Israel: An Israeli official says Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has received Israeli citizenship after his British visa was not renewed. The official, from Israel's Immigration Ministry, says the Chelsea football club owner arrived in Israel today. Israel grants automatic citizenship to anyone of Jewish descent. Another official told Channel 10 News that Abramovich submitted a citizenship request "like any other person" with Israel's MoscowEembassy and was accepted. Britain said this month it would review long-term visas of rich Russians after the March poisonings of a former Russian spy and his daughter in the English city of Salisbury. Britain has accused Russia of exposing them to a nerve agent. Moscow denies the charge.
France: An anti-terrorism prosecutor says about 40 convicted terrorists are due to be released from French prisons this year and next, calling the re-entry into society of the unrepentant ones a "major risk." Francois Molins said on BFM television that France still faces a significant threat from homegrown supporters of the struggling Isis (Islamic State) group. Molins estimated that 600 to 700 French extremists are unaccounted for in the areas of Iraq and Syria claimed by Isis, though many have probably been killed.
Brazil: Cabinet ministers called on truckers to end a crippling eight-day strike that has led to major shortages and disruptions in Latin America's largest nation, saying the Government had gone as far as it could to meet their demands. The ministers spoke in Brasilia hours after President Michel Temer announced a series of measures aimed at getting truckers back to work.Temer said the Government would subsidise a 10 per cent drop in diesel prices for 60 days. He also said measures were being crafted to cut tolls for truckers and establish minimum freight rates, both key demands. It wasn't immediately clear how many truckers would accept the Government's stance. Several unions said they would start demobilising their blockades but needed a few days to talk to members. Other unions remained mum.
Mexico: Freight train robbers in Mexico are increasingly blocking tracks or loosening rails to stop trains and steal the contents. The federal rail agency said the number of cargo thefts increased from 532 in the last quarter of 2017 to 561 in the first quarter of 2018. While that's only a 5 percent increase, thieves are using more dangerous ways to stop the trains. In the past they often triggered the brakes on freight cars or uncoupled them. But in the first quarter, thieves blocked tracks with rocks or vehicles over 250 times, a 42 per cent increase over the fourth quarter. And they loosened or stole rail clips or other pieces of track 222 times, almost triple the fourth quarter total. That has led to train derailments in some cases.
Italy: Italian populists vowed to convert voter anger over their thwarted bid to govern for the first time into a kind of plebiscite on the European Union, financial markets and eurozone membership as the country found itself propelled to fresh elections as soon as the late northern summer. Carlo Cottarelli, an economist with International Monetary Fund experience, was asked by the Italian President to assemble a technocrat government to take the country to elections. Cottarelli said the return to the polls could come as early as after the August holiday break or, at the latest, at the start of 2019.
United States: The FBI says it was contacted about a YouTube channel associated with the Oklahoma City restaurant shooting suspect but determined no further action was needed. The FBI said it was contacted twice about the channel associated with 28-year-old Alexander Tilghman, killed by bystanders after wounding three people last Friday. Officials say a caller this month reported concerns about the channel, but didn't mention any potential threat of violence and didn't have knowledge of the man possessing weapons. The FBI says per protocol, no further investigation was warranted.
Congo: Officials began vaccinating health workers and others in Bikoro, where Congo's current Ebola outbreak was first declared at the beginning of May. Congo's Health Minister Oly Ilunga travelled to oversee the Ebola vaccinations of at least 10 people in Bikoro, where at least five of 12 Ebola deaths have happened. Congo's vaccination campaign, which began in Mbandaka last week, is targeting more than 1000 health workers and contacts of the sick in three health zones. More than 360 people were vaccinated before today, said Health Ministry spokeswoman Jessica Ilunga.
Belgium: The foreign ministers of Greece and Macedonia say they have concluded the main round of negotiations to end a long-standing dispute over the Macedonia name, with the final stage of talks to be led by the countries' prime ministers. Foreign ministers Nikos Kotzias of Greece and Nikola Dimitrov of Macedonia met in Brussels on the sidelines of a European Union meeting. In separate statements, they said further negotiations on the name issue would be directed by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Macedonia's Zoran Zaev. Zaev's Government has committed to modifying the republic's name to address Greek concerns that the current name implies a territorial claim to Greece's Macedonia region. In return, Athens has promised to lift its objections to Macedonia's Nato membership.
Spain: Spain's Parliament agreed to subject Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to a vote of no confidence this week in the wake of graft convictions of businesspeople and officials tied to his conservative Popular Party. The lower house of Spain's parliament, the Congress of Deputies, said it would hold a debate on Friday on whether Rajoy should be replaced by Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez and then vote on the opposition's no-confidence motion on Saturday NZT. All major parties, except for the ruling People's Party, are calling for Rajoy to step down, but the Prime Minister has fended off pressure until now.
- AP
