Biden’s Gaza plan ‘not a good deal’ but Israel accepts it, Netanyahu aide says

June 2, 2024

An aide to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Sunday that Israel had accepted a framework deal for winding down the Gaza war now being advanced by U.S. President Joe Biden, though he described it as flawed and in need of much more work, Reuters reports. In an interview with Britain’s Sunday Times, Ophir Falk, […]Continue Reading

Biden details Gaza truce proposal, Hamas responds positively

June 1, 2024

US President Joe Biden on Friday laid out what he described as a three-phase Israeli proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza in return for the release of Israeli hostages, saying “it’s time for this war to end” and winning a positive initial reaction from Hamas, Reuters reports. The first phase involves a six-week ceasefire when […]Continue Reading

World Court orders Israel to halt assault on Gaza’s Rafah

May 25, 2024

Judges at the top United Nations court ordered Israel on Friday to halt its military assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah, in a landmark emergency ruling on South Africa’s case accusing Israel of genocide, Reuters reports. Reading out the ruling by the International Court of Justice or World Court, the body’s president Nawaf […]Continue Reading

Late President Ebrahim Raisi laid to rest at Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad

May 23, 2024

Iran’s late President Ebrahim Raisi was laid to rest in his hometown of Mashhad that hosts the holy shrine of the eighth Shia imam, Imam Reza (AS), the state-run IRNA news agency reports. The body of Raisi arrived in Mashhad on Thursday morning, with huge crowds of people gathering for his funeral procession that reached […]Continue Reading

‘Nowhere to go’: Rohingya face arson attacks in Myanmar’s Rakhine State

May 23, 2024

Fighting between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army (AA) has escalated in the western state of Rakhine in recent days, putting thousands of mostly Muslim Rohingya who live in the area at increased risk, Al Jazeera reports. Based on interviews with Rohingya activists who have spoken to witnesses in Buthidaung, there have been huge […]Continue Reading

Norway, along with Ireland and Spain, to recognize Palestinian state

May 22, 2024

Norway will recognise an independent Palestinian state in the hope that this will help to bring peace with Israel, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said on Wednesday, Reuters reports. Ireland and Spain will also announce the recognition of a Palestinian state, sources said on Wednesday. European Union members Slovenia and Malta have also indicated in […]Continue Reading

Russia says after Raisi crash that US undermined aviation safety with sanctions

May 21, 2024

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, commenting on the helicopter crash that killed Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, said on Tuesday that US sanctions had worsened aviation safety, Reuters reports. Iranian media reported that images from the site showed the US-made Bell 212 helicopter on which Raisi was travelling slammed into a mountain peak, although there was […]Continue Reading

ICC prosecutor seeks arrest warrants for Israeli PM, defence chief and 3 Hamas leaders

May 20, 2024

The International Criminal Court prosecutor’s office said on Monday it had requested arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his defence chief and three Hamas leaders for alleged war crimes. Prosecutor Karim Khan’s office said it suspected all five – Netanyahu, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas leaders Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Al-Masri and Continue Reading

Who is Mohammad Mokhber, Iran’s interim president?

May 20, 2024

Mohammad Mokhber is Iran’s interim president now after late President Ebrahim Raisi and other officials were confirmed killed in a helicopter crash and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei approved his accession to the role, Al Jazeera reports. The former first vice president held an extraordinary meeting with judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei and Mohammad Bagher Continue Reading

Iran’s nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri named acting foreign minister

May 20, 2024

Iran’s veteran nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri, a harsh critic of the West, was Monday named acting foreign minister to replace the top diplomat killed in a helicopter crash along with the president, AFP reports. Bagheri, 56, had served as deputy to the foreign minister of the Islamic republic, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who perished along with the […]Continue Reading