MADRID – Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has revised Spain’s economic growth forecast upward for this year and next and said the improved circumstances allowed him bring forward a tax reduction plan. Rajoy says the economy will grow 3.3 this year and 3 percent in 2016, up from the previous 2.9 …
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DAMASCUS, Syria – Syrian state TV says a bomb has exploded inside a mosque in an opposition-held suburb of Damascus, killing a Sunni Muslim cleric. The TV says the bomb was placed under the pulpit, or minbar, at the Grand Mosque in the Tal area and went off shortly after …
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MAIDUGURI, Nigeria – Nigeria’s military has freed 180 detainees held for months, including women carrying babies with toddlers clinging to their skirts, declaring they are no longer suspected of being part of the Boko Haram Islamic extremist insurgency. Army chief Lt. Gen. Kenneth Minima says they “have been investigated and …
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ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan – Turkmenistan’s oil and gas ministry has accused Russian state gas company Gazprom of failing to pay for deliveries in a sign of friction between the two major gas producers. The Central Asian nation’s ministry said in a statement that Gazprom “has failed to pay under its contracts …
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UNITED NATIONS – The U.N. human rights chief is warning that an explosion of violence is close in Burundi, sparked by the president’s decision to seek a third term and a crackdown especially by the youth wing of his ruling party, which has carried out dozens of recent killings. Zeid …
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CAIRO – Italy’s Embassy in Egypt says it is suspending all consular services in Cairo, a day after its consulate was hit by a car bomb that killed a passer-by and blasted a gaping hole in the historic building. In a statement Sunday, Italy says diplomats were working to restore …
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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The government of Puerto Rico has confirmed that it failed to make a $58 million debt payment that was due Saturday, a significant escalation of the debt crisis facing the U.S. island territory. Puerto Rican officials had warned on Friday that they would not make …
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ANKARA, Turkey – Turkey says it “rejects and condemns” a statement by the head of the Arab League who criticized the country for conducting air strikes against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq. A Foreign Ministry statement on Wednesday called on Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi to “support the fight …
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BERLIN – Swiss police say they’ve identified the remains of two Japanese climbers who went missing 45 years ago, several months after their bones were found on a glacier under the Matterhorn mountain. Valais canton (state) police said Thursday that a climber found the remains in September. They were taken …
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CAIRO – An Egyptian security official says a leading member of the hard-line group Gamaa Islamiya has died in prison. Interior Ministry official Maj. Gen. Hassan el-Sohagi said on Sunday that Essam Derbala died of natural causes. A statement from Gamaa Islamiya’s political party accused Egyptian authorities of “assassination.” It …
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