BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Spain moved Monday to put Catalonia’s secessionist leaders on trial for alleged crimes that carry maximum sentences of decades in prison, and some of the ousted government figures went to the Belgian capital, where an official said they might be able to request asylum. As Catalonia spent its first working day … Continue reading
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Hamas has named a shadowy militant commander as its new leader in the Gaza Strip, an official media outlet confirmed on Monday, placing one of the Islamic militant group’s most hard-line figures in charge of its core power base. The appointment of Yehiya Sinwar, who was freed by Israel … Continue reading
LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May has firmly rejected the notion of a second referendum on the country’s membership in the European Union, insisting Wednesday that the U.K. wouldn’t attempt a back-handed effort to remain in the bloc. May underscored her position before chairing a Cabinet meeting at her country retreat, Chequers. She … Continue reading
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Hundreds of thousands of people whose personal fates hinge on whether Britain leaves the European Union or stays don’t even have a say in the matter: Polish immigrants, a community so numerous that Polish has become Britain’s second most-spoken language. When Poland and many other countries once behind the Iron Curtain … Continue reading
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The Latest on the flow of migrants into Europe (all times local): 6:35 p.m. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe has started training Albanian border guards to prepare them for a possible influx of refugees. Migrants may be forced to use the country as a new route into Western … Continue reading
BRUSSELS (AP) — The Latest on the influx of migrants in Europe (all times local): 6 p.m. The man leading European Union talks on the contested deal with Turkey to deport thousands of migrants says a lot of work remains to be done if the agreement is to be finalized at an EU summit on … Continue reading
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The European Union told member states Wednesday, Mar. 16, they “urgently need to deliver” on commitments to resettle more refugees on the continent, as the number of refugees arriving in Greece since the start of 2015 reached the 1 million mark. The demand came on the eve of a summit … Continue reading
PRAGUE (AP) — So where should the next impenetrable razor-wire border fence in Europe be built? Hungary’s right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban thinks he knows the best place — on Macedonia’s and Bulgaria’s borders with Greece — smack along the main immigration route from the Middle East to Western Europe. He says it’s necessary because … Continue reading
SOPRON, Hungary (AP) — The Hungarian city of Sopron, population 50,000, boasts an abundance of beauty shops and 200 dentists — one for every 250 residents. Most businesses don’t target the locals, though; they’re looking at the Austrians streaming across the nearby border to shop for bargains. Such cross-border traffic could soon suffer, as the … Continue reading
JERUSALEM (AP) — The European Union’s move to label goods produced in Israeli settlements is the latest expression of international disapproval of one of the country’s most controversial policies. The Palestinians view Jewish settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem as a major obstacle to reaching any two-state solution, saying they carve up lands expected to … Continue reading
CHISINAU, Moldova (AP) — The Moldovan government lost a no-confidence vote Thursday and was dismissed by Parliament, plunging the impoverished East European country into uncertainty. Sixty-five lawmakers in the 101-seat legislature voted against the government of Prime Minister Valeriu Strelet, who was appointed July 30. Parliament now has three months to approve a new government … Continue reading
BRUSSELS (AP) — European and Balkan leaders agreed on measures early Monday to slow the movement of tens of thousands whose flight from war and poverty has overwhelmed border guards and reception centers and heightened tension among nations along the route to the European Union’s heartland. In a statement to paper over deep divisions about … Continue reading
PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Opposition lawmakers in Kosovo disrupted parliament’s session on Thursday, using tear gas and whistles to protest the government’s recent EU-sponsored deal with Serbia giving the country’s Serb-majority areas greater powers. The opposition wants the government to backtrack from the deal, saying it endangers Kosovo’s territorial integrity. The governing coalition says the … Continue reading
ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — One month after the body of 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi washed up on a Turkish beach — and a week after the European Union agreed to secure its borders — the migrant crisis has largely fallen off the front pages and reporters are going home. But the human tide keeps rolling northward … Continue reading
BRUSSELS (AP) — Deeply divided European Union ministers agreed Tuesday to relocate 120,000 asylum-seekers to ease the strain on Greece and Italy, which are on the front line of the migrant flood. But a senior European leader conceded the move was only a small step toward resolving one of the worst crises ever faced by … Continue reading
Spartan Echo 