Far-right leaders in Europe condemn EU
PRAGUE — Far-right populists in Europe vowed Saturday to work together to create a new model of continental cooperation that is far removed from the European Union.
Leaders of parties from France, the Netherlands, Italy, Austria, Britain and other countries met in Prague to discuss ideas for Europe’s future.
They criticized the EU for its migrant policies, accused its leader of trying to create a superstate run by Brussels, and praised U.S. President Donald Trump’s approach to migration.
Marine Le Pen, leader of France’s far-right National Front, blamed the EU for getting “everything wrong.”
“Because we love Europe, we accuse the EU of killing Europe,” Le Pen told reporters. She said parties like hers want to save Europe “by preserving nation-states.”
“We are not xenophobes; we are opponents of the European Union,” Le Pen said, calling it a “disastrous organization, which is leading our continent to destruction through dilution by drowning it in migrants, by the negation of our respective countries, by the draining of our diversity.”
Geert Wilders, founder of the Dutch anti-Islam Party for Freedom, followed suit.
“My party is convinced that the Netherlands would be better off outside the European Union, and it will be better for our economy, for our security,” Wilders said.
Syrian forces push deep into rebel turf
BEIRUT — Syrian government forces Saturday entered parts of the northwestern rebel-held province of Idlib in one of their deepest incursions into an area where President Bashar Assad’s government has almost no presence.
Syrian government forces and their allies have been pushing toward Idlib from the central province of Hama for weeks, capturing villages from militants led by the al-Qaida-linked Levant Liberation Committee. The government forces broke through recently before being pushed back by insurgents.
The government-controlled Syrian Central Military Media said troops Saturday captured the village of Tal al-Khanazeer on the southeastern edge of Idlib.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group, said Tal al-Khanazeer was captured after intense fighting and airstrikes.
270 migrants rescued off Libyan coast
TRIPOLI, Libya — The Libyan coast guard rescued at least 270 migrants off the country’s shores, a navy official said Saturday, raising the number of migrants rescued in less than a week to more than 450.
El-Hadi Kheil said the Arab and African migrants, who included women and children, were found at sea in an area between the coastal towns of Garabulli and Zliten, east of the capital, Tripoli, where they were taken to a naval base.
“We were lost and didn’t know where to direct our boat,” said Omar Yusef, a Sudanese migrant. “We called the coast guard, and a helicopter came and guided us.”
Doctors from United Nations agencies received them at the naval base to provide medical assistance before the migrants were transferred to a Tripoli detention center.
Libya descended into chaos after a 2011 uprising that toppled and later killed longtime ruler Moammar Gadhafi. It has since become a frequently used, perilous route to Europe for those fleeing poverty and civil war in the region.
Nigeria arrests 400 linked to extremists
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria — Military authorities said Nigerian soldiers have arrested more than 400 people associated with the Boko Haram extremist group hiding on the islands of Lake Chad, including fighters, wives and children.
The military said many Boko Haram insurgents were killed, but it did not give details.
Nigeria arrested 167 Boko Haram fighters, 67 women and 173 children. The women and children will be handed over to displacement camps after investigations are conducted, the military said.
The two-week operation included air and ground offensives, authorities said.
Another 57 insurgents were arrested during a separate operation in another part of northeast Nigeria.
Boko Haram has been blamed for more than 20,000 deaths during its eight-year insurgency, which has spilled over into neighboring countries and created a humanitarian crisis with millions of people displaced.
Human-rights groups have expressed concern about the number of women and children who have been arrested in the fight against Boko Haram.