Arab leaders are convening near the Jordanian Dead Sea for the 28th annual summit of the Arab League, as the region faces distressing turmoil and political challenges. Sixteen heads of states out of the 22-member confederation of Arab countries are expected to attend Wednesday’s meeting, including Saudi Arabia’s King Salman,[…]
US-backed forces in Syria are resuming an offensive against ISIL fighters at a major hydroelectric dam, saying it is in no danger of collapsing amid conflicting claims over its integrity. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces’ (SDF) offensive was briefly suspended on Monday, a day after a senior Syrian government official[…]
In yet another call for President Bashar al-Assad’s departure, the Syrian opposition said on Monday that the prerequisite was a key aspect of political settlement in the war-ravaged country. Following a meeting with UN Secretary General’s Deputy Special Envoy for Syria Ramzi Izz Eddin Ramzi, the chief negotiator for Syria’s[…]
A powerful cyclone has pummelled the north-east Australian coast, causing major damage, torrential rain and power cuts to tens of thousands of homes. Cyclone Debbie made landfall between Bowen and Airlie Beach in Queensland as a category four storm, whipping up gusts of 263km/h (163 mph). It is moving inland as a[…]
President Omar al-Bashir will attend an Arab League summit in Amman this week, Sudan’s foreign minister said on Sunday, in spite of a top rights group urging Jordan to deny him entry. Bashir is wanted by The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) for genocide and war crimes he is alleged[…]
Six aid workers have been killed in an ambush in South Sudan, the UN says, in the deadliest single incident for humanitarians since the country’s civil war began. The “heinous murder” occurred on Saturday, said Eugene Owusu, the UN’s humanitarian chief in South Sudan. The UN did not say who the victims[…]
Hamas authorities have shut the Gaza border with Israel after the killing of a senior commander, which Hamas blamed on “Israel and its collaborators”. The rare measure reflected Hamas’ shock after the killing of Mazen Faqha , who was found shot dead at the entrance of his Gaza City home[…]
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas received a special “Hope for Peace” prize at the Steiger Award ceremony in Germany on Saturday. The Steiger Award said on its website that it had chosen to hand the prize to Abbas as a “clear signal” vis-a-vis the stagnating Israeli-Palestinian peace process. In a speech during[…]
Egypt’s ousted president Hosni Mubarak left a military hospital on Friday where he had spent much of his six-year detention, his lawyer said. Mubarak had been cleared for release earlier this month after a top court finally acquitted him of involvement in protester deaths during the 2011 revolt that ousted[…]
The United Nations said fighting around SSyria’s capital has cut off 300,000 people from humanitarian assistance and pauses in the conflict are needed to allow aid convoys to get to the area. Fighting in and around Damascus has intensified in recent days after surprise attacks by rebel fighters in the[…]
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