NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
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Venezuela talks: Norway’s Foreign Ministry says negotiations aimed at resolving Venezuela’s political deadlock are to resume on the Caribbean island of Barbados this week. The Scandinavian nation is acting as a mediator in the talks, and it said representatives of Venezuela’s government and opposition have agreed to meet in Barbados to seek a “constitutional” solution to the country’s crisis. Juan Guaido, head of the oppositioncontrolled congress, has tried to force President Nicolas Maduro out of office. Guaido is supported by the U.S. and about four dozen other nations. Guaido confirmed the resumption of negotiations, saying his ultimate goal is to secure new elections.
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Errant flyby: The commander of the Swiss air force’s aerial display team has apologized after his unit performed a lowaltitude pass over the wrong municipality. Residents of Langenbruck looked up in vain Saturday while expecting to see Switzerland’s Patrouille Suisse squadron swoop by to mark the centenary of the death of local aviation pioneer Oskar Bider. The team instead flew over nearby Muemliswil. The Defense Ministry said Monday that the formation was distracted by an unauthorized helicopter in the area. The team leader spotted what he thought was a tent for the Langenbruck celebration that turned out to be for a yodeling festival in Muemliswil.
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Turkey politics: A former Turkish deputy prime minister and key figure in President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling party resigned Monday, signaling plans to form a rival political party. Ali Babacan, who had also served as economy and foreign affairs minister in various Erdogan governments, cited deep differences “in principles, values and ideas” with the ruling Justice and Development Party. Babacan is rumored to be planning to form a splinter party along with former President Abdullah Gul and others said to be disgruntled with Erdogan’s increasingly authoritarian rule. “The need to start a new effort for Turkey’s present and future has become inevitable,” Babacan said.
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Iran earthquake: A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck a town Monday in Iran’s oilrich southwest, injuring more than 100 people and damaging buildings. The quake hit near the town of Masjid Soleiman in Khuzestan province, some 280 miles southwest of the capital, Tehran. Local witness Iman Nazarpour said the quake damaged buildings in the center of town. The town is where the first oil well in Iran and the Middle East was explored. State TV reported rescue teams were deployed to the region. The tremors were felt as far as the neighboring Persian Gulf country of Kuwait. In 2003, a magnitude 6.6 earthquake flattened the historic city of Bam in southern Iran, killing 26,000 people.
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Islamic State: Germany has refused an American request to send ground troops to Syria as part of its contribution to fighting the Islamic State group. The U.S. envoy for Syria, James Jeffrey, asked the German government last week to contribute ground troops to the coalition led by the United States. Government spokesman Steffen Seibert said Monday: “Germany has for years made a considerable and internationally recognized contribution” to the coalition that includes training Iraqi troops, doing aerial reconnaissance and refueling allied aircraft. He said Germany favors continuing its existing coalition functions and “it’s known that this doesn’t include ground troops.” Seibert said Berlin is discussing with allies the future military and civilian efforts needed to stabilize the region.