Vladimir Putin has said Russia is using “far from everything we are capable of” in its military operations in Syria. “We also have other things as well and will use them if necessary,” the Russian president said.
Category: World News
China accuses US of B-52 ‘provocation’ over Spratly Islands
China has accused the US of “serious provocation” after it flew B-52 bombers near one of the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. Chinese military personnel were put on “high alert” during the incident on 10 December, and…
Who Putin called out at his year-end press conference
By Alec Luhn President Vladimir Putin’s annual December press conference is a unique chance for some thousand-plus international and local journalists to ask the Russian leader a question. It’s also a chance for Putin to get things off his chest.…
China angry at $1.83 b US arms sale to Taiwan
CNN – Despite strong opposition from China, the Obama administration authorized a $1.83 billion weapons sale to Taiwan Wednesday, marking the first U.S. arms shipment to the island in four years. Consisting almost exclusively of defensive weapons, the military package…
Malala condemns Trump
Nobel prize winner Malala Yousafzai condemned Donald Trump’s views on Muslims on Tuesday, at a sombre ceremony to remember the 134 children killed in a Taliban attack on a Pakistani school a year ago.“Well, that’s really tragic that you hear…
US, Russia for finding common ground on Syria
By Reuters and VICE News US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Moscow on Tuesday in an attempt to build bridges with Russia in how the international community should respond to the Syrian conflict. Kerry said he wanted to…
NZ confirms Silver Fern as flag referendum candidate
New Zealand has confirmed that the black, white and blue silver fern design won a referendum to become a possible new flag, after the final votes were counted. A second referendum will be held in March to decide whether to…
French school teacher attacked
A hooded man claiming to be acting for Islamic State attacked a nursery school teacher with a knife-like weapon as he prepared for classes in a school north of Paris, French officials said on Monday.The male teacher was taken to…
Trump calls ‘Cruz’ maniac
Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump had a new target on Sunday, calling fellow White House contender Ted Cruz “a little bit of a maniac” as the US senator passed him in an Iowa opinion poll.Cruz’s dogged pursuit of conservative Iowa…
Saudi Arabia elects first female politicians
At least four women elected to municipal councils in Saudi Arabia’s first poll open to female voters and candidates. At least four women have won seats in Saudi Arabia’s municipal polls, the country’s first-ever elections open to female voters and…
World leaders hail Paris deal: ‘best chance to save planet’ – Obama
Delegates from 195 nations agree on new accord to keep average temperature increases below 2 degrees C. US President Barack Obama has hailed the landmark climate accord reached in Paris as strong and historic, calling it the best chance to…
Climate deal draft text ‘agreed’ in Paris for adoption
Organisers of the climate talks in Paris say a final draft text has been agreed after nearly two weeks of intensive negotiations. An official in the office of French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius told the AFP news agency the draft…
Inferno kills 9 in Manila
An inferno in one of Manila’s huge shanty towns has killed nine people, authorities said Friday, the third blaze to have struck the city’s slums in as many weeks.Residents grabbed clothes, furniture and appliances as they fled the burning Damayang…
Kim Jong-un says he has H-bomb, but no one believes him
By Reuters and VICE News North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un made a rare appearance on Thursday to claim his country has successfully developed a hydrogen bomb — but outside experts were skeptical. Kim made the comments as he toured the…
Declaration by High Rep Federica Mogherini of EU on HR Day
This year, Human Rights Day launches a one-year celebration by the United Nations of the 50th anniversary of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), signed…
Argentina’s Fernandez makes emotional farewell speech
Argentina’s outgoing President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has made an emotional farewell speech to supporters in Buenos Aires. She urged people to take to the streets if they feel betrayed by the new centre-right government.
Angela Markel, TIME person of the year
New York – Time magazine Wednesday named German Chancellor Angela Merkel as its “Person of the Year 2015,” hailing her leadership during Europe’s debt, refugee and migrant crises, as well as Russia’s intervention in Ukraine.
Saudi Arabia approves NGO law
After a long delay, the Saudi cabinet has approved a law that may pave the way for non-charity organizations to operate legally in the Kingdom. The law – long overdue – is a significant advance for a country where civil…
Trump do not want Muslims to enter US
Republican front runner Donald Trump called Monday for a “total and complete shutdown” of Muslims entering the United States, unleashing some of the most provocative and divisive remarks of his controversial presidential campaign.The stunning statement followed last week’s mass shooting…
Surprise India-Pakistan talks spark optimism
High-level meeting in Bangkok signals a thaw in long-standing tensions between nuclear-armed South Asian rivals. South Asia analysts expressed optimism on Monday after talks were secretly held between arch rivals India and Pakistan in the Thai capital – a move…
Yemen’s Governor od Aden Killed in blast
The governor of Yemen’s southern port city of Aden has been killed in a large explosion, officials say. Jaafar Mohammed Saad and several aides died when their convoy was hit. Some sources say the blast was caused by a rocket…
Man slashed in London Metro
A man wielding a knife slashed a man in an east London metro station on Saturday, reportedly screaming “this is for Syria”, before police used a stun gun to detain him in what they described as a terrorist incident.A pool…
US probing California attack as an ‘act of terrorism’
FBI says new evidence uncovered related to the San Bernardino attack that killed 14 and wounded 21. The FBI has said it is now investigating the San Bernardino shooting in the US state of California as a “terrorist” attack, adding…
Firebomb kills 16 at Cairo nightclub
Molotov cocktail hurled at a Cairo nightclub kills 16 people, Egyptian interior ministry says. At least 16 people were killed in a firebomb attack on a nightclub near Cairo after an argument broke out between employees and revellers seeking to…
Policeman speaks of carnage at San Bernardino scene
One of the first police officers to respond to deadly shootings at a social service centre in California has spoken of scenes of “unspeakable” carnage.Lt Mike Madden said he and officers who arrived later saw dead bodies and had to…
Turkey will “regret more than once” what it did: Putin
By Reuters and VICE News Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a State of the Nation address that Turkey would regret “more than once” shooting down a Russian bomber jet near the Syrian-Turkish border last week, and declared retaliatory sanctions…
UK launches airstrikes against IS in Syria
RAF Tornado jets have carried out their first air strikes against so-called Islamic State in Syria, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed. Four Tornados took off from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus shortly after MPs voted to approve bombing. The strikes…
Did the Islamic State go shopping for weapons in Ukraine?
By Jack Losh It began with a feverish report in November from a little-known media outlet in the Persian Gulf. “Security forces have busted and dismantled a multi-national cell for the so-called Islamic State,” trumpeted the Kuwait News Agency. “The…
Turkey challenges Russia over IS claim
Turkey has challenged Russia to prove its claim that Ankara shot down a Russian plane in order to protect its oil trade with Islamic State (IS).”If you allege something you should prove it,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.He was…
Ex-Malaysia envoy guilty of assault
A former Malaysian diplomat pleaded guilty Monday to the indecent assault of a New Zealand woman, with a court hearing he burst into her bedroom naked from the waist down.Mohammed Rizalman bin Ismail was a military attache at Malaysia’s Wellington…