Slovakia's PM Fico still in intensive
care after assassination bid
BANSKA BYSTRICA (Slovakia), May 17: Slovakia's Prime Minister Robert Fico remains in intensive care, the government said on Friday, two days after he was shot at close range in an assassination attempt that stunned the small Central European nation and drew international condemnation. Earlier, local media reported that Slovak doctors would meet on Monday to assess whether Fico, who underwent hours of surgery, could be transported to the capital Bratislava from the central city of Banska Bystrica where he is being treated. In its short statement, the government said further information on Fico's health would be made public "when the situation allows". — Reuters
Four dead as heavy rains,
wind lash Texas
HOUSTON, May 17: Four people died in Texas on Thursday as heavy storms with winds up to 100 miles (160 kilometers) per hour lashed the southwestern US state, local authorities said. Streets in downtown Houston were covered in glass from blown-out windows, video and photos posted to social media showed, as the National Weather Service warned of "severe" thunderstorms and possible tornadoes. Downed trees and power lines littered residential areas, and around a million customers in the state had lost power-including more than 800,000 in Harris County, where Houston is located. The mayor of the city, the largest in Texas, said four people had died. — AFP
Turkey court jails Kurdish leader
for 42 years over 2014 unrest
ISTANBUL, May 17: A Turkish court on Thursday sentenced the former head of a pro-Kurdish party to 42 years in prison for his alleged role in deadly 2014 protests that erupted as Islamic State group jihadists overran the Syrian town of Kobane. In jail since 2016, Selahattin Demirtas, 51, a two-time election rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was convicted of dozens of crimes including undermining state unity and the country's integrity. — AFP
Israel strikes on Lebanon kill Hezbollah fighter, two children
BEIRUT, May 17: Israeli air strikes on Friday hit an area of southern Lebanon far from the border, with Hezbollah announcing one dead fighter and official media saying two Syrian children were killed. Hezbollah, a Hamas ally, has traded cross-border fire with Israeli forces almost daily since the Palestinian group's October 7 attack on southern Israel that sparked the war in Gaza, now in its eighth month. — AFP
French police kill man trying to
set fire to synagogue
ROUEN (France), May 17: French police on Friday shot dead a man armed with a knife and a crowbar who tried to set fire to a synagogue in the northern city of Rouen, adding to concerns over anti-Semitic violence in the country. The French Jewish community, the third largest in the world, has for months been on edge in the face of a growing number of attacks and desecrations of memorials. Emergency services were alerted after a fire was detected at the synagogue, with the man spotted on its roof brandishing an iron bar and a kitchen knife, the prosecutor handling the case said. — AFP
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