World

TUNIS, Tunisia – A group of almost 200 Egyptians have crossed into Tunisia from Libya, the first of thousands expected to flee the turmoil in the country. The execution of 21 Egyptian Christians by extremists and retaliatory Egyptian airstrikes has prompted many Egyptians to want to leave Libya. Authorities said …

BERLIN – Four Swiss journalists have won a case before the European Court of Human Rights over their use of hidden cameras. The reporters had used the cameras as part of a 2003 investigative documentary about misleading advice provided by insurance brokers. Zurich’s regional court in 2007 ordered the journalists, …

CAIRO – Egyptian authorities have detained two police officers on orders from a state prosecutor over allegations that they had tortured a lawyer to death inside a police station. The state MENA news agency says Prosecutor Mohammed Abdel-Shafi, in the Eastern Cairo prosecution department, summoned seven policemen from the station …

ROME – Italy and the Holy See have signed an accord to cooperate on fiscal matters, as the Vatican works to improve transparency after a string of financial scandals. Italy’s finance ministry and the Vatican announced the agreement on Wednesday. The ministry said “full cooperation” between Italy and the Holy …

MADRID – Nineteen former leaders from Latin America and Spain are pressuring Venezuela to release opposition politicians who have been detained. In a statement released by the foundation of former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, the leaders called for the politicians’ immediate release and for groups like the Organization …

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Saudi Arabian aviation authorities say they prevented an Iranian plane carrying 260 religious pilgrims from entering the kingdom’s airspace because the aircraft lacked appropriate permissions. The General Authority of Civil Aviation announced the move in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency on Thursday. …

JERUSALEM – As the international community moves to finalize a nuclear deal with Iran, Israel’s prime minister says crippling sanctions should be maintained against the Islamic Republic until the country ends its regional “aggression.” Benjamin Netanyahu has harshly criticized the U.S.-led framework deal with Iran, which offers relief from sanctions …

BERLIN – The German government plans to introduce legislation allowing phone and Internet records to be retained for up to 10 weeks, a new effort to push through a crime-fighting measure that has run into trouble in European courts. The European Union’s top court last year scrapped EU legislation allowing …

KUWAIT CITY – Kuwait’s state news agency says the state-run Kuwait Oil Co. has discovered four new oil fields. The Kuwait News Agency quoted KOC’s CEO Hashim Hashim on Sunday as saying that the discovery of these fields will “fortify Kuwait’s standing as an international producer of oil.” Hashim said …

MOSCOW – Russian investigators opened a new corruption case Wednesday against subcontractors building a space center where workers have gone unpaid for months and have appealed directly to President Vladimir Putin for help. The Vostochny Cosmodrome, under construction in a remote area in the Far East, is a priority project …