Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Mayisin son Nefesi Global News (May 2015 -A)

The European Parliament has called on Turkey to recognise the "Armenian genocide", sparking condemnation from Ankara, which says the move is "inconsistent with international law"...... EU Parliament calls for Turkey to recognise 'genocide'


  1. Houthi rebels attack 'Saudi border'...

    Saudi troops have repelled a major attack on their border by Houthi rebels from Yemen, Saudi state media says.

    Air strikes carried out by a Saudi-led coalition have targeted the Shia Muslim rebels since late March.

    But this is the first major assault on Saudi territory since the strikes began. The Saudi reports say "dozens" of rebels were killed.

    As fighting continues, aid groups say a lack of fuel is severely hampering their operations in Yemen.

    A statement by the Saudi Press Agency, SPA, said the attack happened on its southern border, near the Saudi town of Najran on Thursday.

    Identifying the attackers as Houthi rebels and groups allied to them, SPA said Saudi ground exchanged fire with them and called in air

  2. US Navy to ‘accompany’ US-flagged ships passing through Strait of Hormuz...

    US Navy ships will start accompanying US-flagged commercial vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran's seizure of a Marshall Islands-flagged vessel two days ago, a US defence official told Reuters on Thursday.

    The official said the measure was expected to be in force for a limited time, adding that ships would not be "escorting" the American vessels but only keeping them within eyeshot.

    US Navy vessels already in the area would be tasked with the job, the official added.

    The move follows the detention by Iran of Marshall Islands-flagged Maersk Tigris, chartered by Danish shipping giant Maersk, after shots were fired across its

  3. China: US-Philippines drill bad for regional peace ...

    China on Thursday said a military drill by the United States and the Philippines is "muscle flexing", and not good for the region's peace and stability.

    "Some countries consolidate their military alliances, hold large-scale military exercises and create tension in the region. This goes against the trend of the times of peace, development, cooperation and reciprocity," said Defense Ministry spokesman Geng Yansheng at a regular press briefing.

    "To reinforce military alliances and flex muscles is not good for regional peace and stability," Geng said while commenting the "Balikatan", (shoulder-to-shoulder) maneuvers that began on April 20.

    According to Philippine media, this year's annual drill involved more than 11,000 U.S. and Philippine military personnel and 61 Australian soldiers, the largest in 15 years.

    "There are always some people hyping 'China threat'. Under the current circumstances when there is such a large-scale military drill, we can't help asking who is making tension in the region and threatening regional peace and stability," Geng said.

  4. China says US welcome to use civilian facilities in South China Sea...

    The United States and other countries will be welcome to use civilian facilities China is building in the South China Sea for search and rescue and weather forecasting "when conditions are right", China's navy chief has told a senior U.S. officer.


    Recent satellite images show China has made rapid progress in building an airstrip suitable for military use in the disputed Spratly Islands and may be planning

  5. High Representative Federica Mogherini in Tunisia, talks with Libyan parties...

    Federica Mogherini, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, was in Tunisia today to have talks with all Libyan parties as a follow up of the Special European Council of 23 April.

    After meeting with Bernardino León, the UN Special Representative for Libya, and members of the recently established EU/UNSMIL (UN Support Mission in Libya) liaison cell, the High Representative held a series of contacts and meetings with different parties taking part in the UN-led political dialogue.

    This initiative was taken to strongly encourage them to work quickly for the setting up of a Government of National Unity in the coming weeks. Underlining the importance of Libyans taking ownership to confront the challenges the country faces, the High Representative reiterated the EU's readiness to support a new government once it is established.

    The importance of the need to urgently address the common threat of terrorism and the fight against traffickers and smugglers were stressed in the discussions both for the benefit of Libya and the EU.

    The High Representative/Vice-President also met with the Tunisian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Baccouche, to discuss the bilateral EU-Tunisia relationship, regional challenges including the situation in Libya, migration and counter terrorism.

  6. Turkey blocks access to Taksim square on tense May day ...

    Turkish police on Friday put Istanbul under a security lockdown to thwart unauthorised demonstrations on a tense May Day, with roads to the centre shut and public transport severely restricted.

    The usually traffic-clogged streets in the city centre were eerily quiet as police blocked all vehicle access to Taksim Square, the traditional focus for protests in the city.

    Several hundred people turned out for an initial protest under heavy police surveillance in the Besiktas district on the Bosphorus, shouting "Long Live May 1!" and "shoulder to shoulder against Fascism!"

    President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's administration -- shaken by weeks of deadly anti-government protests in May-June 2013 centred on Taksim Square -- is hugely nervous about public demonstrations ahead of June 7 legislative elections.

    In an apparent bid to discourage protests, the city's main metro line has been halted well before Taksim and services on the city tram service are stopping halfway.

    The local authorities have erected iron barriers on Taksim Square to make even pedestrian access impossible.

    Several ferry services from the Asian side of the Bosphorus have been suspended to prevent people from crossing to join protests on the European side.

    Private helicopters were also banned from taking to the skies to give the airspace to police choppers.

    The blocking of traffic left some locals with long walks to carry out their business while travellers carrying heavy luggage were stranded as they sought a ride to the airport.

    Turkish media said 20,000 police had been deployed in Istanbul backed up by 62 water cannon trucks that the police are happy to use in case of clashes.

    This is the first May Day in Turkey, a national holiday in the country, to be marked after parliament passed a controversial security bill this year giving the police greater powers to crack down on

    1. İstanbul Valisi Şahin,1 Mayıs dolayısıyla çıkan olaylarda 203 kişinin gözaltına alındığını, olaylarda 6 emniyet mensubu ve 18 göstericinin yaralandığını bildirdi...

      İstanbul Valisi Vasip Şahin ve İstanbul Emniyet Müdürü Selami Altınok, Vatan Caddesi'ndeki İstanbul Emniyet Müdürlüğü'nde basın toplantısı düzenledi.

      İstanbul'da 1 Mayıs'ta kutlama için izin verilen alanlarda herhangi bir olaya rastlanmadığını, 1 Mayıs'ın birlik ve beraberlik içerisinde kutlandığını dile getiren Vali Şahin, "İstanbul'da işçilerimizin, halkımızın büyük bir çoğunluğu yapılan yasa dışı çağrılara itibar etmemiş ve yasal zeminlerde bayramlarını kutlamışlardır" diye konuştu.

      Şahin, az da olsa zaman zaman çeşitli alanlarda Taksim'e çıkmak isteyen gruplarla karşılaşıldığını ifade ederek, "Personelimiz bunlara da oldukça orantılı ve sabırlı şekilde müdahale ederek herhangi bir yasa dışılığın oluşmasına engel olmuşlardır. Özellikle halkımızın, işçilerimizin sağduyusundan dolayı teşekkür ediyorum. Görev yapan ham amir hem memur bütün güvenlik görevlilerimize, başta Sayın Valimiz olmak üzere teşekkür ediyorum" dedi.

      "Bu sene katılım ve olaylar az oldu"

      Vali Vasip Şahin, basın mensuplarının geçen yıla kıyasla bu senenin nasıl geçtiğine ilişkin sorusu üzerine, "Geçen yıl burada değildim ama arkadaşlarımın vermiş olduğu bilgiye dayanarak, bu sene az oldu. Olaylar da ve katılım sayısı da çok az oldu. Zannediyorum Türkiye ve İstanbul bu anlamda gittikçe normalleşecek" dedi.

      Şahin, gözaltı ve yaralı sayısına ilişkin soruya, "Şu ana kadar 203 gözaltı var. Onlarla ilgili adli işlemler devam ediyor. 6 polis memuru arkadaşımız ve 18 gösterici yaralı. Hamdolsun ağır yaralımız yok. Genellikle ayakta tedavi edilen yaralılarımız" yanıtını

    2. Turkey: Police Fire Tear Gas to Disperse May Day Protesters...

      Turkish police on Friday used water cannon and tear gas to disperse May Day protesters in Istanbul as tens of thousands of labor activists turned out worldwide to defend their rights at a time of austerity.

      Turkish police had blocked all vehicle access and cut public transport to prevent protests on Taksim Square in the centre of Istanbul, the traditional focus for protests in the country's largest city.

      Police moved in on the protesters close to the shores of the Bosphorus as they tried to head towards the square, using water cannon trucks and spraying tear gas, an AFP correspondent

  7. Poroschenko: Kriegsende erst nach Rückholung der Krim...

    Der Krieg in der Ost-Ukraine kann laut Präsident Pjotr Poroschenko erst nach einer Rückholung der Schwarzmeerhalbinsel Krim und der abtrünnigen Industrieregion Donbass beendet werden. Die Krim war nach dem nationalistischen Umsturz in der Ukraine 2014 Russland beigetreten. Der Donbass kämpft seit mehr als einem Jahr für die Unabhängigkeit von Kiew.

    „Der Krieg endet dann, wenn sich die Ukraine den Donbass und die Krim zurückgeholt hat“, sagte Poroschenko am Donnerstagabend in einem Interview für den ukrainischen Sender STB. Auf die Frage, wie lange das noch dauern könne, antwortete der Staatschef: „So lang wie nötig… Wir werden kompromisslos sein.“ Zugleich räumte er ein, dass eine friedliche Rückholung des Donbass „das optimalste Szenario für die Ukraine“ wäre...

  8. El ministro de Exteriores de Japón, Fumio Kishida, inició su primera visita oficial a Cuba este viernes, reportó la compañía de televisión nipona NHK...

    "Existen perspectivas de desarrollo de relaciones amistosas entre Japón y Cuba, quisiera que eso tuviera lugar con mediación nuestra; pido a ustedes también coadyuvar al fortalecimiento de las relaciones económicas de nuestros dos países", declaró Kishida durante un encuentro en la Sociedad de Amistad Cubano-Japonesa.

    Kishida se ha convertido en el primer titular de Exteriores de Japón que visita la isla.

    El interés de Japón en la mayor de las Antillas se incrementó a raíz de la normalización de las relaciones entre Cuba y EEUU.

    Ahora Cuba es vista por Japón como un país con perspectivas de inversión y desarrollo de las relaciones económicas.

    La visita del canciller nipón a Cuba se extenderá hasta el 3 de mayo....

  9. The UN Security Council on Friday called an emergency meeting on the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, at Russia's request, diplomats said...

    Russia called for the consultations of the 15-member council over concerns that fuel shortages threatened to halt all relief operations in the coming days.

    The meeting is set for 1700 GMT.

    1. The area of Russia’s embassy in Yemen came under fire in the small hours of Friday, May 1, Russia’s UN envoy Vitaly Churkin has told the media...

      He speculated that the loud explosion about 200 meters away from the embassy’s building in Yemen’s capital Sana’a might have been caused by a rocket.

      "I have talked to our charge d’affairs. We still have some diplomats in Sana’a. He told me that last night there was a very loud explosion of an artillery shell, rocket, or big bomb just 200 meters away from our embassy," Churkin said.

      He voiced serious concern over such incidents.

      "When this sort of random fire, bombardments and rocket strikes happen the situation gets very dangerous and undesirable," he said.

      Churkin emphasized Russia’s great concern over the humanitarian situation in Yemen. The country is running out of medical and food supplies while the sea blockade and the air operation by the United States and its allies prevents the delivery of humanitarian aid.

      The UN Security Council met in session behind closed doors at Russia’s initiative on Friday to discuss Yemen. UN Deputy Secretary-General Jeffrey Feltman reviewed the situation in the country.

  10. Nigerian army frees another 234 women and children...

    Another 234 women and children have been rescued from Boko Haram militants in Nigeria, the military has announced.

    It said the operation took place on Thursday in the vast Sambisa forest - a militant hideout - in the north-east of the country.

    It was not immediately clear if any of more than 200 girls abducted from a school in Chibok in April 2014 were among those freed.

    Nearly 300 women and children were freed by the army earlier this week.

    In a tweet, the Nigerian military wrote: "FLASH: Another set of 234 women and children were rescued through the Kawuri and Konduga end of the #Sambisa Forest on Thursday."

    It said the freed hostages were being screened to establish their identities.

