An independent Kurdish state will bring prosperity and stability to the region said the Chancellor of the Kurdistan Region Security Council, in an op-ed published in the Washington Times last week.

Masrour Barzani said “the Kurds have paid a heavy price for the international community’s failed one-Iraq policy”.

One man has been killed after Indonesian troops opened fire on West Papuan villagers who were demonstrated against a company workers refusal to take a dying man to hospital, AP reports. 

Indonesian troops maintain a strong presence across the West Papua. 

Condemning the shooting the parliament at Deiyai in Papua has called for the officers responsible to face justice and called for the police paramilitary unit, known as the 'mobile brigade' to be withdrawn. 

China opened its first overseas military base in Djibouti on Tuesday at an event attended by China's deputy naval commander Tian Zhong and Djibouti's defence minister. 

The event was held on the 90th anniversary of China's military, the People's Liberation Army. 

Djibouti also has army officers from Japan, US and France.

Indian forces on Monday killed the top commander of Lashkar-e-Taiba in Kashmir, Abu Dujana, prompting widespread protests in Kashmir against the killing.  

Mr Dujana was blown up by Indian soldiers after a prolonged gunfight, Indian papers reported. 

Families and locals poured onto the streets in Srinagar to mourn his death and to express their anger at the killing. 

The New York based rights organisation, Human Rights Watch on Tuesday published a report highlighting the South Sudanese leaders' failure to halt gross human rights abuses, and called on the international community to impost sanctions. 

The Catalan government on Monday faced a set back to its attempt to fast track certain bills needed to hold the planned independence referendum on October 1, as Spain's Constitutional court accepted the government's challenge. 

On Friday the central government filed an appeal against the Catalan government's approving of the fast track scheme. 

The Venezuelan leader and his supporters celebrated the country's referendum result on Sunday which voted in a constituent assembly that would have the power to re-write the constitution. 

The move has been fiercely opposed by opposition parties and supporters who say it consolidates the president's dictatorship. 

Protesters barricaded the streets on Monday, in a demonstration against Sunday's vote. 

The US House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to impose new sanctions on Russia over Moscow's alleged meddling in the 2016 presidential election, reports the Financial Times.

The new sanctions package has faced intense scrutiny from Europeans countries with Germany raising concern about the impact new oil pipelines from Russia by limiting companies access to US banks.

The US government on Wednesday introduced sanctions on 13 senior officials in Venezuela, as the country's opposition protested against President Maduro's government. 

The vice president for the state oil company, army chiefs, police chiefs and the national director of elections were all targetted in the new wave of sanctions. 

The US has warned Iran of “new and serious consequences” if all unjustly detained American citizens were released and returned, said the White House in a statement made on Friday.

The statement made on Friday said President Trump and is administration were “redoubling efforts” to bring back unjustly detained Americans abroad, reports Reuters.

In a significant set back to judicial independence in the country, Poland's parliament on Friday approved a new law which brings the Supreme Court under the control of the ruling party. 

The move has been widely criticism by EU states and the US who have raised concerns over what is being described as Poland's shift away from liberal values. Protesters have also taken to the streets to voice their concern at the curtailment of judicial independence. 

Turkey’s parliament has forbidden its lawmakers from using the certain phrases such as “Kurdistan” or “Armenian genocide” during legislative sessions following the passing of a bill package on Thursday night.

Though the bill does not explicitly set out which words and phrases are banned from the Turkish parliament, terms that are “in violation of the administrative structure” as defined by the “indivisible wholeness” of the Republic of Turkey will now be banned.

Amnesty International condemned what it described as the Cameroon forces' "horrific use of torture" against Boko Haram fighters, saying investigations reveal wide spread war crimes, human rights violations and the use of secret torture chambers.  

Microsoft Corporation and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights this month agreed to work together to build a digital human rights monitoring system and databank, reported Pass Blue. 

The agreement, which was bourne out of conversations between the former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay and Microsoft in 2013, includes a $5 million grant from Micorsoft as well as pro bono technical support over five years.