Political news

• Trump inaugural to include prayers from prosperity preachers

  28-12-2016 23:44
  
  Two preachers who teach that God will make the faithful rich are among the religious leaders chosen to offer prayers at President-elect Donald Trump's swearing-in, the inaugural committee said Wednesday.
  
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• Trump says Sprint to bring 5,000 jobs back to U.S.

  28-12-2016 23:34
  U.S President-elect Donald Trump said on Wednesday wireless carrier Sprint Corp will bring 5,000 jobs back to the United States and OneWeb, a new company, will be hiring 3,000 people. "I was just called by the head people at Sprint and they are going to be bringing 5,000 jobs back to the United States, they are taking them from other countries," Trump told reporters outside his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
  
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• Brother of JonBenet Ramsey sues CBS for $750 million over documentary

  28-12-2016 23:30
  By Keith Coffman DENVER (Reuters) - The brother of slain Colorado child beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey has filed a $750 million defamation lawsuit against CBS Corp over a documentary aired by the network theorizing that he killed his little sister, court documents showed on Wednesday. Burke Ramsey has been “exposed to public hatred, contempt and ridicule” over the four-hour show that was broadcast in September in two parts, according to the complaint filed in a state court in Michigan,
  
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• US official says top Islamic State commander killed in Syria

  28-12-2016 23:24
  WASHINGTON (AP) — A senior U.S. defense official is confirming that a top Islamic State military commander was killed by a coalition airstrike in Syria on Monday.
  
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• Alli double helps Spurs sink 10-man Southampton

  28-12-2016 23:17
  Tottenham Hotspur kept up the pressure on the Premier League's top four after coming from behind to beat 10-man Southampton 4-1 thanks to two goals from Dele Alli and one apiece by Harry Kane and Son Heung-min on Wednesday. Alli canceled out Virgil Van Dijk's second-minute opener before Kane fired Tottenham ahead and missed a penalty after Southampton winger Nathan Redmond hacked down Alli and was sent off.
  
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• Islamic State supporters call for more holiday attacks in Europe

  28-12-2016 23:12
  A pro-Islamic State group on Wednesday urged supporters of the jihadists to carry out attacks on targets such as markets and hospitals in Europe over the Christmas holiday period and urged Muslims to stay away from Christian celebrations. The threat came as European authorities have stepped up security following an attack claimed by Islamic State in which a truck ploughed into crowds in a Berlin Christmas market and killed 12 people this month. The Nashir Media Foundation, which backs Islamic St
  
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• Dollar gains; Wall St. lower on home sales; oil off after data

  28-12-2016 23:11
  The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield declined, but worries in Europe about rescue plans for shaky Italian banks drove the spread between the benchmark and 10-year German Bund yields to the widest ever. Benchmark 10-year notes last rose 15/32 in price to yield 2.5099 percent.
  
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• U.S. set to announce response to Russian election hacking -sources

  28-12-2016 23:09
  By Dustin Volz and Joel Schectman WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration plans to announce on Thursday a series of retaliatory measures against Russia for hacking into U.S. political institutions and individuals and leaking information in an effort to help President-elect Donald Trump and other Republican candidates, two U.S. officials said on Wednesday. Both officials declined to specify what actions President Barack Obama has approved, but said targeted economic sanctions, indict
  
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• Burkina Faso replaces army chief after series of attacks

  28-12-2016 23:07
  Burkina Faso President Roch Marc Christian Kabore replaced army chief of staff Pingrenoma Zagre on Wednesday, the government said in a statement, after a string of deadly militant attacks, including against the security forces. The statement did not provide a reason for Zagre's replacement by Sadou Oumarou, formerly the inspector general of the armed forces, but military sources said the decision was prompted by the incidents. Attacks in Burkina Faso were relatively rare before an attack by al Q
  
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• England players more robust and self-reliant, says Jones

  28-12-2016 23:03
  England rugby coach Eddie Jones paid tribute on Wednesday to the way his all-conquering players developed in 2016 when they swept all before them to win 13 successive matches. Jones believes his players have become much more robust in taking the on-field decisions that brought a Six Nations grand slam followed by an unprecedented series whitewash in Australia and a clean sweep in the November internationals. "The players have really changed, they are much more robust, more self-reliant," said Jo
  
