Silently, the figures climb the hill in a dusty breeze to reach the gravestones of their loved ones. The site west of Kabul is the last resting place for victims of a deadly suicide bombing on July 23 last year — the first claimed by the Islamic State group in the heart of Kabul against … Read more
A 5.7 magnitude earthquake near Iran’s border with Turkmenistan killed two people, injured hundreds and caused widespread damage, state media reported Sunday, citing the country’s seismological centre. The quake, which struck at 1800 GMT Saturday in and around the city of Bojnurd, North Khorasan province, killed a 54-year-old woman and a teenage girl, ISNA news … Read more
Global press freedom has hit a 13-year low, threatened by US President Donald Trump’s media bashing and restrictions pursued by both democratic and authoritarian governments, a watchdog said Friday. A survey by Freedom House, a US-based human rights organization, highlighted growing concerns over efforts by governments around the world to clamp down on media and … Read more
Press freedom has never been as threatened as it is now, in the “new post-truth era of fake news” after the election of US President Donald Trump, Reporters Without Borders warned Wednesday. Its annual World Press Freedom Index warned of the “highly toxic” media-bashing of Trump’s election campaign and Britain’s Brexit referendum. The situation is … Read more
There are just 30 pools in Afghanistan, only one which welcomes girls — and it is facing militant threats for doing so. Nevertheless a handful are diving in, pioneers racing to achieve Olympic glory in Tokyo. The story of the 25-year-old coach and head of the newly created Women’s Swimming Committee, Elena Saboori, epitomises the … Read more
The funeral of Uzbekistan’s President Islam Karimov, who died after a stroke this week aged 78, has been taking place in the city of Samarkand. Thousands earlier lined the streets of the capital, Tashkent, throwing flowers as his cortege passed. Karimov, one of Asia’s most autocratic leaders, ruled for 27 years, and was accused by … Read more