Arab Bank, one of the most prestigious banking giants in the world, is currently on trial for allegedly supporting terrorism. The Arab Bank had been charged last week with “aiding terror” by transferring funds to families of Palestinians killed while conducting anti-Israeli attacks during 2005’s Second Intifada. The bank, established in 1930 byAbdel Hamid Shoman, a Palestinian who had worked …
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HRW accuses Australia of deporting Syrians seeking asylum, calls its actions “unthinkable”
The Australian immigration department has been desperately trying to repatriate traumatized Syrians seeking asylum in Australia detained in offshore detention centers, British daily the Guardian reported on Tuesday. Several emails it obtained under Australia’s freedom of information laws suggested that the Syrians detained had told immigration officials that they will be killed if they go back to Syria, but the …
Read More »UN willing to regulate construction material to be sent to Gaza
The United Nations on Monday said that it was ready to check its imports on construction material sent to Gaza to ease Israeli concerns that the supplies would be used to rebuild Hamas’ tunnels. Robert Serry, the U.N. Mideast envoy, told the UN Security Council that the reconstruction of the Palestinian enclave remained the biggest priority once a permanent peace …
Read More »Gaza: Donors agree to start work after permanent truce
Donors from all over the world will meet in the Egyptian capital of Cairo to pledge funds and reconstruct Gaza after a more permanent ceasefire between the Palestinians and Israelis is reached. The funds will be raised under the patronage of Norway and Egypt and will be released to Mahmoud Abbas, the President of the Palestinian Authority,Norwegian Foreign Minister Boerge …
Read More »Pakistan: lawmakers from Imran Khan’s party resign following Islamabad march as anti-government movement continues
Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, member of the opposition and Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, on Monday announced that it will renounce its parliamentary seats after a row with the government regarding alleged poll fraud. Khan claims that the general elections last year, in which his PTI party came third, were rigged, and demanded that current Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif …
Read More »Turkey: More international help needed to support Syrian refugees
On Friday, Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said that it needs the world’s help in “sharing the burden” of over 1.2 million Syrian refugees it hosts, especially those not living in refugee camps. Several hundreds of thousands of Syrians have fled civil war in their country and sought refuge in neighboring Turkey for the past three years after …
Read More »Iraqi Sunni tribes arm up against extremists
Over 25 prominent Sunni tribes have armed themselves to combat extremists sweeping through Iraq, a tribal leader said on Friday. The uprising in the province of Anbar, where extremists from the Islamic State (IS) hold important territory, came only a day after incumbent Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, who is vilified by Iraqi Sunnis, abandoned his attempt for a third term …
Read More »EU agrees to arm Iraqi Kurds
At an emergency meeting of the EU on Friday saw EU ministers agree to provide arms to Iraqi Kurd fighters being overwhelmed by extremists from the Islamic State (IS). Ministers gathered in Brussels in a rear summer meeting, facing calls to stop what Germany has called as a slaughter of civilians. “Iraq is on the brink of a true catastrophe. …
Read More »Pakistan: anti-government marches begin in Lahore
Thousands of demonstrators marched towards Pakistan’s capital city of Islamabad from the city of Lahore on Thursday to try and unseat the government, alleging that it was elected by fraud. Proponents of Imran Khan, former cricketer and Chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), and preacher Tahir-ul-Qadri amassed separately in Lahore and began their 300-kilometer march to the capital. Both Qadri and …
Read More »Egypt: Five die in clashes on crackdown anniversary protests
On Thursday, five people were killed as Egyptian police tried to repress attempts made by supporters of ousted President Mohammed Morsi to memorialize the first anniversary of the crackdown in Cairo. On August 14th, 2013, current President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, then the Egyptian army chief, had removed Morsi, the first freely elected President in Egypt. After Morsi’s removal, security forces …
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