Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP |UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres held talks with Israeli leaders Monday on his first visit since taking office, making a forceful argument for a two-state solution with the Palestinians and speaking of his “dream” for peace. Guterres also spoke of what he called obstacles to peace …
Read More »US reporter, 18 Sudanese killed in Kaya clashes
Juba, South Sudan | AFP | An American journalist has been killed while covering clashes between government and rebel forces in restive South Sudan, local officials and the US mission in Juba said on Sunday. A spokesman confirmed the clashes had resulted in 19 deaths. Christopher Allen, a freelance reporter …
Read More »Netanyahu, Putin to meet over Syria conflict
Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will travel to Russia on Wednesday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, mainly focussing on the war in Syria, his office said late Saturday. The two leaders will meet in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi to “discuss the …
Read More »ICC rules jihadist liable for 2.7 mn euros for Timbuktu rampage
The Hague, Netherlands | AFP | War crimes judges said Thursday that a Malian jihadist was liable for 2.7 million euros in personal damages for destroying Timbuktu’s fabled shrines in 2012, as they ordered reparations in a landmark ruling. The International Criminal Court ordered that the victims of the razing …
Read More »More than one million South Sudan refugees in Uganda
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | South Sudan’s brutal civil war has forced more than one million people to flee to neighbouring Uganda alone, with another million seeking refuge elsewhere in the region, the UN’s refugee agency said Thursday. The UNHCR said additional funds were desperately needed to help the refugees …
Read More »Colombia declares FARC war over as last guns roll away
Bogota, Colombia | AFP | Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos declared the country’s 50-year conflict with FARC guerrillas “truly over” Tuesday, as the last truckloads of decommissioned weapons rolled away to be melted down. Santos himself shut a padlock on the last lot of decommissioned rifles before it was taken out …
Read More »Yemen cholera cases soar past half-million: WHO
Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | Cholera is believed to have affected more than 500,000 people and killed nearly 2,000 since late April, the World Health Organization said Monday. A full 503,484 suspected cases and 1,975 deaths are attributable to the outbreak that erupted less than four months ago in the …
Read More »Moscow backs peace efforts by Libya rivals: Lavrov
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Monday backed the efforts of Libya’s military commander Khalifa Haftar and his rival UN-backed Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj to reach a peace agreement in the conflict-ridden country. “We actively support the emerging trend to step up the process of …
Read More »Conflict leaves millions hungry in DR Congo, UN warns
Kinshasa, DR Congo | AFP | Nearly eight million people face acute hunger in the Democratic Republic of Congo as a result of conflict, especially in the central Kasai region, UN food agencies said Monday. “Food security and nutrition… are deteriorating in many parts of DRC, but nowhere is the situation …
Read More »UN sees early warning signs of genocide in C. Africa
United Nations, United States | AFP | Renewed clashes in the Central African Republic are early warning signs of genocide, the UN aid chief said Monday, calling for more troops and police to beef up the UN peacekeeping mission in the strife-torn country. Some 180,000 people have been driven from their …
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