Srinagar: A meeting between the Taliban and Afghan politicians and civil society aimed at ending more than 17 years of war in Afghanistan has been postponed, officials and diplomats said on Thursday, citing Taliban objections to the size of the Afghan delegation. The talks were set to begin on Friday in Doha, but a senior government […]
Istanbul: Turkey’s main opposition candidate was declared Istanbul’s mayor on Wednesday after election recounts were finally completed, despite an appeal still pending by President Tayyip Erdogan’s AK Party to re-run the vote in the country’s largest city. The final result of the March 31 local elections showed a narrow victory for the secularist opposition Republican […]
Jerusalem: Israeli President Reuven Rivlin on Wednesday formally handed Benjamin Netanyahu his letter of appointment to start building a coalition government following last week’s general election. In a televised ceremony, Rivlin told Netanyahu that in consultations with all parties elected to the incoming 120-seat parliament, “65 MPs recommended you.” Rivlin had sounded out delegations from […]
Moscow: The recent negotiations between the United States and Turkey have failed to overcome an impasse over Ankara’s plans to deploy Russian S-400 anti-aircraft weapon systems, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed officials. The newspaper noted that on Monday, US President Donald Trump held a White House meeting with Turkish Finance Minister Berat Albayrak. The […]
Cairo: Egypt’s parliament on Tuesday passed amendments to the constitution that could see President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi remain in power until 2030. The vote, which sends the amendments to a national referendum, was seen by critics as another step back to authoritarianism, eight years after a pro-democracy uprising ended autocrat Hosni Mubarak’s three-decade rule. The 596-member assembly, […]
Khartoum: At least 14 people were killed in clashes inside a camp for internally-displaced persons (IDPs) in the southern Sudanese state of Darfur, official SUNA news agency reported Monday. “Clashes took place inside Kalma camp on Saturday with 14 IDPs killed,” South Darfur State’s Acting Governor Hashim Khalid was quoted as saying. “Weapons are everywhere in […]
Srinagar: Notre-Dame Cathedral went up in flames on Monday in a roaring blaze that devastated the Parisian landmark, a searing loss for the city and for France. Flames that began in the early evening burst through the roof of the centuries-old cathedral and engulfed the spire, which collapsed, quickly followed by the entire roof. A […]
Moscow: Russia will continue its close cooperation with Ankara to resolve the Idlib crisis, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov told Sputnik. “The situation in Idlib is regulated by the Russian-Turkish memorandum from September 17, 2018 … We will maintain active cooperation with Ankara within this memorandum on the Idlib settlement,” the diplomat said in an […]
Helsinki: Finns can expect a broad, ineffective coalition government for the next four years as the Social Democrats, who narrowly won weekend elections, focus on keeping the surging anti-immigration populists out, analysts said. The polls were closely watched to see how the nationalists would do ahead of European Parliament elections in May when many believe […]
Srinagar: Describing Islamophobia a “very very dangerous threat” not only to Muslims but to all of humanity, a group of scholars on Sunday insisted that Muslims need to educate themselves to fight this growing problem. At the end of the third day of the Islamophobia international conference hosted by the Centre for Islam and Global […]
