The UN Security Council encouraged Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan to resume negotiations on the contentious issue of water availability from the dam that the Ethiopians are building on the Blue Nile tributary of the Nile River. The statement, approved by all council members, said tripartite negotiations should resume at the invitation of
Ahead of the United Nation’s (UN) 76th General Assembly session, there is uncertainty over who will fill Myanmar’s seat at the world body. Both the ruling junta and the opposition National Unity Government (NUG) are pressing ahead with rival bids of their own. The former sought international legitimacy by ousting
On Sunday, tens of thousands of mourners clad in black filled the streets of Mashhad and Ahvaz to pay their respects to Qassem Soleimani, Iran’s powerful Quds Force commander who was assassinated by a U.S. airstrike in Iraq. Soleimani’s remains were flown to the southwestern Iranian city of Ahvaz two
On Tuesday, masked gunmen opened fire on Iraqi protesters in the Shia stronghold of Karbala. The incident took place in the city’s Education Square, where protesters had set up tents. According to security officials, the attack—one of the single deadliest attacks on protesters in the current wave of anti-government demonstrations
In the space of a week, North Korea has conducted its third missile test. The test in question took place on Friday morning, during which two short-range missiles were fired from the country’s South Hamgyong province into the Sea of Japan. The missiles are said to have travelled at a
Japan is the only country to have experienced the horrors of nuclear war. As a result of this, it’s post-World War II constitution has a clause renouncing war and the country in large part, has embraced pacifism—over the years it has been quite common to see protesters regularly show up
U.S. President Donald Trump made a rather surprising move on Monday by offering to meet Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani. The spontaneous offer came during a White House news conference with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, in which President Trump said he would “certainly meet” with his Iranian counterpart “anytime they
On Staurday, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamanei, was quoted (via his website) as saying that U.S. economic pressure on Iran is intended to turn Iranians against their government. Referring directly to Donald Trump’s decision to both pull out of the Iran nuclear agreement and his threat to reimpose sanctions
This past Thursday, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un during what was the first official face to face meeting between a Russian government official and Kim. The visit also happened to be Lavrov’s first visit to North Korea since 2009—that is despite Russia having
During a visit to Saudi Arabia this past Sunday, in which he underscored the need for unity in the Gulf region, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issued a call for new sanctions against Iran. The visit, which was part of Mr. Pompeo’s tour of several countries in the Middle
Basque terrorist group ETA announced last Thursday that it has “completely dissolved all its structures and declared an end to its political initiative”, almost exactly 50 years after claiming its first victim. This announcement, which was followed by a ceremony in the town of Cambo-les-Bains, in south-west France, officially marks
During a joint news conference on Wednesday with Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, US President Donald Trump pledged to meet North Korea’s dictator, Kim Jong-un, “in the coming weeks.” Mr. Trump said that he hoped “to have a very successful meeting” and before warning that if he thought that meeting
On Wednesday, an estimated 3,500 Ghanaians took to the streets of the capital Accra to protest against Ghana’s expansion of its defense cooperation with the United States—a rare public display of opposition to the growing foreign military presence in West Africa. Demonstrators blowing vuvuzelas and beating drums filled Accra’s business
On Monday, during his annual New Year’s Day address, which was broadcast live on North Korean state TV, Kim Jong-un, warned the United States that his country’s nuclear forces are now “completed.” After a year in which he ordered a string of missile launches—including three intercontinental ballistic missiles—and the regime’s
This Monday, the Israeli Air Force said it attacked a Hamas training compound to the north of the Gaza Strip. The strikes were carried out in response to recent rocket strikes from the Palestinian enclave, which have intensified in the two weeks since U.S. President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as
US President Donald Trump is due to decide whether to sign a legal waiver delaying plans to move the US embassy to Jerusalem—something that successive administrations have done at regular intervals for more than two decades. By law, US presidents are required to relocate the embassy to Jerusalem. The original
A day after returning to Beirut, Lebanese Prime Minister, Saad Hariri, has said he is suspending his resignation—temporarily halting what would have effectively brought down his 11-month-old government. Speaking during Lebanon’s Independence Day celebrations on Wednesday, Hariri said what Lebanon “needs at this sensitive time [is] exceptional efforts from everyone
In his first television interview since his shock resignation as Prime Minister about a week ago, Saad Hariri pledged to return to Lebanon from Saudi Arabia “very soon” via his party’s Future TV. He denied rumours that he was under house arrest in Saudi Arabia, saying that he was free
Saad Hariri unexpectedly resigned as Prime Minister of Lebanon this past Saturday, citing Iran’s influence in his country and across the Middle East, whilst also claiming he feared the same fate as late father, Rafik Hariri who was assassinated in 2005. His speech, which was broadcast from the Saudi Arabia,
Speaking to reporters during a meeting of top military leaders at the White House on Thursday, US President Donald Trump cryptically spoke of a “calm before the storm” as he gestured to the people gathered around him. When asked to elaborate, President Trump would only say: “You’ll find out.” President
