The European Union is preparing to impose more sanctions on Venezuela targeting officials who are accused of being involved in torture and other human rights violations. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said in a statement Tuesday that it is working with the U.N. to make sure that human rights are respected in Venezuela following reports of abuses by the security forces.   Mogherini said that “the EU is ready to start work towards applying targeted measures for those members of the security forces involved in torture and other serious …

The Democrat-led House of Representatives is set to vote Tuesday on a resolution “condemning President Trump’s racist comments directed at Members of Congress,” in response to a series of tweets Trump issued attacking four lawmakers of color. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer announced the vote and said he hoped Republicans would “put country before party” and vote in favor of the measure alongside Democrats. The text of the resolution “strongly condemns President Donald Trump’s racist comments that have legitimized and increased fear and hatred of new Americans and people of …

An undersea earthquake with a magnitude of 6.1 struck south of Indonesia’s Bali on Tuesday, the European earthquake monitoring agency EMSC said, causing minor damage and prompting residents and visitors on the tourist island to briefly flee buildings. There were no reports of casualties and no tsunami warning issued by the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center or the Indonesian quake monitoring agency. The epicenter was 102 km (62 miles) southwest of the island capital Denpasar and was 100 km (60 miles) deep, the EMSC said. The U.S. Geological Survey recorded …

European Union foreign ministers on Monday turned up the pressure on Turkey after approving an initial batch of sanctions against the country over its drilling for gas in waters where EU member Cyprus has exclusive economic rights.  The ministers said in a statement that in light of Turkey’s “continued and new illegal drilling activities,” they were suspending talks on an air transport agreement and would call on the European Investment Bank to “review” it’s lending to the country. They also backed a proposal by the EU’s executive branch to reduce …

Former Democratic U.S. Representative Beto O’Rourke raised a lackluster $3.6 million for his struggling presidential campaign in the second quarter of the year, his campaign said on Monday. The fundraising haul was a warning sign for the Texas politician and a stark drop in campaign cash after he raised more than $9 million in two weeks the previous period. O’Rourke, who entered the race after gaining national prominence in his failed 2018 bid for the U.S. Senate from Texas, has failed to gain traction in opinion polls. Some two dozen …