World
Death toll from Somalia bombings rises to at least 30: Medic - (34 days ago)
ReutersAt least 30 people died in a wave of coordinated bombings and shootings in the Somali capital, a medical source said, increasing estimates of the toll from the Sunday attacks which exposed the fragility of security gains in Mogadishu.African peacekeeping troops blocked off streets and searched houses across the city early on Monday to flush out suspected members of the Islamist militant
Shebab claim responsibility for Mogadishu attack - (34 days ago)
AFPSomalia's Al Qaeda-linked Shebab claimed responsibility for a suicide raid on Mogadishu's main court complex Sunday that left at least five civilians and several attackers, a spokesman for the group said."This was a holy action which targeted non-believers who were in a meeting within the court complex. We will continue until Somalia is liberated from invaders," Shebab spokesman Sheikh Ali
Pan-Muslim body urges Myanmar to allow OIC delegation - (34 days ago)
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation Sunday urged authorities in Myanmar to allow a ministerial delegation to visit the country to discuss deadly violence against Muslims.The world's top Islamic body, in a statement following a meeting in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah, also urged the UN Human Rights Commission to dispatch a fact-finding mission to Myanmar.The statement called on "Burmese
Germany looking to buy weaponised drones from Israel: Report - (34 days ago)
AFPGermany is in talks with Israel to buy weaponised drones for its military that are seen as more technologically advanced than US ones, the weekly Der Spiegel reported.The news magazine's Monday edition said the German defence ministry had already held two meetings with Israeli military officials, in November 2012 and February 2013, on the proposed purchase.The chief of Germany's air force,
Myanmar's Muslims fear toxic fallout of reform - (34 days ago)
AFPAfter generations as part of one of Asia's most ethnically diverse societies, Myanmar's Muslims fear they are becoming "scapegoats" of its reform process following a wave of religious violence.At least 43 people died in Buddhist-Muslim clashes which broke out last month in central Myanmar where mosques were burned down and Muslim homes were destroyed.The unrest -- which followed a wave of
Venezuela's Capriles refuses to accept Maduro win - (34 days ago)
Venezuelan opposition leader Henrique Capriles refused on Monday to accept ruling party candidate Nicolas Maduro's narrow election victory and demanded a recount. "We have different results," Capriles said in a speech to the nation shortly after midnight, alleging thousands of irregularities in Sunday's vote. "Mr. Maduro, if you were illegitimate before, now you are more so." Nicolas Maduro, a
Gulf Arab states demand inspections on Iran nuclear plant - (34 days ago)
The Gulf Cooperation Council called Sunday for international inspectors to be sent to Iran's Bushehr nuclear plant over concerns of possible radiation leaks after an earthquake hit the area. The body demanded the International Atomic Energy Agency "send a specialized technical team to inspect the Bushehr nuclear plant and investigate potential damage," GCC chief Abdullatif al-Zayani told
Israel's population exceeds 8 million - (34 days ago)
Israel's population has passed the 8 million mark, the Central Bureau of Statistics said Sunday, as the state prepared to mark 65 years since its founding."The population of Israel, on the eve of the 65th Independence Day, is 8,018,000 people," a bureau news release said, noting Israel counted just 806,000 residents at the time of its establishment in 1948.Israel's Jewish population stands at
US hopes of Mideast progress scaled back - (34 days ago)
Hopes of a US-sponsored push to resume stalled Middle East peace talks have been scaled back following US Secretary of State John Kerry's latest visit, to securing economic goals for the West Bank. Internal Palestinian disputes including the rumored resignation of Prime Minister Salam Fayyad have also dimmed the prospects of an early revival of peace negotiations with Israel. US President
Assad forces damage mosque that sparked Syria revolt - (34 days ago)
President Bashar al-Assad's forces destroyed the minaret of the historic Omari mosque where Syria's uprising erupted two years ago in the southern city of Deraa, opposition activists said Sunday. In amateur video footage the activists uploaded to YouTube, the mosque can be seen at the end of a street, its towering minaret toppling over after apparent shelling and crumbling into rubble and
US 'fully committed' to defending Japan: Kerry - (35 days ago)
AFPWashington is "fully committed" to protecting Japan, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday, days after Pyongyang threatened the Japanese capital would be "consumed in nuclear flames"."The United States is fully committed to the defence of Japan," Kerry told a joint press conference in Tokyo with Japan's Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida, ahead of a widely anticipated missile launch by
Croatia elects Europe Parliament MPs Sunday ahead of joining EU - (35 days ago)
Croatia on Sunday elects its first members to the European Parliament ahead of officially joining the European Union on 1 July, with expected low turnout reflecting tepid enthusiasm for membership in the bloc.Officials in the former Yugoslav republic, independent since 1991, have insisted that the vote to select the 12 lawmakers is "historic" and a key milestone on a path marked by years of
New bird flu cases found in central China - (35 days ago)
Two people in the central Chinese province of Henan have been infected by a new strain of Avian influenza, the first cases found in the region, bringing the total number nationwide to 51, Xinhua state news agency said Sunday.One of the victims, a 34-year old man in the city of Kaifeng, is now critically ill in hospital, while the other, a 65-year old farmer from Zhoukou, is in a stable condition.
