JERUSALEM – Israel says it has foiled a ring that smuggled iron, electronic equipment and other prohibited materials to Hamas to rebuild its infrastructure following last year’s war. Israel’s internal security agency says Hamas paid the Israeli companies at least $375,000 to store and deliver the goods, which entered through …

BUCHAREST, Romania – Romania has begun transporting natural gas to Moldova, as the former Soviet republic moves toward the European Union and becomes less dependent on Russia. “It is the first time that gas goes from West to East,” said Moldova Foreign Minister Natalia Gherman during a visit to Bucharest. …

UNITED NATIONS – The U.N. political chief says Ukraine still hasn’t submitted a formal request for a U.N. peacekeeping force to be stationed in eastern regions where government forces are battling Russian-backed separatists. Jeffrey Feltman briefed the U.N. Security Council on the crisis Friday and noted Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko’s …

WARSAW, Poland – Education authorities in southwestern Poland are looking into allegations that a primary school teacher taped small children’s mouths shut to silence them. A suspicious mother secretly recorded the teacher’s classes. In the voice recordings published by TVN24, a woman is heard threatening that she will again put …

MADRID – The Interior Ministry says police have arrested eight suspected members of a jihadi terror cell in raids across the country. A ministry statement Friday said the eight allegedly urged attacks to be carried out in Spain and selected people to send to fight for Islamic groups in Iraq …

BERLIN – A union representing Lufthansa pilots has called a one-day strike at the German airline’s short-haul and middle-distance operations on Wednesday — the latest in a string of walkouts. The Vereinigung Cockpit union has hit various Lufthansa units with around a dozen short-term walkouts over recent months. The dispute …

ISLAMABAD – The Pakistani army says it launched air strikes pounding militant hideouts in a tribal region along the Afghan border, killing 34 terrorists. An army statement says the airstrikes Wednesday hit several areas in remote Tirah Valley of the Khyber tribal region. The valley is home to militants from …

BRUSSELS – A Turkish government official says to eliminate a root cause of Islamic extremism, European countries must give their Muslim residents greater opportunities and more reasons for hope. Volkan Bozkir, Turkey’s minister for European affairs, said Saturday that many Muslims living in Europe “now feel they are the other.” …

BAGHDAD – Iraq’s Oil Ministry says crude exports averaged 2.596 million barrels a day in February, far from levels planned to provide the nation with badly needed cash for ongoing military operations against Islamic State extremists. Ministry spokesman Assem Jihad said on Wednesday the exports grossed about $3.402 billion, based …

MADRID – Spanish police say they have arrested 12 people suspected of belonging to an anarchist group with terrorist aims. A police statement said those detained Monday were members of an organization called Coordinated Anarchists Groups, and are suspected of sabotage offenses and planting explosive devices. There were no immediate …