Months after shooting, Malala at school
Malala Yousafzai, 15, waves as she is discharged from a hospital in central England earlier this year.
March 19th, 2013
01:47 PM ET

Months after shooting, Malala at school

For the first time since the Taliban shot her five months ago, Pakistani teenager Malala Yousafzai has done what made her a target of the would-be assassins: She's gone to school.

The 15-year-old on Tuesday attended Edgbaston High School in Birmingham, England, the city in which doctors treated her after she received initial care in Pakistan, a public relations agency working with her announced.

FULL STORY
January 18th, 2013
05:35 PM ET

Report: 12 hostages killed in Algeria rescue operation

  • A hostage situation at a gas plant deep in the Algerian desert enters its third day.
  • Confusion surrounds the fate of potentially dozens of foreign hostages held by Islamist militants.
  • It remains unclear how many hostages have been killed or injured, and how many are still held.
  • Below are the latest updates as we get them. Also, you can read our full story.

[Updated at 5:33 p.m. ET] Algerian forces are looking to negotiate the release of remaining foreign captives, Algerian state media reports, but are holding out the threat of further action.

"The special forces of the (Algerian army) are still seeking a peaceful settlement before neutralizing the terrorist group currently entrenched in the refinery, and free a group of hostages who are still detained," according to a report by Algerian state news agency APS.

[Updated at 3:58 p.m. ET] One Frenchman was killed and three others were saved in an operation to free hostages in Algeria, the press office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Paris says.

[Updated at 1:55 p.m. ET] Twelve hostages have been killed since Algerian Special Forces launched a ground operation on Thursday to free captives held by militants at a gas field complex, APS, the official Algerian news agency, reported, citing a security source.

[Updated at 1:19 p.m. ET] A U.S. State Department spokeswoman says the U.S. will not negotiate a prisoner exchange with terrorists holding captives in Algeria. It was unclear how many, if any, Americans were being held hostage.

FULL POST

January 15th, 2013
01:29 PM ET

French president on Mali: We needed to stop the rebels

[Updated at 1:29 p.m. ET] Islamist rebels would have taken Mali's capital had France's military not intervened in the African nation in the last few days, French President Francois Hollande said Tuesday.

"If we had not taken up our responsibility and if on Friday morning we had not acted with this intervention, where would Mali be today?" he asked.

The French defense minister told CNN that up to 800 troops are in Mali to help Malian forces in an offensive against Islamist militants, and that up to 1,700 total French forces - including the 800 in Mali - are involved in a variety of capacities, such as offering logistical support from various French military bases across Africa.

Hollande, speaking on a visit to the United Arab Emirates, said France intends to "make way as quickly as possible" for an African force.

Read more about France's military intervention, which began Friday.

France's Brigitte Bardot might want Russian citizenship, too
This February 2001 file photo shows animal rights activist Brigitte Bardot in Romania.
January 4th, 2013
10:38 AM ET

France's Brigitte Bardot might want Russian citizenship, too

First it was Gerard Depardieu. Now another famed French movie star, Brigitte Bardot, might be interested in Russian citizenship.

The 78-year-old Bardot, an animal rights campaigner, will request Russian nationality Friday if plans to euthanize two elephants at a zoo in the French city of Lyon go ahead, her foundation said.

She has asked French President Francois Hollande to intervene on behalf of the elephants, who are believed to have tuberculosis. She told French newspaper Le Parisien that the former circus elephants could be helped with the right veterinary care and that her foundation could help find them a more suitable place to live.

This comes a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin gave Russian citizenship to Depardieu, who was angry about French plans to raise taxes.

FULL STORY
Radical cleric Abu Qatada to be released on bail
November 12th, 2012
11:05 AM ET

Radical cleric Abu Qatada to be released on bail

[Updated at 11:05 a.m. ET] Abu Qatada is expected to be released on Tuesday, but his bail conditions are still being set, Britain’s Judicial Communications Office said Monday.

Britain's Special Immigration Appeals Commission upheld the radical cleric's appeal against deportation to Jordan earlier Monday

[Posted at 7:47 a.m. ET] Radical cleric Abu Qatada has won a legal battle that means he will not be deported from the United Kingdom to Jordan, the latest round in a long-running battle over British efforts to deport the man accused of funding terrorist groups and said to have inspired one of the 9/11 hijackers.

FULL POST

March 19th, 2012
01:17 PM ET

4 killed in shooting at French Jewish school

A teacher was gunned down along with his two children at a Jewish school in southern France Monday, while the director of the school saw his daughter shot and killed in front of him, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said in a somber appearance at the school.

Monday's killing of four people at Ozar Hatorah school in Toulouse was a "national tragedy," Sarkozy said. He called for a minute's silence in French schools on Tuesday.

It is the third time in the past 10 days that a gunman on a motorcycle has fired on members of ethnic minorities in the southwest of France.

French soldiers of north African origin were shot and killed on March 11 and March 15.

One of the guns used Monday was also used in the earlier killings, said Elisabeth Allannic, a spokeswoman for judicial authorities in Paris. A court in Paris Monday opened an investigation into all three killings, under anti-terrorism powers.

FULL STORY
Post by:
Filed under: Crime • France