UN sets course towards easing CAR arms embargo

Draft resolution seeks partial lifting of embargo to allow government purchase of weapons without seeking UN approval.

Venezuela detains foreign journalists amid crackdown on protests

Five journalists, three working for Spanish news agency EFE and two French reporters, detained in Venezuela this week.

Carlos Ghosn: Arrest is a plot to destroy my reputation

Former Nissan chief feels betrayed by company's allegations which he believes to be 'distortion of reality'.

UAE in bid to get Qatar thrown out of Asian Cup after 4-0 defeat

Emiratis file complaint hours after losing semi-final, saying Qatar used ineligible players during the tournament.

Polar vortex puts US Midwest in a deep freeze

Blast of icy polar air brought dangerously low temperatures to the United States's Midwest causing at least 12 deaths.

Myanmar alliance: Rebel groups consider joining forces

The oldest and one of the largest rebel armies in Myanmar wants to unite with neighbouring groups to fight government.

Name row: Greece, North Macedonia have work cut out for them

The prickliest issues emanating from the name change to North Macedonia are cultural and will take time to carry out.

Cops Flag 'Persons of Interest' in Jussie Smollett Attack

After going through hundreds of hours of surveillance camera footage, police in Chicago believe they have identified two "persons of interest" in Tuesday morning's vicious attack on Empire star Jussie Smollett . Police say the footage does not capture the actual attack—in which Smollett says he was beaten and had...

Iowa Student Among 8 Deaths Linked to Polar Vortex

The bitterly cold weather gripping much of the US has been linked to at least eight deaths, including that of an 18-year-old University of Iowa student. Campus police found pre-medicine major Gerard Belz unresponsive behind a building around 3am Wednesday, when the wind chill was -51 Fahrenheit; he died in...

U.S. to stop complying with nuclear pact with Russia after talks flop

The United States will stop complying with a landmark nuclear pact with Russia as soon as this weekend after last-ditch talks with Moscow to save it fell flat, a senior U.S. arms control official said on Thursday.

UK child-sex offender who fled to Pakistan arrested

A convicted child-sex offender, who was part of a gang that exploited teenage girls in a northern English town, has been arrested in Pakistan where he fled during his trial, the British High Commission in Islamabad said on Thursday.

Russia says BBC guilty of 'violations': news agencies

Russia's state communications regulator said on Thursday that the BBC World News channel had committed "certain violations" while operating in Russia, Russian news agencies reported.

EU parliament recognizes Guaido as Venezuelan interim president

The European Parliament recognized Venezuela's self-declared interim president Juan Guaido as the de-facto head of state on Thursday, a symbolic step that lawmakers said was designed to keep pressure on President Nicolas Maduro.

Spain's far right Vox party surges in polls, Socialists lead

Spain's far-right political party Vox saw support surge from just a month earlier while the ruling Socialists remained in the lead, according to a voting intention poll released on Thursday.

Kenya bomber's journey offers cautionary tale of intelligence failures

The bomber who blew himself up outside a Nairobi hotel this month, launching an attack that killed 21 people, was already so well-known to Kenyan police that they had emblazoned his face across billboards under the slogan "WANTED: DEAD OR ALIVE".

China calls for harmony as it welcomes Qatar emir amid Gulf dispute

Chinese President Xi Jinping called for a return to "unity and harmony" on Thursday as he welcomed gas-rich Qatar's emir to Beijing, amid a festering dispute that has seen some Arab states lead by Saudi Arabia severing relations with Doha.

EU could offer more backstop assurances if UK moves on customs union: EU lawmaker

The European Union can offer Britain more assurances over the Irish border 'backstop' in a political declaration on post-Brexit ties if London moves toward accepting a permanent customs union, a leading EU lawmaker dealing with Brexit said.

UK's May to meet lawmakers behind Brexit compromise plan: spokesman

British Prime Minister Theresa May will meet the group of lawmakers behind an alternative Brexit proposal later on Thursday, her spokesman said.

Libyan forces arrest suspected Islamic State member in Sirte

Libyan security forces have arrested a suspected leading member of Islamic State, Khalifa al-Barq, in the militant group's former stronghold of Sirte, an official and residents said on Thursday.

European powers launch mechanism for trade with Iran

France, Germany and Britain have set up a European mechanism for non-dollar trade with Iran to avert U.S. sanctions, although diplomats acknowledged it is unlikely to yield big commercial transactions Tehran says it needs to keep a nuclear deal afloat.

French police maintains that death of China's HNA exec was accident

French police on Thursday reaffirmed that the death of HNA Group Co-Chairman Wang Jian during a business trip in France last summer was accidental, dismissing a newspaper report that he more likely committed suicide.