Iraq Marks Anniversary of Victory over Daesh
Iraq on Monday celebrated the anniversary of its costly victory over the Daesh terror group, which has lost virtually all the territory it once held. The government declared victory last December after a grueling three-year war in which tens of thousands of people were killed and hundreds of thousands displaced. Entire towns and neighborhoods were […]
UK Can Unilaterally Stop Brexit: Top EU Court
The European Union’s top court ruled on Monday that the British government may unilaterally reverse its decision to leave the bloc, without consulting the other member states. In an emergency judgment delivered just a day before the British parliament is due to vote on a Brexit deal agreed with the EU by Prime Minister Theresa […]
About 300,000 without Power in US Southeast after Storm
About 300,000 people in the US southeast were without power on Monday and hundreds of flights were canceled after a storm dumped 20 inches of snow and left one motorist dead. The storm headed out to sea but the region will stay cold this week, the National Weather Service’s (NWS) Weather Prediction Center said, Reuters […]
UN Launches Aid Delivery from Jordan to 650,000 Syrians
The United Nations said it began delivering aid to hundreds of thousands of Syrians through the Jaber-Nassib border crossing with Jordan, which reopened two months ago. In total, “369 trucks carrying 11,200 metric tons of … assistance for over 650,000 people” will be involved in the four-week operation, the UN’s humanitarian agency OCHA said, AFP […]
UN Eyes 2019 Yemen Peace Talks
Another round of talks on the Saudi-led war on Yemen will likely take place in the coming months, sources said, as warring parties met for UN-sponsored talks in Sweden. The Sweden initiative marks the first meeting between the two sides since the 2016 breakdown of talks to end the Saudi war, which has claimed more […]
Qatar Rift Overshadows Riyadh Summit as Emir Stays Away
A Persian Gulf Arab summit called for regional unity as Bahrain and Qatar traded barbs over the Qatari emir’s decision not to attend the gathering in Saudi Arabia on Sunday in a sign that a row between Doha and its neighbors is still festering. Qatar sent its state minister for foreign affairs to the annual […]
Saudi FM Rules Out Extraditing Suspects in Khashoggi Case
Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister ruled out the extradition of suspects in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, after Istanbul’s chief prosecutor filed warrants for the arrest of two former senior Saudi officials. Turkish officials said last week that the prosecutor’s office had concluded there was “strong suspicion” that Saud al-Qahtani, a top aide to Crown […]
UN to Adopt Migration Pact at Meeting Hit by Withdrawals
Politicians from around the globe will gather Monday in Morocco for a major conference to endorse a United Nations migration pact, despite a string of withdrawals driven by anti-immigrant populism. The Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration was finalized at the UN in July after 18 months of talks and is due to […]
Iran, China Resume Banking Transactions
Financial and banking transactions between Iran and China would resume as of Monday, vice chairman of Iran-China Joint Chamber of Commerce announced. According to Mohammad Reza Hariri, the hurdles in banking transactions between the two countries were cleared last week and financial transactions would resume on Monday through China’s Bank of Kunlun, the key Chinese conduit […]
Nikki Haley Says US ‘Can’t Give Saudi A Pass’ on Khashoggi Murder
Nikki Haley, the outgoing US ambassador to the UN, has said the United States should not give Saudi Arabia a pass for the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Haley, who will leave her position at the end of the year, made her statements in an interview with US publication The Atlantic. “You have Saudi […]