ABOARD THE HDMS THETIS, Greenland – Sailing through fields of large icebergs aboard a Danish naval vessel, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry brought his tour of the Arctic to Greenland on Friday, visiting the Northern Hemisphere’s largest glacier to bring attention to the dangers of climate change.
Hazarding a brief June snow and hail flurry in Disko Bay off Greenland’s third largest city of Ilulissat, some 220 miles north of the Arctic Circle, Kerry was meeting with scientists researching the dramatic erosion of the Sermeq Kujalleq Glacier that is contributing to global sea rise.
The icecap has receded 12.4 miles since 2001, with a large increase since 2002.
ST. PETERSBURG, Russia – Russian President Vladimir Putin called on European leaders Friday to heal ties with his country despite sanctions after meeting with European investors who said they want to expand their businesses there.
Speaking at Russia’s top economic conference, Putin said top German and French investors expressed interest to invest more in Russia despite the weight of the sanctions, some of which the European Union extended just as Putin was speaking.
BAGHDAD – Iraqi special forces swept into Fallujah on Friday, recapturing most of the city as the Islamic State group’s grip crumbled after weeks of fighting. Thousands of trapped residents took advantage of the militants’ retreat to flee, some swimming across the Euphrates River to safety.
In the early morning Friday, Iraqi forces punched into the city center, meeting intense fighting. But by evening, the special forces commander Brig. Haider al-Obedi told the Associated Press that his troops controlled 80 percent of the city, with ISIS fighters now concentrated in four districts on its northern edge.
It was a major step toward regaining the Islamic State group’s last major foothold in Iraq’s western Anbar province, the heartland of the country’s Sunni minority.
Associated Press
