U.S. military eyes information warfare to defend 2020 elections: report
Dec 26, 2019, at 09:28 am
Washington/Xinhua/UNI: The U.S. military cyber unit is developing information warfare tactics targeting Russian officials if Moscow interferes with the U.S. elections next year, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday.
Pope Francis prays for peace in world’s conflict zones in annual Christmas message
Dec 25, 2019, at 09:04 pm
Vatican City/Sputnik: Pope Francis called for peace in the world’s conflict hot spots and an end to children’s suffering across the globe on Wednesday during his annual "Urbi et Orbi" Christmas Day message delivered at the Vatican.
Uighur: Top Muslim preacher urges Islamic nations to start boycotting Chinese products
Dec 25, 2019, at 10:47 am
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia/IBNS: Keeping in mind the treatment given to ethnic Uighurs, an influential Muslim preacher has asked the Islamic countries to start the process of boycotting Chinese products.
Turkish President claims Saudi pressured Pakistan to skip Kuala Lumpur Summit
Dec 25, 2019, at 10:35 am
Ankara/IBNS: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last week claimed that Pakistan was forced to withdraw from a gathering of leaders from many Islamic nations in Malaysia after Saudi Arabia had issued economic threats on it.
Six-year-old finds note in X-mas card written by alleged Chinese prisoner; Beijing denies
Dec 25, 2019, at 10:30 am
Beijing: A Chinese factory has landed itself in a controversy after a message from workers was found inside a Tesco charity Christmas card by a six-year-old girl, hinting that it used forced labour to make it.
Russian military warns of increasing threat of terrorists using drones for attacks
Dec 25, 2019, at 10:09 am
Moscow/Sputnik/UNI: The threat of terrorists using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in attacks can soon grow in Syria and any other country, the chief of the Russian air defense forces, Lt. Gen. Alexander Leonov, said.
Taliban kills 3 Afghan customs officers near Iran’s border: Police
Dec 25, 2019, at 10:05 am
Kabul/Sputnik/UNI: Three Afghan customs officers were killed on Tuesday in an attack by the Taliban militant group in the Herat region bordering Iran, a provincial police spokesman told Sputnik.
UN chief urges action following execution, abduction of civilians in Nigeria
Dec 25, 2019, at 09:58 am
New York/IBNS: Those responsible for the recent execution and abduction of civilians in northeastern Nigeria must be held accountable, the UN Secretary-General has said, according to a statement issued on Tuesday by his spokesperson.
Dec 25, 2019, at 09:53 am
New York/IBNS: As Saudi Arabia handed death sentences to five people and sent three others to jail for the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the United Nations Secretary-General continued to stress the need for “an independent and impartial investigation”.
Dec 25, 2019, at 09:43 am
New York/IBNS: “Deeply concerned” over a recent military escalation in northwest Syria, Secretary-General António Guterres called for an “immediate cessation of hostilities”.
Burkina Faso: 35 killed in suspected terror attack
Dec 25, 2019, at 09:33 am
Ouagadougou/IBNS: At least 35 civilians, mainly women, were killed as terrorists attacked in Burkina Faso's northern province of Soum, media reports said on Wednesday.
South Korean military says no suspicious North Korean moves detected before Christmas
Dec 24, 2019, at 07:20 pm
Moscow/Sputnik/UNI: South Korean military has so far detected no suspicious moves by North Korea, despite lingering threats that Pyongyang could offer the United States a ''Christmas gift,'' in the words of North Korea’s vice minister of foreign affairs, by conducting missile tests ahead of the Christmas holidays, an officer in the military said on Tuesday.
Turkey hunts 54 military personnel over failed coup
Dec 24, 2019, at 07:15 pm
Istanbul/Xinhua/UNI: Turkish prosecutors on Tuesday ordered the detention of dozens of military personnel, including 31 soldiers in active service, over their alleged links to a network believed to be behind a coup attempt in 2016.
South Korea to permanently shut down 2nd nuclear reactor
Dec 24, 2019, at 07:11 pm
Seoul/Xinhua/UNI: South Korea decided to permanently shut down another nuclear reactor as part of efforts to reduce dependence on nuclear power and increase sustainable energy sources, local media reported on Tuesday.
Turkish Defense Ministry says Kurdish forces still remain in northern Syria
Dec 24, 2019, at 07:04 pm
Ankara/Sputnik/UNI: The Kurdish forces have not yet completely withdrawn from the areas in northern Syria that they were supposed to have left in accordance with the agreements that Turkey reached with Russia and the United States, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on Tuesday.