    The military earlier said it had destroyed 13 camps belonging to the Islamist insurgents in the Sambisa forest, which surrounds a reserve in

  11. At least seven people died as flames and gunfire erupted around the western Mexico state of Jalisco on Friday when a military operation targeting a drug cartel was launched at the start of a three-day holiday weekend...

    Suspected cartel members stopped buses and trucks to block highways in the state capital of Guadalajara and other cities, snarling traffic on a day Mexicans took to the road in droves. Officials said 11 banks and five gas stations were firebombed in almost simultaneous attacks. Lesser violence also was reported in three other states.

    The first attack occurred when gunmen fired on a military helicopter, killing three soldiers and forcing it to make an emergency landing about 150 miles (250 kilometres) southwest of Guadalajara. Ten soldiers and two federal police officers were injured and three soldiers remained missing, a defence ministry statement said.

    The statement said the helicopter was participating in the anti-cartel offensive known as Operation Jalisco.

    Jalisco state governor Aristoteles Sandoval said that the violence around the state was a reaction to the operation, which he said was designed to “get to the bottom of and to be able to arrest all the leaders of this cartel, of this organisation”

  12. A rocket hit a medical center in Libya's eastern Benghazi on Friday, killing three people, medics said...

    Seven other people were wounded when the rocket hit a center for dispatching ambulances, medics said. It was unclear who had fired it.

    Forces of Libya's official government and Islamist groups are fighting for control of Benghazi, creating chaos that has gripped the oil-producing nation four years after the toppling of Muammar

  13. Hungary needs legislation to curb immigration, PM Orban says...

    Hungary needs legislation to keep out a wave of immigrants from poor countries, even if it would run counter to existing European Union rules, Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said.

    Brussels should allow EU member states to set their own rules about migrants, adding that the inflow of immigrants was not good to Europe generally, he told Echo TV in an interview aired late on Friday.

    "We don't want to see immigrants in Hungary," he said. "If (other EU members) want to receive immigrants, they can do it. But then they should not send them back here, or through us."

    Orban said Hungary should raise the issue of what he called overly loose immigration rules on a European level because, within the EU, it received the largest number of migrants relative to its population after Sweden.

    Migrants arriving in Hungary mostly want to move on to richer EU members but Germany, Austria and some other states are likely to take measures to block a growing tide of immigrants from poor countries, he

  14. Egypt army says killed 29 'terrorists' in Sinai...

    The Egyptian army said Saturday that its troops killed 29 "terrorists" and arrested 133 wanted militants over the past 11 days in raids in the northern quarter of the restive Sinai Peninsula.

    "Twenty nine terrorists were killed in shootouts with army and police troops in northern Sinai between April 20 and 30," army spokesman Mohamed Samir said on Facebook.

    He added that army troops also arrested 133 militants, who participated in "terrorist plots" against security forces, and destroyed five sites used by the militants.

    Samir said army troops also destroyed 51 "terrorist sites", 43 vehicles and 96 motorbikes used by militants in staging attacks against army troops and policemen in northern Sinai.

    Egypt has been cracking down on militancy in Sinai, which shares borders with Israel and the Gaza Strip, for more than a year now amid a rise in militant attacks against army personnel, policemen and security sites.

  15. French patrol ship rescues 217 migrants off Libyan coast...


    The migrants – all men – had been on board three boats, the authorities said, adding that two suspected people smugglers were also caught and will be handed over to Italian police.

    The French patrol boat "Commandant Birot" was sent on Tuesday to reinforce the EU's Triton surveillance operation after a series of migrant tragedies in which nearly 5,000 have drowned since the start of the year.

    Italian coastguards said they were involved in coordinating the rescue of at least six migrant boats on Saturday morning, with some of the operations still ongoing.

    They said they were still unable to say how many migrants were involved in the rescues, some of which also involved the Italian navy, although they described it as a "very busy day".

    More than 220 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa were picked up from the sea off Libya on Friday and were taken ashore on the Italian island of Lampedusa on Saturday morning.

  16. A French patrol boat on Saturday rescued 217 people from the Mediterranean off the Libyan coast, maritime authorities said...

    The rescued migrants had been on board three boats, the authorities said, adding that two suspected people smugglers were also caught and will be transferred to Italian authorities.

  17. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Saturday has made a surprise visit to Iraq to express his continued support for the fight against Islamist militants and had his federal government pledging an additional $139 million to refugees not only in Iraq but Syria, Jordan and Lebanon...

    Harper held talks with his Iraqi counterpart Haider al-Abadi in Baghdad before heading to the autonomous Kurdish region in the north where Ottawa has military trainers deployed to assist the fightback against Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)

  18. Italy says 10 migrants die, 4,500 rescued in ongoing mission...

    (Reuters) - Nearly 4,500 migrants were plucked from boats off the coast of Libya over the weekend and 10 bodies were recovered, Italy's coast guard and navy said, in what looked to be the biggest rescue mission of its kind so far this year.

    Two weeks after nearly 900 boat people drowned in the worst Mediterranean shipwreck in living memory, the flow of people from Africa desperate to reach a better life in Europe has accelerated, as people smugglers take advantage of calmer seas.


    Separately, authorities in Egypt said that three died when a migrant boat attempting to reach Greece sank off its coast. Thirty-one people were

  19. Boko Haram freed women tell of captivity horror...

    Former hostages held by Boko Haram militants in northern Nigeria say some fellow captives were stoned to death as the army approached to rescue them.

    The women said Boko Haram fighters started pelting them when they refused to run away as the army came nearer.

    A group of nearly 300 women and children was brought out of the vast Sambisa forest to a government camp.

    The military says it has rescued more than 700 people in the past week in an offensive against the Islamist group.

    The women said several were killed in the stoning, but they did not know how

  20. 2 men who fired at guard outside Mohammed cartoon contest shot, killed...



    Garland Police Department officers engaged the gunmen, who were both shot and killed, the statement

  21. Letonia afirma haber detectado buques de la Armada rusa en su frontera...

    Las FFAA de Letonia anunciaron la presencia de dos buques de superficie y uno submarino de la Marina de Guerra de Rusia cerca de las fronteras del país báltico.

    Según la oficina de prensa del Ejército letón, descubrió en la zona económica exclusiva, a unas cinco millas de la frontera nacional, un buque de desembarco del proyecto 775 (Ropucha en el sistema de catalogación de la OTAN), un buque antisubmarino ligero del proyecto 1331-M (Parchim), y un submarino diésel del proyecto 877 Paltus (Kilo).

    Asimismo, los militares letones afirmaron haber detectado un avión de transporte ruso An-22 cerca del país que forma parte de la OTAN desde 2004.

    De momento, no se ha conseguido un comentario al respecto del Ministerio de Defensa ruso.

  22. China, Taiwan to seek cooperation as heads of ruling parties meet...

    The leader of Taiwan's Nationalist Party will sit down with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Monday in the first meeting between the heads of the ruling parties in the two rival states in 6 years.

    Xi, as head of China's ruling Communist Party, will host Taiwan's Eric Chu, whose Nationalists fled to Taiwan at the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949.

    Chu told an opening ceremony in Shanghai on Sunday cross-strait ties must be addressed with a positive attitude.

    "The 21st century is a time of cooperation, not a time of resistance," he said.

    "We must use a healthy attitude, a positive attitude to welcome the age of cooperation between our two sides."

    China regards democratic Taiwan as a renegade province, to be brought under Beijing's control by force if necessary. Chu's Nationalists are viewed as pro-China, although the opposition Democratic Progressive Party is widely seen as leaning towards

  23. Egypt extends military presence in Gulf region for 3 more months...

    The Egyptian authorities decided Sunday to extend the presence of the Egyptian forces in the Arabian Gulf, the Red Sea and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, Egyptian state-run MENA news agency reported.

    Egypt's Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab issued the decree after the country's defense minister made the request, according to MENA.

    On March 26, Egypt sent naval and air forces to join a Saudi-led military operation against the Shiite Houthi fighters in Yemen who seized large parts of the country. The Egyptian forces were supposed to stay there for 40

  24. FDP-Chef Lindner „Ein zeitweiliger Grexit wird Europa stärken“...

    FDP-Chef Christian Lindner hat sich im Interview mit der Frankfurter Allgemeinen Zeitung gegen weitere Hilfen für Griechenland ausgesprochen, sollte sich Athen Reformen verweigern. Der frühere griechische Ministerpräsident Papandreou hat sich für ein Referendum über Griechenlands Mitgliedschaft in der Eurozone

  25. IDF arrests 13 Palestinians in overnight West Bank sweeps ...

    IDF forces arrested overnight between Sunday and Monday 13 Palestinians suspected of disturbing the order and involvement in so-called "popular terrorism" against civilians and security forces in the West Bank.

    The suspects were brought in for questioning by security forces.

  26. Iran is determined to end the "manufactured crisis" over its nuclear program and drafting of a final deal with world powers, though hard, is progressing, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Monday...

    The remarks, on Zarif's official Twitter account, came two days after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry denounced what he said was "hysteria" from opponents of an agreement, which is due by June 30.

    Zarif, Kerry and other diplomats from Iran and the P5+1 world powers (Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States plus Germany) say the deal would guarantee Iran's nuclear activities are peaceful.

    "Drafting #IranDeal is moving forward. Hard work, and many brackets, remain. Determined to end this manufactured crisis & open new horizons," Zarif

  27. Poland’s president signs law on establishing Polish-Lithuanian-Ukrainian military brigade...

    President of Poland Bronislaw Komorowski has signed a resolution on establishing the Polish-Lithuanian-Ukrainian military brigade, the Polish leader’s office reported on Monday.

    The resolution will come into force two weeks after it is published, which will allow Komorowski to ratify the relevant agreement.

    Talks on creating a large Polish-Lithuanian-Ukrainian military contingent had been held since 2007. The defense ministers from the three countries signed the agreement on its establishment in September 2014.

    The brigade will be formed as part of the European Union’s combat groups with an aim to participate in operations under the UN, NATO and EU aegis. The manpower and military hardware assigned by the three countries to the military contingent will stay at the places of their permanent location and will be subordinated to the brigade’s command during exercises and the accomplishment of

  28. A US delegation will visit Iran to review energy investment opportunities while Tehran negotiates a final deal with world powers on its nuclear program, a senior oil ministry official told Mehr news agency on Monday...

    The United States has imposed sanctions on Tehran which prohibit Americans from trading directly or indirectly with Iran's oil sector, government or individuals connected to the sector, including any financing.

    US companies are also prevented from investing in Iran's oil and gas industries or trading with them. by Reuters

  29. Russian national detained on espionage charges in Lithuania...

    Russian national has been detained on espionage charges in Lithuania, the country’s Prosecution Service said on Monday.

    The man was arrested for three months following prosecutors’ motion approved by the court.

    "So an attempt was averted to get information available only for the country’s leadership so as to wield influence on the decisions Lithuania makes at the highest level," the Prosecution Service said.

    The suspect can face up to 15-year imprisonment on these charges.

    Russia’s embassy to Vilnius has refrained from comments until more details are revealed.

  30. Bulgaria may sign deal with Russian firm on repairs to two MiG fighters – defence minister...

    Having said earlier that Bulgaria would not extend a costly contract with a Russian firm to maintain the country’s ageing fleet of MiG fighter aircraft, Defence Minister Nikolai Nenchev said that Bulgaria could sign a deal on having two repaired for a price of about 24 million leva (about 12.2 million euro).

    Nenchev’s statement on May 4 came after he signalled repeatedly that he would not extend the long-standing contract on the repair of the Russian-made MiGs, and last week said in a media interview that he had been offered a bribe – with subsequent threats – to get him to extend the contract, which expires in

  31. Egyptian officials say suspected Islamic militants have attacked a security forces' base in northern Sinai, near the border with Gaza...

    There was no immediate word on casualties.

    Security officials say explosions rocked the Central Security base in the border town of Rafah around noon Monday after attackers fired mortars targeting the camp.


  32. Saudi Foreign Minister Says Coalition is considering the suspension air strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen to allow relief efforts, the Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya TV reported on Monday...

    Newly appointed Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir also warned Houthis against taking advantage of any Humanitarian truce.

