India to seek downgrading of Pakistan on terrorism financing list

India's finance minister said on Thursday the government will request that Pakistan be downgraded by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a global body created to counter terrorism financing and money laundering.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2VD7oX6

Diamond jewelry linked to Malaysian fund scandal to be handed to U.S.

A $1.7 million diamond jewelry set, allegedly bought for the mother of fugitive Malaysian financier Low Taek Jho, will be handed over to the U.S. government, U.S. prosecutors said in a court filing.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2VCG6zR

Libya coast guard detains 113 migrants during lull in fighting

The Libyan coast guard has stopped 113 migrants trying to reach Italy over the past two days, the United Nations said on Wednesday, as boat departures resume following a lull in fighting between rival forces in Libya.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2J6h0CZ

UAE says 'extremist militias' control Libyan capital: tweet

"Extremist militias" controlling the Libyan capital, Tripoli, were "derailing" the search for a political solution to the country's crisis, a senior United Arab Emirates (UAE) official said on Thursday.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2IVVWj8

Saudi Arabia assists Iranian oil tanker in Red Sea, no injuries

Saudi Arabia's coast guard assisted an Iranian oil tanker with engine trouble off the coast of Jeddah in the Red Sea after Riyadh received a request for help from Iran, the state news agency SPA said on Thursday.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2vwOaUj

India plans to evacuate 800,000 as cyclone nears east coast

India will use boats, buses and trains to evacuate 800,000 people along its east coast on Thursday ahead of an approaching cyclone that is forecast to make landfall within 24 hours, officials said.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2Y2Z6FA

Caribbean nation of St. Lucia quarantines cruise ship over measles case

The Caribbean nation of St. Lucia has imposed a quarantine on a visiting cruise ship, barring any passengers or crew from leaving the boat while in port, after a case of measles was diagnosed on board, the island's chief medical officer said.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2Jf5k0y

Thai king surprises with royal wedding ahead of coronation

Just days before his official coronation, Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn on Wednesday married the deputy head of his personal guard force and gave her the title Queen Suthida.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2ZPEpys

Factbox: Thai king's elaborate coronation by the numbers

Thailand's coronation ceremonies for King Maha Vajiralongkorn on May 4-6 will be the first the Southeast Asian nation has seen in 69 years, when the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej was crowned in 1950.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2XVrx80

Factbox: The royal instruments for Thai king's coronation

During Thailand's main coronation event for King Maha Vajiralongkorn on May 4, the monarch will be presented with five royal regalia, which are treated as symbols of kingship, marking the legitimacy of his reign.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2GZ0CCY

U.S. judge rules Spanish museum can keep Pissarro confiscated by Nazis

A Madrid museum cannot be forced to return a Camille Pissarro painting that was seized by the Nazis from its Jewish owners during World War Two, despite the institution's failure to honor its "moral commitments," a federal judge in California has ruled.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2IW17j2

Maduro hangs on as Venezuelan protests peter out

Venezuelans heeded opposition leader Juan Guaido's call to take to the streets on Wednesday in a bid to force President Nicolas Maduro from power, but there was little concrete sign of change in a crisis that increasingly looks like a political stalemate.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2ITQtJN

UK's May fires defense secretary over Huawei leak

British Prime Minister Theresa May fired her defense minister on Wednesday over a leak of discussions in the National Security Council about Chinese telecoms company Huawei, the latest of her allies to be ousted from government.

from Reuters: World News https://reut.rs/2V8zkCH