• Guatemala court in genocide ruling for former dictator

    Aug 24
    A Guatemalan court says former dictator Efrain Rios Montt can stand trial on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity, but ruled that he cannot be sentenced because the 89-year-old suffers from dementia.
  • Red Cross suspends work in Yemen after offices raided by gunman
    The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it was temporarily stopping all operations in the city of Aden in Yemen, after a gunman entered its office, reports Reuters.

    The ICRC, which had earlier this month warned of the escalating violence and lawlessness in the region, is one of the few aid agencies in the area after violence erupted between pro government forces backed by the Saudi government, and the Houthi forces. 

  • North Korea expresses regret over death of South Korea soldiers

    North Korea expressed regret over a landmine incident that wounded South Korean Soldiers this month.

    A joint statement issued by South Korea and North Korea after a weekend of talks in response to escalating violence, added that South Korea had agreed to stop anti-north propaganda broadcasts.

  • World markets plummet as China stops supporting slowing Asian market

    World stock markets plummeted with a sharp drop in the US dollar and major commodities, as China failed to mitigate sliding confidence in its domestic stock market on Monday.

  • Lifting of Iran sanctions possible by next spring says UK
    Sanctions placed on Iran could be lifted by next spring, said the UK on Monday, Reuters quoted the country's foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, as saying on Monday.

    Mr Hammond who is currently in Tehren to reopen the embassy, and attended the official reopening ceremony this morning, said, "We could be talking as early as next spring to start to see sanctions lifting off."

    Recent weeks have seen intense negotiations between the US and Iran over Iran's nuclear programme.

  • UN tribunal calls for halt in Indian trial of Italian marines

    The UN's International Tribunal for the Law of the Seas has called upon India to suspend all legal proceedings against Italian marines, who stand accused of killing two Indian fishermen, pending international mediation.

    The tribunal also rejected Italy's request to release the marines while the final ruling was decided.

  • Let Sudan’s President Come to New York. Then Arrest Him.'
    The former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) called on the United States to grant Sudan’s fugitive president Omar al-Bashir a visa to entry the country for an upcoming United Nations summit and then arrest him on arrival.

    Writing in the New York Times, Luis Moreno-Ocampo who was chief prosecutor at the ICC until 2012 said, “ICC judges issued arrest warrants in 2009 against Mr Bashir for crimes against humanity and war crimes and in 2010 for genocide. The challenge now is to arrest him.”

    Mr Moreno-Ocampo continued to say that:

    “Sadly, Mr Bashir’s ability to commit atrocities in full sight of the international community has kept ahead of humanity’s ability to protect genocide victims. Rape and hunger are his new silent weapons, replacing open attacks on villages. To avoid the international spotlight, the Sudanese government expels aid workers and denies access to refugee camps. Mr Bashir has tried to shift attention from his criminal actions by making the argument that the ICC is biased against Africans.”
  • Destruction of ancient Palmyra ruins 'war crime'

    Unesco says the destruction of Palmyra's nearly 2,000 year old Baalshamin temple is a war crime.

    The UN body said the destruction of the site by Islamic State militants was "an immense loss for the Syrian people and for humanity".

  • EU opens office in Kurdistan
     The European Union will open a delegation office in the Kurdish de-facto capital Erbil reports Rudaw.
  • North and South Korea to address escalation of violence

    Negotiators from North Korea and South Korea spoke through Saturday night and into Sunday evening to ease tensions between the two nations after an exchange of artillery fire last week.

  • Nigeria army chief survives Boko Haram attack

    The new head of Nigeria's army, General Tukur Buratei has survived an attack by Boko Haram militants on his convoy in Borno state, in the northeast of the country.

    The ambush resulted in clashes in which 5 militants and one Nigerian soldier were killed.

  • India and Pakistan cancel high level talks
    Indian and Pakistan have cancelled high level talks between the two countries, just hours before they were due to start.

    Pakistan accused India of imposing "preconditions" on the talks after India's foreign minister, Sushma Swaraj, said they could not continue if Pakistan pressed ahead with plans to meet Kashmiri separatists.

    Pakistan’s foreign ministry said "it is not reasonable for India to assume the right to decide unilaterally that from now onwards, other issues will [only] be discussed after terrorism has been discussed and eliminated".

    "We have come to the conclusion that the proposed National Security Advisers (NSA) level talks between the two countries would not serve any purpose” it added, as it announced the cancellation of the talks.
  • AU soldiers charged over civilian deaths

    Ugandan soldiers who were deployed with the African Union in Somalia, have been charged with the killing of a group of civilians at a wedding last month.

    Head of the AU troops in Somalia, Maman Sidikou, apologised to the families of the seven wedding guests. The bloc had previously denied the incident took place.

  • Europe toughens security measures in response to refugee crisis
    On Thursday, France and Britain announced a joint security operation to prevent thousands of refugees living in makeshift camps in Calais from entering the UK through the Channel Tunnel.
  • Sudan's president offers cease-fire in run up to proposed talks with militants

    Sudan’s President Omar Hassan al-Bashir proposed ceasefire and peace talks with militants working to overthrow his government.

    Mr Bashir reiterated his offer of amnesty for rebels who agreed to put down their arms and join the national dialogue between government and opposition parties.

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