Civilian casualties in Afghanistan exceed 10,000 for 6th straight year: UN report

Feb 23, 2020, at 09:28 am

United Nations/Xinhua: More than 10,000 civilians in Afghanistan were killed or injured last year, UN News reported Saturday, citing a United Nations report that details record-high levels of civilian harm in the ongoing conflict.

Trump congratulates Sanders who appears to be winning Nevada caucuses

Feb 23, 2020, at 08:47 am

Washington/Sputnik: United States President Donald Trump has congratulated US Senator Bernie Sanders who is coming ahead in the Saturday Nevada caucuses, according to early results.

Rally in support of Assange gathers in London ahead of court hearings

Feb 22, 2020, at 10:56 pm

London/Sputnik: A large rally in support of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange began in London ahead of court hearings on his extradition to the United States, a Sputnik correspondent reported from the scene.

New York Times op-ed by Taliban's deputy leader triggers row, experts question newspaper's decision

Feb 22, 2020, at 05:18 pm

Washington/IBNS: An op-ed published in the New York Times has triggered a massive row as the writer of it is Taliban deputy leader Sirajuddin Haqqani, who is one of the world's most wanted terrorists, carrying rewards on him.

Three killed in Ghana road accident

Feb 22, 2020, at 04:57 pm

Accra/Xinhua/UNI: Three people were killed and two others injured Friday in a road accident at Nkwanta, a small town in east Ghana, officials said.

Four trapped in east China coal mine accident

Feb 22, 2020, at 04:54 pm

Jinan/Xinhua/UNI: Four people were trapped under the pit in a coal mine accident in east China's Shandong Province on Saturday, according to Shandong Xinjulong Energy Co. Ltd., owner of the mine.

Iran says FATF designation not to affect foreign trade

Feb 22, 2020, at 04:51 pm

Tehran/Xinhua/UNI:  Governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) Abdolnaser Hemmati said that a decision by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to blacklist the Islamic Republic will not affect the country's foreign trade, Tasnim news agency reported on Saturday.

Bangladeshi national tested positive for coronavirus in UAE

Feb 22, 2020, at 04:39 pm

Dubai/IBNS: Two residents of UAE, which include on Bangladeshi national, have tested positive for coronavirus (COVID19), media reports said.

Afghanistan records 10,000 civilian casualties for sixth straight year: UN

Feb 22, 2020, at 04:19 pm

Kabul/IBNS: Parties to the conflict in Afghanistan killed and injured more than 10,000 civilians in 2019, according to a new United Nations report that describes continuing record-high levels of civilian harm in the ongoing conflict.

Situation in central Mali ‘deteriorating’ as violence, impunity rise, UN rights expert warns

Feb 22, 2020, at 03:48 pm

New York/IBNS: The growing violence has contributed to a deteriorating security situation in central Mali, with impunity being one of the aggravating factors, an independent UN human rights expert warned on Friday.

UN launches new project to address link between terrorism, arms and crime

Feb 22, 2020, at 03:42 pm

New York/IBNS: Cheap and easily accessible small arms are increasingly becoming the “weapon of choice” for many terrorist groups, the UN counter-terrorism chief told an event on Friday aimed to raise awareness of the nexus between terrorism, organized crime and illicit small arms trafficking.

Cameroon: UN officials raise alarm over escalating violence, call for civilian protection

Feb 22, 2020, at 03:35 pm

New York/IBNS: Four senior UN officials issued a joint statement on Friday deploring the continued human rights abuses committed against civilians, including women and children, in the south-west and north-west regions of Cameroon.

Pakistan moves down in Human Development Index (HDI), now stands at 152

Feb 22, 2020, at 10:51 am

Islamabad/IBNS: Apart from the global terror financial watchdog FATF's move of keeping the nation in 'grey list', Pakistan has now moved one step down in the  Human Development Index (HDI) to touch 152.

Dalai Lama's successor selection: US house votes against China for meddling

Feb 22, 2020, at 10:47 am

Washington/Beijing/IBNS: In what can be seen as a sign of standing with the people of Tibet, the US Hosue of Representatives last month passed the Tibetan Policy and Support Act (TPSA) which aims at strengthening policy in connection with the region. It also intends to sanction Chinese officials from interfering in the succession process of Tibetan religious leader Dalai Lama.

UN chief appeals for end to Syria’s ‘man-made humanitarian nightmare’

Feb 22, 2020, at 10:38 am

New York/IBNS: In a tersely delivered statement on Friday, the UN Secretary-General appealed for an end to the “man-made humanitarian nightmare” currently unfolding in Syria, where ongoing military operations in the north-west have displaced hundreds of thousands amid bitter winter temperatures.