  33. Senegal will send 2,100 troops to Saudi Arabia to take part in an international coalition combating Houthi fighters in neighboring Yemen, the West African nation's foreign minister said on Monday...

    Mankeur Ndiaye added that the coalition was seeking to defend Muslim holy sites at Medina and Mecca.

  34. Russia's New Armata Tank Makes Debut in Parade Rehearsal ...

    Russia's new Armata tank appeared in public for the first time Monday, rumbling down a broad Moscow avenue on its way to Red Square for the final rehearsal of the Victory Day parade.

    The Russian Defense Ministry last month released photographs of the tank, but its turret was covered with fabric and only the platform was visible. Monday was the first time that the tank was shown uncovered.

    The Armata will be a highlight of the military parade on Saturday, the 70th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. About 200 pieces of military hardware and 16,500 troops will take part in the parade on Red

  35. Tsunami threat as 7.4-magnitude quake hits Papua New Guinea...

    A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off Papua New Guinea on Tuesday (May 5) with hazardous tsunami waves possible along the coast, seismologists said.

    The quake struck 133 kilometres south-southwest of the town of Kokopo in the New Britain region at a depth of 63 kilometres, the US Geological Survey said.

    The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said "hazardous tsunami waves are possible for coasts located within 300 kilometres of the earthquake epicentre".

  36. Amnesty says Syrian forces committing 'crimes against humanity'...

    Amnesty International has said Syrian forces are committing "crimes against humanity" by indiscriminately bombing the city of Aleppo.

    The human rights watchdog has also criticised rebel forces for abuses, including what it terms "war crimes".

    In a new report, Amnesty said "relentless" government bombing of the city has forced many residents to "eke out an existence underground".




  37. UN Relief Officials Appeal to Saudis to Stop Bombing Yemen Airport ...

    United Nations relief officials are pleading with Saudi Arabia to stop targeting the main international airport in Yemen, saying airstrikes have destroyed runways and left them useless.

    "Without access to the airports, aid agencies are unable to bring in staff, vital supplies of medicines and other critical life-saving assistance, or undertake medical evacuations of their personnel," said U.N. relief coordinator for Yemen, Johannes van der Klaauw.

    He called the international airport in Sana'a an important lifeline, along with all the country's air and seaports.

    Heavy Saudi-led airstrikes targeted several airports Monday across Yemen. The airstrikes are targeting Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, who are locked in fierce fighting against forces loyal to exiled President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi.

    Meanwhile, Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Riyadh for discussions with Saudi government leaders on Wednesday and Thursday.....

  38. UN-led consultations on Syria conflict kick off in Geneva...

    The consultations under the United Nations auspices with parties involved in the Syrian conflict begin at the UN Headquarters in Geneva, the Palace of Nations, on Tuesday.

    The UN's spokesperson in Geneva, Ahmad Fawzi, earlier told TASS that invitations had been sent to the representatives of the Syrian government and the opposition and also to all the regional and international players, including Iran, Saudi Arabia and the five permanent UN Security Council members.

    The UN special envoy on Syria, Staffan de Mistura, and his deputy Ramzy Ezzeldin Ramzy are due to hold closed, separate and informal meetings with each delegation for a period of four to six weeks, with the focus on the Syrians.

    Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN Office and other international organisations in the Swiss capital Alexei Borodavkin, who is representing Moscow at the consultations on Syria, is expected to meet with the UN special envoy on May 14.

    The goal of the Geneva consultations is to analyze the current situation following three years since the Geneva Communique of June 30, 2012 was adopted. Staffan de Mistura is due to listen to the sides’ view on the prospects of the implementation of the communique, which sets the task of switching to the peaceful settlement in Syria through talks between the government and the opposition’s transitional governing body.

    The UN stresses that no major public statements are expected to be made following the Geneva talks.........

  39. EU-Kommission senkt Wachstumsprognose für Griechen...

    Im laufenden Jahr wird Griechenlands Wirtschaft deutlich weniger wachsen als erwartet. Die EU-Kommission geht im Frühjahrsausblick von nur 0,5 Prozent Plus aus. Zudem droht ein akuter

  40. 'Dozens die' as migrant boat sinks in Mediterranean...

    Dozens of migrants have drowned in the Mediterranean after a boat carrying an estimated 137 people sank south of Sicily, Save the Children says.

    The aid group says survivors reported up to 40 people fell into the sea as a rescue vessel was approaching.

    The survivors arrived in the city of Catania on


    The Al-Ekhbariya state television showed images of parked cars with windows blown out, chunks torn out of the sidewalk, a building peppered with shrapnel, and one room completely charred and with a hole in the roof.

    The attack was confirmed by the coalition that has been carrying out air strikes against the Huthi Shiite rebels and their allies in Yemen since March 26.

    Coalition spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed Assiri told Al-Ekhbariya that the rebels had "randomly" shelled Najran "hitting hospitals, schools and civilian homes."

    In a statement on Twitter, Saudi Airlines announced that "all our flights from and to Najran were suspended today until further notice."

    Al-Ekhbariya reported that schools had been closed in the city.

    "Air and ground forces will respond in the right way to these hazardous acts and will not allow them to be repeated," Assiri said.

    The Saudi military had already deployed Apache combat helicopters to target the rebels in the border area, he added.......AFP....

  42. The Obama administration is offering rewards of up to $20 million for information leading to the whereabouts of four top leaders of the Islamic State group...


    According to the department, Qaduli is a senior IS official who originally joined al-Qaeda's affiliate in Iraq, Adnani is an official IS spokesman, Batirashvili is a battlefield commander in northern Syria and Harzi is the group's leader for the border region between Syria and Turkey.

  43. Les Etats-Unis autorisent des liaisons par ferry vers Cuba...

    Au moins une compagnie de Floride a confirmé être autorisée à lancer un service de ferry rejoignant Cuba, distante d'environ 150 km des côtes américaines.

    C’est une première en plus de 50 ans. Le département du Trésor américain a annoncé mardi qu'il avait accordé des licences autorisant le transport de passagers par ferry entre les Etats-Unis et Cuba,

    "Quelques licences ont été accordées mardi" permettant l'exploitation de liaisons par ferry, a confirmé une porte-parole sans indiquer le nombre de permis accordés. Au moins une compagnie de Floride a confirmé être autorisée à lancer un service de ferry rejoignant Cuba, distante d'environ 150 km des côtes américaines.
    Rapprochement diplomatique

    Depuis l’annonce en décembre d’un rapprochement diplomatique entre les Etats-Unis et Cuba , seuls les Américains faisant partie d’une douzaine de catégories sont autorisés à se rendre à Cuba pour des raisons familiales ou à des fins universitaires, culturelles, sportives ou

  44. Obama administration approves Cuba ferry service licenses...

    (Reuters) - The return of passenger ferry services between the United States and Cuba took a major step forward on Tuesday when the Treasury Department issued licenses to at least two U.S. companies.

    One of the licenses was issued to Miami-based Baja Ferries USA, part of a major shipping group with passengers and cargo operations, including on Mexico's west coast, according to the company.

    Another license was issued to Puerto Rico-based America Cruise Ferries, according to a lawyer who handled the license application for the company.


    1. USA: Direkte Fährverbindung nach Kuba.... Möglicherweise kann schon im Herbst die erste Fähre ablegen....

      Erstmals seit mehr als 50 Jahren soll es nach dem Willen der USA wieder eine direkte Fährverbindung nach Kuba geben. Das bestätigte eine Sprecherin des Finanzministeriums in Washington der dpa. Zunächst würden von Fall zu Fall aber nur Lizenzen an einige Unternehmen und keine allgemeine Erlaubnis erteilt. Eine Zusage ging an die Firma Baja Ferries mit Sitz in Miami. „Das sind gute Nachrichten für uns“, sagte dessen Vorsitzender Joe Hinson. Die Genehmigung der kubanischen Regierung stehe noch aus, aber möglicherweise könne bereits im September oder Oktober die erste Fähre ablegen. Angedacht seien dann drei oder vier Übernacht-Fahrten pro Woche von Miami nach Havanna, was einer Entfernung von rund 400 Kilometern entspricht. Erstmals habe sich die Firma vor fünf Jahren um eine entsprechende Lizenz


    The battles come amid reports in Lebanon that Hezbollah and the Syrian army are expected to launch an offensive against members of the Nusra Front, al-Qaeda's branch in Syria, and the Islamic State group in Qalamoun.




  46. Obama, Iraqi Kurd leader meet at White House ...

    U.S. President Barack Obama met the head of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region at the White House on Tuesday, courting a vital ally on the frontline of the fight against Islamic militants.

    Obama and Vice President Joe Biden met Massud Barzani to discuss the campaign to regain Iraqi territory lost to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)

    1. Readout of Vice President Biden's Meeting with Iraqi Kurdistan Regional President Masoud Barzani...

      This morning, Vice President Joe Biden hosted Iraqi Kurdistan Regional President Masoud Barzani at the Naval Observatory for breakfast. The Vice President underscored the United States’ strong commitment to working with the global coalition and the Iraqi people to degrade and ultimately destroy ISIL through a comprehensive campaign including military, political, economic, and humanitarian efforts. Vice President Biden and President Barzani discussed ongoing U.S. security assistance to the Kurdish Peshmerga in full coordination with the Government of Iraq. Both leaders agreed on the profound need for close cooperation between the Government of Iraq, the Kurdistan Regional Government, and the global coalition in the ongoing fight against ISIL, particularly with respect to the liberation of Mosul. They also agreed on the need for close coordination between Baghdad and Erbil to advance key elements of the Government of Iraq’s national program.

  47. President Barack Obama is expected to make a renewed US push next week to help Gulf allies create a region-wide defense system to guard against Iranian missiles as he seeks to allay their anxieties over any nuclear deal with Tehran, according to US sources...

    The offer could be accompanied by enhanced security commitments, new arms sales and more joint military exercises, US officials say, as Obama tries to reassure Gulf Arab countries that Washington is not abandoning them.


  48. Deaths as Yemeni rebels fire rockets into Saudi Arabia...

    At least two civilians killed and five soldiers believed to be captured in attacks by Houthis in border town of Najran.



  49. Barzani, Obama ve Biden ile görüştü...

    ABD Başkanı Barack Obama, Beyaz Saray'da, ABD Başkan Yardımcısı Joe Biden ile Irak Kürt Bölgesel Yönetimi (IKBY) BaşkanıMesut Barzani arasındaki görüşmeye katıldı.

    Beyaz Saray'dan yapılan açıklamada, görüşmede DAEŞ'i zayıflatma ve nihayetinde ortadan kaldırmaya yönelik mücadele ile Irak halkının ihtiyaçlarını ele almaya ve ülkedeki tüm topluluklar arasındaki işbirliğini güçlendirmeye dönük devam eden siyasi inisiyatiflerin durumu dahil olmak üzere bir dizi konunun masaya yatırıldığı kaydedildi.

    Obama ve Biden'ın, ABD'nin IKBY'ye ve Kürt halkına güçlü ve devam eden desteğini yeniden teyit ettiği belirtilen açıklamada, şunlar ifade

  50. Obama meets Iraqi Kurd leader...

    US President Barack Obama met the head of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region at the White House on May 5, courting a vital ally on the frontline of the fight against Islamic militants.

    Obama and Vice President Joe Biden met Massud Barzani to discuss the campaign to regain Iraqi territory lost to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

    A US-led coalition has carried out more than 3,000 air strikes over Iraq since September in a bid to dislodge the jihadists.

    On the ground, battle lines have been drawn in Anbar province and the northern city of Mosul, where Kurdish fighters are likely to play a key role in a looming offensive.

    The city, a short distance from the Kurdish capital Arbil, holds special significance for ISIL

  51. Pakistan army accuses India of backing terrorism in rare rebuke...

    Pakistan's military has accused India's main intelligence agency of whipping up terrorism in Pakistan in rare public criticism that could increase tension between the nuclear-armed rivals.

    The accusation came after a meeting of the army's top commanders at the military's headquarters in the city of Rawalpindi Tuesday to review an offensive against militants in the northwest and other security issues.

    "The conference also took serious notice of RAW's involvement in whipping up terrorism in Pakistan," the army said in a statement, referring to India's Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), its external intelligence arm.

