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Syria Kurds Expected to Declare Federal System

Kurdish-led parties meeting in northern Syria are expected to declare a new federal system in areas under their control, Kurdish officials told AFP on Wednesday.

The move, which would expand an already existing system of self-administration, is likely to anger Turkey which is wary of any bid by Syrian Kurds to solidify their autonomy and their control of territory.

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Germany Bans Neo-Nazi Group, Carries out Sweeping Raids

Germany banned a neo-Nazi group called the "White Wolves Terror Crew" on Wednesday after police targeted its members in dawn raids in 10 states.

Police confiscated weapons, propaganda leaflets and data carriers in the raids against the far-right group, said Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere, announcing the ban on the group whose German name is "Weisse Woelfe Terrorcrew" or WWT.

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Turkish Police Hold Eight Pro-Kurdish Lawyers in Raid

Turkish police detained eight lawyers on Wednesday as part of a crackdown on pro-Kurdish activists, their organization said, after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he wanted to widen the definition of "terrorism" to include academics, journalists and other opponents.

The detentions follow the arrest of three Turkish academics on Tuesday on charges of "terrorist propaganda" for signing a petition condemning military actions in operations against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

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Germany Tightens Rape Law in Wake of Cologne Assaults

The German government on Wednesday agreed to tighten the country's rape law to cover cases in which a victim withheld consent but did not physically fight back.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet signed off on the measure, which still requires parliamentary approval, after a rash of sexual assaults in crowds on New Year's Eve in the western city of Cologne drew intense media coverage.

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Iran Fire Festival Celebrations Kill Three, Injure 2,500

Iran's annual fire festival ahead of the Persian New Year claimed three lives and injured more than 2,500, hundreds of whom remain hospitalized, officials said Wednesday.

Each year Iranians celebrate Chaharshanbeh-Soori, an ancient Zoroastrian tradition on the eve of the last Wednesday of the Iranian calendar, by jumping over bonfires.

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On Patrol with Macedonian Troops at Europe's Closed Gate

Macedonian soldiers trudge through torrential rain in a borderland once home to quiet vineyards, searching for migrants trying to sneak through a hole in the locked-down gate to western Europe.

The voices of refugee children drift across from Greece, just the other side of barbed-wire topped fencing, where a multitude of colorful tents can be seen with clothes strung out on lines between them.

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Two Suicide Bombers Kill 22 in Maiduguri, NE Nigeria

At least 22 people were killed in a twin suicide bombing at a mosque in northeast Nigeria Wednesday, prompting condemnation from President Muhammadu Buhari and stoking fresh fears about security.

The attack, carried out by two women disguised as men, took place at about 5:30 am (0430 GMT) in the Molai district of Maiduguri, which Boko Haram insurgents have repeatedly targeted in the past.

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Breivik, a Nazi 'to the Death', Says Norway Trying to Kill him

Mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik vowed to fight "to the death" for Nazism as he took the stand Wednesday in his lawsuit against the Norwegian state, confirming fears he would use the platform to grandstand his extremist views.

"I have fought for National Socialism for 25 years, and I will fight for it to the death," he said of the Nazi party's political doctrine.

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Pakistan Court Lifts Travel Ban on Former Ruler Musharraf

Pakistan's top court on Wednesday ordered the government to lift a travel ban on former military ruler Pervez Musharraf, a move that could let him leave the country while awaiting trial for treason.

Musharraf's lawyers say he needs to go abroad for urgent spinal treatment not available in Pakistan. He was placed on the "Exit Control List" (ECL) in 2013 after he returned to the country on an ill-fated mission to contest elections. 

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Clinton, Trump Move Closer to White House Nominations

Hillary Clinton took a monumental step toward clinching the Democratic party's White House nomination, while Donald Trump's seemingly unstoppable rush to victory hit a bump in Ohio.

Trump on Tuesday won key Republican primaries in Illinois, North Carolina and Florida -- where he thumped home state Senator Marco Rubio, who immediately announced he was suspending his presidential campaign.

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