The European Union’s top diplomat on Saturday welcomed the “initial progress” made in UN-brokered talks to end Libya’s civil war, conducted this week in Geneva. “Some steps in the right direction have been taken,” EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement, adding however that there is “still …

Libya’s army announced a ceasefire on Sunday, joining an Islamist-backed militia alliance in declaring a truce that the UN hailed as a “significant” step towards ending months of violence. “We declare a ceasefire from midnight [22:00 GMT] Sunday,” the army said, stressing however that it would continue to pursue “terrorists”, …

Kurdish fighters battling the Islamic State ıf Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Syria’s Kobane have captured a strategic hilltop, giving them line of fire over the town, a monitor said Jan. 19. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Kurdish People’s Defense Units (YPG) had seized the …