Chinese link: Former CIA officer arrested and charged with espionage
Aug 21, 2020, at 04:32 am
Washignton: Alexander Yuk Ching Ma, 67, a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer, was arrested on Aug. 14, 2020, on a charge that he conspired with a relative of his who also was a former CIA officer to communicate classified information up to the Top Secret level to intelligence officials of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
Jordan: Closing teachers’ union, detaining officials, ‘serious’ rights violations
Aug 20, 2020, at 07:06 pm
New York: Jordan must reverse the decision to close a 140,000-strong teachers’ union and detain its leaders, independent UN human rights experts said on Wednesday, while also urging the authorities to lift gag orders prohibiting public discussion of the case.
Mali coup: UN peacekeeping mission ‘must and will continue’ operations
Aug 20, 2020, at 06:54 pm
New York: The United Nations continues to monitor the ongoing situation in Mali, where soldiers arrested the President and several members of his cabinet in a military coup on Tuesday.
Portland police declare riot amid BLM protest near federal immigration building
Aug 20, 2020, at 06:41 pm
Moscow/Sputnik: Police declared a riot amid a protest near the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building in the US city of Portland in the late hours of Wednesday, threatening use of crowd control agents unless Black Lives Matter activists disperse.
Gmail down: Users complain they are unable to send emails and even attach files
Aug 20, 2020, at 06:09 pm
California: Several users of Google’s email client, Gmail, are complaining that they are unable to use the platform properly on Thursday.
Furniture factory gutted in Bangladesh, no casualty
Aug 20, 2020, at 06:05 pm
Narayanganj/IBNS: A furniture factory was gutted as a fire broke out in Ruposhi Karnagop area of Rupganj upazila in Bangladesh on Wednesday, media reports said.
Syria constitutional reform talks, hold promise for new social contract
Aug 20, 2020, at 05:10 pm
New York: Constitutional reform talks between Syria’s Government and opposition leaders next week in Geneva, offer an opportunity to reconcile differences and establish a social contract with people across the country, who are desperate for progress after more than nine years of war, the Special Envoy told the Security Council on Wednesday.
Libya: UN human right chief appoints independent investigators to probe abuses
Aug 20, 2020, at 04:31 pm
New York: UN-led efforts to address serious rights violations in Libya, received a boost on Wednesday with the appointment of three independent investigators to document abuses in the war-torn country.
Bosnia and Herzegovina should recognise sex crime survivors’ rights, say experts
Aug 20, 2020, at 04:02 pm
New York: In Bosnia and Herzegovina, tens of thousands of victims of sexual violence committed during conflict in the 1990s still await justice, UN-appointed rights experts said on Wednesday.
Aug 20, 2020, at 03:47 pm
Washingto/UNI: Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris in excerpts of her speech for the Democratic National Convention said that US President Donald Trump's failure of leadership has cost lives and livelihoods in the United States.
Kamala Harris officially accepts Democratic Party vice presidential nomination
Aug 20, 2020, at 03:35 pm
Washington/UNI: The Democrats formally nominated Senator Kamala Harris to be the party's vice presidential nominee, which she accepted during a convention speech in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Afghanistan Army asks security personnel to be ready to return fire against Pakistan
Aug 20, 2020, at 05:32 am
Kabul: Afghanistan Army has directed its personnel to prepare for retaliatory fire against the Pakistani military after cross border shelling killed nine Afghan civilians and left 50 others wounded.
Aug 20, 2020, at 05:26 am
Toronto/IBNS: A 2- day first digital celebration of India's 74th Independence Day on August 15th and 16th, 2020, the biggest digital celebration of India Day 2020 with the first-ever curated virtual grand parade was organized by Panorama India with the support of Consulate General of India, Toronto.
Pakistani leader slams Imran Khan govt over Kashmir policy
Aug 20, 2020, at 05:20 am
Peshawar: Right-wing Pakistani politician and president of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F), Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman, has attacked PM Imran Khan-led administration for their inefficiency in handling the Kashmir issue and the policies framed for the region.
Pakistan submits initial draft report on terror funding to FATF: Report
Aug 20, 2020, at 05:02 am
Islamabad: Pakistan has submitted its initial draft report to the joint group of Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global terror financing watchdog, showing progress and compliance of remaining 13 points out of 27 action points, reports The News International.