    While Pakistani army officers often privately accuse India of meddling, it is rare for the military to accuse India's spy agency in an official





  53. Report Reveals Germanwings Co-Pilot Practiced Descent on Previous Flight...

    Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz, who is suspected of deliberately crashing a plane in the French Alps in March, possibly practiced the tragic descent on a previous flight on the same day, according to the German newspaper Bild.

    The German newspaper Bild reported that the Germanwings co-pilot, suspected of deliberately crashing a plane in the French Alps in March, killing all 150 people on board, practiced a descent on a previous flight on the same day.

    The newspaper referred to an interim report, due to be published by France's BEA crash investigation agency later on Wednesday. The document reveals that Andreas Lubitz allegedly practiced reducing flight altitude during the outbound flight from Dusseldorf to Barcelona on the same day when the crash occurred.

  54. UNSG spokesperson says there is optimism that Cyprus talks can lead to solution...

    Τhere is a new spirit of optimism and trust that the Cyprus talks can lead to a real settlement, a UN Secretary General spokesperson has said.

    Stéphane Dujarric said that the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Cyprus, Espen Barth Eide, has met with the Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci, in Cyprus.

    “There is a new spirit of optimism and trust that the process can lead to a real settlement” he said, adding that Eide met with the Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades and on 11 May he will meet jointly with the two leaders.


  55. At least 32 people have been killed in the southern Yemeni port city of Aden while trying to flee heavy fighting in a boat, medics say...

    Witnesses told the Reuters news agency the boat was struck by shells fired by Houthi rebels as it left the al-Tawahi district for al-Buraiqa in the west.

    The Houthis have been battling southern militiamen for control of al-Tawahi.

    Earlier, rebel sources said at least 34 civilians were killed in Saudi-led coalition air strikes in north Yemen.

    Warplanes reportedly targeted more than 30 locations in the provinces of Saada and

  56. Demolition of Istanbul Armenian orphanage pauses, amid outcry...

    Efforts to demolish Kamp Armen, an Armenian orphanage in Istanbul’s Tuzla district that was expropriated in the wake of Turkey’s 1980 military coup, began early May 6.

    However, demolition work halted with the intervention of concerned citizens including Garo Paylan and Sezin Uçar, parliament candidates from the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) and Ali Çelik, the Tuzla district head of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).

    Paylan underlined the spiritual significance of the building and their determination to prevent the razing.

    “The demolition had already begun but we arrived here and stopped it. They will now call the police to remove us. However, more people are arriving by the minute; we will resist,” he said.

    “The orphanage is of historical value to us. Some 1,500 children lived here and learned about their culture. We are struggling to prevent its destruction for a second time.”

    The issue received widespread attention once the news broke out on social media, with #KampArmen immediately becoming a trending

  57. Yemen's Houthi fighters on Wednesday entered Aden's al-Tawahi district, one of the last strongholds of supporters of President Abd-Rabbou Mansour Hadi, despite Saudi-led airstrikes on the group...

    Residents said heavy clashes were underway between Houthis and supporters of Hadi, who has fled to Saudi Arabia. Tawahi houses state institutions including the presidential palace, state security offices and the main port.

    Residents said the fall of Tawahi would effectively mean that the entire southern port city had come under Houthi control.

  58. Radar de la NASA detecta personas entre los escombros de Nepal por los latidos del corazón ...

    Un radar portable de la NASA, basado en la tecnología utilizada para detectar vida extraterrestre en exoplanetas, ha ayudado a salvar a cuatro hombres atrapados bajo los escombros en el pueblo de Chautara después del catastrófico terremoto en Nepal, informa Gizmodo.

    El dispositivo llamado Finder (Buscador) es capaz de distinguir latidos débiles y respiraciones de personas enterradas bajo varios metros de escombros. En este caso, el radar pudo detectar los latidos del corazón de dos hombres en dos diferentes edificios derrumbados. Los hombres habían estado atrapados durante días bajo 3 metros de escombros.

  59. Estados Unidos tiene el derecho de responder a un posible ataque contra un país miembro de la OTAN sin que la Alianza tome la decisión correspondiente mediante votación, afirmó el embajador de EEUU ante la OTAN, Douglas Lute...

    "El Artículo 5 del Tratado de Washington prevé que si un miembro (de la Alianza) es blanco de un ataque armado, la obligación colectiva e individual de los demás miembros es responder", comentó....

  60. Yemen asks UN to back foreign ground force to battle Houthis...

    Yemen has urged the UN to authorise the use of foreign ground forces to drive back Houthi rebels, specifically in the cities of Aden and Taiz.

    Rebels have been advancing in both areas despite air strikes by a Saudi-led coalition.

    The strikes began after Yemen sent the UN a similar letter in March requesting military help from Gulf Arab states.

    The latest request also urged human rights groups to document "barbaric violations" by Houthis.

    The letter, from Yemen's UN ambassador Khaled Alyemany, cited an incident on Wednesday when at least 32 people were killed while trying to flee Aden in a boat.

    The letter said Houthis were "targeting anything that moves" in Aden.

    "We urge the international community to quickly intervene by land forces to save Yemen, especially Aden and Taiz," it

  61. Israel's Netanyahu reaches deal on govt coalition...

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had succeeded in forming a new government, after reaching an 11th-hour coalition deal with the far-right Jewish Home party.

    "I am leaving here to call the president and the speaker of the parliament to inform them that I have been able to build a government," he said in remarks at the Knesset after talks with Jewish Home leader Naftali Bennett.

    "We need to launch it next week and we shall do so," he added.

    President Reuven Rivlin's office confirmed he had received a call from Mr

  62. Canada passes law expanding spy agency powers, reach...

    Lawmakers passed a new anti-terror law on Wednesday dramatically expanding the powers and reach of Canada's spy agency, allowing it to operate overseas for the first time.

    The act was written in response to attacks on Canadian soil last October, when a gunman killed a ceremonial guard and stormed parliament, and a soldier was run over in rural Quebec.

    A large number of critics have decried bill C-51 as an unprecedented attack on civil rights, saying it lacks oversight and is overly

  63. La présidente chilienne Michelle Bachelet fait démissionner en bloc son gouvernement....

    La présidente chilienne Michelle Bachelet a annoncé mercredi soir qu'elle avait demandé à tous ses ministres de démissionner, rapporte jeudi la chaîne de télévision Canal 13.

    "Il y a quelques heures, j'ai demandé la démission de tous les ministres et je prendrai 72 heures pour décider qui restera et qui partira", a déclaré la présidente de centre gauche lors d’une interview pour le journal d’informations de la chaîne.

    La présidente tente en ce moment de faire passer d'importantes réformes dans les domaines de l'emploi et de l'éducation notamment, mais ce programme progressiste qui vise à réduire les inégalités, a été éclipsé par un scandale de spéculation immobilière dans lequel est impliqué son fils aîné Sebastian Davalos.

    La présidente assiste à une chute rapide de sa popularité. Elle ne bénéficie plus actuellement que de 31% d'opinion favorable, soit la cote de popularité la plus basse de ses deux mandats......

  64. Sanctions against North Korea to stay in force - South Korea’s ministry of unification...

    . South Korea is not planning to lift its sanctions imposed on Pyongyang as a preliminary condition for the launch of intra-Korean dialogue, a spokesperson for the South Korean ministry of unification said on Thursday.

    The spokesperson said North Korea’s position to begin dialogue only after the sanctions were lifted was unacceptable for South Korea.

    In May 2010, Seoul rolled back practically all programmes of economic and cultural cooperation with North Korea and accused it of sinking its corvette Cheonan in the Yellow Sea in March of the same year and the death of 46 South Korean mariners. Pyongyang has been claiming it had nothing to do with the incident.

    The spokesman said the sanctions would stay in force until North admitted its responsibility for the incident.

    Earlier, North Korea repeatedly called on South to lift the punitive sanctions.

  65. Two Egyptian policemen killed in Sinai shooting: security sources...

    Two Egyptian police recruits were killed Thursday when unidentified gunmen shot them outside the gate of a security forces camp in the volatile Northern Sinai region, security sources said.

    Last month, Egypt extended by three months a state of emergency imposed on Northern Sinai in October after Islamist militants stepped up attacks in the remote but strategic peninsula bordering Israel, Gaza and the Suez Canal.

    On Thursday, gunmen in a car shot dead the two policemen who were guarding the gate of a police camp in the city of Rafah, the sources said.

    Security forces responded with gunfire but the attackers fled the scene, they added.

    Insurgents have killed hundreds of soldiers and policemen in Sinai since mid-2013, lashing out after then-army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ousted Islamist President Mohammad Morsi following protests. Sisi went on to be elected president last year.

    No one has yet claimed responsibility for Thursday's attack.

    Sinai Province, an affiliate of ISIS, which earlier changed its name from Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, is the most active militant group in the Sinai and aims to topple the government in Cairo.

  66. Saudi Arabia proposes five-day ceasefire in Yemen...

    Saudi Arabia says it is prepared to introduce a five-day humanitarian ceasefire in Yemen.

    A Saudi-led coalition launched air strikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen six weeks ago. At least 1,400 people have been killed, the UN says.

    US Secretary of State John Kerry said Saudi Arabia and Yemeni rebels are discussing when to start the ceasefire.

    The Saudi foreign minister said any truce would depend on the rebels' co-operation.

    Saudi Arabia insists the Houthis must lay down their arms for the humanitarian ceasefire to be implemented. The rebels have not yet responded to the appeal.

    The Saudi-led coalition aims to restore the government of exiled President Abdrabbuh Mansour

  67. Italie: l'épave du chalutier aux 700 morts repérée en Méditerranée...

    La marine italienne a annoncé jeudi avoir repéré l'épave du chalutier dans le naufrage duquel plus de 700 migrants avaient trouvé la mort dans la nuit du 18 au 19 avril en Méditerranée.

    "Aujourd'hui, à environ 85 milles au nord des côtes libyennes a été localisée, à 375 mètres de profondeur, une épave de couleur bleue d'une longueur de 25 mètres, susceptible d'être celle du bateau ayant coulé le 18 avril", a annoncé la marine dans un communiqué.

    Ce soir-là, le chalutier parti de Libye avec plus de 750 personnes à bord avait chaviré à l'arrivée d'un cargo portugais dérouté pour lui porter secours par les gardes-côtes italiens, qui n'ont retrouvé que 28 survivants et 24

  68. The US military has started training Syrian fighters to combat Islamic State militants, US and Middle East sources told Reuters on Thursday, speaking on condition of anonymity, adding the program had begun in Jordan and would soon launch in Turkey...

    The US plan to train and arm a force that is expected to eventually total more than 15,000 troops is a major test of President Barack Obama's strategy in Syria, which critics say is too limited to steer events.

    The Pentagon declined comment. by Reuters

  69. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has declared "invalid" an agreement reached between the Cyprus, Greece and Egypt over natural gas exploration in the eastern Mediterranean Sea...

    His comments came Thursday after Cypriot leader Nikos Anastasiades, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi and Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras reached agreement on energy development during a trilateral summit in southern Cyprus on April 29.

    Cavusoglu told reporters Thursday after meeting Turkish consul generals in the German city of Munich: "No agreement or restriction in which Turkey is not involved is valid in the eastern Mediterranean."

    He said Turkey will not allow any exploration efforts in the sea and said "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" in relation to the deal struck between the

  70. Jordan says U.S starts training Syrian rebels...

    A U.S.-led programme to train and equip Syrian fighters to combat militant group Islamic State began in Jordan several days ago, a Jordanian government spokesman said on Thursday.

    Jordan is participating in the programme, Mohammad al-Momani said.

  71. Saudi-led forces said on Thursday they would deliver a "harsh response" to Yemen's Houthi militias following attacks on Saudi citizens and will not be bound by any restrictions...

    "The equation has now changed. The operation had been aimed at protecting the legitimacy in Yemen and the Yemeni people. The confrontation is now targeting the border of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the safety and security of Saudi cities," the spokesman for the Saudi-led coalition, Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri, said in a statement broadcast on live television.

    "Coalition forces will deliver a harsh response starting this moment, so that those who carried out this operation will pay the price," he said, adding that there would be no boundaries to the response.

