Armed men have attacked an overcrowded dinghy carrying migrants off Libya, leaving at least four dead and up to 25 missing, the German NGO Sea-Watch said Friday. The group said the Italian coastguard had sent a Seawatch rescue ship and a diverted oil tanker to help a dinghy in distress in...

 Tunisia's powerful UGTT labor union threatened on Thursday to hold a general strike and called protests against the government's plans to freeze public wage increases as part of measures to control the budget deficit. Under pressure from international lenders for reforms to cut spending,...

(The Daily Star)- Some 1,400 migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean were rescued Thursday off the coast of Libya, according to the Italian coastguard, which coordinated the operations conducted mainly by aid ships. Attempts at the dangerous crossing are continuing despite worsening...

(The Daily Star)- Egypt has decreed a cut of up to 20 percent in government expenditure, a move its prime minister says is needed to set an example to follow during a biting economic crisis. A Cabinet statement issued Thursday says the government also has decreed a 50 percent cut in the...