PARIS – French judicial officials have named three investigating judges who specialize in financial, public health and organized crime cases to lead a criminal probe of the Germanwings plane crash that killed 150 people. Marseille Prosecutor Brice Robin disclosed the names of the three judges Friday, two days after announcing …
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ATHENS, Greece – Greece’s coast guard says it rescued more than 1,000 migrants from the eastern Aegean Sea between Friday morning and Monday morning. The coast guard said it had rescued 1,161 people in 37 search-and-rescue operations off the islands of Samothraki, Lesbos, Chios, Samos, Agathonisi and Farmakonisi. Greece is …
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THE HAGUE, Netherlands – Dutch retailer Royal Ahold NV, operator of U.S. supermarket chains Stop & Shop and Giant, has agreed to merge with its Belgian counterpart Delhaize Group, in a deal that creates a company that will serve more than 50 million customers a week across the Atlantic. The …
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NIAMEY, Niger – Niger’s army says it has killed 15 Boko Haram Islamic extremists and captured 20 others. Army spokesman Col. Michel Moustapha Ledru said on state TV late Wednesday night that the army also destroyed ammunition, cars and motorcycles from the militants. He said Boko Haram members had attacked …
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SYDNEY – Police say a 32-year-old surfer has been critically injured by a shark at the same Australian coastal town where a Japanese tourist was killed in February. A police statement said the local man was surfing with two friends at Light House Beach in Ballina on Thursday when he …
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LONDON – The Greek people are voting on a future in which they face two painful prospects: the slow grind of years more of austerity cuts or the country’s potentially catastrophic exit from the 19-nation eurozone. The question is whether their vote on Sunday can help them escape either. “Yes” …
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ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia – A media rights organization says Ethiopia has released three journalists and three bloggers more than a year after they were arrested and charged with incitement and terrorism in a country known for media oppression. The Committee to Protect Journalists said it welcomed the journalists’ release on …
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JERUSALEM – Israel’s Antiquities Authority says an anonymous Israeli robber left two 2,000-year-old Roman sling stones at a museum with a typed note saying the stolen artifacts “brought me lots of troubles.” An employee of the Museum of Islamic and Near Eastern Cultures in Beersheva, Israel, said Monday he found …
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BENGHAZI, Libya – Libyan officials say a popular army commander has been killed in battle in the eastern city of Benghazi after opposing militiamen hit his position with a rocket. A statement Wednesday by health authorities says 1st Sgt. Salem Alniali, a longtime enemy of radical extremist groups, “died in …
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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Emirati authorities say they plan to scrap long-standing price controls on fuel starting next month, meaning pump prices could rise as the OPEC member nation weathers a sustained slump in oil prices. The Ministry of Energy announced the surprise move on Wednesday, saying fuel prices …
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