Europe

MADRID (Reuters) - Venezuela’s opposition leader Juan Guaido joined thousands of supporters at a demonstration in Madrid on Saturday after arriving in Spain on the last leg of a European tour.

Speaking in a central square packed with supporters holding signs calling for ‘democracy’, Guaido emphasized the importance of international support in unseating Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro from power.

26 Jan 2019; MEMO: Pope Francis met Iraq’s president on Saturday and the two agreed that the country’s sovereignty must be respected, following attacks on Iraqi territory this month by the United States and Iran.

President Barham Salih held private talks for about 30 minutes with the pope and then met the Vatican’s two top diplomats, Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Paul Gallagher, its foreign minister.

26 Jan 2019; MEMO: Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund is in talks to buy English soccer club Newcastle United for about 340 million pounds ($447 million), a source familiar with the situation told Reuters, confirming a report in the Wall Street Journal earlier on Saturday, reports Reuters.

DUBLIN (Reuters) - The party of Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar is trailing its main rival ahead of a general election on Feb. 8, a third consecutive poll showed on Sunday, with data indicating few voters trust it on the key issues of housing and health.

The Sunday Business Post/Red C poll showed support for Varadkar’s Fine Gael party had fallen seven percentage points to 23% since its last poll in November while fellow center-right rival Fianna Fail was up two points to 26%.

PARIS, Jan. 25 (Xinhua) -- French judges placed seven men under formal investigation on suspicion of planning assaults in the western city of Brest, where France's second main military port is located, local radio reported on Saturday.

The men, aged 16 to 38, are suspected of plotting attacks against several targets, the report said, citing a source close to the investigation.

The suspects were put under formal investigation over charges "of belonging to a criminal association in relation to a terrorist undertaking." They would stay in custody pending trial, it reported.

BEIRUT, Jan 26 (NNN-NNA) – French President, Emmanuel Macron, assured that, France is committed to supporting Lebanon to preserve its unity and stability, said a statement by the Lebanese Presidency.

“We hope that this new cabinet works on achieving the Lebanese people’s hopes, by implementing the reforms promised during the CEDRE Conference,” Macron said, during a phone call with Lebanese President, Michel Aoun, to congratulate him on the government formation.

MOSCOW, January 25. /TASS/: Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has signed a decree to approve a draft protocol on amending an agreement with Russia on gas supplies.

YEREVAN, January 25. /TASS/: Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at a big press conference on Saturday he might meet with Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev on the sidelines of the Munich security conference that would take place in mid-February.

The Armenian premier’s press conference was broadcast live from the town of Kapan in the country’s south by local TV channels.

SEVASTOPOL, January 25. /TASS/: The Black Sea Fleet’s minesweepers Kovrovets and Ivan Golubets held drills in the Black Sea, the Fleet’s press office reported on Saturday.

MOSCOW, January 24. /TASS/: Russian Helicopters (a Rostech subsidiary) developed a new version of the Mi-8AMTSh-VN Special Forces helicopter with enhanced weapons, says CEO Andrey Boginsky.

Last summer, Russian Helicopters signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense to furnish 10 original version helicopters to the Russian Special Operations Forces.

"We already have an upgraded appearance of the AMTSh-VN. Let’s say, it has expanded its options and capabilities - not so much the vehicle itself, but its extra equipment," Boginsky said.