VALLETTA, Malta (AP) — Malta’s Roman Catholic archbishop warned the killers of an investigative reporter killed by a powerful car bomb that they “would never escape the justice of God” and urged her fellow journalists Friday to pursue truth without fear. Archbishop Charles Scicluna celebrated Daphne Caruana Galizia’s funeral Mass in the church nearest … Continue reading
BRUSSELS (AP) — Amazon has to pay $295 million in back taxes to Luxembourg, the European Union ordered Wednesday, in its latest attempt to tighten the screws on multinationals it says are avoiding taxes through sweetheart deals with individual EU states. Margrethe Vestager, the EU official in charge of antitrust issues, also took Ireland to … Continue reading
MOSCOW (AP) — Ukraine’s president has signed a controversial law on education, causing fury in Hungary which is threatening to block Ukraine’s efforts to integrate with the European Union. The law that President Petro Poroshenko signed late Monday restructures Ukraine’s education system and specifies that Ukrainian will be the main language used in schools, … Continue reading
BRUSSELS (AP) — The Latest on the Brexit talks on Britain’s departure from the European Union (all times local): 5:25 p.m. British Brexit negotiator David Davis says the four days of Brexit negotiations this week will have to drive forward “all the issues” instead of just centering on the divorce proceedings that the EU wants … Continue reading
BERLIN (AP) — Top European leaders pledged Thursday to keep fighting against global warming as U.S. President Donald Trump announced he was pulling out of the Paris climate accord, but they rejected his suggestion that the deal could later be renegotiated. The leaders of France, Germany and Italy said in a joint statement that they … Continue reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is expected to withdraw the United States from a landmark global climate agreement, a White House official said Wednesday, though Trump and aides were looking for “caveats in the language” related to the exit and had not made a final decision. Leaving the deal would fulfill a central campaign … Continue reading
MOSCOW (AP) — The Kremlin on Thursday, Mar. 9 rejected U.S. claims of Russian violations of a landmark nuclear arms treaty, saying it has respected the pact and will continue to do so. The controversy over the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty adds another thorn in the side for U.S. President Donald Trump’s declared goal of … Continue reading
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. (AP) — Lidl, the German no-frills supermarket chain, is set to begin hiring in Virginia for some of its first stores in the U.S. The chain announced Thursday that it would begin hiring 800 store associates for locations in 12 Virginia cities. Spokesman Will Harwood tells the Free Lance-Star (http://bit.ly/2mcPiKd ) the hires … Continue reading
PODGORICA, Montenegro (AP) — Montenegro’s prime minister told Russia and its allies in the tiny Balkan state on Tuesday, Feb. 14 to stop destabilizing the county while opposing its NATO bid. Prime Minister Dusko Markovic said that those warning of unrest “in Montenegro or outside of it should keep their hands off Montenegro.” Markovic spoke … Continue reading
BASEL, Switzerland (AP) — Voters in Switzerland decided Sunday to make it easier for young “third-generation foreigners” to get Swiss citizenship, agreeing to extend to about 25,000 people under age 25 access to the fast-track process now available to foreign spouses of Swiss nationals. The national statistics office said the “naturalization of third-generation immigrants” initiative … Continue reading
LONDON (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday urged British Prime Minister Theresa May to follow the American administration and impose new sanctions on Iran over a recent missile test. The two leaders met at 10 Downing St. for talks British officials tried to focus on boosting trade ties between the two countries … Continue reading
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (AP) — A Turkish cargo plane crashed Monday, Jan. 16, in a residential area just outside the main airport in Kyrgyzstan, destroying half of a village and killing at least 37 people in the plane and on the ground, the Emergency Situations Ministry said. The Boeing 747 crashed at 7:40 a.m. local time … Continue reading
LONDON (AP) — Former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown made an impassioned call Monday, June 13, 2016 for Labour Party supporters to vote to stay in the European Union, amid nervousness in the “remain” camp that it is losing momentum ahead of next week’s referendum. Brown, who governed from 2007 to 2010, said Britain should … Continue reading
PARIS (AP) — France is setting up an emergency fund to help those who lost everything after the worst floods in three decades caused the Seine River to burst its banks. Prime Minister Manuel Valls said Monday after a government meeting that the “return to normality will take time” after unusually intense rains that lashed … Continue reading
LE HAVRE, France (AP) — French drivers are fuming, oil industry workers are divided, and the government is reaching into its fuel reserves to end gasoline shortages that have heightened the stakes of nationwide protests to defend labor protections. Unions are targeting the nation’s gas tanks, railroads and electricity network this week, protesting a bill … Continue reading
LE BOURGET, France (AP) — The largest group of world leaders ever to stand together kicked off two weeks of high-stakes climate talks outside Paris on Monday, saying that striking an ambitious deal to curb global warming can show terrorists what countries can achieve when they are united. “What greater rejection of those who would … Continue reading
BERLIN (AP) — The European Space Agency is postponing the launch of probe that will test technology for a future mission to measure gravitational waves. The agency said Tuesday that a technical problem has been discovered in the Vega rocket that was due to lift the probe into orbit Wednesday. Engineers are working on fixing … Continue reading
BRUSSELS (AP) â The United States and its NATO allies struggled Tuesday to come up with a clear message to send Russia at a time of conflicting concerns in Europe and the Middle East. While the West remains alarmed by Moscow’s aggressive action in Ukraine and go-it-alone military efforts in Syria, they say they need Russian help … Continue reading
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks moved solidly higher Tuesday, helped by improving economic data from Japan and Europe as well as hopes that the European Central Bank will expand its stimulus program. However, trading remained quiet ahead of the release later this week of the U.S. government’s monthly jobs survey. KEEPING SCORE: The Dow … Continue reading
PRESEVO, Serbia (AP) — At the tender age of 16, Ahmad Fawad has three fears: He fears the Taliban gunmen who killed his family members in Afghanistan. He fears that once-welcoming European countries are shutting the doors after the carnage in Paris. And he fears that the very extremists who attacked his family at home … Continue reading
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Most nations along Europe’s refugee corridor abruptly shut their borders Thursday to those not coming from war-torn countries such as Syria, Afghanistan or Iraq, leaving thousands desperately seeking a better life in the continent stranded at Balkan border crossings. The overnight decision triggered the domino effect that both asylum-seekers and European … Continue reading
Encouraging quarterly results from Wal-Mart Stores, Home Depot and other big retailers helped nudge stocks slightly higher in afternoon trading Tuesday. The major stock indexes pared some of their gains from earlier in the day but were on course to close higher for the second day in a row. Investors also weighed new economic data … Continue reading
LONDON (AP) — In their first response to the attacks in Paris, which killed 129 people, markets proved to be more resilient on Monday than many analysts had anticipated. Though Friday’s atrocities on the streets of Paris could hurt consumer sentiment across Europe in the short-term and raise concerns over longer-term geopolitical risks, investors are … Continue reading
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Even before the Paris attacks, the mood in Central Europe was decidedly anti-migrant, with fences going up on borders, a Syrian beaten on a Polish street last week and the rhetoric sharp across the region. Now the bloodshed unleashed by Islamic extremists is deepening fears of Muslims and threatening to create … Continue reading
NEW YORK (AP) — The Dixie Chicks are ready to party in the U.S.A. The Grammy-winning group will kick off its “DCX MMXVI World Tour” on June 1 in Cincinnati. It wraps up the tour Oct. 10 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. Tickets go on sale Friday. The group will visit more … Continue reading
Spartan Echo 