Political news

• Newcastle go top with victory, Brighton game called off

  30-12-2016 23:58
  Newcastle United went top of the Championship with a 3-1 win over 10-man Nottingham Forest on Friday while title rivals Brighton and Hove Albion's home match against Cardiff City was postponed because of fog. Rafa Benitez's Newcastle now have 52 points from 24 matches, one ahead of Brighton, who have a game in hand, in the two automatic promotion places. Matt Ritchie gave the hosts an early lead with a deflected free kick before Nicolao Dumitru equalised for Forest after 29 minutes.
  
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• The Atlantic Politics & Policy Daily: Happy GRU Year

  30-12-2016 23:37
  
  Today in 5 Lines Russians have left two vacation compounds just outside Washington, D.C. and New York City following orders from President Obama to vacate by Friday at noon. Vladimir Putin said he will not follow through on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s proposal to expel 35 U.S. diplomats in retaliation. Putin also omitted Obama in favor of Donald Trump when extending holiday greetings to numerous foreign heads of state and government. A singer with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir has resigne
  
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• UK Olympic athletes, Posh Spice and Andy Murray honoured in Queen's New Year List

  30-12-2016 23:34
  By Adela Suliman LONDON (Reuters) - Olympic athlete Mo Farah, tennis star Andy Murray, actor Mark Rylance, comedian Ken Dodd and Kinks musician Ray Davies have been knighted in Queen Elizabeth's New Year's Honours List. Spice Girl and designer Victoria Beckham was awarded an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) while other fashion notables included Anna Wintour editor-in-chief of "American Vogue" and accessories designer, Anya Hindmarch.
  
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• Sports, arts and academic figures dominate honours list

  30-12-2016 23:30
  System to be revamped to remove accusations of favours and cronyism
  
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• Russia, brushing off Obama, looks to friendlier Donald Trump

  30-12-2016 23:30
  
  Stung by new punishments, Russia is looking straight past President Barack Obama to Donald Trump in hopes the president-elect will reverse the tough U.S. stance toward Moscow of the last eight years. In ...
  
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• Murray and Farah put sporting stamp on New Year honours

  30-12-2016 23:30
  Fewer politicians and businesspeople recognised after Cameron cronyism allegations
  
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• Murray and Farah put sporting stamp of New Year honours

  30-12-2016 23:30
  Fewer politicians and businesspeople recognised after Cameron cronyism allegations
  
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• Senator McCain says Russia must pay price for hacking

  30-12-2016 23:21
  Republican U.S. Senator John McCain said on Friday that Russia must be made to pay the price for cyber attacks on the United States and that it was possible to impose many sanctions, including on financial institutions. McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has scheduled a hearing for Thursday on foreign cyber threats. "When you attack a country, it's an act of war," McCain said in an interview with the Ukrainian TV channel "1+1" while on a visit to Kiev.
  
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• Barkley equaliser salvages point for Everton at Hull

  30-12-2016 23:19
  England midfielder Ross Barkley headed a late leveller to salvage a 2-2 draw for Everton at Hull City in the Premier League on Friday. Barkley headed the ball home in the 84th minute from left back Leighton Baines' cross after Robert Snodgrass had put Hull ahead with a superb free kick into the top corner 19 minutes earlier. Defender Michael Dawson had given Hull an early lead when he scored from Curtis Davies' flicked pass in the sixth minute but an own goal by home keeper David Marshall at a c
  
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• Pole arrested after airliner makes emergency landing in Prague

  30-12-2016 22:59
  Czech police have detained a Polish man after a passenger jet flying from Spain to Warsaw made an emergency landing in Prague on Friday due to a bomb threat, Interior Minister Milan Chovanec said. The plane was parked away from the main terminals of Prague airport while police investigated the incident. Chovanec, speaking with Czech Television, declined to say whether or not an explosive device had been found on the detained man before police had finished their work.
  
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• One-sentence draft bills criticized for lack of transparency

  30-12-2016 22:34
  AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — With the annual return of legislators to the Maine Statehouse comes the predictable pile of one-sentence draft bills that give an idea of what legislators want to do, just not how they're going to do it.
  