  72. Former Conservative leadership contender David Davis says there is "a reasonable chance" his party will win the election outright...

    An exit poll suggests the Conservatives will secure 316 seats, nine more than in 2010, but not enough for a majority.

    But Mr Davis says there is "a reasonable chance" the party will secure more than 326 seats.

    Chief whip Michael Gove described the exit poll figures as "an unprecedented vote of confidence in David Cameron".

    But Mr Davis, who stood against Mr Cameron for the Conservative leadership in 2005, went further: "It depends exactly on the numbers - I think there's a reasonable chance that we'll actually get above 326 [the figure needed to command a majority]."

  73. UK's Cameron poised to return to power, Labour routed in Scotland...

    Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives are set to govern Britain for another five years but fall just short of an outright majority, an exit poll showed, a result likely to trigger an in-out EU membership referendum.

    The poll forecast the Conservatives would win 316 of 650 seats in the lower house of parliament and the main opposition Labour Party 239.

    If accurate, that would be centre-left Labour's worst result in almost three decades and it faced being wiped out in its former Scottish stronghold.

    While politicians from all sides expressed caution, early results from 37 seats also suggested Labour was attracting much lower levels of support than it had expected. Pollsters are not ruling out an overall Conservative majority.

    "The Conservatives have clearly won this election," if the exit poll is right, said Conservative minister Michael

  74. UN official says donors' response slow to help Nepal...

    The international response has been slow to an appeal for emergency funds to help the millions of people hit by last month's earthquake in Nepal, a UN official said Friday.

    Jamie McGoldrick, the UN's chief official in Nepal, said the agency had received $22 million so far against an appeal last week for $415 million to support relief efforts for the first three months in the Himalayan nation.

    "This needs to be dramatically ramped up," McGoldrick told reporters in the Nepalese

  75. European Union proposal to establish a quota system obliging member countries to share the burden of settling refugees is likely to be rejected...

    Slovakia and Estonia are among those that have publicly objected to a quota system, which would require unanimous agreement among the 28 EU nations.

    "The Slovak Interior Ministry currently refuses binding quotas on migrants," it said in a statement to The Associated Press. Estonia said it prefers voluntary relocation and resettlement for refugees.

    The EU's executive Commission was to propose the plan next Wednesday as part of a strategy to cope with thousands of migrants fleeing conflict and poverty for better lives in Europe.

    More than 10,000 migrants have been rescued recently crossing the Mediterranean in unseaworthy boats. Some 1,700 are feared dead.

  76. No big deal': Senior Iranian commander says Tehran ready for war with US...

    A top commander warned that Iran is ready for an all-out war with US, alleging that aggression against Tehran “will mobilize the Muslim world" against it. The remarks follow Secretary of State John Kerry’s claims that military force was still an option.

    Brigadier General Hossein Salami, lieutenant commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), spoke Wednesday to a state-run TV channel as Western powers readied for a new round of talks on getting the Islamic Republic to curb its nuclear ambitions ahead of a June 30 deadline.

    He also stated, "War against Iran will mobilize the Muslim world against the US, an issue which is very well known by the enemy."

    Iran recently agreed on a framework deal concerning its nuclear interests with the P5+1 group in Switzerland, which would pave the way for it to be finalized. However, Israel was highly critical of the move. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that it “would not block Iran’s path to the bomb. It would pave it.” ..............

  77. Saudis tell Yemenis to leave border..

    Saudi-led coalition aircraft have dropped leaflets warning residents in a Yemeni border district to leave, as air strikes against Houthi rebels continue.

    Leaflets were dropped in Old Saada in Saada province, the rebels' stronghold.

    Houthi rebels have fired shells from Saada into Saudi Arabia in recent days, killing 10 people. Saudi-led strikes have killed at least 1,200 people, more than half civilians, the UN says.

    The Saudis say a five-day humanitarian ceasefire will start on 12

  78. EE.UU. eleva el nivel de seguridad en sus instalaciones militares a nivel nacional ...

    Bill Gortney, comandante del Comando Norte de EE.UU. con base en Colorado, ha elevado el grado de protección de las instalaciones militares a nivel nacional desde el nivel 'bravo' después de meses en 'alpha', el menor de los escalafones de la seguridad, según ha informado este viernes un oficial de Defensa, informa el portal Military Times.

    La medida se produce por el temor a un ataque terrorista. Un mayor nivel de seguridad se traduce en un escrutinio adicional en los puntos de entrada de las instalaciones y medidas de seguridad adicionales en el interior de las mismas.

  79. Obama, Saudi King Salman to meet at White House before summit next week...

    President Barack Obama will meet on Wednesday with Saudi King Salman at the White House ahead of a wider summit with leaders of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, a White House spokesman said on Friday.

    Obama and King Salman will "build on their close consultations on a wide range of regional and bilateral issues," White House spokesman Eric Schultz told reporters traveling with Obama on Air Force One.

  80. Statement by the Spokesperson on the latest announcement on settlement expansion in Ramat Shlomo (EEAS)...

    "The Israeli District Planning and Building Committee this week took a decision allowing for further settlement expansion in Ramat Shlomo. Already in November 2014, the EU's Foreign Ministers unanimously expressed their concerns at the announcement of new housing units and called on Israel to reverse that decision.

    Israel's determination to continue its settlement policy despite the urging of the international community, not only threatens the viability of the two state solution but also seriously calls into question its commitment to a negotiated agreement with the Palestinians.

    Settlements are illegal under international law. The EU and its Member States are committed to ensure continued, full and effective implementation of existing EU legislation and bilateral arrangements applicable to settlements.'

  81. Australian police say they disrupted bomb plot in Melbourne...

    Police arrested a 17-year-old and accused him of plotting to detonate three homemade bombs in the Australian city of Melbourne, officials said today (May 9), in the latest terrorism scare blamed on a teenager.

    The teen was arrested yesterday afternoon in a joint federal-state police counterterrorism operation at his home in the upmarket suburb of Greenvale where the explosive devices were found, Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner Mike Phelan said. The bomb squad rendered the devices safe, he said.

    Melbourne is Australia’s second largest city and is the capital of Victoria state.

    Last month, five Australian teenagers were arrested on suspicion of plotting an Islamic State group-inspired terrorist attack at a Veterans’ Day ceremony also in Melbourne that included targeting police

  82. North Korea 'test-fires submarine-launched missile'...

    North Korea says it has successfully tested a submarine-launched missile, which if confirmed would be a significant boost in its arsenal.

    Pictures on state media showed North Korean leader Kim Jong-un looking on as a missile shot out of the water.

    Analysts say North Korea owns several nuclear warheads but this development would be an advance as submarine-fired devices are difficult to detect.

    This latest test has not been independently verified.

    State media described the missile emerging with "a fiery, blazing trail", but did not mention the date or the location of the

  83. Pyongyang effectue un tir d'essai d'un nouveau missile balistique sous-marin...

    La Corée du Nord a effectué un tir d'essai d'un nouveau missile balistique sous-marin, décrit comme une "arme stratégique de niveau mondial", a annoncé samedi l'agence de presse officielle KCNA.

    "Un tir d'essai d'un puissant missile stratégique sous-marin a eu lieu", a annoncé l'agence nord-coréenne. "Le missile balistique a été conçu à l'initiative personnelle du Commandant suprême de l'armée du peuple coréen Kim Jong-Un", a-t-elle ajouté.

    Le leader nord-coréen a donné l'ordre de lancement à un sous-marin d'attaque et a regardé la retransmission du tir, a-t-elle rapporté.

    KCNA a décrit le missile comme répondant aux derniers standards technologiques et militaires, qualifiant ce test de "succès révélateur", le mettant sur un pied d'égalité avec le lancement en 2012 d'un satellite par le pays.......

  84. Two Koreas Agree to Hold Joint Events Amid Tensions ...

    North and South Korea have agreed to hold a joint event next month to celebrate the anniversary of a landmark statement by the two countries, the South Korean preparatory committee for the event said Friday.

    Representatives from the committee, composed of private groups, held rare talks with their North Korean counterparts in Shenyang, China, this week. The two sides agreed to hold the event in Seoul June 14-16 to mark the 15th anniversary of the so-called June 15 Declaration, a statement signed by leaders of the two Koreas during the 2000 inter-Korean summit.

    The declaration said essentially that the issue of national reunification should be settled independently by the Korean nation itself............

  85. Turkish PM Davutoğlu: Turkey will not intervene in Syria...

    Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has strictly denied reports that Turkey was preparing to directly intervene in the Syrian crisis.

    Speaking to a group of reporters on the plane returning from election rallies in the eastern provinces of Bingöl and Elazığ on May 6, Davutoğlu also denied recent media reports claiming a new deal between Turkey and Saudi Arabia.

    “We have had very good relation with Saudi Arabia since the new king,” Davutoğlu said. There is nothing new, we agreed in the past [on Syria], and the same cooperation is continuing today.”

    Davutoğlu said the reports of military intervention were “speculations without any basis.”

    “The case is, the situation in Syria is changing fast,” said the prime minister. “The regime has lost control of major parts of the county, and is getting tightly wedged. It now There were reports on the Israeli media that [Syrian President Bashar] Assad could move from Damascus to Latakia. Even the Alawite groups no longer give soldiers to the regime. The balances inside Syria are changing, but no change is in question in Turkey’s stance.”

    Davutoğlu said the situation did not require Turkey’s intervention.............

  86. A court has sentenced Egypt's Hosni Mubarak to three years in prison and a fine on corruption charges...

    The court in Cairo issued its verdict Saturday in the retrial facing 87-year-old autocrat, overthrown in his country's 2011 revolt. However, it's not clear if that will include the time he's already served.

    The corruption case - dubbed by the Egyptian media as the "presidential palaces" affair - concerns charges that Mubarak and his two sons embezzled millions of dollars' worth of state funds over the course of a decade. The funds were meant to pay for renovating and maintaining presidential palaces but were instead allegedly spent on upgrading the family's private residences.

    Mubarak was sentenced to three years, his sons to four in the case. He later appealed.
    Associated Press

  87. At least three dead as military plane crashes in Spain...

    A military plane has crashed into a field north of San Pablo airport in Seville, emergency services and the Spanish defence ministry said this afternoon.

    Emergency services said at least three people had been killed.

    It said seven people were on board, with two seriously injured and two more unaccounted for.

    Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said between eight and ten people were on board, newspaper El Pais reported.

    The prime minister's office could not confirm he had said this.
    The plane was an Airbus A400M and was not being flown by the Spanish military, the defence ministry said.

    The plane had not yet been delivered to the military and was under trial, El Pais said.

  88. 30 prisoners Killed, 40 Escape in Iraq Jail Break...

    Six guards and 30 detainees were killed in a prison break north of the Iraqi capital during which 40 inmates escaped, an interior ministry spokesman said Saturday.

    The spokesman said the break on Friday started when an inmate grabbed a weapon from a warden at the prison on the main police compound in Khalis, a town around 50 kilometers (30 miles) from Baghdad.

    "One of the prisoners seized a weapon from a guard. After killing him, the inmate headed up to the weapons storage and he seized more weapons," Brigadier General Saad Maan told AFP.

    "Clashes erupted inside. We lost a first lieutenant and five policemen, forty prisoners fled. Nine of them were held on terror charges and the rest for common crimes," he said.

    Maan added that 30 prisoners who had been held on terrorism charges were killed in the clashes...........AFP..............

  89. Yemen conflict: UN criticises Saudi civilian bombings...

    The United Nations representative in Yemen has said that the Saudi-led coalition is bombing "effectively, trapped civilians".

    Civilians in the northern city of Saada are struggling to flee Saudi-led coalition air strikes targeting Houthi rebels, reports and aid workers say.

    The UN also warned that the indiscriminate bombing of populated areas is against international law.

    Air strikes have killed at least 1,400, more than half civilians, the UN says.

    The medical charity MSF, say that fuel shortages mean many people can only flee on

  90. Saudi Planes Intensify Airstrikes Over Houthi Targets in N. Yemen ...

    Saudi-led coalition warplanes launched dozens of airstrikes Saturday against the Houthi rebel stronghold of Saada, hitting the homes of several Houthi leaders and damaging a number of buildings, including a historic mosque. Saudi Arabia says it is responding to Houthi shelling of two Saudi border towns in recent days.

