, as a law firm warned Brexit needed parliament’s backing to begin. The shock June 23 vote caused upheaval in British politics and financial markets, leaving lawmakers at odds over what negotiating position to take and when to begin the official exit procedure from the European Union. […]
Australia in political limbo after voters punish government
by Martin Parry SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Australia was in political limbo Sunday after voters failed to hand Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull the stability he craved in calling an election, with the nation instead facing the prospect of a hung parliament. The former banker went to the polls early looking to shore up support and deliver a strong government based on a “jobs and growth” agenda after ousting fellow Liberal Tony Abbott in a party […]
Bangladesh in mourning after hostage bloodbath
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) — Bangladesh began observing two days of national mourning Sunday after 20 hostages were slaughtered at a restaurant packed with foreigners in a terrifying escalation of a campaign of attacks by Islamist extremists. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina decreed the mourning period as she vowed to drag Bangladesh back from the brink, warning of a concerted bid to turn one of the world’s most populous nations into a failed state. Amid mass condemnation of […]
New Taliban leader tells US to end Afghan ‘occupation’ in first message
KABUL, Afghanistan (AFP) — New Taliban leader Haibatullah Akhundzada on Saturday called on the US to end its “occupation” of Afghanistan in his first message since being appointed the militant group’s chief in May. “Admit the realities instead of useless use of force and muscle… and put an end to the occupation,” Akhundzada said in a speech on the eve of Eid-al-Fitr, the Muslim festival marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. “Our […]
Bangladesh PM ‘determined to root out terrorism’
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) — Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said she was determined to eradicate terrorism in Bangladesh Saturday after security forces stormed a cafe where Islamist extremists had taken dozens of diners hostage. “It was an extremely heinous act. What kind of Muslims are these people? They don’t have any religion,” she said in a televised speech. “People must resist these terrorists. My government is determined to root out terrorism and militancy from Bangladesh.” © […]
Brexit protesters take to streets of London
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Crowds are set to march through London on Saturday in protest against Britain’s vote to leave the EU, which has plunged the government into political turmoil and left the country deeply polarised. Demonstrators plan to gather on Park Lane around 11:00 am (1000 GMT) before making their way towards the Houses of Parliament, in the second show of public anger this week over the shock results of the referendum. “We […]
Bangladesh commandos end hostage siege, kill six gunmen
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) — Bangladesh security forces ended a siege Saturday after storming a cafe in Dhaka where dozens of diners had been held captive through the night and shot dead six of the hostage-takers. Police said at least 13 hostages, including three foreigners, had been rescued after commandos took control of the cafe in the upmarket Gulshan quarter but added that there had been an unknown number of casualties. Two police officers were also […]
Cameron’s potential successors push for Brexit delay
by Dario THUBURN LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — The favorites to succeed Prime Minister David Cameron pushed Friday for a delay in initiating Britain’s talks to leave the EU as French President Francois Hollande insisted “Brexit” cannot be cancelled or delayed. In further signs of economic fallout from last week’s shock vote, the government also warned it would likely abandon a key promise to achieve a budget surplus by 2020, while no-frills airline EasyJet announced […]
13 hostages rescued after Bangladesh siege: commander
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) — Thirteen hostages have been rescued after security forces ended a siege at a cafe in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka on Saturday, a top commander said. “Three of them are foreigners. Ten locals,” Tuhin Mohammad Masud, a commander of the elite Rapid Action Battalion which stormed the cafe, told India’s Times Now television network. © 1994-2016 Agence France-Presse
Bangladesh commandos storm Dhaka hostage cafe
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AFP) — Heavily armed Bangladeshi commandos stormed a Dhaka restaurant Saturday where suspected Islamist militants were holding dozens of people hostage, including foreigners, after a deadly firefight with police, officials said. “The operation has began. Commandos have stormed the restaurant,” a security official said. An AFP photographer at the scene said he could hear a massive gunfight as security forces launched the rescue operation more than 10 hours after militants seized the hostages. […]
US attorney general says won’t interfere in Clinton email probe
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – US Attorney General Loretta Lynch said Friday she will abide by decisions of the FBI and prosecutors on whether to bring charges over presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton’s use of personal email while at the State Department. The announcement by Lynch was pushed to the fore after her impromptu meeting with former president Bill Clinton at the Phoenix, Arizona airport this week touched off a political firestorm. In a noteworthy admission, […]