After court, gay rights spotlight shifts back to Obama - (35 days ago)
President Barack Obama may have made a slow start on gay rights issues, but by the end of his first term his record was such that a news magazine dubbed him the nation's "first gay president." Now activists want more.Fresh from historic Supreme Court arguments over same-sex unions, advocates want Obama to use his executive powers to fight discrimination at businesses, schools, and military bases
Venezuelans vote on future of Chavista politics - (35 days ago)
Venezuelans decide on Sunday whether to honor Hugo Chavez's dying wish for a longtime loyalist to continue his hardline socialism or hand power to a young challenger vowing business-friendly changes. Acting President Nicolas Maduro had a double-digit lead in most polls, largely thanks to his former boss's public blessing before he died from cancer last month. But the gap has narrowed in the
Tunisia releases photos of politician's suspected assassin - (35 days ago)
Tunisia's interior ministry released on Saturday the photos of five Islamists wanted for the assassination in February of secular opposition politician Chokri Belaid and appealed for help in arresting them. In a statement on its Facebook page, the ministry published photos of Kamel Gathgathi, 39, the alleged shooter. Wanted as accomplices are Ahmed Rouissi, 46, Salmane Marakchi, 30, Marouane
Israel fires into Syria after Golan troops come under fire - (35 days ago)
JERUSALEM –– The Israeli military said it fired artillery into Syria on Friday after its troops were shot at on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, in the latest of a series of shooting incidents on the once-quiet front. "No soldiers were injured and no damage was caused. IDF (Israel Defense Forces) soldiers responded with artillery fire towards the source of the shooting. A direct
Kerry meets China's leaders to push them on North Korea - (35 days ago)
BEIJING –– US Secretary of State John Kerry met China's top leaders on Saturday in a bid to persuade them to exert pressure on North Korea to scale back its belligerent rhetoric and, eventually, return to nuclear talks. Travelling to Beijing for the first time as secretary of state, Kerry made no secret of his desire to see China take a more activist stance towards North Korea,
Some 50,000 flee Sudan into Chad after Darfur clashes - (36 days ago)
Some 50,000 Sudanese have fled into southeastern Chad in the past week following fresh tribal conflict in the restive Darfur region, UN and Chadian officials said on Friday. Melissa Fleming, a spokeswoman for the UN High Commission for Refugees, said the fighting had spread as each side received reinforcements from tribal allies and had become more violent, with entire villages being razed. A
US tells North Korea new missile launch would be 'huge mistake' - (36 days ago)
Secretary of State John Kerry warned North Korea on Friday it would be a "huge mistake" to launch a medium-range missile and said the United States would never accept the reclusive country as a nuclear power. Addressing reporters after talks with South Korea's president and leaders of the 28,000-strong US military contingent in the country, Kerry also said it was up to China, North
Sudan's Bashir arrives in South Sudan - (37 days ago)
Sudan's independence in July 2011 following a treaty which ended decades of civil war. They still have not agreed who owns Abyei province and other regions along their disputed 2,000-km (1,200-mile) border. Bashir had planned to visit Juba a year ago but cancelled when fighting erupted along their border and almost flared into full-scale war. Bashir, travelling with a large
Israeli army shoots 'physically disabled' Palestinian - (37 days ago)
Israeli troops shot and wounded a physically disabled Palestinian man during an arrest operation in the southern West Bank city of Hebron on Thursday, a prisoners' rights group said. Motazz Obeidu, 32, was "seriously wounded by Israeli army gunfire during an arrest operation" at dawn, the Ramallah-based Prisoners Club said, describing him as "physically disabled" although it did not say how.
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Ministers in Prime Minister Hisham Qandil's cabinet following the recent reshuffle (new appointees are in italics): 1. Minister of Agriculture Ahmed Mahmoud Ali El-Gizawi2. Minister of Antiquities Ahmed Eissa3. Minister of Aviation Wael Maadawi4. Minister of Communication Atef Helmy5. Minister of Culture
AP— April 15, 2013: Two bombs explode in the packed streets near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing three people and injuring more than 140.— January 17, 2011: A backpack bomb is placed along a Martin Luther King Day parade route in Spokane, Washington, meant to kill and injure participants in a civil rights march, but is found and disabled before it can explode. White
The convenient marriage between Iran and the Arab left would have been unthinkable only a few years ago, given the traditional ideological paradoxes between patriarchal Persian Shiism, on the one hand, and leftist orthodoxy on the other.Indeed, a casual viewer of Hizbullah's Al-Manar television, or the Iranian-funded Al-Mayadin TV, these days would probably think that the two Shia propaganda
"Abdullah's appointment was done via constitutional decree; it was a sovereign act by the head of the executive and therefore cannot be reversed by court ruling," said one leading FJP/Brotherhood figure. His comments echoed earlier assertions by Brotherhood lawyer Abdel-Moneim Abdel-Maksoud.The return of former prosecutor-general Mahmoud is "not going to happen," according to several government
