• Corbyn elected as UK's opposition leader

    Updated 1300 GMT

    Corbyn addresses Mullivaikkal memorial event on May 18th, 2011

    Jeremy Corbyn, the veteran anti-Apartheid campaigner won the UK opposition party's leadership contest on Saturday with a sweeping victory.

    Winning 59.5% of the vote, Mr Corbyn's victory exceeded the poll predictions and came despite a number of key Labour figures expressing concern about the party's chances at the next election if he was elected as leader.

  • Yemeni govt drops out of UN peace talks
    The Yemeni government pulled out of UN mediated peace talks on Sunday, stating that they would not take part until the armed groups accepted and implemented resolution 2216.

    "[Yemen's government] confirmed it would not take part in any meeting until the coup militia recognize international resolution 2216 and accepts to implement it unconditionally," the official state news agency Saba was quoted by Reuters as saying.

    The government is currently in exile in Saudi Arabia following escalating violence between government forces and Houthi fighters.

  • Russia to continue military support to Syrian government

    Russia’s will continue to provide military supplies to the Syrian government, reports Reuters.

    The Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted as saying that Russian aid would be offered with supervision.

  • Tens of thousands at pro-refugee rallies across Europe

    Rallies in support of refugees have attracted tens of thousands of people in London and across several cities in Europe.

    The London protest was attended by newly elected Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, just a few hours after his victory was announced.

  • Memorial for Mau Mau uprising victims revealed

    A memorial for the victims of the Kenyan Mau Mau uprising against British colonial rule has been unveiled in in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

    The UK-funded memorial is part of a out-of-court settlement by the Britain when it agreed to pay £20m ($30m) in compensation to Mau Mau veterans.

  • UN votes to hoist Palestine flag

    The United Nations General Assembly has overwhelmingly voted to raise the Palestinian flag at the body's headquarters in New York.

    A resolution was passed with 119 votes in favour, 45 abstentions and 8 votes against.

    The text of the resolution allows the flags of Palestine and the Holy See - both of which have non-member observer status - to be raised alongside those of the member states.

    "It is a symbolic thing, but another step to solidify the pillars of the state of Palestine in the international arena," said Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian representative to the UN, ahead of the vote.

    Mr Mansour further said the initiative had the potential to "give our people some hope that the international community is still supporting the independence of the state of Palestine.

  • Strong support for independence at Catalan rally
    Photograph Catalans with #the45

    Hundreds of thousands came out to march in Barcelona on Friday, in support of independence for Catalan.

    Endorsing the pro-indepedence's campaign, "Let's start building a new country", Catalans poured out onto the streets waving the national flag.

  • UN probe into Syria chemical weapon attacks goes ahead after Russia drops objection
    The UN Security Council approved an international investigation into chemical weapon attacks on Thursday, after Russia dropped its objection to the probe, reports Reuters.

    Russia withdrew its objection via a letter to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, by the country's ambassador to the UN, Vitaly Churkin on Thursday.

    Confirming the letter, the Mr Moon's press office said that he had welcomed it and would "without delay, undertake all steps, measures and arrangements necessary for the speedy establishment and full functioning."

  • Serbian court charges 8 over Srebrenica
    In a landmark ruling, a Serbian court on Tuesday charged 8 for war crimes over the massacre of hundreds of Bosnian Muslim boys and men in 1995 by Bosnian Serb forces.

    The ruling is the first time that a court in Serbia has charged anyone for involvement in the massacre.

    The eight people charged includes the unit commander of the forces responsible for the massacre, Nedeljko Milidragovic, who was nicknamed the "butcher", and reported told the forces that "nobody should get out alive".

  • Northern Ireland first minister resigns

    Northern Irish First Minister Peter Robinson has stepped down from his position after a bid by his party, the DUP, to adjourn the assembly, failed.

    The DUP failed to get enough support to adjourn the assembly, after Sinn Féin, the Ulster Unionists and the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) voted against the adjournment motion.

  • Ukraine gives ICC more powers

    The Ukrainian government has given the International Criminal Court wider jurisdiction to investigate war crimes that may have been committed during the current civil conflict in the country.

    The country previously accepted the court's jurisdiction for a limited period from November 2013 to February 2014, when pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovich attempted to crush opposition protests, with many people dying.

    The ICC said Ukraine had now expanded its scope to include the period up to the present, with ongoing violence between the government and separatist rebels in the east of the country.

    The United Nations Human Rights Office said on Tuesday at least 7,962 people have been killed and 17,811 wounded in eastern Ukraine since mid-April 2014, Reuters reported.

  • UN agency warns almost 100,000 children are starving in Yemen

    The United Nations children’s agency warned that almost 100,000 children are starving in Yemen and face death, as fighting in the country continued.

    Al Jazeera reported the agency as saying 96,000 children were starving in the city of al-Hodeidah and nearly 8,000 children will face malnutrition in Aden in the coming year.



    Speaking to Voice of America about the Al-Sabeen Hospital in Sana, Save The Children spokesperson Mark Kaye said:

    “Before the crisis it had a catchment population of about 300,000; but since the crisis that number has risen to almost three million, with the entire (population) reliant on it for specialist care.”

  • Ban Ki Moon reiterates principle of R2P ten years on
    The UN Security General Ban Ki Moon on Wednesday reiterated the importance of the principle of Responsibility to Protect (R2P), stating that it was not only a question of law but also "a matter of common humanity".

    Speaking at the UN General Assembly, marking ten years since the R2P principle was launched, Mr Moon stressed that the principle needed to be translated into action.

    "Ten years ago, world leaders transformed expectations about the responsibility to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity," he said.

  • ICC rejects Gbagbo's release request
    The International Criminal Court in the Hague rejected a request by the former Ivory Coast president, Laurent Gbagbo for temporary release on health grounds, reports Reuters.

    “The appeals chamber found that it was not unreasonable for the trial chamber to find the existence of Mr. Gbagbo’s support network posed a risk to abscond or obstruct investigation," a panel of appear judges said.

    In June this year the ICC confirmed four charges of crimes against humanity against Mr Gbagbo, including murder and rape after some 3,000 people were killed in violence following the Ivory Coast's 2010 Presidential elections.

  • Turkey sends groundtroops into Iraq to fight Kurds

    Turkey has sent groundtroops into Iraqi Kurdistan to fight PKK rebels, who have bases in the region.

    "Turkish security forces crossed the Iraqi border as part of the hot pursuit of PKK terrorists who were involved in the most recent attacks," a government source told AFP news agency.

    "This is a short-term measure intended to prevent the terrorists' escape."

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