Russia advises Syrian opposition leaders to attend Moscow talks
MOSCOW — Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday Syrian opposition representatives would risk losing influence in peace efforts if they do not attend planned talks in Moscow. The refusal of prominent opposition figures to attend the Jan. 26-29 meeting, intended to bring together representatives of President Bashar...Paris attack reminds Arab cartoonists of dangers at home
A cartoon by Stavro Jabra.CAIRO — After Egyptian cartoonist Andeel took to social media to condemn the slaughter of colleagues in Paris, he received expressions of sympathy — often not for the victims but for the suspected Islamist gunmen. Some respondents on his Facebook page criticized the attack at the offices of the Charlie...Yemeni police arrest six suspects in police college bombing
People look at the wreckage of a car at the scene of a car bomb attack outside the police college in Sanaa Jan. 7.SANAA — Police in Yemen arrested six people suspected of involvement in Wednesday's bombing of a police college in Sanaa, the capital's police chief told Yemeni television on Thursday. The car bomb, which exploded in the...
Canada Parliament gunman had planned to travel to Syria
October 24th, 20140 Ottawa — The gunman in Wednesday's attack on Canada's capitol had a criminal record and recently applied for a passport, planning to travel to Syria after undergoing a "radicalization process," police said on Thursday.Michael Zehaf-Bibeau, 32, was a Canadian who may also have held Libyan citizenship, said Bob Paulson, commissioner of...Yemeni Houthis protest against fuel hike, government
SANAA — Tens of thousands of Yemenis converged on the capital Sanaa on Monday in a demonstration organized by the Shi'a Houthi movement, demanding the government rescind a decision to curb fuel subsidies and calling on the administration to resign.The three-hour demonstration was the latest move by the Houthis, whose fighters...Yemeni troops kill seven suspected al Qaeda militants
ADEN — Yemeni security forces killed seven suspected al-Qaeda militants on Thursday when they tried to attack an army facility in the volatile eastern region of Wadi Hadramout, where the government is perceived to be weak.The Defense Ministry said on its website the militants' target was the headquarters of the first military district,...South American leadrers stand with Gaza, Bolivia declares Israel ‘terrorist state’
Bolivia has declared Israel to be a “terrorist state” and renounced a visa exemption agreement with the country in protest over the ongoing Israeli military assault on Gaza.Canceling the 1972 agreement which allowed Israelis to travel freely to Bolivia “means, in other words, we are declaring (Israel) a terrorist state,” the...Malaysian airliner downed in Ukraine war zone, 295 reported dead
An armed pro-Russian separatist stands at a site of a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 plane crash in the settlement of Grabovo in the Donetsk region, July 17, 2014. REUTERS/Maxim ZmeyevMALAYSIA — A Malaysian airliner was brought down over eastern Ukraine on Thursday, killing all 295 people aboard and sharply raising the stakes in a...Yemeni soldiers clash with Houthi rebels near capital
Army and police officers loyal to the Shi'ite al-Houthi group march during a demonstration in Yemen's capital Sanaa on June 4. REUTERS/Khaled AbdullahSANAA — Shi'a rebels fought Yemeni soldiers just 25 miles (40 km) northwest of the capital Sanaa on Wednesday, an official said, as they try to tighten their grip in the...Yemenis protest over power cuts, fuel shortages
SANAA — Hundreds of protesters gathered outside the Yemeni president's house in the capital Sanaa on Wednesday, June 11, to call for the fall of the government, angry at a city-wide power cut about to enter its third day and severe petrol shortages.President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi has replaced five ministers in his cabinet amid...NSA may be putting Israeli security interests above U.S., new document reveals
A document suggesting that the U.S. National Security Agency may put the interests of Israel above those of the United States was released Wednesday by journalist Glenn Greenwald.The document is one of the many slides leaked by NSA defector Edward Snowden, currently a fugitive from American law in Moscow.Greenwald,...US accuses Israel of ‘alarming, even terrifying’ levels of spying
Friends do not spy on friends. That illusion about America’s attitude to its allies was conclusively debunked by Edward Snowden’s revelations about America’s National Security Agency and its British partner in global electronic eavesdropping, GCHQ. But by every account, the US is being repaid in kind by one of its closest...Deadly Middle East virus MERS officially hits the U.S.