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• Dollar, stocks log yearly gains, oil the biggest winner

  30-12-2016 22:34
  The dollar logged its fourth straight year of gains against a basket of major currencies, while oil prices notched up their biggest annual gain since 2009. Global markets have fared surprisingly well in a year marked by major political shocks, including June's vote for Britain to leave the European Union and the unexpected election of Donald Trump as U.S. president in November.
  
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• Congo's Kabila to step down after elections as parties reach deal

  30-12-2016 22:21
  By Aaron Ross KINSHASA (Reuters) - Congolese President Joseph Kabila will step down after elections to be held by the end of 2017 under a last-minute deal struck by political parties on Friday, the lead mediator of the talks said. Negotiators have been in tense talks for weeks seeking to ensure Democratic Republic of Congo’s first peaceful transfer of power since independence in 1960, though it remains unclear if elections can be organised by the end of next year. "The government is asked
  
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• Venezuela cedes presidency of Mercosur trade block after dispute

  30-12-2016 22:15
  Venezuela on Friday said it was formally ceding the rotating presidency of Mercosur to Argentina, citing the end of its term as the head of the trade bloc, a move that follows acrimonious dispute over its suspension from the group. Mercosur suspended Venezuela this month after years of complaints that the socialist-run nation, whose state-led economy is increasingly out of step with the rest of the region, had failed to meet economic conditions meant to stimulate trade. President Nicolas Maduro
  
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• Trump meets with candidates for agriculture secretary

  30-12-2016 22:15
  
  PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump and his staff are meeting with candidates for one of the last cabinet positions he needs to fill: agriculture secretary.
  
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• U.S. dollar posts 2016 gain on Trump victory, Fed forecasts

  30-12-2016 22:05
  The dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, gained about 3.7 percent for the year. The index rose about 7.1 percent during the fourth quarter, more than half that gain coming since the Nov. 8 U.S. presidential election on expectations that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's plan to boost fiscal stimulus would benefit the currency. A faster projected pace of rate hikes from the Federal Reserve next year also contributed.
  
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• Catalan independence referendum 'not possible' - Spanish PM

  30-12-2016 22:05
  By Sarah White and Sonya Dowsett MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Friday flatly rejected the possibility of a referendum in the northeastern region of Catalonia on a split from Spain, telling pro-independence politicians to desist from attempts to hold one next year. The regional Catalan government has said it will hold a referendum on secession before September 2017, with or without consent from the central government, although they would prefer a consensual vote like
  
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• Trump praises Putin for holding back in U.S.-Russia spy dispute

  30-12-2016 21:59
  By Polina Devitt and Polina Nikolskaya MOSCOW (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Friday praised Russian President Vladimir Putin for refraining from retaliation in a dispute over spying and cyber attacks, in another sign that the Republican plans to patch up badly frayed relations with Moscow. Putin earlier on Friday said he would not hit back for the U.S. expulsion of 35 suspected Russian spies by President Barack Obama, at least until Trump takes office on Jan. 20. "Great move on
  
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• Obama's spat with Moscow is latest in long line

  30-12-2016 21:38
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. relations with Moscow during and after the Cold War have been marred by diplomatic dustups ranging from espionage scandals to an Olympics boycott.
  
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• Putin says Russia won't expel diplomats; Trump offers praise

  30-12-2016 21:36
  
  MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin castigated the United States on Friday for trying to punish Russia but said his country will not immediately retaliate and instead will wait for a new U.S. approach by Donald Trump. The president-elect praised Putin's move and called him "very smart."
  
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• US deportations of illegal immigrants up 2 percent

  30-12-2016 21:32
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration has deported 240,255 immigrants over the past 12 months, a 2 percent increase over 2015.
  