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• The Latest: Israeli envoy says UN vote an act against Israel

  28-12-2016 23:01
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on United States-Israeli relations (all times local):
  
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• 'You're not Henry VIII,' Jeremy Corbyn tells Theresa May

  28-12-2016 23:00
  
  Labour leader accuses prime minister of behaving like an overbearing Tudor by refusing to commit to Commons vote on Brexit dealJeremy Corbyn has accused Theresa May of behaving like Henry VIII or a similar autocratic monarch because of her refusal to commit to putting a final Brexit deal to a vote in parliament. Related: May is no Henry VIII – but Brexit has dragged us back to a very Tudor chaos | Rhiannon Lucy CosslettContinue reading...
  
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• In parting shot at Israel, Kerry warns Middle East peace in jeopardy

  28-12-2016 22:57
  By Lesley Wroughton and Yeganeh Torbati WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday said Israel's building of settlements on occupied land was jeopardizing Middle East peace, voicing unusually frank frustration with America's longtime ally weeks before he is due to leave office. In a swiftly issued statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Kerry of bias. In a 70-minute speech, Kerry said Israel "will never have true peace" with the Arab world if it d
  
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• Colombia Congress approves amnesty for thousands of FARC rebels

  28-12-2016 22:53
  Colombia's Congress on Wednesday approved an amnesty law to protect thousands of demobilizing Marxist guerrilla fighters from prosecution for minor crimes committed during the country's 52-year war. The law, a key part of a peace deal signed last month between the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) rebels, will not include fighters who have committed war crimes or human rights violations. It is the first in a series of laws tied to the deal that will be sped through
  
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• Medtronic must face revived U.S. lawsuit over Infuse

  28-12-2016 22:27
  A federal appeals court on Wednesday revived a lawsuit accusing Medtronic Plc of defrauding shareholders by covering up negative side effects from its Infuse bone growth product for nearly a decade. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Paul, Minnesota said a lower court judge erred in finding that the plaintiff shareholders sued too late, by waiting more than two years after learning information that could suggest an intent to defraud. Medtronic did not respond to requests for comment.
  
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• The disappearing death penalty

  28-12-2016 22:05
  Just before Christmas, the Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC) reported that in 2016 both the death sentences by courts and death-row executions across the United States continued to decline. The 30 new death sentences handed down this year were a big drop from 49 the previous year, and were the lowest number since the US Supreme Court reinstated capital punishment in 1976, the nonprofit group said. In 2016, 20 people were put to death in the US as punishment for crimes.
  
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• The Latest: Trump now says transition going 'smoothly'

  28-12-2016 21:53
  
  PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The Latest on President-elect Donald Trump (all times EST):
  
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• In Venezuela, lynchings kill one person every three days - report

  28-12-2016 21:38
  By Andreina Aponte CARACAS (Reuters) - Roughly one person is being lynched in crisis-ridden Venezuela every three days as frustrated residents take revenge on suspected criminals, a monitoring group said on Wednesday. The Venezuelan Observatory of Violence (OVV), which monitors crime, said mob killings have become a generalized phenomenon across the country, with 126 deaths reported in 2016 versus 20 last year. "Due to being repeated victims of crime for more than a decade, and the feeling of no
  
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• Palestinian president believes peace with Israel is achievable - spokesman

  28-12-2016 21:33
  Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas responded to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's Middle East speech in Washington on Wednesday by saying he was convinced peace with Israel was achievable, but continuing to demand that Israel halt settlement building before talks restarted. Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat read out a statement saying Abbas had "reiterated his full commitment to a just peace as a strategic option". U.S.-backed peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians broke down
  
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• Israeli PM calls Kerry speech a 'deep disappointment'

  28-12-2016 21:23
  
  JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's prime minister decried Secretary of State John Kerry's Mideast policy speech as a "deep disappointment" on Wednesday and vowed to work with the incoming Trump administration to contain the fallout from last week's U.N. resolution calling Israeli settlements illegal.
  