    The Houthi rebels' al-Masira TV showed a crowd of young men digging through the rubble of a building which it claimed was hit by a Saudi coalition warplane early Saturday. More than a hundred airstrikes were reported overnight against Houthi rebel targets.

    Saudi-owned al-Arabiya TV reported that coalition warplanes struck the homes of at least seven Houthi militia commanders, killing several. The TV service also claimed that warplanes struck a Houthi arms depot west of their stronghold of Saada and Houthi vehicles along the

  91. FYROM says five Kosovans led the armed group which was involved in clashes with security forces in the northern town of Kumanovo...

    Eight officers were killed and 37 injured, as well as 14 gunmen, Interior ministry spokesman Ivo Kotevski said.

    Those named were members of the now dismantled Kosovo Liberation Army.

    Mr Kotevski said the threat in Kumanovo, near the Serbian-Kosovan border, had been "eliminated" and a large amount of weapons seized.

    Last month, about 40 ethic Albanians from Kosovo briefly took over a FYROM police station in the village of Gosince near the border, demanding the creation of an Albanian state in FYROM...

  92. Turkish PM crosses into Syria to visit historic Ottoman tomb...

    Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu briefly crossed into Syria on Sunday to visit the tomb of a revered Ottoman figure and vowed Turkey's flag would fly there forever, prompting Damascus to accuse him of aggression.

    The tomb of Suleyman Shah, grandfather of the founder of the Ottoman Empire, had originally been situated further inside Syria but was relocated to within a few hundred meters of the border in February in a Turkish military operation.

    Davutoglu made the brief foray over the border shortly before addressing campaign rallies for a June general election in the southern cities of Sanliurfa and Adana.

    "I bring you the salutations of Suleyman Shah, the leader of our revival," he told the Sanliurfa rally. "Our red flag will fly over Suleyman Shah forever."

    The Syrian government condemned what it described as Davutoglu's "infiltration" without its

  93. Saudi king: Yemen war launched to foil regional plot...

    The Saudi-led air war on Yemen was launched to foil a plot by a "sectarian group" to undermine security in the region, King Salman said on Sunday.

    The Saudi monarch was defending the military operation Riyadh has led against Yemeni militia since March 26, in an address read to clerics on his behalf by an adviser in the Muslim holy city of Makkah.

    The operation has prevented Yemen from "becoming a theatre for terrorism, discord, and internal fighting, similar to some countries," said Salman, in remarks published by the official SPA news agency.

    Saudi Arabia wanted to "support Yemen and confront the attempt to transform it into a base for launching a plot to undermine regional security and stability", he said.....AFP

  94. EU refugee quotas to be proposed...




  95. German Chancellor Angela Merkel called on Russia Sunday to do more to urge pro-Russian separatists to abide by a cease-fire in eastern Ukraine and end fighting with Kyiv's forces...

    "Unfortunately we still do not have a cease-fire today," the German leader said after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. She was in Moscow to pay tribute to Russian troops killed in World War Two, the only prominent European leader to visit over the weekend to mark the 70th anniversary of the surrender of Nazi Germany.

    Merkel said that in Ukraine there have been "a lot of violations (of the cease-fire) on the part of the separatists." She called Moscow's annexation last year of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula a "severe setback" to German-Russian relations and described it as "a violation of the basis of the common peaceful order of Europe."

  96. Houthis accept five-day truce in Yemen proposed by Saudi Arabia...

    Yemen's dominant Houthi group accepted a five-day humanitarian ceasefire proposed by its adversary Saudi Arabia on Sunday but said it would respond to any violations of the pause.

    Neighboring Saudi Arabia had said on Friday that the ceasefire could begin on Tuesday if the Iranian-allied militia agreed to the pause, which would let in badly needed food and medical

  97. The Taliban have taken control of a key district in northwestern Afghanistan's Badghis province amid heavy fighting with security forces, a local council chief told Anadolu Agency on Sunday...

    The Afghan Ministry of Interior denied that Jawand, the largest and most populated district of Badghis, had fallen.





  98. A Moroccan F-16 warplane taking part in the Saudi Arabia-led coalition fighting in Yemen went missing on Sunday, the Moroccan Royal Armed Forces said in a statement...


    Morocco announced its backing of Saudi Arabia since the beginning of the action and has had F-16 warplanes stationed in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

    “One of the F-16s of the Royal Armed Force (FAR) made at the disposal of the coalition led by Saudi Arabia to restore the legitimacy in Yemen went missing on Sunday at 6 pm local time,” FAR’s statement carried by the Moroccan state news agency MAP said.


  99. Gläubiger halten Parallelwährung für möglich...

    Vor dem Treffen der Finanzminister heute haben sich Athen und die Gläubiger kaum angenähert. Die Institutionen spekulieren laut einem Bericht über eine Parallelwä

  100. Parallelwährungen: Der Geuro und seine Tücken...

    Kann das gutgehen – wenn der Euro bleibt, aber eine zweite Währung hinzukommt? Viele Experten sind skeptisch. Über Chancen und Risiken eines gewagten Vorschlags.

    Als Thomas Mayer im Mai 2012 eine Parallelwährung für Griechenland vorschlägt, schütteln nicht nur viele Ökonomen den Kopf über den damaligen Chefvolkswirt der Deutschen Bank. Auch bei seinem Arbeitgeber kommt das nicht gut an. Mayer soll seinen Posten auch deshalb verloren haben. Der Ökonom hatte seinen Vorschlag gemacht, weil sich damals ein Wahlsieg der Syriza-Partei abzeichnete – und er sich nicht vorstellen konnte, dass sich die Linksradikalen mit den internationalen Gläubigern einigen könnten. Im Sommer 2012 verpasste Syriza den Wahlsieg. Zweieinhalb Jahre später aber ist es so

  101. El presidente de Francia, François Hollande, ha llegado el domingo a La Habana procedente de Guadalupe con una visita oficial, ha informado Cubadebate...

    De esta manera, Hollande se convierte en el primer mandatario galo que arriba a Cuba y además el primer líder occidental en realizar una visita oficial a la isla.

    Según la agenda de la visita, el presidente francés se reunirá con su homólogo cubano Raúl Castro y ofrecerá una conferencia en la Universidad de La Habana, entre otras actividades.

  102. A Turkish dry cargo ship was shelled from the Libyan coast as it approached Tobruk port and then attacked from the air as it tried to leave the area on May 10, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said on May 11...

    The ship's third officer died and other crew members were wounded in the attacks, which the ministry condemned in a statement, saying the ship was in international waters at the time.

    The statement did not specify who launched the attacks.

  103. Saudi-led warplanes pressed air strikes against rebel positions in Yemen early Monday, 36 hours before a scheduled five-day pause to allow the delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid, witnesses said...

    The coalition pounded the Shiite Houthi rebel stronghold of Saada in the northern mountains for a third straight night after declaring the whole province a military target Friday.

    Aid agencies say some 70,000 civilians have fled the province, which borders Saudi Arabia, but that many more remain trapped in the coalition air and artillery bombardment because of a lack of fuel for transport.

    "We are living under a very difficult and unprecedented humanitarian situation," said one Saada resident, who asked not to be named.....Agence France

  104. Arrêter les bateaux des passeurs: l'Europe va plaider devant l'ONU...

    La chef de la diplomatie européenne, Federica Mogherini, devait plaider lundi devant le Conseil de sécurité des Nations unies pour une mission navale destinée à lutter contre le trafic des migrants en Méditerranée, après une série de naufrages dramatiques qui a poussé l'UE à réagir.

    L'Italienne a dit sa "honte que l'Europe se réveille quand elle est confrontée à des morts" alors que depuis le début de l'année, quelque 1770 migrants, hommes, femmes et enfants, sont morts ou disparus en Méditerranée, selon l'Organisation internationale des migrations (OIM).

    Réunis en urgence le 23 avril après un naufrage qui avait fait 800 morts, les chefs d'Etat et de gouvernement de l'UE ont demandé à Federica Mogherini de préparer une mission militaire pour "capturer et détruire les embarcations avant qu'elles ne soient utilisées" par les passeurs en Libye, "dans le respect du droit international"

  105. Libya has criticised EU proposals to authorise the use of force against people smugglers taking migrants across the Mediterranean to Europe...

    The Libyan ambassador to the UN told the BBC that the EU's intentions were unclear and "very worrying".

    The EU is seeking a UN mandate to allow military action to destroy or halt smugglers' boats in Libyan waters.

    The measures are part of the EU's proposed plans to stop migrants drowning in the Mediterranean.....BBC

  106. Turkish Border Crackdown Imperils Syrian Refugees ...

    Turkish authorities have tightened controls, ending their open-door policy for Syrian refugees and making it more difficult for Syrians to enter Turkey and for international journalists to cover the war. There are even reports of people being fired upon as they approach the border.

    Lina Chawaf is the editor of the independent Syrian radio station “Rozana,” which broadcasts from studios In Paris and Gaziantep, Turkey. She was a well-known TV personality in Damascus until she fled after siding with the political opposition against President Bashar al-Assad as violence flared in 2011.

    Chawaf has been returning to rebel-held areas of northern Syria when possible.

    “I feel I have to go there, I have to see with my eyes, it is the sense of a journalist, you know this you are a journalist. I feel I have to feel like the people who are there … to see the truth," she said.

    But trying to see what reporters call “ground truth” can be

  107. NATO: Russia has equipped Ukraine rebels to attack at short notice...

    NATO's chief said on Monday that Russia had built up forces on the border with Ukraine and sent more military hardware into eastern Ukraine, enabling pro-Russia separatists to launch attacks with little warning if they chose.

    "There has been a Russian build-up, both along the borders between Russia and Ukraine but also inside eastern Ukraine, with a steady flow of heavy equipment, tanks, artillery, ammunition, air defense systems and a lot of training," alliance Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference.

    "So they have the capacity, the capability to launch new attacks with very little warning time. But of course no one can say anything with certainty about the intention."

    A NATO foreign ministers' meeting in Turkey this week is due to discuss

  108. Turkey captures 239 migrants heading to Europe over weekend...

    A total of 239 migrants were captured in Turkey’s western provinces over the weekend, including a number of migrants rescued from sunken inflatable boats in the Aegean Sea.

    The Turkish Coast Guard rescued a total of 107 migrants trying to cross onto Greek islands on May 10 in three separate locations off Bodrum, a southwestern town in the province of Muğla.

    The Coast Guard discovered an inflatable boat carrying 46 migrants off the Bodrum coast. The migrants, including Syrians, were brought to the Milta Marina in Bodrum.

    About an hour later, a Coast Guard boat caught another inflatable boat carrying 49 migrants, including eight women and six children, off Kargı Bay. They were moved to the Coastal Security Boat Commandership located in the cross-border area of Bodrum’s port.

    Another 12 migrants were rescued in the Aegean Sea after their zodiac boat sank. Some of them were reportedly minutes away from drowning and a migrant was hospitalized due to

  109. Blasts shake Yemen capital after coalition hits arms depot...

    Powerful explosions shook the Yemeni capital on Monday after warplanes from the Saudi-led coalition struck a rebel arms depot.

    The raid targeted the depot in the Mount Noqum area on the eastern outskirts of Sanaa, triggering several blasts, an AFP correspondent and witnesses said.

    Thick black smoke billowed from the site and debris was scattered in residential areas at the foot of the hill, witnesses said.

    There were no immediate reports of casualties.

    The attack came a day ahead of a hoped-for five-day humanitarian truce proposed by the Saudi-led coalition which launched strikes against rebels in late March in support of exiled President Abed Rabbou Mansour Hadi.

  110. Syrie : la Coalition de l'opposition n'ira pas aux consultations organisées par l'ONU...

    (Belga) La Coalition de l'opposition syrienne en exil a annoncé lundi son refus de participer aux consultations organisées à Genève par le médiateur de l'ONU, Staffan de Mistura, notamment à cause de l'invitation lancée à l'Iran.

