01-12-2024 DAMASCUS: Rebel forces in Syria have taken control of several neighborhoods in the country’s second-largest city, Aleppo, according to the UK-based monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). As of Friday evening, SOHR said rebels were in control of more than half of the city. The move is …
Read More »Hitman offered $71,000 for Canadian reporter’s assassination
01-12-2024 MONTREAL: Political leaders and press freedom groups on Friday were left shell-shocked after Montreal news outlet La Presse revealed that a hit man had offered $100,000 to have one of its crime reporters assassinated. Convicted killer Frederick Silva, who turned police informant in 2022, had confessed to issuing the …
Read More »Chinese ships gather near island disputed with Philippines
30-11-2024 HONG KONG/ MANILA: Satellite images obtained by Reuters on Thursday show a build-up of Chinese civilian vessels near contested Thitu Island, Manila’s key outpost in the South China Sea, but a senior Philippine navy officer said they are “not a cause for concern”. One of the images taken by …
Read More »Iran plans new uranium-enrichment expansion: IAEA
30-11-2024 VIENNA: Iran has informed the UN nuclear watchdog that it plans to install more than 6,000 extra uranium-enriching centrifuges at its enrichment plants and bring more of those already in place online, a confidential report by the watchdog said on Thursday. The International Atomic Energy Agency report seen by …
Read More »Israel & Hezbollah trade accusations of ceasefire violations
30-11-2024 JERUSALEM/ BEIRUT: The Israeli military said its air force struck a facility used by Hezbollah to store mid-range rockets in southern Lebanon on Thursday, after both sides accused each other of breaching a ceasefire that aims to halt over a year of fighting. Israel said it also opened fire …
Read More »Indian banks review Adani exposure after bribery allegations
30-11-2024 Bureau Report NEW DELHI: Indian banks are reviewing their Adani exposure and whether they need to tighten due diligence, eight bankers said on Thursday, after the group’s billionaire founder Gautam Adani was indicted by US authorities over an alleged $265 million bribery scheme. Adani Group’s listed stocks, which at …
Read More »Australia approves social media ban on under-16s
30-11-2024 Bureau Report CANBERRA: Australia will ban children under 16 from using social media, after its parliament approved the world’s strictest laws. The ban, which will not take effect for at least 12 months, could see tech companies fined up to A$50m ($32.5m; £25.7m) if they don’t comply. Prime Minister …
Read More »Voters to take to the polls in Irish general election
30-11-2024 DUBLIN: The polls are set to open for the Irish general election. Polling stations will be open between 07:00 and 22:00 local time on Friday to allow voters to choose representatives to serve as Teachtai Dala (TDs) in the Dail, the lower house of the Oireachtas (Ireland’s parliament). The …
Read More »Families return to destruction in southern Lebanon
30-11-2024 BEIRUT: The family of four stood in the middle of the street in front of the pile of twisted metal and broken concrete, struggling to comprehend the devastation they were seeing. The building had been destroyed by a recent Israeli air strike and smoke was still rising from the …
Read More »Israel building new military dividing line across Gaza
30-11-2024 JERUSALEM/ GAZA CITY: Israel is creating a new military dividing line in Gaza, separating off the far north of the strip, satellite images studied by BBC Verify appear to show. Troops are in control of, and are clearing, an area across the width of north Gaza. Satellite images and …
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