US consulate

In a shocking turn of events, a series of explosions rattled the vicinity of the US Consulate in Erbil, Iraq, leaving a trail of destruction and claiming four lives, as reported by ABC News, citing Iraqi security sources.

Four people were killed while three others were kidnapped after a US convoy was attacked in Nigeria on Wednesday, CNN reported.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he would discuss strained US relations with President-elect Joe Biden when he takes office, playing down the possibility of sanctions over Turkey's purchase of Russian missile defense systems.

Hundreds of high school students formed human chains on the streets of Hong Kong today in support of the anti-government protests following a week of clashes in the Chinese-ruled metropolis, Reuters reported.

The metro stations, which were closed yesterday during violent clashes between protesters and police, have reopened today.

"Politicians and diplomats come and go, but what we have built will stay," US Ambassador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt said on Monday, commenting on ties between Athens and Washington.

The Center for Civic Reform, the US Consulate and the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce hosted a discussion in Thessaloniki on Thursday that focused on the emerging prospects of the northern port city, following the impressive American presence at the Thessaloniki International Fair in September, with more than 55 innovation leaders and 75 events that revealed the depth of US-Greek business

More than 130 Russian diplomats have been ordered to leave capital cities across the globe, as the West unites behind Britain over the Salisbury nerve agent attack.

Some 60 Russians are to be expelled from the US, while suspected intelligence officers in Canada, Ukraine, Australia, Albania, Macedonia and a number of EU states will also be ejected.

Following the high level of air pollution recorded in Kosovo's capital, Pristina, in the winter  months, BIRN Kosovo's TV show Jeta ne Kosove on Thursday summarise ten years of reporting on this problem and concluded that the damage to people's health was the biggest cost that citizens are paying.  

Turkey has squarely accused the US government of being behind the July 15, 2015 failed coup attempt against President Tayyip Erdogan.

The US Embassy in Greece said on Thursday that the US Consulate in Thessaloniki will remain closed due to plumbing problems on Thursday.