Asia

Trump warns Iran not to kill protesters, says door still open to talks

  by Jim MANNION Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump warned Iran Sunday against killing protesters who have risen up over the regime’s downing of a civilian airliner as his defense secretary left the door open to talks with Tehran without preconditions. Trump’s salvo came as Iran’s Islamic regime faced a challenge from angry street protests, having come to the brink of war with the US after a series […]

Iran agrees de-escalation ‘only solution’ to solve crisis with US

by David Vujanovic TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — Iran signaled Sunday it favors a de-escalation after 10 days of heightened tensions with the United States during which both sides fired missiles and Tehran accidentally shot down a passenger aircraft. Security was stepped up in Iran’s capital after a vigil the previous night for those killed in the air disaster turned into an angry protest and police temporarily arrested the British ambassador for being there. US President […]

In the words of a general: how Iran downed airliner (excerpts of 12-minute explanation of Iran military)

  TEHRAN, Iran (AFP) — The aerospace commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards on Saturday accepted full responsibility for the shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger jet. In remarks aired on state television, Brigadier General Amirali Hajizadeh said the missile operator who fired on the plane did so independently because of communications “jamming”. It came as Iran acknowledged the Boeing 737 had been shot down, after denying for days Western claims that it was likely to […]

Taiwan’s Tsai wins landslide in stinging result for China

  by Amber WANG / Jerome TAYLOR Agence France Presse TAIPEI, Taiwan (AFP) — Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen declared a landslide victory in Saturday’s election as voters delivered a stunning rebuke of Beijing’s campaign to isolate the self-ruled island and handed its first female leader a second term. Tsai, 63, announced her victory as thousands of jubilant supporters cheered and waved flags outside her party headquarters with the ongoing vote count revealing an all but […]

Ukraine demands punishment, compensation for airliner downed by Iran

  KIEV, Ukraine (AFP) — President Volodymyr Zelensky demanded Saturday that Iran punish those responsible for the downing of a Ukrainian airliner, pay compensation and apologise. “We expect Iran… to bring the guilty to the courts,” the Ukrainian leader wrote on Facebook, calling also for the “payment of compensation” and the return of remains. Tehran admitted Saturday that it accidentally downed the Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) plane, killing all 176 people on board on Wednesday, […]

Taiwan votes in crucial election as China’s shadow looms

by Amber WANG / Jerome TAYLOR Agence France Presse Taiwanese voters headed to the polls on Saturday for a closely watched presidential and parliamentary election in which the island’s fraught relationship with China is taking centre stage. Long queues formed outside election stations before polls opened across the island at 8 am (0000 GMT) with initial results expected late in the evening. The vote will reverberate far beyond Taiwan’s borders, with the two main candidates […]

Cousin of late Oman sultan sworn in as new ruler

  Haitham bin Tariq, Oman’s culture minister and the 65-year-old cousin of late Sultan Qaboos, has been sworn in as the new royal ruler, the government said Saturday. “Haitham bin Tariq was sworn in as the new sultan of the country… after a meeting of the family which decided to appoint the one who was chosen by the sultan,” the government said in a tweet. Sultan Qaboos, the longest-reigning leader of the modern Arab world […]

Oman Sultan Qaboos, longest reigning leader of modern Arab world, has died: state media

  MUSCAT, Oman (AFP) — Sultan Qaboos, the longest-reigning leader of the modern Arab world, has died at the age of 79, the royal court said Saturday. “With great sorrow and deep sadness… the royal court mourns His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, who passed away on Friday,” the court said in a statement. Qaboos, who has ruled since 1970 when he deposed his father in a palace coup, had been ill for some time […]

US piles on sanctions pain against Iran

  by Sebastian Smith Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States piled new sanctions on Iran’s already crippled economy Friday and defended the killing of a top Iranian leader, saying he had been planning an “imminent” attack on US embassies. The sanctions, announced at the White House, marked the latest salvo in a US-Iranian confrontation that risked sliding into war a week ago with the deadly US drone attack on general […]

“Unforgivable mistake” says Iran’s President Rouhani on military’s “human error” in downing Ukraine plane

(Eagle News) – Iranian president Hassan Rouhani said that the “human error” on the part of Iran’s military that caused the crash of a Ukrainian plane carrying 176 people was a “great tragedy” and an “unforgivable mistake.” In a tweet posted after the Iranian military’s admission of its “unintentionally” firing a missile at the Ukraine plane, president Rouhani said: “Armed Forces’ internal investigation has concluded that regrettably missiles fired due to human error caused the […]

JUST IN: Iran admits it “unintentionally” shot down Ukrainian plane, issues apology

(Eagle News) — Iran admitted that it had “unintentionally” shot down a Ukrainian plane carrying 176 people after the jet flew close to a “sensitive military center.” The statement by the Iran military was read on state TV, and was immediately reported by various news agencies. It said that people responsible for this would be held accountable. Iran’s armed forces said it mistook the Ukraine jet that just took off from an airport in Tehran […]

Top Ukrainian diplomat wants to find truth behind jet crash as missile strike claims mount

  Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko said Friday his country wanted to know facts about the crash of its jetliner near Tehran after several nations pointed the finger at Iran. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo became the latest senior official to say that the Ukrainian jet was likely downed by an Iranian missile, after Canadian, Australian and UK leaders voiced similar conclusions. “We have many reasons to be fair in our investigation. First, we […]