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• Oil down, but ends year with biggest gain since 2009

  30-12-2016 21:27
  Oil prices settled slightly lower on Friday, the year's last trading day, but attained their biggest annual gain since 2009, after OPEC and partners agreed to cut output to reduce a supply overhang that has depressed prices for two years. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 5 cents, or 0.1 percent, at $53.72 a barrel, while Brent fell 3 cents, or 0.1 percent, to $56.82. Oil prices have slumped since the summer of 2014 from above $100 a barrel.
  
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• Russians leave country retreats in the U.S., ordered out by Obama

  30-12-2016 21:16
  By Yeganeh Torbati, Joel Schectman and Emily Flitter CENTREVILLE, Md./UPPER BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Reuters) - In small convoys of vehicles, Russians departed two countryside vacation retreats outside Washington and New York City without fanfare on Friday, ordered out by U.S. President Barack Obama who said the premises were linked to spying. The Russians were given until noon ET (1700 GMT) on Friday to vacate the compounds in Centreville, Maryland, and in Upper Brookville on Long Island in New York s
  
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• The Latest: Consulate's chef among expelled Russians

  30-12-2016 21:14
  
  The Latest on the tensions between the United States and Russia over hacking attacks in the U.S. elections (all times EST): 3:10 p.m. An official says a chef is among the Russians being expelled from the ...
  
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• Congo deal reached to end Kabila's term after elections in 2017 - mediator

  30-12-2016 21:12
  KINSHASA (Reuters) - Congolese President Joseph Kabila will step down after elections held before the end of 2017, under a deal struck by political parties on Friday, according to a lead mediator from the Catholic Church. Under the deal, Kabila will be unable to change the constitution to extend his mandate and run for a third term, Marcel Utembi, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference in the Democratic Republic of Congo, told reporters. (Reporting By Aaron Ross, writing by Edward McAllis
  
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• The Latest, NC: Law stripping gov.-elect's power blocked

  30-12-2016 20:54
  
  RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Latest on a lawsuit by Democratic Gov.-Elect Roy Cooper to block a Republican-backed law diminishing his control over deciding election disputes. (all times local):
  
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• Ben Jennings on 2016 – cartoon

  30-12-2016 20:54
  
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• Trump praises 'delay' by Russia's Putin

  30-12-2016 20:53
  PALM BEACH, Fla. (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Friday praised the "delay" by Russian President Vladimir Putin, apparently referring to Putin's refusal to retaliate for the U.S. expulsion of 35 Russians over their alleged involvement in hacking political groups before the Nov. 8 presidential election. "Great move on delay (by V. Putin) - I always knew he was very smart!," Trump said in a post on Twitter. (Repoting by Richard Cowan; Writing by Mohammad Zargham)
  
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• Obama's last month: 'Obamacare' defense, Chicago speech

  30-12-2016 20:43
  
  HONOLULU (AP) — Eager to stop Republicans from destroying his signature health care law, President Barack Obama and Democratic lawmakers will meet next week to try to forge a common strategy. Obama also plans a major valedictory speech in Chicago, his hometown, shortly before his presidency ends.
  
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• Russia will not expel anyone over U.S. sanctions, to wait for Trump

  30-12-2016 20:10
  By Polina Devitt and Polina Nikolskaya MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin refrained on Friday from retaliating for the U.S. expulsion of 35 suspected Russian spies, putting the onus on Donald Trump to help solve a crisis over Russian cyber attacks when he takes over the White House next month. As a Sunday deadline approached for dozens of Russians to leave the United States, Putin said he would wait for the actions of Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, before responding. U.S. President
  
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• U.S. Senator McCain calls January 5 hearing on foreign cyber threats

  30-12-2016 20:06
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican U.S. Senator John McCain has scheduled a Jan. 5 hearing on foreign cyber threats to the United States, after Washington ordered the expulsion of Russian diplomats over computer hacking in the November presidential election. Witnesses called to testify include Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and Admiral Mike Rogers, head of the U.S. Cyber Command, according to a post on Friday on the website of the Senate Armed Services Committee that McCain leads
  
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• U.N. experts slam Ecuador over forced closure of land rights group

