Deadly blast near Syrian capital as envoy pushes peace
Saturday morning’s bomb blast struck a government-controlled suburb southeast of Damascus mainly populated by Christians and Muslim Druze, said the official SANA news agency.
Latest in Tag: AFP Highlight
Latest in Tag: AFP
American found hanged in Egypt police cell: security
Henry had been detained in August for violating a curfew imposed because of the latest wave of political unrest sweeping Egypt.
G20 seeks ‘urgent action’ from US on budget impasse
Meeting in Washington, the officials warned that there were still risks to global economic growth, and that many countries faced “unacceptably high unemployment.”
Egypt soldiers wounded in Sinai bombings: security
The attack came a day after a suicide bomber killed four soldiers when he rammed his bomb-laden car into a checkpoint near the northern Sinai town of El-Arish.
Apple planning iPad news
The event will be held on October 22, according to AllThingsD. Apple declined to comment on the report, which cited unnamed sources.
Panasonic to exit plasma TV display business
The move would fall in line with a broader industry shift away from plasma units, with Hitachi and Pioneer also exiting the market in recent years.
IMF cautious on emerging economies
Growth rates in emerging market and developing economies are now down some three percentage points from 2010 levels, mostly due to a slowdowns in Brazil, China, and India, the IMF said.
Turkey lifts ban on Islamic headscarves in civil service
Female civil servants are now allowed to wear the veil while their male counterparts can sport beards, both symbols of Muslim piety which were banned by Turkey’s first president Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
Syria warns Turkey will ‘pay dearly’ for rebel support
“It is not possible to use terrorism as a card and put it in your pocket. Because it is like a scorpion which won’t hesitate to sting you at any moment,” said Assad.
Hundreds march for ‘freedom’ in Sudan
“A million martyrs for a new dawn,” they called.
Iran’s Khamenei criticises ‘some’ of Rouhani’s UN trip
We support the diplomatic initiative of the government and attach importance to its activities in this trip, Khamenei told military commanders and graduating cadets in remarks reported by his website, Khamenei.ir.
Tunisia police rape trial adjourned
The defence had asked for a doctor to conduct a psychiatric examination of the woman.
Social media activist held in dragnet after Sudan demos
Eight security officers took Dalia El Roubi from her family home on Monday, her husband Abdelrahman Elmahdi
Iran top general views Israel threat as ‘desperate’
Benjamin Netanyahu told a UN summit Tuesday that the Jewish state was ready to act alone to halt Iranian efforts to build a nuclear bomb, a charge Tehran vehemently denies.
Yemen talks could be delayed up to 3 months: FM
The dialogue is aimed at drawing up a new constitution for Yemen and preparing for elections in February.
Syria chemical disarmament team begins mission
Assad’s departure is a key demand of the opposition, who insist it must be a pillar of a mooted Geneva peace conference.
Kuwait jails writer for tweets ‘defaming’ ex-PM
The ruling stipulated that Wushaihi, who is also a television presenter, must start serving his jail term immediately, but that he could appeal the sentence.
UN Council agrees call for better Syria aid access
It calls on Assad’s government “to take immediate steps to facilitate the expansion of humanitarian relief operations, and lift bureaucratic impediments and other obstacles.”
gallery
Egyptian police detain a political activists and supporter of Khaled Said
Egyptian police detain a political activists and supporter of 28-year-old blogger Khaled Said who died following police questioning before the revolution in 2010, during clashes with police outside a court in Egypt’s northern coastal city of Alexandria on October 1, 2013 during the trial of Egyptian police officers Awad Ismail Suleiman and Mahmud Salah Amin …
Jordanians arrested for supporting Egypt Islamists
The yellow posters show a black hand with four fingers raised, symbolising Cairo’s pro-Morsi Rabaa al-Adawiya protest camp, which was broken up on August 14, sparking clashes that killed hundreds of protesters.
Tunisia mediators say Islamists accept crisis plan
The country’s largest union confederation called on the Islamists and the secular opposition to agree on a date next week for a “national dialogue” aimed at ending a crisis sparked by the murder of a prominent opposition MP in July.
Armed Palestinian Hamas security forces patrol the streets of Gaza City on Wednesday
Egypt’s Foreign Minister Nabil Fahmy has warned Hamas of a “harsh response” if the Palestinian Islamist movement that rules the neighbouring Gaza Strip threatened Egypt’s national security.
Egypt must make democratic progress: Obama
Washington has been watching the unfolding events in Egypt with concern, worried that the new military leadership under General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi may renege on its promise to hand back to civilian rule.
Hamas, choked by blockade, seeks to avoid Egypt clash
Egypt says it has closed the Rafah crossing for “security reasons” as it seeks to cleanse the Sinai Peninsula, which borders Gaza, of Islamist militants.
Syria’s Assad says ‘terrorists’ obey foreign states: CCTV
The United States, Britain and France want a tough resolution that could include sanctions or the use of force if Syria fails to follow through, but Russia opposes such language.
Merkel wins in Germany, ‘grand coalition’ likely: exit polls
Voters rewarded Merkel, often called the world’s most powerful woman, with another four years at the helm for steering them unscathed through the eurozone debt turmoil that engulfed its southern flank.
Fate of 5 US sailors ‘undetermined’ as chopper ditches
The MH-60S Knighthawk was flying with the guided missile destroyer USS William P. Lawrence, part of a carrier group dispatched to the region to increase pressure on Syria.
Israel army roughs up EU envoys on West Bank aid trip
A European diplomatic source said the woman was yanked out of the truck by Israeli soldiers who later confiscated the vehicle.
gallery
In Pictures: Funeral of police chief gather masses
On Friday, mourners gathered to pay their respect to security chief Nabil Farrag whose funeral was held by the Unknown Soldier Memorial in Nasr City. Farrag was killed when Egyptian security forces stormed Kerdasa in the latest where security personnel faced-off with Islamist militants. Defense Minister Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi, Prime Minsiter Hazem El-Beblawi and Interior …
Iraq’s Kurds vote amid rows, regional tensions
About 2.8 million Kurds are eligible to vote across the three-province region of northern Iraq, and queues had already formed when polls opened.