INTERNATIONAL

Donald Trump has congratulated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his victory in Sunday’s referendum that gave him sweeping new powers. In a phone call, the US president also thanked Mr Erdogan for supporting America’s missile strike on a Syrian government airbase on 7 April. In the poll, 51.4% of Turkish voters backed the changes. Mr Erdogan rejected criticism from ...

The Yes vote in the referendum that grants sweeping new powers to the president of Turkey is valid, the head of the electoral body says. Sadi Guven was speaking after the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) cited irregularities, including the use of unstamped ballot papers. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s push for an executive presidency succeeded with 51.4% voting for ...

The US and China are working on a “range of options” on North Korea, the US top security adviser has said, as tensions mount over the country’s nuclear and missile programmes. Lt Gen HR McMaster told ABC News there was consensus with China that this was a situation that “could not continue”. The comments come after a failed missile test ...

A huge car bomb has blasted a convoy of coaches carrying evacuees from government-held towns in Syria, killing at least 39 people, state media report. It shattered coaches and set cars on fire, leaving a trail of bodies, as the convoy waited at a marshalling point in rebel-held territory at Rashidin. Russian troops have reportedly moved to shield rebel evacuees ...

At least 90 militants from the Islamic State (IS) group were killed by a huge bomb dropped by the US in Afghanistan, a regional governor says. The most powerful non-nuclear bomb ever used by the US in combat was dropped on an IS base in Nangarhar province. A network of tunnels and caves was destroyed on Thursday evening local time, ...

Syria’s President Bashar-al Assad says reports of a chemical attack by his forces were “100% fabrication”. In an exclusive video interview with Agence France-Presse, he said “there was no order to make any attack”. More than 80 people were killed in the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhoun on 4 April, and hundreds suffered symptoms consistent with a nerve agent. Witnesses ...

US President Donald Trump has said Nato is “no longer obsolete”, reversing a stance that had alarmed allies. Hosting Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the White House, Mr Trump said the threat of terrorism had underlined the alliance’s importance. He called on Nato to do more to help Iraqi and Afghan “partners”. Mr Trump has repeatedly questioned Nato’s purpose, ...

German police have detained a suspect with “Islamist links” following a bomb attack on the bus of the Borussia Dortmund football team. Prosecutors also said one of the three explosive devices contained metal strips. Two letters claiming the attack on Tuesday evening were being investigated, they said. Prosecutors are treating the blasts as a terrorist attack but say the precise ...

Three explosions have hit a bus carrying the Borussia Dortmund football team to their home Champions League quarter-final match against Monaco. In a news conference, the head of Dortmund police said it was a targeted attack on the team. Player Marc Bartra underwent an operation after breaking a bone in his wrist. No other players were hurt. The state prosecutor ...

G7 nations have failed to agree on a proposal by Britain for sanctions against Russia in the wake of a deadly chemical attack they say was carried out by Moscow’s ally, Syria. Italy’s foreign minister said the group did not want to back Russia into a corner and preferred dialogue. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has moved on from ...