Iranian media have hailed trailblazing Iran-born mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani following her death from cancer, with her image blazoned across newspaper front pages on Sunday. In some cases newspapers even broke with tradition and portrayed Mirzakhani without her hair covered by a hijab — mandatory for women in public since the Islamic republic’s 1979 revolution. Mirzakhani, … Read more
Israeli authorities were to reopen an ultra-sensitive holy site Sunday closed after an attack that killed two policemen, but new security measures including metal detectors and cameras were being put in place. Three Arab Israeli assailants opened fire on Israeli police Friday in Jerusalem’s Old City before fleeing to the nearby Haram al-Sharif, known to … Read more
Two Iranian civilians were killed in a cross-border attack by Pakistani insurgents, the Revolutionary Guards said. “On Saturday evening, a terrorist team… fired (ammunition) from within Pakistani territory toward the Iranian border region of Saravan” in Sistan-Baluchistan province, the Guards said in a statement on their Sepahnews website. “Two local workers in the region were … Read more
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be in Paris Sunday to mark the 75th anniversary of a notorious roundup of thousands of Jews, an invitation that has angered his critics. He will also hold talks with Emmanuel Macron for the first time since the French president’s election, barely a week after Macron met Palestinian leader … Read more
Hundreds of Singaporeans staged a rare protest Saturday calling for an independent inquiry into a bitter family feud between Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his siblings. The rally at a designated free-speech corner in the strictly controlled city-state was the first public protest since the feud burst into the open on June 14. The … Read more
Three people, including two teenage boys, were killed by an explosion in Myanmar’s restive Rakhine state on Saturday, a police officer said. Police were investigating if the mine had been laid intentionally or if the victims had accidentally struck unexploded ordnance leftover from a previous conflict, an officer told AFP. “According to our initial information, … Read more
A team of Afghan girls who were earlier denied visas to attend a Washington robotics competition landed in the United States early Saturday following an intervention by US President Donald Trump. The six-member team were greeted at Dulles International Airport by a throng of supporters, including Afghan ambassador Hamdullah Mohib and acting special representative for … Read more
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in Doha on Saturday that Paris wants to assist Kuwait-led mediation on the crisis between Qatar and four other Arab states. “France should be a facilitator in the mediation” led by Kuwait, Le Drian told reporters following talks with his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani. Le … Read more
The manicured emerald pitch at Lord’s in London, where Afghanistan played for the first time ever Tuesday, is a world away from the border refugee camps where the country found its love for cricket. In dusty Pakistani camps like Khurasan, young barefoot cricketers have no pitch, no kit, no wickets, no helmets, no gloves and … Read more
US forces killed the leader of the Islamic State group’s Afghanistan branch in a raid earlier this week in the northeastern province of Kunar, the Pentagon said Friday. “US forces killed Abu Sayed, the emir of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria — Khorasan Province (ISIS-K) — in a strike on the group’s headquarters in … Read more
Activists accused Beijing of crippling Hong Kong’s parliament Friday after four pro-democracy lawmakers were disqualified. More than 1,000 people protested near the government offices Friday night in response to the decision. The High Court judgement came as a massive blow for the democracy movement as it means the balance of power in the partially elected … Read more
Sri Lanka has failed to deliver on its international commitments to prosecute government troops and Tamil rebels for atrocities committed during its ethnic war, a UN expert said Friday. Ben Emmerson said Colombo’s efforts at transitional justice were at a “virtual standstill” eight years after the end of its ethnic war which had claimed over … Read more
Turkey and Qatar on Friday insisted Ankara would keep a new military base in the emirate, rejecting demands from other Gulf countries for the facility to be closed. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Bahrain last month cut diplomatic ties with Qatar over what they allege is Doha’s support for extremist groups and … Read more
More than a million people were displaced from Mosul by the battle in the Iraqi city against the Islamic State group, but nearly 200,000 have returned home, the UN said Friday. Out of nearly 1.05 million people who fled the fighting after the offensive against IS began last October, 825,000 remain displaced, the International Organization … Read more
Four pro-democracy lawmakers were disqualified from Hong Kong’s parliament Friday in a move that will worsen growing fears the city’s freedoms are under serious threat from Beijing. Former Umbrella Movement protest leader Nathan Law was among the group barred by the High Court judgement in a case brought by the city’s Beijing-friendly government. It sought … Read more
A Ranking Member on the Foreign Affairs Committee of Parliament, Okudzeto Ablakwa has justified government’s decision to set up a diplomatic mission in Kuwait. There have been a series of reports on maltreatment of Ghanaian who go that country as domestic workers in Kuwait. But Mr. Ablakwa believes the establishment of a mission in Kuwait … Read more
Google has revealed it has built a London data centre for the cloud computing services it rents to third parties. The facility is its second in Europe, after Brussels, and promises to provide faster access times to nearby clients. Google is currently the third most capable cloud computing service provider, according to a recent study. But … Read more
Singapore on Friday executed a Malaysian drug trafficker despite a plea for clemency from the United Nations and concerns expressed by rights groups over alleged flaws in his trial. Prabagaran Srivijayan was arrested in 2012 after 22.24 grams (0.8 ounces) of heroin was found in the car he was driving when it was stopped at … Read more
A Thai anti-corruption official on Friday said he is suing King Power, the duty free giant that owns Leicester City Football Club, for hundreds of millions of dollars over the alleged underpayment of taxes. Charnchai Issarasenarak, head of a junta-appointed anti-graft panel, accuses King Power of under-declaring revenue to avoid paying a 15 percent levy … Read more
A business-as-usual approach to climate change will be “disastrous” for Asia, undoing much of the phenomenal economic growth that has helped it make vast inroads against poverty, the Asian Development Bank said in a report released Friday. A continued reliance on fossil fuels will see the world’s most populous region face prolonged heat waves, rising … Read more