Washington, July 4 (IANS) US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said Thursday they are focusing American military efforts in Iraq on securing the American embassy and personnel in Baghdad, while advising Iraqi security forces based on assessing the situation in the Middle East country. Hagel made the remarks while addressing a Pentagon press conference here. He also […]
United Nations, July 3 (IANS) Yemen, reeling from political instability and insecurity from jihadist attacks, is “on the brink of an economic collapse,” a UN humanitarian official said here Wednesday, blaming the mild, but popular, drug khat, for much of the Aden Gulf nation’s woes. “This is one of (the) largest humanitarian challenges in scale and […]
Washington, July 3 (IANS) The Obama administration Wednesday threw its weight behind Ukraine’s decision to end a ceasefire and resume military operations against the insurgents in the country’s east. White House spokesperson Josh Earnest blamed the armed militants for not observing the truce, saying “it only fueled separatist violence and allowed the separatists to make further […]
Brussels, July 3 (IANS) The European Union (EU) is “determined” to achieve a final and comprehensive agreement in the new round of Iran’s nuclear talks that started Wednesday in Vienna, EU’s foreign policy spokesperson Michael Mann said. “We are determined. We hope Iran comes with a positive and realistic attitude,” Xinhua quoted the spokesperson as saying. […]
Paris, July 3 (IANS) Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy, who was placed under formal investigation for influence-peddling, Wednesday said “politics manipulated judicial system” in a corruption probe that may taint the conservative’s political come-back. In his first interview since losing the presidential election two years ago, the ex-head of state stressed “the judicial system was manipulated”, […]
Berlin, July 3 (IANS) The foreign ministers of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine Wednesday reconfirmed their commitment to sustainable peace and stability in Ukraine and stressed the necessity of achieving a sustainable ceasefire in the crisis-hit country. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his counterpart Laurent Fabius from France, Sergey Lavrov from Russia and Pavlo Klimkin […]
Moscow, July 3 (IANS) A full-scale gas crisis is looming in Ukraine unless Kiev settles its multi-billion-dollar debt to Moscow, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Wednesday. “Ukraine does not pay for gas. Their debt is enormous. They are taking gas from underground storage facilities,” Medvedev wrote on his Facebook account, warning there will be a […]
By Jonathan Samuels He may have left in the 1950s but Australians were fiercely proud of Rolf Harris. Now they are having to get to grips with the fact that the multi-talented family entertainer is also a sexual predator of young women and girls. He is known as “the boy from Bassendean” by locals from the Perth suburb […]
Damascus, July 1 (IANS) The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), now calling itself Islamic State, Tuesday captured an eastern Syrian town bordering Iraq after days of intense clashes with rival jihadist groups. The ISIS, an Al Qaeda splinter group, Tuesday captured the Bukamal town in Syria’s eastern province of Deir al-Zour after “intense” battles […]
Jerusalem, July 1 (IANS) Israeli forces launched massive airstrikes in the Gaza Strip overnight Monday, hitting dozens of Hamas and Islamic Jihad targets in retaliation to the increased rocket attacks from the Palestinian enclave. Among the 34 targets were a Hamas complex in Rafah that hosted a weapons storage facility along with residents, Xinhua quoted an […]