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• Veron returns to action for Estudiantes at age 41

  28-12-2016 21:11
  (Reuters) - Estudiantes chairman Juan Sebastian Veron signed an 18-month contract with his club as a player on Wednesday, officially coming out of retirement at the age of 41. “Juan Sebastian Veron signed the contract that ties him to the club as a player for 18 months and officially became (coach) Nelson Vivas’s second reinforcement for next year,” the club said on their website (www.estudiantesdelaplata.com). Veron, who spent a decade in Europe playing for Parma, Lazio and Ma
  
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• Oman joins Saudi-led Islamic alliance - Gulf sources

  28-12-2016 21:08
  Oman, which has traditionally resisted Gulf Arab states' efforts to close ranks against Iran, has joined a Saudi-led coalition of Muslim countries to fight terrorism, Saudi and Gulf sources said on Wednesday. The sultanate indicated its willingness to take part in the 40-country alliance in a letter to Saudi Deputy Crown Prince and Defence Minister Mohammed bin Salman, the sources said. Although differences are rarely aired in public, Oman has long stood out among its Gulf allies.
  
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• France's Hollande pardons woman who killed violent husband

  28-12-2016 20:54
  French President Francois Hollande on Wednesday made a rare use of his presidential powers to pardon a woman who had been convicted in 2012 of the murder of her violent husband. Jacqueline Sauvage had been sentenced to 10 years in jail for shooting dead the husband who had beaten her up for decades. "It is a long battle that has just ended ... but our fight continues for all other women," Sauvage's lawyer Janine Bonaggiunta told BFM TV.
  
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• The Latest: Netanyahu says Kerry proposals won't sway him

  28-12-2016 20:52
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on United States-Israeli relations (all times local):
  
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• New York eases proposed cyber regulations after industry complaints

  28-12-2016 20:49
  New York state's financial regulator on Wednesday revised a proposal for the nation's first cyber security rules for banks and insurers, loosening some security requirements and delaying implementation by two months to March 1. The rules from the New York State Department of Financial Services are being closely because they lay out unprecedented requirements on steps that financial firms must take to protect their networks and customer data from hackers and disclose cyber events to state regulat
  
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• British US Ambassador Sir Kim Darroch Likens Trump And May To Reagan And Thatcher Amid Farage Threat

  28-12-2016 20:42
  
  Theresa May and Donald Trump are to forge a relationship similar to that enjoyed by Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan, Britain’s ambassador in the US has said. 
  Sir Kim Darroch said the ‘special relationship’ between Britain and the US is “stronger than ever” in remarks that follow the President-Elect suggesting Nigel Farage could replace him.Many people would like to see @Nigel_Farage represent Great Britain as their Ambassador to the United States. He woul
  
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• Brexit’s constitutional conundrum for the UK

  28-12-2016 20:19
  Preserving the Union is more important than indulging nationalism
  
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• Israel's attorney-general orders criminal probe against PM Netanyahu - TV

  28-12-2016 20:16
  Israel's attorney-general has ordered police to open a criminal investigation in two unspecified matters involving Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's Channel 10 television said on Wednesday. When asked, a Justice Ministry spokeswoman declined to respond to the report. Netanyahu has in the past denied wrongdoing in the purchase of submarines from Germany, where media have reported a potential conflict of interest involving his lawyer.
  
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• In parting shot, Kerry tears into Israel over settlements

  28-12-2016 20:14
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State John Kerry tore into Israel on Wednesday for settlement-building, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of dragging Israel away from democracy and forcefully rejecting the notion that America had abandoned Israel with a controversial U.N. vote. Israel's government accused Kerry of a skewed attempt to blame Israel for failing to reach a peace deal.
  
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• Kerry's speech biased against Israel - Netanyahu

  28-12-2016 20:06
  JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's Middle East speech on Wednesday was biased against Israel. In a statement in English issued by the Prime Minister's Office, Netanyahu said: "Like the Security Council resolution that Secretary Kerry advanced in the U.N., his speech tonight was skewed against Israel." The Israeli leader said Kerry "obsessively dealt with settlements", which the United States strongly opposes, in the speech. ...
  