Indonesia: Bus mishap leaves 26 dead
Dec 24, 2019, at 03:52 pm
Jakarta/IBNS: A bus plunged down a steep ravine and landed in a river in Indonesia which least at least 26 people dead, media reports said on Tuesday.
Son of slain Saudi journalist Khashoggi says trusts Saudi Judiciary
Dec 24, 2019, at 10:32 am
Doha/Sputnik/UNI: The elder son of slain Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi has said he has full trust in the Saudi judiciary after the Gulf monarchy’s court put five people on death row on Monday for killing his father.
UN relief chief condemns attacks against humanitarian premises in Yemen
Dec 24, 2019, at 10:15 am
New York/IBNS: The top UN humanitarian official has called for a thorough investigation into weekend attacks against the premises of three international aid organizations in Yemen that wounded one person, in addition to damaging property.
Much work needed to ‘target unacceptable levels’ of racism in Ecuador: UN experts
Dec 24, 2019, at 09:57 am
New York/IBNS: Ecuador must implement and enforce laws and policies to protect the rights of Afro-Ecuadorians, the UN Working Group on People of African Descent said on Monday, calling for an end to the “discrimination, exclusion and extreme poverty they suffer.”
Saudi Arabia court sentences five to death over journalist Jamal Khashoggi murder
Dec 23, 2019, at 04:14 pm
Riyadh/IBNS: A Saudi Arabian court on Monday sentenced five people to death in connection with the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.
Syrian government Army takes control of flashpoint Idlib village
Dec 23, 2019, at 10:00 am
Damascus/Sputnik/UNI: The Syrian government has reclaimed control of Alteh, a flashpoint village in the Idlib province, a source in the Syrian military told Sputnik on Sunday.
Syrian troops repel Islamist onslaught on Idlib’s Qarratin al-Qabira: Russian military
Dec 23, 2019, at 09:57 am
Moscow/Sputnik/UNI: A hundred Syrian jihadists tried to storm the Idlib village of Qarratin al-Qabira over the weekend but was repelled by government forces, the head of the Russian Defense Ministry’s Syria reconciliation center said Sunday.
Guatemala: 21 people die in road mishap
Dec 22, 2019, at 05:55 pm
Guatemala City/IBNS: At least 21 people died when a bus and truck crashed in Guatemala on Saturday, media reports said.
Australian PM apologises for going on holiday amid wildfire emergency
Dec 22, 2019, at 10:48 am
Canberra/Sputnik: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison apologised on Sunday for going on a family holiday to Hawaii amid wildfire emergency in the country.
South Korea: Fire breaks out in motel; 1 dead, 28 injured
Dec 22, 2019, at 08:36 am
Seoul/UNI: At least one person was killed and 28 others injured when a fire broke out at a motel in Southwestern South Korea on early Sunday.
Death toll from measles outbreak in Samoa rises to 79: Govt
Dec 22, 2019, at 08:31 am
Moscow/Sputnik: A measles outbreak in Samoa has already killed 79 people, with over 5,500 cases of the disease registered in the country, which has a population of less than 200,000, the Samoan government said on Sunday.
Yemeni army launches offensive against Houthi rebels in Saada
Dec 21, 2019, at 11:17 pm
Sanaa/Xinhua/UNI: The Yemeni army said on Saturday it launched an offensive against the Houthi rebels in the northern province of Saada and captured several strategic highland sites.
Dec 21, 2019, at 02:34 pm
Washington/IBNS: The United States has re-designated Pakistan and China, among several nations, as countries of particular concern on religious freedom where persecution continues on the basis of faiths.
Top Criminal Court to conduct official probe into alleged war crimes in Palestine
Dec 21, 2019, at 08:54 am
New Yor/IBNS: Following a “thorough, independent and objective assessment”, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced on Friday that she plans to open a formal investigation into alleged war crimes in Palestine, but asked the Court for a further ruling over territorial jurisdiction.
Syria: Lack of consensus following face-to-face talks, underscores need for broader process
Dec 21, 2019, at 08:53 am
New York/IBNS: The second session of the Syrian Constitutional Committee, aiming to create a new post-war political road map for the country, failed to get off the ground due to lack of consensus over the agenda, the UN Special Envoy for the country told the Security Council on Friday.