NEW YORK (AP) — The government has given civil rights attorneys a list of 746 people subject to President Donald Trump’s travel ban who were detained or processed by U.S. border agents in the turbulent 27 hours after a judge partially blocked enforcement of the executive order. U.S. District Judge Carol Bagley Amon in Brooklyn … Continue reading
Tag Archives: president
UN Syria envoy not expecting breakthrough at Geneva talks
GENEVA (AP) â Playing down expectations, the U.N. envoy for Syria said Wednesday that he’s not expecting a breakthrough in the first U.N.-mediated peace talks between government representatives and the opposition in 10 months, rather hoping to build momentum toward peace after nearly six years of war. Staffan de Mistura spoke a day before convening … Continue reading
Iraqi troops advance on western Mosul as Mattis holds talks
SOUTH OF MOSUL, Iraq (AP) — Iraqi forces advanced Monday into the southern outskirts of Mosul on the second day of a push to drive Islamic State militants from the city’s western half, as the visiting U.S. defense secretary met with officials to discuss the fight against the extremists. With aerial support from the U.S.-led … Continue reading
North African diplomats seek solutions for chaotic Libya
TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — The presidents of Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia will hold a summit soon to try to find ways to reconcile neighboring Libya’s rival political factions and stem the country’s chaos, diplomats said Monday. The summit was announced in Tunis after a new round of diplomatic efforts for Libya, where two rival administrations … Continue reading
Kremlin denies any disappointment with Trump administration
MOSCOW (AP) — The Kremlin denied Friday that it has grown frustrated with a lack of progress in improving relations with Washington under President Donald Trump, saying it’s too early to say what course Russia-U.S. ties will take. “We never wore rose-tinted glasses, never had any illusions, so there is nothing to be disappointed with,” … Continue reading
Pentagon chief says NATO members must boost defense spending
BRUSSELS (AP) — U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Wednesday issued a sharp ultimatum to NATO Wednesday, telling allies they must start increasing defense spending by year’s end or the Trump administration will “moderate its commitment” to them. He did not detail what the United States might do if NATO members failed to fall in … Continue reading
Israel fumbles goodwill visit of NFL players
JERUSALEM (AP) — It was supposed to be a feel-good visit by a group of professional football players to give a boost to image-conscious Israel. But in an embarrassing fumble by the Israeli government, only five of 11 NFL players in the delegation showed up after being blitzed by Palestinian activists opposed to the visit. … Continue reading
Hezbollah leader says ‘idiot’ Trump makes him optimistic
BEIRUT (AP) — The leader of Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group says the world will benefit from having an “idiot” in the White House. Hassan Nasrallah said in a speech Sunday that his group is much stronger than when it was created in the early 1980s and should not be concerned about threats from the West. … Continue reading
Trump urges Israeli premier to ‘hold off’ on settlements
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked Israel’s prime minister to “hold off” on building Jewish settlements in land the Palestinians claim for their future state, yet held back from explicitly endorsing support for a future independent Palestine. After weeks of dancing around the issue of expanded Israeli settlements, Trump made the request … Continue reading
Swiss ease citizenship for ‘third-generation’ foreigners
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
Gorsuch would be 8th man to hold ‘Justice Scalia’s seat’
WASHINGTON (AP) — On the night Judge Neil Gorsuch was nominated to fill Justice Antonin Scalia’s seat on the U.S. Supreme Court, he was thinking about history. “The towering judges that have served in this particular seat on the Supreme Court, including Antonin Scalia and Robert Jackson, are much in my mind at this moment,” … Continue reading
US commander: Mosul and Raqqa should be retaken in 6 months
CAMP TAJI, Iraq (AP) — Forces fighting the Islamic State group should be able to retake the IS-held cities of Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria within the next six months, according to the top U.S. commander in Iraq. On a tour north of Baghdad Wednesday, U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend said “within … Continue reading
GOP senior statesmen making push for a carbon tax
WASHINGTON (AP) — A group of Republican senior statesmen are pushing for a carbon tax to combat the effects of climate change, and hoping to sell their plan to the White House. Former Secretary of State Jim Baker is leading the effort, which also includes former Secretary of State George Shultz. In an opinion piece … Continue reading