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• It has been a brilliant year in politics

  28-12-2016 20:05
  Ordinary people have shaken up a complacent world, writes Paul Nuttall
  
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• Oil holds near annual peaks, awaiting OPEC cuts, supply data

  28-12-2016 19:58
  By David Gaffen NEW YORK (Reuters) - Crude oil prices edged up for a fourth consecutive session on Wednesday, close to their highest levels since mid-2015, ahead of U.S. oil inventory figures and as the market awaits evidence of OPEC supply reductions in the new year. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures were up 30 cents, or 0.6 percent, at $54.20 per barrel by 1:29 p.m. EST (1829 GMT), not far from the year's high of $54.51 reached on Dec. 12. Oil prices have gained 25
  
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• Factbox - Trump to meet heads of Carlyle Group, Marvel, World Jewish Congress

  28-12-2016 19:47
  (Reuters) - Republican U.S. President-elect Donald Trump resumed meetings at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, following the Christmas holiday as he prepares to take over the White House from Democrat Barack Obama on Jan. 20. Below is a list of meetings for Wednesday, according to Trump's transition team. WEDNESDAY DAVID RUBENSTEIN * Co-CEO, founder and director of Carlyle Group ISAAC PERLMUTTER * CEO of Marvel Entertainment, a unit of Walt Disney Co ABEL MALDONADO * Co-owner of Runw
  
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• Kerry says settlements endanger peace, Israel hits back

  28-12-2016 19:42
  By Lesley Wroughton and Yeganeh Torbati WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry warned on Wednesday that Israel's building of settlements was endangering Middle East peace, expressing unusually frank frustration with the long-time American ally. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shot back at Kerry and accused him of showing bias against the Jewish state. In a 70-minute speech just weeks before the Obama administration hands over to President-elect Donald Trump, Kerry sa
  
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• InterContinental investigates possible payment card breach

  28-12-2016 19:36
  (Reuters) - InterContinental Hotels Group Plc said on Wednesday it is investigating claims of a possible payment card breach at some of its hotels in the United States. The hotel chain had hired a computer security firm to help with the investigation and would continue to work with the payment card networks, InterContinental's spokesman said. The investigation was first reported by KrebsonSecurity on Wednesday.
  
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• Brexit Britain will depend on 'foreign' London and its Muslim mayor in 2017

  28-12-2016 19:36
  
  The country needs a successful capital more than ever and it will help if Sadiq Khan is able to build on his solid start They’re still at it out there. “Sadiq Khan getting elected as mayor tells you all you need to know about London!” declares a self-described royalist and Rangers fan on Twitter: “[it’s] Becoming a muslim/immigrant shit*****e!”. Here’s someone calling themselves Deadpool commenting at the Daily Mail: “How in hell did this guy get v
  
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• Brexit: Civil service faces 'bumpy ride' says union leader

  28-12-2016 19:12 via bbc.co.uk
  
  More resources are needed to deal with leaving the EU, a civil servants union leader says.
  
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• Takata could pay up to $1 billion to settle U.S. criminal probe - WSJ

  28-12-2016 18:55
  Japan's Takata Corp is nearing a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice and is expected to pay up to $1 billion to resolve allegations of criminal wrongdoing related to its faulty air bag inflators, the Wall Street Journal reported. The final figure could be in the high hundreds of millions of dollars, the Journal reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Takata is expected to pay a part of the penalty up front and the rest over a number of years, according to the re
  
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• Two-state solution to Middle East conflict in serious jeopardy - Kerry

  28-12-2016 18:54
  By Lesley Wroughton and Yeganeh Torbati WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry warned on Wednesday that the future of a two-state solution to the Middle East conflict was in jeopardy, saying the United States could not stay silent as violence and Israeli settlement building risked undermining peace. In a speech just weeks before the Obama administration hands over power to President-elect Donald Trump, Kerry said Israel "will never have true peace" with the Arab world if it do
  
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• New York revises, delays new cyber rules after industry complaints

  28-12-2016 18:52
  The rules from the New York State Department of Financial Services are being closely watched by financial services firms around the United States because they would be the first of their kind imposed by any state or federal agency. At a hearing last week before New York state lawmakers, banking and insurance industry representatives complained that the new rules did not distinguish between small and large financial institutions and might conflict with future U.S. government regulations. The New
  
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• Speculation mounts on race between top 2 Texas Republicans

  28-12-2016 18:45
  
  AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick brushed aside speculation of a 2018 gubernatorial run at the end of Texas' last legislative session, insisting he'd never challenge his "close friend" and fellow Republican Greg Abbott.
  
