Taliban attacks hit Afghan troops, police
KABUL, Afghanistan — The Taliban on Monday launched near-simultaneous attacks in Afghanistan’s western Badghis province, killing 14 soldiers and policemen.
The first of Monday’s attacks hit army units in the district of Ab Kamari, killing nine soldiers, said Ghulam Sarwar Haidari, the deputy provincial police chief.
Moments later, another large group of insurgents struck police in Qadis district, killing five policemen.
Sharafuddin Majidi, spokesman for the provincial governor, confirmed the casualty tolls. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed the Badghis attacks.
Meanwhile, in eastern Afghanistan, Kabul residents prepared to bury their loved ones slain in a bombing by the Islamic State militant group that targeted a voter registration center the day before, killing 57 people.
Prayer services were held for the Kabul victims as families of those killed in Sunday’s bombing carried the bodies of their kin and dug the graves at a cemetery in the hills above the Afghan capital.
Caravan’s migrants protest in Mexico
MEXICO CITY — The remnants of a caravan of Central American migrants protested in northern Mexico on Monday, even as once again they drew tweets from President Donald Trump.
The migrants are demanding better treatment, and many are planning to request asylum either in the United States or Mexico.
“We are asking the government and migration authorities to respect the right to seek asylum,” said caravan organizer Irineo Mujica. “Those who request asylum shouldn’t be criminalized. It is a right. … Families shouldn’t be separated or punished.”
The approximately 600 migrants arrived in the northern city of Hermosillo aboard trains over the weekend.
Trump tweeted Monday that “I have instructed the Secretary of Homeland Security not to let these large Caravans of people into our Country.”
“Mexico, whose laws on immigration are very tough, must stop people from going through Mexico and into the U.S. We may make this a condition of the new NAFTA Agreement,” Trump tweeted, referring to the North American Free Trade Agreement.
In response, Mexican Secretary of Foreign Affairs Luis Videgaray tweeted, “It would be unacceptable to condition the NAFTA negotiations on immigration actions that are outside that framework.”
Nicaragua unrest halts embassy services
The United States is shutting down routine operations at its embassy in Nicaragua and pulling out some if its employees amid a string of deadly protests.
The State Department said it’s raising the threat level for Nicaragua and encouraging Americans to reconsider plans to travel there.
Family members of U.S. diplomats who also work at the embassy are being ordered out of the country until security improves. The State Department said it’s also allowing U.S. government officials posted to Nicaragua to leave “on a case-by-case basis.”
The U.S. Embassy in Managua will stop providing services to the public, except for emergencies or by phone.
Rights groups say dozens of people have died in protests and looting triggered by changes to the social security system. On Sunday, President Daniel Ortega withdrew the changes.
Armenian leader heeds ralliers, resigns
YEREVAN, Armenia — Serzh Sargsyan, who ruled Armenia for 10 years, resigned Monday as prime minister after thousands of people poured into the streets to protest his political maneuvering to cling to power in the former Soviet republic.
Monday’s development touched off jubilation in the capital, Yerevan, with car horns blaring and people dancing, hugging and waving the Armenian flag. The opposition called for a meeting with the acting prime minister to discuss a “peaceful transfer of power.”
Sargsyan, 63, was president from 2008 until term limits forced him out in March. But parliament, which is controlled by his party, voted to reduce the powers of the presidency and give them to the prime minister, installing Sargsyan in that post.
The parliament’s action triggered anti-government protests in the streets of Yerevan beginning April 13, with demonstrators blocking government buildings and facing off with police. A rally on Sunday attracted about 50,000 people.
A Section on 04/24/2018