  30-12-2016 19:58
  By Sebastien Malo NEW YORK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - The United Nations criticized the government of Ecuador on Friday for ordering the closure of a land rights advocacy group that supports an indigenous community protesting mining plans in land they claim as their ancestral home. The crackdown by Ecuadorian authorities on Quito-based Accion Ecologica was part of a pattern that threatened freedom of association in the country, a group of six U.N. rights experts said in a statement. Accion E
  
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• Threat of New Year attack in U.S. low but 'undeniable' - agencies

  30-12-2016 19:57
  U.S. defence and security agencies said they believed the threat of militant attacks inside the United States was low during this New Year's holiday, yet some chance of an attack was "undeniable," according to security assessments reviewed on Friday. "There are no indications of specific threats to the U.S. Homeland," said a "situational awareness" bulletin issued to U.S. Army personnel this week by the Army's Training and Doctrine Command. "However the threat from homegrown violent extremists (
  
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• Brazil policeman confesses to killing Greek ambassador - TV report

  30-12-2016 19:52
  A Rio de Janeiro police officer confessed to murdering Greece's ambassador to Brazil, possibly at the direction of the diplomat's Brazilian wife with whom the policeman was romantically involved, Globo TV reported on Friday, citing police sources. Greek Ambassador Kyriakos Amiridis, 59, was missing since Monday night. Globo TV reported on Friday afternoon that officer Sergio Moreira, 29, confessed to killing the ambassador on Monday night in the Rio de Janeiro home the Amiridis owned in Nova Igu
  
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• Obama's last month: 'Obamacare' huddle, Chicago speech

  30-12-2016 19:36
  
  HONOLULU (AP) — President Barack Obama and Democratic lawmakers will strategize next week about how to prevent Republicans from destroying "Obamacare." The president also plans to give a major valedictory speech next month in Chicago, his hometown, 10 days before his presidency ends.
  
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• Libya's U.N.-backed government, central bank to cooperate in 2017

  30-12-2016 19:34
  By Ahmed Elumami and Aidan Lewis TRIPOLI/TUNIS (Reuters) - Libya's Government of National Accord (GNA) and central bank in Tripoli say they have agreed to work together to tackle urgent economic problems in 2017, creating a potential lifeline for the U.N.-backed GNA. The government has struggled to extend its authority since arriving in Tripoli in March, hampered by its lack of control over public finances. The GNA was created to reconcile rival governments set up in Tripoli and the east of Liby
  
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• Independent energy firms call for end to meddling

  30-12-2016 19:34
  Companies challenging the Big Six worry about price caps
  
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• Oil dips but set for biggest yearly gain since 2009

  30-12-2016 19:33
  Oil traded slightly lower on Friday, but was still on track for its biggest annual gain since 2009, after OPEC and other major producers agreed to cut output to reduce a global supply overhang that has depressed prices for two years. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 18 cents. Oil prices have slumped since the summer of 2014 from above $100 a barrel.
  
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• Former Nusra Front criticises Syria ceasefire agreement

  30-12-2016 19:24
  A spokesman for the Syrian Islamist militia Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, formerly called the Nusra Front, criticised a nationwide Turkish- and Russian-backed ceasefire in Syria on Friday, saying the political solution under this agreement would "reproduce the criminal regime". The group, which changed its name and announced in July that it was severing ties with al Qaeda, condemned the deal for not mentioning President Bashar al-Assad's fate. "The solution is to topple the criminal regime militarily,"
  
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• Dollar, oil and stocks look to end year with gains

  30-12-2016 19:10
  The dollar was on pace for a fourth straight year of gains against a basket of major currencies, while oil prices were headed for their best year since 2009. Global markets have fared surprisingly well in a year marked by major political shocks, including June's Brexit vote and the unexpected election of Donald Trump as U.S. president in November. U.S. stocks slipped following weak economic data and a decline in technology stocks.
  