    "Il nous invite à des consultations alors que nous nous attendions à être conviés à des négociations (et en plus) son invitation à l'Iran ne fait qu'envenimer la situation et c'est notre principal problème avec lui", a déclaré Hicham Marwa, adjoint du chef de la coalition. Le plus important regroupement de l'opposition en exil, soutenu par l'Occident et la majorité des pays arabes ainsi que par la Turquie, a pris cette position lors d'une réunion ce week-end à

  111. Peace talks between estranged Greek and Turkish Cypriots will resume on May 15, a United Nations envoy said on Monday...

    Espeth Barth Eide was speaking to media after a meeting between Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci. It was their first encounter since Akinci, a moderate leftist, swept to victory in a Turkish Cypriot leadership election on April 26.

  112. France's Hollande meets Fidel and Raul Castro in Havana...

    French President Francois Hollande has met Cuba's 1959 revolutionary leaders Fidel and Raul Castro on a historic trip to Havana.

    Mr Hollande also called for an end to the decades-long US trade embargo against Cuba.

    He said the embargo badly damaged development of the island.

    Mr Hollande is the first French president to visit Cuba since 1898, and the first Western leader on the island since the 1980s.

    President Hollande and Fidel Castro spoke for an hour, according to Liberation journalist Laure Bretton who tweeted his comments (in French) after the meeting.

    "I had in front of me a man who had made history," Mr Hollande told her.

    He later met Fidel's brother and current President Raul

  113. Nepal hit by another strong earthquake...

    A magnitude 7.4 earthquake has hit Nepal as the country recovers from last month's devastating earthquake.

    More than 8,000 people died in the 7.8-magnitude quake on 25 April, which destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes.

    Today's earthquake sent people in the capital Kathmandu rushing out on to the streets.


    "Buildings down in Chautara ...Bodies being brought out of buildings," the International Organization of Migration, a United Nations agency, said on its Twitter feed.


  114. M7.3 - 18km SE of Kodari, Nepal....

    2015-05-12 10:05:19 (UTC+03:00)

    Nearby Cities
    18km (11mi) SE of Kodari, Nepal
    59km (37mi) ENE of Banepa, Nepal
    62km (39mi) ENE of Panaoti, Nepal
    76km (47mi) ENE of Kathmandu, Nepal
    77km (48mi) ENE of Patan, Nepal

  115. Another strong earthquake hits Nepal, no reports of casualties...

    A strong earthquake shook Nepal on Tuesday, sending people in the capital Kathmandu rushing out on to the streets just weeks after a devastating quake killed more than 8,000 people and destroyed hundreds of thousands of homes.

    The U.S. Geological Survey said Tuesday's earthquake had a magnitude of 7.4 and struck 68 km (about 42 miles) west of the town of Namche Bazar, close to Mount Everest and the border with Tibet. It was felt as far apart as New Delhi and Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.

    There were no immediate reports of casualties or major damage. Residents in the Indian town of Siliguri, near the border with Nepal, said chunks of concrete fell off one or two buildings.

    People in Kathmandu, panic-stricken after the April 25 quake, rushed outdoors, Reuters reporters said.

  116. At least four people have been killed in Nepal’s Chautara in magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck the country earlier on Tuesday, AP reported...


  117. Britain refuses to participate in EU migrant resettlement plan...

    Britain said on Tuesday it would not participate in any European Union plan to resettle refugees using country quotas, saying it preferred to focus its efforts on tackling people traffickers instead.

    The European Commission is planning to legislate before the end of the year to ensure the burden of housing immigrants is shared across the bloc, according to binding quotas based on criteria such as economic health and population.

    But Britain's newly-elected Conservative government on Tuesday said it would exercise its right to opt out of any such legislation.

    "We will not participate in any legislation imposing a mandatory system of resettlement or relocation," a Home Office (interior ministry) statement said..........

  118. Death toll in Nepal’s new earthquake reaches 26 people — media...

    The death toll in today’s magnitude 7.4 earthquake in Nepal has reached 36 people, National Emergency Operation Center said on Tuesday.

    "According to the latest data, 36 people died, 1,117 people were injured," the center wrote on its official Twitter microblog page.

    Tremors were felt in India, and metro in New Delhi and Kolkata suspended operations. Press Trust of India news agency reported that 10 people died in the western Indian state of Bihar, where several buildings collapsed as a result of an earthquake.

    Indian Meteorological Department registered a magnitude 7.1 earthquake at 12.35 local time earlier on Tuesday, followed by two aftershocks of magnitude 5.4 and 6.2. The epicenter of the earthquake lay 80 kilometers to the east of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu at the depth of 18 kilometers. US Geological Survey measured the earthquake at 7.4.........

  119. Turkey Hires Former CIA Chief as Lobbyist...

    The Turkish government has hired former CIA Director Porter Goss for lobbying activities, according to a form filed with the US Department of Justice that was published online.

    The form, filed pursuant to the Foreign Agents Registration Act, was published on Friday by The Intercept, an online publication that focuses on reporting on the documents leaked by Edward Snowden.

    Goss, who served as the CIA director from 2004 to 2006 under the George W. Bush administration, registered through his new employer, Dickstein Shapiro, a law firm which The Intercept said has a long standing relationship with the Turkish government............

  120. EU seeks UN approval to destroy migrant smugglers' boats...

    The European Union is seeking a U.N. Security Council resolution within days to let its members hunt down human traffickers in the Mediterranean and destroy their boats, a senior EU official said Tuesday.

    EU foreign ministers hope to have a U.N. resolution by their May 18 meeting "to ensure that we can have coercive action toward the smugglers" who have helped bring more than 10,000 migrants to European shores in unseaworthy boats in recent weeks, said the official, who has close knowledge of the operation but is not permitted to speak publicly about

  121. Ukraine crisis: Kerry has 'frank' meeting with Putin...

    US Secretary of State John Kerry has said he has held a "frank meeting" with President Vladimir Putin during his first visit to Russia since the Ukraine crisis began in early 2014.


    It is the highest-level trip by a US official to Russia since the Ukraine crisis began....BBC

  122. US Marine Corps helicopter missing in Nepal ...

    The U.S. Pacific Command said Tuesday that a U.S. Marine Corps helicopter offering disaster relief in the wake of the Nepal earthquake was declared missing Tuesday with eight people on board.

    U.S. Pacific Command spokesman Major Dave Eastburn told reporters the disappearance of the UH-1Y Huey helicopter occurred at about 10 p.m. local time near Charikot, Nepal while the helicopter was involved in providing earthquake relief.

    Six U.S. Marines and two Nepalese soldiers were on board.......

  123. The death toll from the new earthquake in Nepal measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale on Tuesday has reached 65 people, the country’s national emergency operation center has said...

    A total of 1,926 people have been injured, the center wrote on Twitter.

    The aftershocks were also felt in India where metro services have been suspended in New Delhi and Kolkata. India’s Interior Ministry said 17 people have been killed, including 16 in the eastern state Bihar.

    Seismologists have registered at least 29 aftershocks in Nepal over the past 24 hours, with magnitudes ranging from 3.1 to 6.2, India’s meteorological department told TASS.

    The latest 3.7 magnitude aftershock occurred at 8.13 a.m. local time (0243 GMT), with an epicenter some 80 kilometers (50 miles) to the east of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu........

  124. ICC urges Israel to give material for preliminary Gaza probe...

    The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court warned Israel Tuesday that if it doesn't provide reliable information for her preliminary probe into possible war crimes in Palestinian territories she may be forced to decide whether to launch a full-scale investigation based on Palestinian allegations.

    Fatou Bensouda said in an interview with The Associated Press that she hasn't received any information yet from either side regarding last summer's Gaza war and urged Israel and the Palestinians to provide information to

  125. Isis in Italia sui barconi dei migranti: l'allarme da Tobruk...

    L’Isis non si ferma di fronte a niente. La sua è un avanzata “feroce” verso la colonizzazione del mondo. Entro le prossime settimane l’Italia sarà in allerta: insieme ai soliti migranti potrebbero esserci anche esponenti dell’Isis. Le milizie filo-islamiche stanno tentando di penetrare nel territorio italico da diverso tempo. Anche Malta sarebbe sotto attacco.

    Gawari, ministro di Tobruk, sostiene che: “Malta e l’Italia saranno interessate da un maggiore sbarco di profughi e tra loro ci saranno anche esponenti Daesh“. Questo messaggio lo ha ricevuto dall’Isis. Secondo Gawari, l’Isis sa come nascondersi e dunque bisogna stare attenti a qualsiasi indizio o situazione sospetta. Le forze libiche stanno cercando di aumentare i controlli, ma non sempre sono sufficienti. Continua dicendo: “Le Forze armate libiche devono far impedire agli emigranti di partire e aumentare i controlli: anche la Marina che protegge le coste“...........

    1. Terrorists belonging to Islamic State (ISIS) will be coming to Italy "in the coming weeks" hidden among migrants on boats, Omar al Gawari, information minister in Libya's Tobruk government, told ANSA Tuesday. ..

      Reports in recent months have also warned that ISIS terrorists are moving into Italy as well as threatening to attack the Vatican...
      "In the coming weeks, Italy will experience the arrival not only of poor African immigrants but also of boats carrying Daesh (Isis)," said the minister.
      He said that Malta will also be affected.
      Both countries have received tens of thousands of migrants mostly arriving by sea on rickety vessels.
      Libya has become a major jumping off point for these vessels, many operated by human traffickers given free rein because of chaos in Libya.
      The European Union is seeking a United Nations mandate to use military action to stop or destroy human smugglers' boats in Libyan waters - something the North African country criticized this week.

  126. Egypte: sept morts dans deux attentats à la bombe dans le Sinaï...

    Quatre militaires et trois civils ont été tués mercredi dans deux attaques à la bombe dans la péninsule égyptienne du Sinaï, théâtre d'attentats jihadistes quasi-quotidiens visant les forces de l'ordre, ont indiqué des responsables.

    Les trois civils, des piétons, ont été tués dans l'explosion d'une bombe dissimulée sur le bord d'une route au sud de la ville de Rafah, près de la frontière avec la bande de Gaza palestinienne, dans le Nord-Sinaï, ont précisé un responsable de la police et un responsable des urgences.

    Dans la ville même de Rafah, deux officiers et deux soldats ont été tués dans l'explosion d'une bombe durant une opération de ratissage de l'armée, selon les mêmes sources......

  127. The Vatican has officially recognized the state of Palestine in a new treaty...

    The treaty, which was finalized Wednesday but still has to be signed, makes clear that the Holy See has switched its diplomatic relations from the Palestine Liberation Organization to the state of Palestine.



  128. Journalists risk lives to cover Syria’s civil war...

    Syria is one of the world’s most dangerous places for journalists. More than 70 journalists have been killed in the country's four-year civil war, and many others have been seriously wounded.

    Since 2011, Kamel Saqer has had to put his experience and resolve to the test covering the horrors of the battlefield. A veteran with more than 20 years in print, television and online, Saqer is aware of the risks he takes to bring news of the conflict to the world.

    “Every time we make our way onto the battlefield I know that there is a good chance that I'll get hurt,” he said. Saqer nearly joined the list of journalists who paid the ultimate price. Three years ago he was the target of a rebel sniper near Damascus. He escaped with a surface would, but some of his colleagues were not so

  129. McCain appointed to Ukraine reform advisory team headed by fugitive Georgian ex-leader...

    Georgia’s fugitive ex-president Mikhail Saakashvili and hawkish US Senator John McCain have been approved as members of the newly-formed International Advisory Group that will help Ukraine’s president in “conducting reforms.”


    1. John McCain says he never agreed to join Ukraine’s reform council....

      US Senator for Arizona, Republican party, John McCain has told BuzzFeed News he never accepted a proposal of participating in Ukraine’s council for reforms.

      "I was asked to do it both by Ukraine and [former Georgian leader Mikhail] Saakashvili and I said I would be inclined to do it but I said I needed to look at all the nuances of it, whether it’s legal under our ethics and all that kind of stuff," he said.

      "I of course would love do anything I can to help Ukraine, but I’ve got to make sure it’s ok under Senate rules," said McCain, who also chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee.