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• German Minister calls for ban on vegetarian 'pseudo-meat' labels

  28-12-2016 18:43
  Germany's agriculture minister called on Wednesday for a ban on "pseudo-meat" labels such as "vegetarian schnitzel" and "vegan curry sausage", arguing that they mislead consumers. In a land famous for its love of the sausage and other pork and veal dishes such as schnitzel, the minister appeared to be backing the German Butchers' Association, which has also called for a ban on such terms. "I do not want us to pretend that these pseudo-meat dishes are meat dishes," minister Christian Schmidt told
  
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• Boko Haram may have used Chibok girls as shields during attack - Nigerian army

  28-12-2016 18:41
  Boko Haram fighters fleeing an attack on their base last week may have used some of the girls kidnapped in 2014 from northeast Nigeria's Chibok as human shields to prevent being fired upon by fighter jets, a military commander said on Wednesday. Major General Lucky Irabor, theatre commander of Nigeria's military campaign against the group, showed a news conference aerial footage he said was filmed during the operation in the Sambisa forest that showed Boko Haram fighters moving with women and ch
  
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• Trump to unveil 'positive' economic move for U.S. workers - spokesman

  28-12-2016 18:39
  PALM BEACH, Fla. (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump plans to make an announcement related to the economy on Wednesday afternoon, his transition team said, adding it would be a boost to workers but giving no other details. Trump plans to make the statement between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. ET (2100 to 2200 GMT), incoming White House spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters on a conference call, adding that the news "should be very positive for American workers." A wealthy New York businessman, Tru
  
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• Spain arrests two men suspected of Islamist militant propaganda

  28-12-2016 18:32
  Two men were arrested in Madrid on Wednesday on suspicion of spreading Islamist militant propaganda, the Interior Ministry said. Police released video footage that showed officers uncovering gun magazines and bullets from under rocks in a disused building covered in graffiti in the outskirts of Madrid. Separately, two women who travelled to Syria in 2014 from the Spanish north African enclave of Ceuta were arrested in Turkey as they attempted to return to Europe, the ministry said.
  
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• Dollar, crude rise; Wall Street lower on housing data

  28-12-2016 18:30
  By Rodrigo Campos NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar and crude oil rose on Wednesday, adding to recent trends, while stocks fell in a broad but shallow decline on Wall Street as home resales dropped sharply. Despite the tick down in the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield Wednesday, the spread between the benchmark and 10-year German Bund yields touched its historic high. On Wall Street, shares fell broadly with real estate posting the largest drop among S&P 500 sectors.
  
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• Pushing back on Israel, Kerry defends Obama's UN vote

  28-12-2016 18:26
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Stepping into a raging diplomatic argument, Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday staunchly defended the Obama administration's decision to allow the U.N. Security Council to declare Israeli settlements illegal and warned that Israel's very future as a democracy is at stake.
  
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• U.S. calls Pakistan student group wing of banned militant organisation

  28-12-2016 18:19
  The United States on Wednesday announced it was adding the student wing of the Pakistan-based militant organisation, Lashkar-e-Taiba, to its list of "foreign terrorist organizations." Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), or Army of the Pure, is an anti-Indian militant group with historical ties to Pakistan's top spy agencies. The State Department move against the student group, Al-Muhammadia Students, came as the Treasury Department added two Lashkar-e-Taiba leaders to the U.S. list of "specially designated g
  
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• Romanian Social Democrats propose leftist veteran for PM

  28-12-2016 18:16
  By Radu-Sorin Marinas and Luiza Ilie BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romania's Social Democrat party (PSD), victor of a general election two weeks ago, on Wednesday proposed former telecommunications minister Sorin Grindeanu, a veteran leftist politician, for prime minister. The PSD's first pick to lead the cabinet was Sevil Shhaideh, a close associate of PSD leader Liviu Dragnea, who was ruled out of the job by his criminal sentence in a 2012 referendum-rigging case. "Sorin Grindeanu goes there (to lead
  
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• The Latest: Kerry rejects Israel's criticism on vote

  28-12-2016 18:14
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on United States-Israeli relations (all times local):
  
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