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• Ireland confirms bird flu case, carrying out tests

  30-12-2016 19:09
  DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland has found the H5N8 bird flu strain in a wild duck in the south eastern town of Wexford, the agriculture department said on Friday. Several European countries have found cases of H5N8 bird flu in recent weeks and Ireland ordered poultry flocks be kept indoors last week after an outbreak was confirmed in Britain. Further tests are being carried out to determine whether the virus is the same highly pathogenic strain that is currently present in Britain and mainland Europe
  
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• Israel warns on travel to India, citing immediate threat of attacks

  30-12-2016 19:08
  Israel's anti-terrorism directorate issued a travel warning for India on Friday, citing an immediate threat of attack to Western and tourist targets, particularly in the south-west of the country. It also called on families in Israel to contact their relatives in India and tell them of the threat. Unusually, the warning was published on Friday evening in Israel, after the start of the Jewish Sabbath, when government offices close for business.
  
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• Iceland's Benediktsson to make new attempt to form government

  30-12-2016 19:07
  The Independence Party leader Bjarni Benediktsson said on Friday he had been asked to try to form a new Icelandic government, after three failed attempts since the Oct. 29 election. Benediktsson, with a mandate from President Gudni Johannesson, will try to reach agreement on a centre-right coalition with Bright Future and the Reform Party. "We all know that this is the smallest possible majority you can have in Althingi (parliament) and so it is important to go thoroughly through the matters upf
  
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• Stampede to cash in final salary company pensions

  30-12-2016 19:00
  Ex-pensions minister and FTSE 100 executives among those lured by record transfer offers
  
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• European shares post small loss for 2016, Britain's FTSE hits record high

  30-12-2016 18:56
  By Kit Rees and Atul Prakash LONDON (Reuters) - European shares posted a small loss for 2016, though strong gains among mining stocks and the oil & gas sector as well as a turnaround in banks in the latter part of the year lent support, while Britain's FTSE 100 index climbed to a record high. Reversing steep losses from early in the year, mining stocks helped Europe's basic resources index to a 61.9-percent gain this year, bouncing back from a 35-percent slump in 2015. The bounce in miners a
  
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• Russian, Turkish foreign ministers discuss Syria truce

  30-12-2016 18:53
  MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu spoke over the phone conversation on Thursday and discussed matters related to documents signed by Syria's government and opposition, Russia's foreign ministry said. It said the two ministers agreed it was important for all opposition groups to stick to the ceasefire in Syria and to show a constructive approach ahead of a forthcoming meeting set for Kazakhstan's capital, Astana. (Reporting by Polin
  
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• The Latest: Some expelled diplomats in US only 2 months

  30-12-2016 18:43
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the tensions between the United States and Russia over hacking attacks in the U.S. elections (all times EST):
  
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• Turkish journalist held, accused of spreading propaganda - lawyer

  30-12-2016 18:39
  A Turkish court remanded journalist Ahmet Sik in custody pending trial on Friday after he was accused of spreading the propaganda of various groups, an opposition lawmaker and a lawyer said. Sik works for Cumhuriyet, one of the few newspapers still critical of the government after Turkey purged tens of thousands of people, largely from the state apparatus, in the wake of a coup attempt last July. Ahmet Sik has been remanded in custody," lawmaker Sezgin Tanrikulu, from the main opposition party C
  
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• China to ban domestic ivory trade by end of 2017

  30-12-2016 18:30
  (Reuters) - China will slap a total ban on the domestic ivory trade within a year, the government announced on Friday, shutting the door to the world's biggest end-market for poached ivory. The State Council said in a notice a complete ban would be enforced by Dec. 31, 2017. Conservation groups applauded the ban, with WildAid's wildlife campaigner Alex Hofford calling it "the biggest and best conservation news of 2016".
  
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• Russia asks U.N. Security Council to endorse Syria ceasefire

  30-12-2016 18:29
  By David Ingram UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Russia urged the U.N. Security Council on Friday to give its blessing to a fragile ceasefire in Syria, the third truce this year seeking to end the nearly six years of war in Syria. The Security Council met behind closed doors for an hour to consider a proposed resolution endorsing the ceasefire that Russia and Turkey announced on Thursday. A vote is possible as early as Saturday, although Security Council members recommended changes to the draft and it
  
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