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Iraqi Forces Launch Assault on Last IS Bastion

Iraqi forces have launched an offensive to recapture the last bastion of so-called Islamic State in the country.

Soldiers, police, Sunni tribesmen and mostly Shia paramilitary fighters are taking part in the assault on al-Qaim and Rawa, in the Euphrates river valley close to the border with Syria.

The prime minister told IS militants to "choose between death and surrender".

US envoy praises restoration of Turkish synagogue after debate

U.S. consular-general to Istanbul Charles F. Hunter has praised the restorations of a synagogue in neighboring Edirne province, after meeting the governor who hit headlines after suggesting that the structure should be turned into a museum in reaction to Israeli policies on the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.