WORLD NEWS

World News

Latest news from and about the homeland

  Three United Nations (UN) experts called for a full and independent investigation into the killing of three Lebanese journalists by Israel last week, which they described as ‘another attack on press freedom by Israeli forces.’ On March 28, Israeli forces killed Al Mayadeen reporter Fatima Ftouni, her brother and cameraman Mohamed Ftouni, and Al Manar TV reporter Ali Shoeib as they were…

Clashes at Liberia Ebola protests

Protests have hit the Liberian capital Monrovia, after a quarantine was imposed to halt the spread of Ebola.

Police opened fire on the protestors, leaving four people injured. Liberia is the worst affected country in the current crisis, with at least 576 deaths.

The protestors said the quarantine, enforced with a heavy police presence and barbed wire, stopped them from obtaining food and working.

A total of 1,350 have died in four countries, Liberia, Guinea, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

Switzerland sends peacekeepers to UN mission in Western Sahara

Swiss authorities have announced that six more unarmed military personnel are to join a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Western Sahara, as Sahrawi President Mohamed Abdelaziz called for greater access to international observers.

Swissinfo.ch reported that the six were part of a UN mission supervising a 1988 ceasefire between the Moroccan government and the Polisario Front group fighting for an independent Western Sahara.

US condemns journalist's killing by ISIL, pledges justice

The United States condemned the killing of an American journalist, James Foley, by Islamic State militants, after a video was released showing Foley being beheaded.

"The United States of America will continue to do what we must do to protect our people. We will be vigilant and we will be relentless. When people harm Americans anywhere, we do what’s necessary to see that justice is done and we act against ISIL, standing alongside others," President Barack Obama said at a press conference on Wedcnesday.

"The people of Iraq, who with our support are taking the fight to ISIL must continue coming together to expel these terrorists from their community," he added.

The video which was sent as "A message to the US", included an audio message by an ISIL militant, speaking in English with a distinctly British accent, which warned the US that more Americans would be killed if air strikes in Northern Iraq did not cease.

Condemning the killing as "barbaric and brutal", the British Prime Minister David Cameron told the BBC it was "deeply shocking" that a British citizen may be responsible.

Germany to arm Kurdish military

Germany is prepared to arm Kurdish fighters battling Sunni insurgents in northern Iraq, said the German Defence Minister on Wednesday.

“We are prepared, in principle, to provide weapons and ammunition within our means,” said Ursulla von der Leyen, reports the Associated Press.

A spokesperson from the German Defence Ministry said that a decision on the type and quantity of arms would be decided within a week.

UN to deploy full CAR peacekeeping force in September

The United Nations peacekeeping operation in the Central African Republic will reach full deployment in the region by the 15th of September 2014,  the UN Security Council heard today.

The Special Representative of the Secretary General , Barbacar Gaye said that the presence of United Nations military, police and civilian personnel would be essential in bringing about an immediate improvement in people’s lives an create an environment for ‘sustainable peace’ to develop, reports AllAfrica News.

Israel Gaza ceasefire extended for 24 hours as talks continue

Israel and Palestinian leaders agreed to extend the Gaza truce for another 24 hours minutes before the ceasefire was due to end on Monday night, reports Aljazeera.

Both Palestinian and Israeli officials have welcomed the ceasefire extension as a positive way to bolster the talks in Cairo.

A Palestinian official said that little progress had been made on discussions regarding opening up ports and allowing the free flow of goods into Gaza.

India calls off Pakistan talks over Kashmir controversy

The Indian government has called off talks with Pakistan, after its High Commissioner in Delhi consulted Kashmiri separatist leaders.

Indian Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh was due to meet her Pakistani counterpart in Islamabad, when High Commissioner Abdul Basit announced his plan to meet the Kashmiris last week.

India's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said Delhi told the High Commissioner "that Pakistan's continued efforts to interfere in India's internal affairs were unacceptable".

Kurdish protestor killed in clashes as Turkey removes PKK statue

Turkish security forces have killed a Kurdish protestor, after demonstrations against the removal of a statue of Mahsum Korkmaz, the founder of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

The statue was unveiled in a PKK cemetery last week, in the Kurdish city of Lice, to mark the 30th anniversary of the first attack by the group, which is banned as a terrorist organisation in the country.

Rohingya excluded from Burma census

The nationwide census conducted by the Burmese regime deliberately excluded Rohingya Muslims, independent observers charged.

The Myanmar Census Observation Team said the government rejected census forms from those who self-identified as Rohingya, the Myanmar Times reports.

"The exclusion of the Rohingya/Bengali population from the census enumeration poses serious methodological problems," a report from the 47-member census monitor group said.

"The resulting undercount will not only have a negative impact on the census results at the state and region levels but also at the national level if the missing population is not included, based on a proper count."

The government does not recognise the term Rohingya, referring to the people as Bengalis.

UN officials said they avoid the term Rohingya in public, for fear of stirring tensions between majority Buddhists and the Muslims.

Israeli restrictions preventing evidence collection of Gaza war crimes say rights groups

International human rights organisations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have said Israel's restrictions on Gaza are preventing the collection of evidence for a war crimes inquiry.

Speaking to Reuters, representatives from both groups said their staff are yet to receive permits, despite requesting them and lobbying the Israeli and Egyptian government for over a month.

According to Israel the permits have not been handed out as both groups do not have adequate paperwork, reports Reuters.