Police to dismantle Paris migrant camps
PARIS -- Police are preparing to dismantle camps holding at least 2,300 migrants in the French capital and order expulsions, France's interior minister said Wednesday amid a debate over how best to respond to the unrelenting arrival of migrants.
Two migrants drowned this month in canals and others have been injured in fights, increasing the pressure to act.
A burgeoning migrant camp in Paris, on a canal used by joggers and cyclists, is the focal point of a debate pitting Interior Minister Gerard Collomb against Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, who are at odds over how to treat the migrants and find a lasting solution.
France's quandary is shared across European nations seeking to manage the migrant flux, which has ebbed since the Syrian refugee crisis a few years ago but remains a steady challenge.
Expressing "regret" at Hidalgo's refusal to take the necessary steps to allow police to evacuate the migrants, Collomb said he had no choice but to order the evacuation.
Israeli military hits Hamas sites in Gaza
JERUSALEM -- The Israeli military said Tuesday that it struck Hamas infrastructure in Gaza after a group of militants entered Israel and torched a military post.
The military said it hit an underground security site and Hamas naval targets Tuesday and that the strikes were also in response to ongoing Hamas attempts to dispatch drones and burning kites that have burned Israeli agricultural fields.
No one was wounded in the strikes. Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said they are merely "a new unsuccessful attempt" to stop the Palestinian protests along the border.
Israeli fire has killed over 100 Palestinians during mass protests along the Gaza border since March.
Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said the strikes destroyed a Hamas tunnel, calling the group's military efforts a failure and waste of resources.
Man said to urge Prince George attack
LONDON -- An alleged supporter of the Islamic State militant group went on trial Wednesday in London over accusations he encouraged attacks on 4-year-old Prince George.
Prosecutors said 32-year-old Husnain Rashid provided an "e-toolkit for terrorism" on an online channel he ran under the name the Lone Mujahid.
Prosecutor Annabel Darlow told a jury that Rashid encouraged attacks on a range of targets, including "injecting poison into supermarket ice creams and targeting Prince George at his first school."
Prosecutors said one post included a photo of the prince, his school's address, a silhouette of a jihadi fighter and the message "even the royal family will not be left alone."
Rashid, a mosque teacher from Nelson in northwest England, is accused of encouraging "lone wolf" attacks and providing advice on using bombs, chemicals and knives.
Rashid denies preparing terrorist acts, encouraging terrorism and disseminating a terrorist publication.
Egyptian blogger held in wave of arrests
CAIRO -- An Egyptian activist and blogger known for documenting police abuse was detained Wednesday, security officials said, the latest in a new wave of arrests since elections earlier this year.
Wael Abbas was taken from his home in a Cairo suburb on accusations that include disseminating false news and joining an outlawed group, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to media.
The Arabic Network for Human Rights said police raided Abbas' home at dawn, seizing his computer and mobile phones. It says he was blindfolded before being taken to an unknown location.
Abbas has campaigned against torture in Egypt for well over a decade, before and after the 2011 uprising that toppled longtime dictator Hosni Mubarak.
Amnesty International on Twitter condemned Abbas' detention, saying his arrest is part of a crackdown by Egyptian authorities on freedom of expression.
A Section on 05/24/2018