PARIS – President Nicolas Sarkozy denied allegations yesterday that his party received illegal campaign donations in cash from France’s richest woman via Labour Minister Eric Woerth as part of a vast system of patronage.
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TEHRAN – Iranian planes continue to refuel at airports around the world, an official said yesterday, a day after an Iranian news report said aircraft had been denied fuel in Germany, Britain and a Gulf Arab state due to U.S. sanctions.
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HOUSTON/NEW YORK – Drilling of a relief well to halt the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is a week ahead of schedule, the U.S. official overseeing the response to the disaster said yesterday.
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WASHINGTON – U.S. President Barack Obama urged Israel and the Palestinians yesterday to resume direct peace talks by September and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised “concrete steps” to clear the way.
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BERLIN – German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition reached agreement yesterday on how to tackle a deficit in the public health system, an area of bitter dispute that has threatened the unity of her embattled government.
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KABUL – A former Taliban governor turned Afghan government official dismissed the peace process as a “joke”, saying Afghanistan cannot seek peace with the insurgents only by trying to woo their rank and file.
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DIYARBAKIR, Turkey – Turkey’s military and civilian leaders signalled growing frustration with the United States and Iraq yesterday over their role in the fight against Kurdish rebels after a new attack on a Turkish base killed 15.
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KISLOVODSK, Russia – Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin yesterday unveiled a new strategy aimed at foiling Islamist insurgency in the North Caucasus, promising to reduce grinding poverty and stamp out rampant corruption.
