Israel: An Israeli official says Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has received Israeli citizenship after his British visa was not renewed. The official, from Israel's Immigration Ministry, says the Chelsea football club owner arrived in Israel today. Israel grants automatic citizenship to anyone of Jewish descent. Another official told Channel 10 News that Abramovich submitted a citizenship request "like any other person" with Israel's MoscowEembassy and was accepted. Britain said this month it would review long-term visas of rich Russians after the March poisonings of a former Russian spy and his daughter in the English city of Salisbury. Britain has accused Russia of exposing them to a nerve agent. Moscow denies the charge.
France: An anti-terrorism prosecutor says about 40 convicted terrorists are due to be released from French prisons this year and next, calling the re-entry into society of the unrepentant ones a "major risk." Francois Molins said on BFM television that France still faces a significant threat from homegrown supporters of the struggling Isis (Islamic State) group. Molins estimated that 600 to 700 French extremists are unaccounted for in the areas of Iraq and Syria claimed by Isis, though many have probably been killed.
Brazil: Cabinet ministers called on truckers to end a crippling eight-day strike that has led to major shortages and disruptions in Latin America's largest nation, saying the Government had gone as far as it could to meet their demands. The ministers spoke in Brasilia hours after President Michel Temer announced a series of measures aimed at getting truckers back to work.Temer said the Government would subsidise a 10 per cent drop in diesel prices for 60 days. He also said measures were being crafted to cut tolls for truckers and establish minimum freight rates, both key demands. It wasn't immediately clear how many truckers would accept the Government's stance. Several unions said they would start demobilising their blockades but needed a few days to talk to members. Other unions remained mum.
Mexico: Freight train robbers in Mexico are increasingly blocking tracks or loosening rails to stop trains and steal the contents. The federal rail agency said the number of cargo thefts increased from 532 in the last quarter of 2017 to 561 in the first quarter of 2018. While that's only a 5 percent increase, thieves are using more dangerous ways to stop the trains. In the past they often triggered the brakes on freight cars or uncoupled them. But in the first quarter, thieves blocked tracks with rocks or vehicles over 250 times, a 42 per cent increase over the fourth quarter. And they loosened or stole rail clips or other pieces of track 222 times, almost triple the fourth quarter total. That has led to train derailments in some cases.
