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by Anuj Chopra with Dana Moukhallati in Dubai RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Saudi Arabia on Monday offered Yemen’s Huthi rebels a “comprehensive” UN-supervised ceasefire, as part of a series of fresh proposals aimed at ending a catastrophic six-year conflict. But the Huthis swiftly dismissed the initiative, which comes as the Iran-backed rebels escalate attacks on the kingdom — including its oil facilities — and push to seize the Saudi-backed Yemeni government’s last northern stronghold […]
SAMARRA, Iraq (AFP) — Seven rockets targeted an Iraqi airbase housing US troops north of Baghdad on Monday, a security source said, the latest in a string of attacks Washington routinely blames on Iran-linked factions. The evening attack on Al-Balad did not cause any casualties or damage inside the base, the security official said. The other five rockets crashed into a nearby village, he added, noting that all seven were fired from a separate village […]
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — A drone struck a Saudi oil port and a ballistic missile targeted facilities of energy giant Aramco in the country’s east on Sunday, the energy ministry said. “One of the petroleum tank areas at the Ras Tanura Port in the Eastern Region, one of the largest oil ports in the world, was attacked this morning by a drone, coming from the sea,” the ministry said in a statement released by […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States on Friday warned China against the use of force in disputed waters as it reaffirmed its view that Beijing’s assertive campaign in the South China Sea is illegal. The State Department voiced “concern” about new legislation enacted by China that authorizes its coast guard to use weapons against foreign ships that Beijing considers to be unlawfully entering its waters. The text “strongly implies this law can […]
YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — The world’s longest internet shutdown — affecting more than a million people for 19 months in one of Myanmar’s ethnic conflict zones — has come to an end, according to a mobile operator based in the region. The internet in parts of Myanmar’s troubled northern states of Rakhine and Chin was suspended in June 2019 following “emergency” orders issued by the telecoms department under Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian government. […]
by Guillaume Lavallee Agence France-Presse GAZA CITY, Palestinian Territories (AFP) — The densely populated Gaza Strip has long lacked sufficient drinking water, but a new project helps ease the shortage with a solar-powered process to extract potable water straight from the air. Unusually, the project operating in the Islamist-run Palestinian enclave, which has been blockaded by Israel since 2007, is the brainchild of a Russian-Israeli billionaire, Michael Mirilashvili. The company he heads, Watergen, has developed […]
TAEZ, Yemen (AFP) — Heavy rains have triggered the collapse of parts of the newly restored National Museum in Yemen’s third city Taez, in the latest loss to the country’s cultural heritage after years of war. Established as an Ottoman palace, then a residence for one of Yemen’s last kings, the building became a museum in 1967 but has since been bombed and its collections pilfered. It was partially restored in 2019, but a recent […]
by Didier Lauras with Jalees Andrabi in New Delhi AMBALA, India (AFP) — India’s defence minister hailed the formal commissioning Thursday of the country’s first new French Rafale jets as a “strong message” to its adversaries, amid an escalating border row with China. The first five of a $9.4-billion order for 36 Rafale aircraft formally entered service following a ceremony in Ambala in northern India. “The induction of Rafale is a strong message for the […]
DAMASCUS, Syria (AFP) — Syrian firefighters and army helicopters Wednesday battled forest fires for a seventh consecutive day in government-held areas of the war-torn country, state media said. Damascus ally Iran sent in a firefighting plane Wednesday carrying 40 tonnes of water to help fight the fires in the hilly woodlands of Latakia and Hama provinces, in northwestern and central Syria respectively, state news agency SANA said. State media has published repeated images of billowing […]
by Emal HAIDARY KABUL, Afghanistan (AFP) — Afghanistan’s vice president Amrullah Saleh sustained minor injuries Wednesday when an explosion targeted his convoy and killed at least 10 people, as government-backed negotiators and the Taliban prepared to meet in Doha for long-delayed peace talks. The attack in the capital Kabul was quickly condemned as an attempt to frustrate the peace process, with top Afghan and foreign officials calling for an end to the violence so negotiations […]
by Serge Daniel and Malick Konate BAMAKO, Mali (AFP) — Army colonel Assimi Goita on Wednesday introduced himself as Mali’s new military strongman a day after a coup that was condemned by the international community but won support from the country’s opposition. The African Union, European Union, the United States and the UN Security Council have all demanded the junta free President Ibrahim Boubacar, Prime Minister Boubou Cisse and others taken captive in Tuesday’s coup […]
BEIRUT, Lebanon (AFP) — Lebanon, a small multi-confessional country which endured a devastating 15-year civil war, has often been caught in the crossfire of regional conflicts. The tragic explosions at Beirut port on Tuesday struck with the country mired in its worst economic crisis for decades, marked by the collapse of its currency and angry popular protests. Lebanon has had more than 5,000 cases of coronavirus, with 65 dead. Between Israel and Syria The civil […]