Cyprus: UN Security Council has role in reunification talks
NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — U.N. Security Council member states must take part in a future summit aiming to remove a key stumbling block to a deal reunifying ethnically divided Cyprus, the island’s government spokesman said Monday. Nicos Christodoulides told The Associated Press that Security Council members have expressed their readiness to “actively and effectively take … Continue reading
Israeli leader presses UK to impose new sanctions on Iran
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
Turkey hit by 2 magnitude 5.3 quakes; 11 villages damaged
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Two earthquakes with preliminary magnitudes of 5.3 jolted Turkey’s northern Aegean Sea coast on Monday Feb. 6, 2017, damaging dozens of homes in 11 villages and injuring at least five people, officials said. The first quake, which was centered beneath the Aegean off the coast of the town of Ayvacik in … Continue reading
Travel ban lifted but for how long? Court must decide
WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawyers for Washington state and Minnesota are telling a federal appeals court that restoring President Donald Trump’s ban on refugees and travelers from seven predominantly Muslim countries would “unleash chaos again.” The filing with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco came early Monday Feb. 6, 2017 after the White House … Continue reading
Germany deplores migrant camp abuse in Libya
ROME (AP) — The Latest on Europe’s migrant influx (all times local): 6:25 p.m. Germany says the human rights situation in Libya is “catastrophic,” with migrants heading for Europe bearing the brunt of abuse. A report Sunday by German weekly Welt am Sonntag quoted an internal Foreign Ministry memo describing how migrants face torture and … Continue reading
Journalist says he was wrongly detained under travel ban
ATLANTA (AP) — A CNN editor and producer from Iraq was wrongly detained at Atlanta’s airport because of the President Donald Trump’s ban on entry for citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries, according to a lawsuit filed this week. Mohammed Abdullah Tawfeeq, who has a green card, says in a federal lawsuit filed Monday, Jan. 30 … Continue reading
Israeli forces begin evacuation of West Bank outpost
Unarmed police in blue sweatshirts and black baseball caps made their way up a hill to the unauthorized cluster of homes around midday. On the hilltop, youngsters erected makeshift barricades from smashed tiles, rusty metal bars and large stones to slow their advance. Some protesters threw rocks at security forces, while others set fire to … Continue reading
Trump proposes big import tax, triggering fight with Mexico
WASHINGTON (AP) — Determined to wall off America’s border with Mexico, President Donald Trump triggered a diplomatic clash and a fresh fight over trade Thursday as the White House proposed a 20 percent tax on imports from the key U.S. ally and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto abruptly scrapped next week’s trip to Washington. The … Continue reading
Gambia ruler predicts landslide; internet blocked amid vote
BANJUL, Gambia (AP) — Voters in the tiny West African nation of Gambia cast marbles Thursday in an election widely expected to keep the country’s ruler of more than two decades in power despite a unified challenge from the opposition. Polls closed at 5 p.m. and election workers were expected to work late into the … Continue reading
Brazilian protesters call for embattled president’s ouster
SAO PAULO (AP) — Protesters massed in Brazil’s largest city Sunday to call for the president to be removed from office and express outrage at a host of his policies, while the embattled leader tried to head off some of their criticism. President Michel Temer has suffered a continual drip of scandal and high-level resignations … Continue reading
Iraqi Shiite cleric al-Sadr slams Trump
BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr has slammed President-elect Donald Trump over his “escalating statements… against Islam and Muslims,” and criticized him for not distinguishing between radical and moderate Muslims. In written statement issued Thursday, the influential anti-U.S. cleric responded to the outcome of the U.S. presidential election saying “Even if the president … Continue reading
Trump begins to play catch up on transition to White House
WASHINGTON (AP) — The true test now begins for Donald Trump. The Republican president-elect paid little attention to transition planning leading up to his stunning victory. With 72 days before he takes control of the executive branch, Trump and his senior team on Wednesday immediately began the herculean task of picking a Cabinet and tapping … Continue reading