Activists feared Friday for the safety of a young Saudi woman they say was returned to the kingdom against her will, in a case highlighting tight restrictions on women. Dina Ali Lasloom, 24, intended to flee to Australia to escape a forced marriage, Human Rights Watch cited a Canadian witness as saying. The witness said … Read more
Around 3,000 Syrian refugees have left their tents in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley after oral eviction orders issued last month by the army, Human Rights Watch told AFP on Tuesday. Lebanon is home to over one million Syrian refugees, many of whom live in informal tented settlements set up on private agricultural land across the country. … Read more
A prominent female academic and activist was charged on Monday with cyber-harassment for calling President Yoweri Museveni a “pair of buttocks” in a Facebook post. University lecturer Dr Stella Nyanzi, 42, has raised eyebrows in the conservative country for sexually explicit social media posts in which she has frequently criticised the president and his wife. … Read more
Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi has announced a three-month state of emergency after attacks on two Coptic churches that left at least 44 dead. The measure allows authorities to make arrests without warrants and search people’s homes. It needs to be approved by parliament before it is implemented. So-called Islamic State (IS) said it was … Read more
Indonesia’s Aceh looks set to cane two men who admitted having sex in contravention of Islamic laws, an official said Monday, the first such punishment of a gay couple in the conservative province. They face up to 100 strokes if found guilty of breaking Aceh’s sharia regulations after they were caught in late March by … Read more
Egypt’s President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi has announced a three-month state of emergency after attacks on two Coptic churches that left at least 44 dead. The measure allows authorities to make arrests without warrants and search people’s homes. It needs to be approved by parliament before it is implemented. So-called Islamic State (IS) said it was … Read more
Egypt’s Copts, targets of an apparent church bombing north of Cairo on Sunday, are the Middle East’s largest Christian minority and one of the oldest. Making up about 10 percent of Egypt’s population of 90 million, the Coptic Orthodox form the largest Christian denomination in the Muslim-majority country. Here is a recap of their history, … Read more
A prominent academic has been arrested for criticising the wife of Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on social media, police said Saturday. Stella Nyanzi criticised Janet Museveni, who is education minister, on Facebook after the government reneged on a campaign pledge to supply free sanitary pads to schoolgirls struggling to afford hygiene products. Police spokesman Emilian … Read more
A historic leatherworking quarter in Bangladesh once labelled among the most polluted places on earth was shut Thursday as police enforced a court ruling to protect a vital waterway. Conservationists have been fighting for years to close the century-old tannery district in the capital Dhaka, which pumps thousands of litres of toxic waste directly into … Read more
Gaza’s Hamas rulers hanged three men they accused of collaborating with Israel Thursday following calls for revenge for the killing of one of their commanders last month, an AFP journalist reported. Hamas says that the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad and its “collaborators” killed Mazen Faqha in the Palestinian territory on March 24, but has offered … Read more
Burundi’s ruling party sought Wednesday to distance itself from a viral video showing members of its feared youth wing threatening to impregnate opposition women. Hundreds of the youths known as Imbonerakure — “those who see from afar” in the local Kirundi language — are shown in military-like formation singing “impregnate the opposition so that they … Read more
Hamas has offered “collaborators” with Israel a week to turn themselves in and receive clemency as it investigates the murder of one of its officials in the Gaza Strip, which it blames on Israel. “The doors of repentance will be open for one week, from Tuesday, April 4 to Tuesday, April 11,” the interior ministry … Read more
A video circulating on social media has raised eyebrows as it shows a non-uniformed Kenyan policeman killing an unarmed suspected gang member at point-blank range in the streets of Eastleigh in the capital Nairobi. The incident was confirmed to have occurred last Friday when the police pursued wanted gang members for killing police officers last … Read more
British Prime Minister Theresa May heads to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday hoping to tap the oil-rich kingdom’s “immense potential” as she looks to secure post-Brexit investment and trade. Facing criticism at home and calls to raise rights issues with Saudi leaders, May insisted she had no problem talking about “hard issues” on foreign visits. But, … Read more
At least 58 people have been killed and dozens wounded in a suspected chemical attack on a rebel-held town in north-western Syria, a monitoring group says. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that strikes on Khan Sheikhoun by Syrian government or Russian jets had caused many people to choke. Later, there were unconfirmed reports … Read more
At least 58 people have been killed and dozens wounded in a suspected chemical attack on a rebel-held town in north-western Syria, a monitoring group says. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that strikes on Khan Sheikhoun by Syrian government or Russian jets had caused many people to choke. Local opposition activists and news … Read more
Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi is visiting the White House for the first time since he led the military’s overthrow of his predecessor in 2013. US President Donald Trump said he was “very much behind” Mr Sisi, whose deadly crackdown on dissent was criticised by the Obama administration. Mr Sisi declared his deep appreciation for … Read more
Palestinian football chief Jibril Rajoub on Monday renewed calls for FIFA to exclude Israel over games played in settlements on occupied land, expressing disappointment at the world’s body’s recommendations. Palestinians argue the presence of six Israeli football clubs playing inside settlements in the occupied West Bank that are seen as illegal under international law is … Read more
Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi is to visit the White House for the first time since he led the military’s overthrow of his predecessor in 2013. Egypt has long been a staunch US ally, but ties were strained by Mr Sisi’s decision to launch a crackdown on his Islamist and secular opponents. The Obama administration … Read more
Pakistan Monday resumed its mass repatriation of Afghan refugees despite past accusations of coercion in the supposedly voluntary UN programme to return hundreds of thousands to a war-torn nation. The operation, which saw 380,000 registered refugees sent back from Pakistan in 2016, was halted in December for a routine winter break. “The UNHCR voluntary repatriation … Read more