MONTREAL – The Cirque de Soleil has signed a deal to sell a majority stake in the famed circus group to U.S. private equity firm TPG for an undisclosed price. The world-renowned circus troupe announced the transaction Monday. Billionaire Cirque founder Guy Laliberte will maintain a stake in the business …
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THESSALONIKI, Greece – Greek authorities say they have found the body of a migrant who apparently drowned during floods as he tried to illegally enter the country from Turkey. The unidentified young man’s body was found Thursday near the banks of the Evros River on Greece’s northeastern border with Turkey. …
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JERUSALEM – Israel has given the final go-ahead for new construction in a Jewish area of east Jerusalem — the area of the city the Palestinians demand as the capital of a future state. The Israeli settlement watchdog Peace Now says it is the first time in nearly a year …
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BUCHAREST, Romania – More than 30,000 employees of town halls around the country have gone on strike to demand higher wages. The workers, who staged a one-day strike Thursday, are demanding a 10-percent salary increase and meal tickets, which are used to purchase food, according to union leader Valer Suciu. …
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SKOPJE, Macedonia – Thousands of Macedonian opposition supporters have joined nationwide protests against alleged police brutality — unrest that follows reports that the conservative government conducted a massive wiretap campaign. Police on Friday blocked off streets leading to the government building in the capital, Skopje, where clashes during a protest …
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MADRID – Spanish police say a man armed with a box cutter held a toddler hostage at a daycare center for about five hours before releasing the child unharmed and surrendering. Civil guard spokeswoman Mercedes Martin says the unidentified man in his 50s tried to take more children and daycare …
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HONG KONG – Hong Kong’s economy barely expanded in the first quarter as exports slumped and fewer mainland Chinese tourists visited. The Hong Kong government said Friday that the Asian financial center’s economy grew 0.4 percent in the January-March period compared with the previous quarter on a seasonally adjusted basis. …
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CAIRO – Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has named a senior judge known for his deep hostility toward the now-outlawed Muslim Brotherhood as justice minister. Ahmed el-Zind, chairman of the Judges Club, a powerful association of members of the judiciary, was sworn in on Wednesday before el-Sissi. El-Zind was an outspoken …
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PHNOM PENH, Cambodia – An official says Cambodia has accepted the first four people under the agreement it made with Australia nine months ago to take in asylum-seekers rejected for residency there. Prime Minister Hun Sen signed an endorsement letter Wednesday and the two countries are now discussing when the …
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BEIJING – China has announced it will cut import taxes on clothing, cosmetics and some other goods by half in a new tactic to spur consumer spending. The Finance Ministry said Monday the reductions, which take effect June 1, will be “conducive to a reasonable expansion of imports.” Beijing is …
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