      A decree of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Wednesday listed McCain as one of eight foreign members of the council headed by Saakashvili. Several former ministers of EU countries and a European Parliament member, Jacek Emil Saryusz-Wolski, are also named as the council members.

      The international council for reforms is an advisory body to the Ukrainian president.

  130. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi begins key China visit...

    Indian PM Narendra Modi is in China on a three-day visit intended to boost economic co-operation but in danger of being overshadowed by mutual mistrust.

    Ties between the two countries are strained because of a long-running border dispute.


    Mr Modi said that he hoped his visit would increase the prosperity of Asia.


  131. A Canadian aboriginal community rejected a 1-billion-Canadian dollars ($837 billion) fee from a gas company for building a gas terminal near its territory over environmental concerns, US media reported....

    According to the New York Times, the 3,600-member Lax Kw’alaams Band community in British Columbia voted against the plan on Wednesday, explaining that it would negatively affect local habitats of salmon.

    “Hopefully, the public will recognize that unanimous consensus in communities (and where unanimity is the exception) against a project where those communities are offered in excess of a billion dollars, sends an unequivocal message this is not a money issue: This is environmental and cultural,” Mayor of the community Garry Reece said as quoted by the newspaper.

    The Pacific NorthWest LNG has offered the unprecedented payment of over 1 billion Canadian dollars to be distributed between community members over the following 40 years. In an attempt to alleviate environmental concerns, the company has also vowed to build a suspension bridge to mitigate harm to the sea life.

    This is not the first case when gas infrastructure projects were rejected by local communities in Canada. The Northern Gateway pipeline, designed to link Alberta and British Columbia provinces, has been blocked by indigenous communities.

    Another major project, the Keystone XL pipeline, stretching from Canada to the United States, still awaits an approval in Washington amid strong opposition from environmentalists...........

  132. Estonie: l'armée prête à ouvrir le feu sur les "petits hommes en vert" russes...

    L'Estonie a ouvert la chasse aux "petits hommes en vert" russes, selon son ministre de la Défense.

    L'Estonie est prête à accueillir les "petits hommes en vert" russes, ses militaires ayant reçu l'ordre de tirer sur ces derniers", a déclaré au journal The Financial Times le ministre estonien de la Défense Riho Terras.

    "Si des agents ou des spetsnaz russes s'infiltrent sur le territoire estonien, vous devez tirer sur le premier qui apparaît", a indiqué le ministre s'adressant à son armée.

    "Si un individu en uniforme sans galons perpètre un attentat dans votre pays, vous devez le tuer par balles", a ajouté le ministre.

    Selon lui, l'Otan doit être prête à soutenir l'Estonie et participer à la guerre au cas où les troupes estoniennes feraient face à toute forme d'invasion de la part de la Russie. Il a estimé qu'il était extrêmement important de ne pas réduire les budgets militaires des pays membres de l'Otan.

  133. Griechenland will EZB-Kredite später bedienen...

    Auf einer Konferenz in Athen sagte Varoufakis am Donnerstag, dass sein Land im Juli und August 6,7 Milliarden Euro borgen müsse, um Anleihen der EZB zurückzuzahlen. Danach blieben 27 Milliarden aus diesen Programmen übrig, die in den nächsten Monaten und Jahren fällig würden.

    "Diese Anleihen sollten in die ferne Zukunft verschoben werden. Das ist klar", sagte Varoufakis. Der griechische Finanzminister ist derzeit in den konkreten Verhandlungen mit den internationalen Geldgebern nicht mehr federführend, nachdem Ministerpräsident Alexis Tsipras andere Unterhändler ernannt hatte.

    Griechenland droht in den nächsten Wochen das Geld auszugehen. Die Auszahlung weiterer 7,2 Milliarden Euro aus dem laufenden Hilfsprogramms ist von einer Einigung der Athener Regierung mit den Euro-Partnern über den Reformkurs abhängig. (Reuters)

  134. Boko Haram attacks biggest city in northeast Nigeria...


    Booming cannon and whooshing rockets woke up people living around Giwa Barracks in Maiduguri, the northeast's biggest city. The ground shook as people prostrated themselves for evening prayers. Hundreds fled, though some were returning home on Thursday morning.

    Many villagers were killed by shells that hit the outlying village of Kayamla, where the soldiers engaged hundreds of militants, according to Muhammad Gava, a hunter who is secretary of the self-defence Vigilante Group of Nigeria.

    "Many of them (Boko Haram) were killed outside the trenches while some fled back," said another civilian fighter, Ibrahim Musa.

    "We were with the soldiers during the attack and I was shocked to see that Boko Haram could be in such large numbers," Musa told The Associated Press..........

  135. Baltic Military Chiefs Seek Permanent NATO Presence ...

    Baltic states Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia will seek a permanent presence of NATO troops on their territory to counter increased Russian air and naval activity, the Lithuanian army said on Thursday.

    The states, all with ethnic Russian minorities, fear they could become a target of Kremlin pressure after a pro-Moscow rebellion in eastern Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin's declaration last year of an obligation to protect Russian speakers across the former Soviet Union.

    "In reaction to the security situation in the region, as a measure of deterrence, chiefs of defense of the Baltic states will apply officially to Supreme NATO Allied Commander Europe [SACEUR] about permanent stationing of a brigade-sized NATO unit in the Baltic States," Lithuanian Army spokesman Mindaugas Neimontas said.......REUTERS......

  136. Islamic State battles Syrian army near world heritage site...

    Islamic State militants were reported on Thursday to be advancing in a government held area near one of Syria's world heritage sites, part of a major offensive in central regions by the jihadist group that has destroyed antiquities in Iraq.





    1. Syrian antiquities chief: Army battling ISIS 1-2 km from ancient city of Tadmur, warns of catastrophe

    2. L'EI aux portes de Palmyre, cité syrienne classée au patrimoine mondial de l'Unesco...

      Les jihadistes de l'organisation de l'État islamique, qui ont déjà détruit des sites archéologiques par le passé, sont aux portes de la cité antique de Palmyre, en Syrie, classée au Patrimoine mondial de l'Unesco.

      Après la destruction des sites archéologiques de Nimroud, Hadra et Mossoul en Irak, le site antique de Palmyre, dans le désert syrien, est menacé par l’organisation de l’État islamique (EI).

      Le directeur des Antiquités et des musées syriens (DGAM), Maamoun Abdulkarim, a lancé un cri d’alerte, jeudi 14 mai, pour sauver cette cité classée au patrimoine mondial de l’Humanité par l’Unesco.

      Il en appelle à la communauté internationale : "Il faut qu'elle se mobilise avant et non après les destructions comme ce fut le cas jusqu'à présent. Si l'EI entre à Palmyre, ce sera sa destruction, une catastrophe internationale car vous pouvez cacher des objets mais comment voulez vous protéger l'architecture antique ?" Et d’avertir : "Ce sera la répétition de la barbarie et de la sauvagerie qui s'est produite à Nimroud, Hadra et Mossoul."....

    3. UNESCO chief Irina Bokova appealed on Thursday to Syrian troops and jihadists to spare Palmyra from destruction as Islamic State group fighters advanced near the ancient site...

      Syria's head of antiquities had urged international action to save Palmyra, saying the jihadists who have destroyed other historic sites had advanced to two kilometres (about a mile) from the remains of Palmyra.

      Bokova, who was in Cairo for a two-day conference on protecting archeological sites, said "Palmyra must saved."

      "It represents an irreplaceable treasure for the Syrian people, and the world," the head of the UN cultural agency said in a statement provided to AFP.

      "I appeal to all parties in the conflict to protect Palmyra and prevent its destruction."

      UNESCO describes Palmyra as a heritage site of "outstanding universal value".


      Representatives of 10 Arab countries concluded a two-day meeting in Cairo on Thursday with a condemnation of the Islamic State group's destruction of ancient sites in Iraq.

  137. Five Iranian boats fired shots across the bow of a Singapore-flagged cargo vessel on Thursday, CNN reported, citing a US official...


    Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. by Reuters

  138. Obama reassures Gulf allies on Iran...

    US President Barack Obama has pledged to stand by his Gulf allies with military force if necessary, amid heightened tensions with Iran.

    He reassured Arab leaders, after a two-day summit, that the US was committed to protecting them in a time of "extraordinary changes".

    Speaking at Camp David near Washington, Mr Obama said a nuclear deal with Iran was not a threat to Gulf nations.

    A joint statement pledged new cooperation in many areas.

    These included counterterrorism, maritime security, cybersecurity and ballistic missile defence.

    The six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is made up of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE.

    "I was very explicit ... that the United States will stand by our GCC partners against external attack,'' Mr Obama pledged at the end of the talks.

    The president said he hoped that working together would help achieve "the kind of peace and good neighbourliness with Iran" that the nations present sought.....BBC

  139. Burundi's President Pierre Nkurunziza has returned home a day after an attempted coup, the presidential office announced late Thursday. Nkurunziza was in Tanzania when a former military chief announced his ouster...

    In a message posted on the presidential office Twitter account, Nkurunziza declared, “I am back in Burundi. I congratulate the army and the police for their patriotism. I congratulate above all the Burundian people for their patience.”

  140. U.S. and Cuban negotiators will meet next week to discuss the reopening of embassies in each other's capitals as part of efforts to restore diplomatic ties, the State Department said on Thursday...

    The talks will be held on May 21 in Washington, the State Department said in a statement.

    The meeting will focus on practical measures needed to reopen embassies in Havana and Washington, the official added.

    The talks are the first since President Barack Obama announced on April 14 that he had decided to remove Cuba from the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism, a step that Cuba had insisted on before agreeing to reopen embassies....REUTERS

  141. US President Barack Obama said on Thursday he continues to believe a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians was "absolutely vital" for achieving Middle East peace...

    Obama said he believed the two-state option was also the best for the long-term security of Israel. He acknowledged the prospect of a peace accord "seems distant now," noting that a number of members of the new Israeli government did not share the view that a two-state solution was by Reuters

  142. The wreckage of a US military helicopter that disappeared this week while delivering aid near the Chinese border in Nepal has been found...

    Six US marines and two Nepali soldiers were on board. There is "no chance" of survivors, Nepali officials say.

    Tuesday's 7-3-magnitude quake killed at least 110 people.




    Ground troops are now being deployed to search the wreckage....BBC

  143. Fighting continues in Yemeni city despite truce, 10 killed...


    Saudi Arabia, leading a coalition of Arab states backed by the West, has pounded Iranian-allied Houthi forces and fighters loyal to Yemen's former leader since March 26, aiming to restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.


  144. US passes Iran nuclear review bill ...

    The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday overwhelmingly passed legislation that would allow Congress to review and potentially reject a nuclear deal with Iran.

    Congressmen voted 400-25 to pass the bill, which is now headed to President Barack Obama's desk for his signature. The Senate passed the bill last week in a 98-1 vote.

    Obama had said he would sign the bill into law......

  145. ISIS Militants seize Ramadi stronghold...


    As many as six suicide car bombs and mortars were used in the assault on the compound that houses the main police HQ and governor's office.

    At least 50 security personnel are reported to have been taken prisoner at the site.

    IS and Iraqi troops have been battling for months to take control of the strategically important Anbar province.

    The attack by IS militants began overnight when the suicide car bombs were driven into compound housing a number of government buildings, killing at least 10 people and wounding a number of others.


    IS "now occupies the government centre in Ramadi and has also raised its flag over the police HQ for Anbar", a police major told the AFP news agency.




    New laws already have led to increased pressure on nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that receive foreign funding.

    The latest measure would allow Russian prosecutors to declare an organization undesirable if it presented "a threat to the foundation of the constitutional order'' of Russia, or a threat to its defense capabilities or the nation's security.

    Parliament's lower house passed the bill Friday in the crucial second reading, 442 to 3.


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Δημοσιεύτηκε από Geo Kok στις Τρίτη, 9 Φεβρουαρίου 2021
Δημοσιεύτηκε από Geo Kok στις Παρασκευή, 5 Φεβρουαρίου 2021

Δημοσιεύτηκε από Geo Kok στις Πέμπτη, 28 Ιανουαρίου 2021

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