Pakistan: People in Sindh protest against state terrorism
Aug 20, 2020, at 04:47 am
Sindh: Amid rising cases of enforced disappearances in the region, people in Qazi Ahmed town of Shaheed Behazir Abad district of Sindh province in Pakistan took to streets to raise their voice against state terrorism and brutality in the province.
Pakistan: Pre-partition Hindu temple razed in Lyari
Aug 20, 2020, at 04:40 am
Lyari: A pre-partition Hindu temple has been allegedly demolished by a builder in Pakistan's Lyari area, media reports said on Wednesday.
Balochistan: Baloch rebels kill seven Pakistan Army personnel
Aug 20, 2020, at 04:30 am
Sindh: Balochistan Liberation Front has claimed responsibility for the attack on Pakistani military personnel in Jhaoo and Mashkay areas of the country on July 31 which led to the death of three personnel and injury to one.
Two killed in clash between Pakistan-Afghanistan forces in Kandahar
Aug 19, 2020, at 11:44 pm
Kabul/Islamabad: At least two people were killed and 21 others were hurt in a clash between Afghanistan and Pakistan forces in Spin Boldhak of Kandahar province, media reports said on Wednesday.
Mongolia reports 3 more COVID-19 recoveries
Aug 19, 2020, at 10:46 pm
Ulan Bator/Xinhua: Mongolia reported three more COVID-19 recoveries, taking the total recoveries to 281, the country's National Center for Communicable Diseases (NCCD) said Wednesday.
Blasts claim 2 lives, wound 2 in Afghanistan's Kabul
Aug 19, 2020, at 10:39 pm
Kabul/Xinhua: Two persons lost their lives and two others were injured in two bomb blasts that rocked two different parts of Afghan capital Kabul on Wednesday, Kabul police spokesman Ferdaus Faramarz said.
Japan's Abe back to work amid ongoing Health rumors
Aug 19, 2020, at 10:33 pm
Moscow/Sputnik: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe returned to work on Wednesday following three days off that included a hospital visit and gave rise to speculations about the state of his health.
Beijing condemns foreign attempts to Fan unrest in Belarus
Aug 19, 2020, at 10:31 pm
Beijing/Sputnik: China opposes any external forces' attempts to create a split and trigger unrest in Belarus, the Foreign Ministry's spokesman, Zhao Lijian, said on Wednesday.
Two officers killed in attack on security post in Afghanistan's Kandahar
Aug 19, 2020, at 10:23 pm
Kabul/Sputnik: Militants have attacked a checkpoint in Afghanistan’s southern Kandahar province, leaving two police officers killed and two others injured, a security source told Sputnik on Wednesday.
Bridging Asia-Pacific ‘digital divide’ vital to realize tech benefits
Aug 19, 2020, at 10:17 pm
New York: Countries across Asia and the Pacific are using new technologies to contain the global pandemic and mitigate its impact, the UN’s regional socio-economic development arm has said, as governments and experts work together to identify ways to innovate further, and build back better, after COVID-19.
Pakistan reaffirms support for Afghan peace in Independence Day message
Aug 19, 2020, at 10:15 pm
Islamabad/Sputnik: The Pakistani Foreign Ministry wished Afghanistan a happy Independence Day on Wednesday, reiterating support for peace in the "brotherly" nation.
Mali: UN chief demands ‘immediate and unconditional release’ of President, cabinet members
Aug 19, 2020, at 10:02 pm
New York: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for the immediate restoration of constitutional order and the rule of law in Mali, after mutinying troops arrested the country’s leader and other senior officials on Tuesday.
Hariri assassination: UN-backed tribunal finds one guilty, three acquitted
Aug 19, 2020, at 09:56 pm
New York: The UN Secretary-General took note on Tuesday of the guilty verdict delivered by a special UN-backed court, in the case of one of the defendants accused of killing former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, in a bomb attack 15 years ago. Three other defendants, also reportedly members of militant group, Hezbollah, were acquitted.
One million flee escalating violence in Burkina Faso
Aug 19, 2020, at 09:42 pm
New York: Mounting violence in Burkina Faso has forced more than one million people to flee their homes: 453,000 so far this year alone, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, reported on Tuesday, citing government figures.
Supporting communities and refugees in Lebanon a ‘top priority’: UNHCR chief
Aug 19, 2020, at 04:02 pm
New York: The head of the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) is in Lebanon to drive home the message of solidarity with all those affected by the devastating blast a fortnight ago, reaching out to both Lebanese and the many refugees and migrants sheltering in the country.