
ZURICH – The Swiss attorney general has opened criminal proceedings against a director of the Islamic Central Council of Switzerland on suspicion of violating a ban on groups including al Qaeda, the attorney general’s office said on Saturday. The council
by Reuters19 Dec 2015, 4:49 AM PST0

ZURICH (Reuters) – Switzerland’s next president has said he still hopes to strike an accord with the European Union to maintain the free movement of workers, but warned that his government’s threat to impose limits on immigration was no bluff.
by Reuters18 Dec 2015, 1:29 AM PST0

The much-touted seven-day cease fire in Yemen began on Tuesday afternoon and lasted maybe an hour, before there were reports of both Saudi warplanes dropping bombs on Houthi insurgents, and the Houthis shelling a loyalist stronghold. Naturally, each side blames the other for breaking the agreement.
by John Hayward16 Dec 2015, 11:52 AM PST0

A week-long cease-fire in Yemen’s civil war is scheduled to begin on Monday, followed on Tuesday by peace talks in Switzerland brokered by the United Nations.
by John Hayward13 Dec 2015, 7:09 PM PST0

GENEVA (Reuters) – Two Syrian nationals were arrested in Geneva on Friday and traces of explosives were found in their car, the local newspaper Tribune de Geneve and Swiss television said. The newspaper gave no details on the identity of
by Reuters12 Dec 2015, 1:46 AM PST0

The Embassy of the United States in Switzerland is urging U.S. citizens to exercise caution after Geneva raised its terror alert level on Thursday following reports that four alleged Islamic militants are suspected of having made their way to Geneva.
by Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D.11 Dec 2015, 4:10 AM PST0

The imminence and severity of the terror threat currently facing Switzerland by Islamic jihadists is without precedent, according to Jean-Paul Rouiller, the creator of the counterterrorism unit of the Swiss Federal Judicial Police (PJF). “To my knowledge, and after twenty
by Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D.11 Dec 2015, 3:36 AM PST0

Acting on information provided by U.S. intelligence services, Geneva officials have raised the terrorism alert level and are actively seeking four alleged Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) terrorists thought to be linked to the attacks in Paris who are now suspected to be hiding in or near the city.
by Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D.10 Dec 2015, 10:02 AM PST0

GENEVA (AP) — Geneva police were “actively searching” for suspects in connection with an investigation into the Paris attacks last month, Swiss security officials said Thursday. Geneva’s security department said that city authorities received word on Wednesday that Swiss federal
by AP10 Dec 2015, 5:27 AM PST0

ZURICH (Reuters) – Switzerland should take unilateral action to restrict immigration from the European Union (EU), the billionaire and leading right winger Christoph Blocher was quoted as telling a Swiss newspaper on Sunday. Blocher, 75, is a lead figure in
by Reuters6 Dec 2015, 4:54 AM PST0

The Swiss government announced that two FIFA officials were detained in Zurich Thursday, confirming reports of new arrests in the broadening FIFA scandal, and said the pair were suspected of taking millions of dollars in bribes. “The high-ranking FIFA officials
by AFP3 Dec 2015, 12:58 AM PST0

The town of Ticino in Switzerland approved a referendum to ban burqas, after the Swiss parliament decided a ban would not “violate the country’s federal law.” Women could receive a fine up to £6,500 ($9,828.84) if caught wearing a burqa, which covers their entire body from head to foot.
by Mary Chastain25 Nov 2015, 11:52 AM PST0

The Islamic State has a cell operating in peaceful Switzerland and has sent fighters to Syria, according to reports. Challenging the conventional wisdom that Islamist extremism is prevalent in Western nations which have invaded middle eastern countries, the claim about the
by Oliver Lane19 Nov 2015, 1:56 AM PST0

Police have arrested five migrants at an asylum centre in Switzerland, a country which until now has been relatively untouched by migrant violence. Local police detained the migrants staying at the shelter in Urdorf, near the city of Zurich, yesterday
by Nick Hallett7 Nov 2015, 7:41 AM PST0

ZURICH, Switzerland – Swiss voters swung to the right in parliamentary elections on Sunday dominated by concerns over Europe’s migrant crisis, with the country’s largest party, the populist Swiss People’s Party, on track to win a record number of seats.
by AFP19 Oct 2015, 12:41 AM PST0

A pro-migrant protest turned violent today, with Swiss police forced to use water cannon and rubber bullets to quell the self-described ‘anti-fascists’ who violated law by demonstrating on an election day. Hundreds of the hard-left protesters, and a group calling
by Liam Deacon18 Oct 2015, 10:32 AM PST0

“We should be helping our own people before giving them handouts,” says Gianpaolo Ferrari, glancing towards the African men clustered around Chiasso’s main square. The 58-year-old restaurant worker in this small southern Swiss town on the Italian border echoes sentiments
by AFP14 Oct 2015, 1:55 AM PST0

Outspoken liberal priest The Reverend Canon Giles Fraser has used his weekly Guardian column to denigrate the “neoliberal right” for championing the free movement of capital around the world while opposing the free movement of people, a position which he
by Donna Rachel Edmunds9 Oct 2015, 10:16 AM PST0

The Swiss people have just chosen, through a reality TV-style voting process, their new national anthem. Drawing on the same melody as the “Swiss Psalm,” the winner–written by healthcare director Werner Widmer–reportedly better embodies secular “Swiss values.”
by Frances Martel15 Sep 2015, 10:52 AM PST0

A Swiss politician has called for the nation to take advantage of the Greek crisis to establish a Swiss empire overseas by taking an island in return for the money Athens owes. The unusual suggestion was made by Pierre Rusconi, a member of parliament
by Oliver Lane23 Jul 2015, 4:18 AM PST0

The nuclear talks with Iran in Lausanne, Switzerland, dissolved into a confusing mess as the Tuesday deadline passed, with everyone simultaneously saying they agree on everything important while still unable to come to an agreement.
by John Hayward1 Apr 2015, 9:05 PM PST0

Different sources have provided a variety of opinions on the status of Iranian nuclear negotiations over the past twenty-four hours.
by John Hayward31 Mar 2015, 10:56 AM PST0

The UK Telegraph does an epic job of burying the lede in their story about Amir Hossein Motaghi, a media aide to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani who bailed out of the theocracy and requested political asylum while attending nuclear negotiations in Switzerland.
by John Hayward31 Mar 2015, 7:48 AM PST0

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s absence from the public eye this month has spawned a bevy of rumors about what could prevent him from being seen in public. One rumor gaining traction on social media and in Russia arrives via Switzerland tabloid Blink, which is reporting that Putin, 62, is attending the birth of the child of his alleged girlfriend.
by Mary Chastain14 Mar 2015, 9:34 AM PST0

In a rare victory for democracy and common sense, 92 percent of Swiss voters have rejected green taxes in a referendum which took place on Sunday. The proposal, put forward by the Green Liberal Party of Switzerland, had the backing of
by Donna Rachel Edmunds10 Mar 2015, 9:52 AM PST0