WASHINGTON — The first U.S. patient to test positive for the often deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome virus will remain isolated at home after he is released from an Indiana hospital, officials said this week.The patient will remain in isolation until the Indiana State Department of Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control...Muslim ‘Happy’ YouTube video goes viral, spawns negative reactions
Pharrell's "Happy" is currently the number one song in the country. Its video - featuring a bunch of happy people dancing and clapping in different locations around LA - is really easy to copy, so there are loads of tributes and parodies on YouTube.This week, a Muslim version of the music video has become a big viral hit....Criminal Court a U.S.-Israeli “red line” for Palestinians
UNITED NATIONS — When Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas decided to defy the United States and Israel over stalled peace negotiations, he formally indicated to the United Nations last week that Palestine will join 15 international conventions relating mostly to the protection of human rights and treaties governing conflicts and prisoners......
UWindsor students put controversial Israel boycott on the back burner
The University of Windsor Student’s Association has delayed the ratification of a controversial Israel boycott, a move some say is capitulating to the administration.Earlier this month, the student body voted in favor of a proposal to join the growing Boycott, Divestment and Sanction movement. The referendum — which calls on the...Russia stands strong against U.S. sanctions; places entry ban on American lawmakers and officals
MOSCOW- As the West imposes what have been called the most comprehensive sanctions on Russia since the end of the Cold War, many ordinary Russians say they have no fear of any economic measures the United States or the European Union may take against their country.Since the Russian invasion of the Crimean peninsula at the end of last...
World powers and Iran make ‘good start’ towards nuclear accord
February 21st, 20140 VIENNA — Six world powers and Iran made a "good start" in talks in Vienna towards reaching a final settlement in the decade-old stand-off over Tehran's nuclear program, although they conceded that their plan to get a deal in the coming months was very ambitious.By late July, Western governments hope to hammer out an accord that would...UN, Syrian government reach agreement over besieged Homs
DAMASCUS — The United Nations on Thursday, Feb 6, welcomed reports that an agreement had been reached to allow the evacuation of civilians from the besieged Syrian city of Homs and for aid to be delivered, a U.N. spokesman said.The United Nations made clear that it was not a party to the deal and while it was ready to send in aid, it......
Yemenis protest to scrap ‘corrupt’ gas deals with foreign firms
SANAA — Several hundred protesting Yemeni youths demanded Thursday, Feb. 6, that the government scrap "corrupt" gas deals with foreign firms, including France's Total, which they claim are at vastly lower rates than market prices."Total out! Our gas is ours," chanted the demonstrators, who had gathered outside the Sanaa residence of...Opposition leader meets Russian FM, agree to continue Geneva 2 talks
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov held talks with Syrian National Coalition (SNC) leader Ahmad Jarba on Tuesday, Feb. 4. Following the talks — which took place in Moscow and focused on the temporarily halted peace conference in Switzerland — Jarba confirmed to Russian media that the SNC will come to Geneva on February 10.The......
Oxfam: 85 richest people as wealthy as half the world
The world’s 85 wealthiest people have as much money as the 3.5 billion poorest people on the planet – half the Earth’s population. That’s according to Oxfam’s latest report on the risks of the widening gap between the super-rich and the poor.The report, titled “Working for the Few,” was released Monday, and was compiled by...Major Dutch pension firm divests from Israeli banks over settlements
AMSTERDAM- A major pension fund manager based in the Netherlands said on Wednesday, Jan. 9, that it will divest from five Israeli banks over their dealings with Jewish settlements on occupied land.The decision by PGGM reflects tension between Israel and the European Union over doing business with Israeli institutions involved in......
