TEHRAN, Iran – Iran has welcomed the two-month truce brokered by the United Nations between Yemen’s warring sides, hoping for a permanent end to the protracted conflict. Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh hailed the announcement of the ceasefire, starting with the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. He said the truce “could be a p...
NEW DELHI (AA) – India and Australia on Saturday signed a trade agreement that removes tariffs on 96% of Indian exports, a government statement said. The India-Australia Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (IndAus ECTA) was signed in a virtual ceremony by Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and Australian Trade Minister Dan Tehan....
Brussels, Belgium – AFP Top EU officials warned China’s leader Xi Jinping at a virtual summit Friday that any attempt to aid Russia’s war in Ukraine could hurt business ties. The EU and the US worry that Beijing’s failure to condemn the invasion means it could be willing to help the Kremlin sidestep the impact […...
Kyiv, Ukraine – AFP Ukraine’s president refused Friday to say whether he had ordered an airstrike on Russian soil, as a bus convoy navigated a tortuous evacuation to help thousands flee the besieged city of Mariupol. Peace talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials resumed via video, but the Kremlin warned the helicopter attack ...
Valletta, Malta – AFP Pope Francis called for a shared response to the world’s migration crises Saturday, at the outset of a two-day trip to Malta. “The growing migration emergency -– here we can think of the refugees from war-torn Ukraine –- calls for a broad-based and shared response. Some countries cannot respond to the [&...
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AA) – Saudi Arabia on Saturday welcomed a two-month truce brokered by the United Nations in war-torn Yemen. In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it supports the truce announcement by the UN special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, which will see “all forms of military operations inside Yemen and […]...
TUNIS, Tunisia (AA) – Tunisian President Kais Saied has announced plans to build a “new republic”, amid a political crisis in the North African country. “We are determined to cleanse the country and move forward in building a new republic according to the results of electronic consultations,” Saied said in a televised s...
ROTTERDAM – An Islamophobic Dutch group is planning to hold deliberately provocative barbecues near mosques over the next several weeks, coinciding with the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in which most believers fast from pre-morning to sunset. According to PEGIDA, standing for “Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of West,” the barbecu...
WASHINGTON – The US will end in late May a controversial pandemic-era program that had led to the rapid expulsions of nearly 2 million migrants and asylum seekers, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced. Title 42 will be lifted on May 23, and the Biden administration will continue to enforce it until […]
KYIV – Ukrainian forces liberated the city of Bucha near Kyiv from the Russian army, according to its mayor. Anatolii Fedoruk announced in a video message that Ukrainian soldiers’ battle to save Bucha ended in victory. “Today, our armed forces achieved a great victory in the Kyiv region. And we will expect a great victory […...