Can't have Turkish law in France: Prez Macron vows to fight political Islamic

Feb 22, 2020, at 10:36 am

Paris: In a bid to crack down on what he calls the risk of "Islamic separatism", French President Emmanuel Macron said he will curb the practice of foreign nations sending imams and teachers to the European country.

UN must continue to be a forum for dialogue on decolonization: Guterres

Feb 22, 2020, at 10:19 am

New York/IBNS: With 17 non-self-governing territories remaining worldwide, the United Nations must continue to be the place where their concerns can be heard, the Secretary-General said in New York on Friday.

Escalating Burkina Faso violence brings wider Sahel displacement emergency into focus

Feb 22, 2020, at 10:13 am

New York/IBNS: Deadly attacks on villages in Burkina Faso have forced 150,000 people to flee in just the last three weeks, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Friday, warning of a displacement emergency in the wider Sahel region.

Easter Sunday terror attack: Sri Lankan parliamentary committee proposes burqa ban 

Feb 22, 2020, at 09:49 am

Colombo/IBNS: In the wake of the terror attack in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday last year, a Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security in the country has proposed to immediately ban attire such as the burqa and suspend the registration of political parties on an ethnic and religious basis, media reports said.

US to ink deal with Taliban on Feb 29: Pompeo

Feb 21, 2020, at 07:46 pm

Washington/UNI: The United States has reached an “understanding” with the Taliban and the two sides would sign a peace deal on February 29, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday.

On World Social Justice Day, the UN labour agency says ‘put people and planet first'

Feb 21, 2020, at 06:04 pm

New York/IBNS: Reduce inequality around the world, the United Nations labour agency urged on Thursday, World Social Justice Day.

Haitian leaders urged to end political impasse

Feb 21, 2020, at 06:03 pm

New York/IBNS: Leaders in Haiti must step up and end the political impasse between President Jovenel Moïse and a surging opposition movement that has paralyzed the island nation since July 2018, the top UN official there said on Thursday in a briefing to the UN Security Council in New York.

More than $1 billion pledged for post-earthquake recovery in Albania

Feb 21, 2020, at 06:02 pm

New York/IBNS: The international community has pledged $1.25 billion to help Albania recover from a devastating earthquake during a European Union-led donors’ conference in Brussels. 

Central African Republic: Security Council reflects on peace deal anniversary

Feb 21, 2020, at 06:00 pm

New York/IBNS: One year after the signing of a peace deal in the Central African Republic (CAR), State authority is being extended throughout the country, violence against civilians has decreased, and an inclusive Government remains in place, the UN Security Council heard on Thursday.

End hostilities, ‘preserve lives’: UN refugee chief makes appeal for people trapped in Syria’s Idlib

Feb 21, 2020, at 05:59 pm

New York/IBNS: As the already dire situation in north-west Syria dramatically continues to worsen in Idlib province, the head of the United Nations refugee agency called on Thursday for an end to the hostilities and appealed for urgent action to allow the people trapped there to move to places of safety.

Bangladesh: 2 suspected robbers killed in Comilla

Feb 21, 2020, at 05:41 pm

Dhaka/IBNS: In a reported gunfight with police in  Palpari Bridge area under Adarsha Sadar upazila of Bangladesh's Comilla district, two suspected robbers have been killed, media reports said on Friday.

‘Deliberate starvation’ tactics used in South Sudan could be a war crime

Feb 21, 2020, at 04:52 pm

New York/IBNS: The people of South Sudan have been “deliberately starved” in different parts of the country for ethnic and political reasons, and sexual violence against women and men as a weapon of war is ongoing, UN investigators said on Thursday.

China Shouguang vegetable price index down 2.41 pct

Feb 21, 2020, at 04:38 pm

Jinan/Xinhua/UNI: The China Shouguang vegetable price index, a barometer of the country's vegetable market, fell 2.41 percent to 178.7 points on Friday.

Train derailment leaves 2 dead in Australia

Feb 21, 2020, at 04:35 pm

Sydney/UNI: Two people were killed and 11 injured when a train carrying 153 passengers derailed near a town north of Melbourne, officials said on Friday.

2 babies killed in Mongolia home fire

Feb 21, 2020, at 04:33 pm

Ulan Bator/Xinhua/UNI:  Two babies have been killed in a home fire in southwestern Mongolia, the country's National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) reported Friday.