Religion bill fans tensions in Montenegro

Lawmakers in Montenegro passed a controversial bill on religion that may strip its biggest denomination — part of the Serbian Orthodox Church — of vast assets, and fan passions in a region still reeling from ethnic conflict.

The former Yugoslav republic ignored objections from Russia and former ally Serbia as it adopted the law early Friday. The legislation requires religious communities to prove ownership over land and places of worship or see the property become assets of the state. At stake are hundreds of churches and monasteries, many built in the Middle Ages.

Opponents of the bill held street rallies in several Montenegrin cities. At least 18 opposition deputies were detained by police for inciting violence, most of whom were released by Friday evening, while hundreds of opposition supporters took to the streets of capital Podgorica and other cities in the Adriatic republic, state broadcaster RTCG reported. Police were also deployed around the parliament to keep angry opposition activists away from the building.

Greece upgrades jets

Greece says it has signed an agreement with U.S. defense contractor Lockheed Martin that will allow a major upgrade of its F-16 fighter jet fleet over the next seven years as the country emerges from a financial crisis and faces renewed tension with neighbor and fellow NATO member Turkey.

The defense ministry procurement agency announced Friday that the deal was signed Tuesday finalizing details of Lockheed’s use of a Greek subcontractor.

The defense minister, Nikos Panagiotopoulos, told parliament earlier this month that 84 F-16 jets would be upgraded by 2027 to the advanced-tech Viper class in a program estimated at $1.5 billion.

The U.S. State Department approved the potential deal in 2017, saying it advanced U.S. objectives “by helping to improve the security of a NATO ally which is an important partner for political stability and economic progress in Europe.”

Executions condemned

LAGOS, Nigeria — Nigeria’s government on Friday condemned extremists linked to the Islamic State group after a video circulated of 11 hostages, most of them Christians, being executed. They were thought to be killed on Christmas Day.

President Muhammadu Buhari said in a statement he was “profoundly saddened and shocked by the death of innocent hostages in the hands of remorseless, godless, callous gangs of mass murderers that have given Islam a bad name through their atrocities.”

The extremist group, which calls itself the Islamic State West Africa Province, said the captives were executed as revenge for the killing of Islamic State group leaders in Iraq and Syria in October. The video was circulated Thursday.

Details of soldier’s death

WASHINGTON — A U.S. Special Forces soldier who died in Afghanistan on Monday was seizing a Taliban weapons cache when he was killed, the U.S. military said Friday.

Sgt. 1st Class Michael Goble, 33, was with his unit when its members discovered an undisclosed amount of Taliban weapons in Kunduz Province, said Eric Pahon, a spokesman for the U.S. forces in Afghanistan. Mr. Pahon said Sgt. Goble and others were clearing out the cache when an explosion happened.

Mr. Pahon said the Taliban wrongly claimed that the service members were in a convoy and targeted by a roadside bomb during a raid.