• Iraqi army needs Kurds to recapture Mosul

    Dec 28
    Iraq’s Finance Minsiter Hoshiyar Zebari said that Kurdish militant support would be a necessity to help Iraq’s army recapture the largest city under Islamic State control reports, Reuters.

    Mr Zebari said the Kurdish Peshmerga would be needed to help recapture the Sunni Muslim city of Mosul.
  • German court sentences Rwanda mayor to life for genocide
    Onesphore Rwabukombe who was a mayor in Rwanda at the time of the genocide, was already serving a sentence for his role in the massacres.  The new trial was based around new evidence found him guilty of genocide.

    Evidence was gathered form over 100 witnesses who described scenes from the massacres that were directed by Rwabukombe, reports Reuters.
  • Japan apologises for war-time rape and abuse of South Korean women
    Japan has apologised for the rape and forced prostitution of South Korean women during World War 2 in a new bi-lateral accord that seeks to boost relations between the two nations.

    Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters that Japan had apologised and expressed remorse reports Reuters.

    The Japanese prime minister said,
  • Iran on track - John Kerry on nuclear deal

    Iran has taken a "significant step" towards meeting its nuclear commitments, by sending a large quantity of uranium abroad, according to US Secretary of State John Kerry.

  • US, China welcome Japan's apology to South Korea
    The United States and China welcomed the Japanese prime minister, Shinzo Abe's apology on Monday to South Korea for its rape and forced prostitution of South Korean women during World War 2.

    “We believe this agreement will promote healing and help to improve relations between two of the United States’ most important allies,” the US Secretary of State, John Kerry was quoted by the WSJ as saying.

    “We applaud the leaders of Japan and the Republic of Korea for having the courage and vision to reach this agreement, and we call on the international community to support it.”

    The Chinese foreign ministry's military spokesperson also welcomed the apology.

  • Kurds call for self rule amidst Turkish security crackdown
    Kurdish group meeting in southeaster Turkey called for self-rule amidst heavy fighting in the region, reports Reuters.

    A group of Kuridsh non-governmental organisations, the Democratic People’s Congress (DTK), called for self-rule following a two-day meeting in Diyarbakir.
  • University of Barcelona boycotts Israel
    The Central University of Barcelona announced its decision to boycott Israeli universities and institutions that had direct or indirect ties with the occupation of Palestine.

    The decision formed part of a trans-national initiative, “Places without Racism” that was supported by hundreds of institutions and universities worldwide, reports the Palestinian Information Center.
  • Modi 'drops by' Pakistan to meet PM
    In an unexpected move the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, visited Pakistan yesterday and met with his counterpart, Nawaz Sharif.

    The visit, which was nonchalantly announced on Twitter, is being seen as a sign of attempts to improve relations between the two countries.

    "Looking forward to meeting PM Nawaz Sharif in Lahore today afternoon, where I will drop by on my way back to Delhi," Mr Modi tweeted on Friday after stating he had wished Mr Sharif on his birthday.

    Mr Modi later tweeted about his visit, stating he was "personally touched by Nawaz Sharif Sahab 's gesture of welcoming me at Lahore airport and coming to the airport when I left."

  • Turkey's PM cancels constitutional reform meeting with pro-Kurdish political party
    Turkey’s prime minister cancelled a planned meeting with the pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP) after alleging its politics were rooted in violence on Saturday.

    Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu was due to hold meetings with leaders of all three opposition parties in parliament to discuss constitutional reform.

    Explaining his decision Mr Davutoglu said,
  • Syrian rebel leader killed in air strike
    The leader of the largest Syrian rebel groups, Jaysh al Islam, was killed in an air strike on Friday in a suburb of Damascus.

    The killing comes just days after the UN passed a resolution outlining a peace plan in Syria.

    The air strike is believed to have been from Russian planes which fired at least 10 missiles at the group's headquarters.

  • Ethiopian opposition figures arrested over land protests
    Ethiopian police arrested two senior leaders of the opposition for allegedly inciting weeks of protests against the current governments plans to set up an economic zone that would displace farmers from their lands.

    The opposition Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC) said that 87 protestors had been killed by police since demonstrations started in the Oromiya region last month.
  • UN brokers deal with Islamic State

    The UN has brokered a deal between Syria and the Islamic State, which will allow hundreds of members of the militants' families and injured fighters to leave a Palestinian refugee camp in Damascus.

    The head of the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdulrahman, told Reuters that the group will be given safe passage to travel to Raqqa and other IS controlled areas, eventually ending the militants' presence in Damascus.

    A U.N. spokesman told reporters in New York: "The U.N. is an observer to the agreement concerning Yarmouk, but not part of it, which we understand should come into effect in the coming few days."

  • India cements ties with Russia

    India has signed 16 deals with Russia during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Moscow.

    Mr Modi told President Vladimir Putin that India sees Russia as a reliable friend and said the countries are cooperating in the international and political arenas more actively, according to Russian news agency TASS.

    The agreements signed included helicopter and nuclear reactor manufacturing, railways, solar energy, heavy engineering and hydrocarbons.

    Mr Putin said that Russia and India were consistently and confidently developing the strategic partnership.

  • Nigeria close to defeating Boko Haram - President Buhari

    Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari says his military was now close to completely defeating Boko Haram militants.

    Speaking to the BBC, President Buhari said the militants could no longer mount conventional attacks against security forces or population centres.

    "I think, technically, we have won the war," he said.

    The militants have been forced to cut back on suicide bombings as a result of the military action against them, President Buhari further said.

  • French forces attack Mali militants

    An operation by French troops in Mali has left 10 militants, thought to be behind the recent hotel massacre, dead or captured.

    The troops raided a location near Menaka, in Mali's east, on Saturday, seizing arms and vehicles.

    The target of the raid, the al-Murabitoun group says it was behind the attack on the Radisson Blu hotel in Bamako in November.

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