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Swedish Teenager Rescued From IS By Kurds
Iraqi Kurdish forces rescued a 16-year-old Swedish girl from Islamic State militants near the city of Mosul last Wednesday, Kurdish officials say.
A statement by the Kurdistan Region Security Council (KRSC) said the girl was from the town of Boras. She was "misled by an \[IS\] member in Sweden to travel to Syria and later to Mosul", it added.
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Belgium Tightens Border Control Over Migrant Eviction
Belgium has announced it has imposed controls on its border with France amid fears of an influx of migrants.
Up to 290 police officers would be deployed along the border, said Interior Minister Jan Jambon. The move comes as a French court deliberates over the legality of plans imminently to evict thousands of migrants from part of the "Jungle" camp in Calais. "They're already on their way here," Mr Jambon was quoted as saying.
He said the controls, which entail a suspension of the EU's Schengen accord allowing passport-free travel, would last "as long as necessary".
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Vimto Used By IS As Fake Blood
The Islamic State group (IS) is being mocked online after claims it faked footage of battles in its propaganda videos, and even used the soft drink Vimto as fake blood.
The claims were contained in a video featuring an alleged IS defector, and came from a rival jihadi group which is vying for influence in Yemen. The video begins with the defector describing how he was asked to attack mosques by IS commanders. But the section of the video that really captured the imagination of Twitter users outlines alleged IS trickery in filming fake battle scenes which the group falsely claimed as genuine mil…
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Czech Businessman Linked To Mafia Jailed In South Africa
A South African court has sentenced a Czech businessman to 35 years in jail for attempted murder and kidnapping.
The charges against Radovan Krejcir, seen as the kingpin of Johannesburg's criminal underworld, date back to a drug deal in 2013. He was accused of ordering the kidnapping a man whose brother had disappeared with 25kg (55lbs) of crystal meth. The man testified that Krejcir poured boiling water over his head. Krejcir seems to be synonymous with drama, having tried to escape from custody a number of times.
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Truce In Syria To Start On 27 February
The US and Russia have announced that a planned cessation of hostilities in Syria will come into effect at midnight on 27 February.
Their statement said the truce did not include so-called Islamic State (IS) and the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front.
World powers agreed on 12 February that a truce would come into effect within a week, but that deadline passed and scepticism remains over the new plan. On Sunday 140 died in bombings in Homs and Damascus as the violence continued. More than 250,000 Syrians have been killed in the conflict which began in March 2011.
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The Capture Of El Chapo
Many are the rumours surrounding the life of Mexico's most infamous drug lord, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.
Reportedly one of the richest men in the world, the 61-year-old Guzman has escaped from two maximum security jails.
The first time, he was on the run for 13 years. During this time, he married a young Mexican woman, Emma Coronel, on her 18th birthday. Guzman was recaptured in February 2014 while he was spending time with Ms Coronel at a Mexican beach resort.
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UK's Gun Laws Questioned
Gun debate in Britain tends to focus on what is happening in the US, but more than 700,000 firearm owners live in England and Wales. Who are they, and why do some want laws relaxed? "It's frustrating for me that when you tell someone you own a gun you're instantly labelled a weirdo. It's like a secret society," Callum Long-Collins explains from a gun shop in Botley Mills, Hampshire. He owns seven firearms, but did not want to show them in his own home in case it gave the wrong impression and scared the neighbours. "What people jump to is that I own guns for illicit reasons. But I have absolutely no intention of using a gun in the bad way - I just enjoy the sport of shooting," he adds.
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Families Of San Bernadino Victims Urge Apple To Help FBI
A lawyer representing victims of the San Bernadino killers will file a legal brief telling Apple to cooperate with the FBI in its investigation.
Stephen Larson, a former judge, said he intends to file legal paperwork on their behalf next month.
The FBI has ordered Apple to disable the security software on the killer's handset but the tech giant has refused. In a new statement FBI Director James Comey said the demand was "about the victims and justice". "They were targeted by terrorists, and they need to know why, how this could happen," said Stephen Larson.
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Fire At Migrant Shelter In Germany The Work Of Arsonists
A fire which broke out at a building planned to house migrants in eastern Germany was greeted with cheers from some onlookers, police say.
The fire in the town of Bautzen in the early hours of Sunday morning destroyed the roof of a former hotel, which was being converted into a migrant shelter. Police said some of the crowd tried to prevent firefighters from extinguishing the blaze, which destroyed the roof.
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European Union: UK Security At Risk If The No Vote Wins
The UK will be taking a "big gamble" with its security if it votes to leave the European Union, defence secretary Michael Fallon has claimed.
The "collective weight" of partnerships such as the EU made it easier to deal with global threats. David Cameron will face MPs later as he presents his case for the UK remaining within the 28-member organisation. But Mayor of London Boris Johnson has again insisted that the country has a "great future" outside the EU. Mr Johnson's declaration on Sunday that he backs EU exit is being seen as a significant blow to Mr Cameron's campaign to remain in the EU.…
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