Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip killed 31 Palestinians and wounded 120 others on Wednesday, after the temporary ceasefire between Hamas and Israel had ended a day earlier. The infant son and wife of Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif were among those killed in an Israeli strike which leveled a six-story building in Gaza city, Ashraf al-Qudra, spokesman for …
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Obama condemns IS extremists after beheading of American journalist, vows to end extremist “cancer”
US President Barack Obama on Wednesday called for a combined effort to get rid of the “cancer” of extremists in Syria and Iraq, after militants from the Islamic State murdered 40-year-old American journalist James Foley. Obama also said that the entire world was shocked by the beheading of Foley, which IS videotaped and put on the internet. “There has to …
Read More »Pakistan: Protesters brush away blockades as they march towards parliament
On Tuesday, several thousands marched to the Pakistani parliament as a part of their bid to force Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to resign, using bolt cutters and a crane to break barricades of containers blocking the way in the capital city of Islamabad. Paramilitary forces and riot police tried to barricade the government and diplomatic zone before the march …
Read More »Arab Bank on trial for allegedly funding terrorism
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 …
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 »Gaza: truce holds true on second day, Israel-US ties show strain
Relations between the United States and ally Israel showed signs of stress ahead of tough talks to extend the fragile ceasefire in Gaza to a more permanent deal. The US denied a report which said that the White House was reducing its regular delivery of military assistance to Israel over concerns of disproportionality of its actions in Gaza. However, the …
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. …
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