World

Qatar, Egypt Say Will Intensify Efforts to Resume Gaza Truce Talks

This is Beirut 01/06 22:25 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Qatar and Egypt announced on Sunday plans to step up efforts for Gaza truce negotiations, as the Palestinian militant group Hamas said it was prepared to "immediately" hold a fresh round of talks. "Qatar and Egypt, in coordination with the United States of America, affirm their intention to intensify efforts to overcome the obstacles facing the ...

British FM Says Morocco’s Autonomy Plan for W. Sahara ‘Most Credible’ Solution

This is Beirut 01/06 22:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

UN Security Council United Kingdom United Nations USA Morocco

British foreign minister David Lammy said on Sunday that Morocco's autonomy plan for the territory of Western Sahara was the "most credible" solution to the decades-long dispute, reversing London's long-standing position. Western Sahara, a mineral-rich former Spanish colony, is largely controlled by Morocco but has been claimed in its entirety ...

Gaza Rescuers Say Israeli Fire Kills 31 Near Aid Site

This is Beirut 01/06 20:25 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Palestine United Nations Hamas Israel USA

Gaza's civil defence agency said Israeli gunfire killed at least 31 Palestinians near a US-backed aid distribution site on Sunday, with both the group in charge of the site and the military denying any such incident took place. Israel has faced growing condemnation over the humanitarian crisis in the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, where the United ...

Egypt Unveils Plan for New Desert City in Latest Megaproject

This is Beirut 01/06 19:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Egypt Jirian Nile

Egypt on Sunday unveiled plans for a vast new urban development west of Cairo where a man-made channel of the River Nile will eventually wind through what was once arid desert. The new city, named Jirian, meaning "Flow" in Arabic, is part of Egypt's Nile Delta scheme, a massive agricultural initiative aiming to reclaim about 2.5 million acres ...

Ukraine Strikes Russian Bombers ahead of Istanbul Talks

This is Beirut 01/06 19:23 - Reading : 5 minute(s)

Ukraine Russia Volodymyr Zelensky

Ukraine said Sunday it launched a "large-scale" attack to destroy Russian bombers as it geared up for talks in Istanbul with Moscow counterparts to explore prospects of a ceasefire. The spectacular claim that Ukraine damaged $2 billion worth of Russian aircraft parked at airbases thousands of kilometers (miles) away came as Kyiv ...

Saudi FM Says Blocking of West Bank Delegation Shows Israeli Rejection of Peace Process

This is Beirut 01/06 18:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Saudi Arabia West Bank Israel Faisal bin Farhan Arab League

Israel's blocking of a visit by Arab diplomats to the occupied West Bank showed its "rejection of... a diplomatic path to peace," Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan said on Sunday. Ministers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain, along with the Arab League chief, had planned a trip to the Palestinian territory, but Israel said ...

Activist Boat Set to Sail from Sicily with Aid for Gaza

This is Beirut 01/06 18:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Gaza Israel Humanitarian Aid Italy

A boat organized by an international activist coalition opposed to Israel's blockade of Gaza was departing from Sicily on Sunday to deliver humanitarian aid to the Palestinian territory, an Italian politician told AFP. The boat from the Freedom Flotilla Coalition was due to set sail from the port of Catania, carrying around a dozen people, ...

Israel Army Says Intercepts Yemen Missile after Air Raid Sirens Sound

This is Beirut 01/06 18:02 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Yemen Gaza Israel Houthi Movement

The Israeli army said it had intercepted a missile fired from Yemen on Sunday after air raid sirens sounded in Jerusalem and other cities. "Following the sirens that sounded a short while ago in several areas in Israel, a missile launched from Yemen was intercepted," the army said in a statement. Yemen's Houthi rebels have repeatedly launched ...

Russian Strike Kills 12 Ukrainian Soldiers during Training

This is Beirut 01/06 14:34 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Russia Ukraine

A Russian missile strike on a Ukrainian army training area killed at least 12 soldiers and wounded dozens more Sunday, Kyiv said, in a rare admission of its military losses. Kyiv did not say where the strike took place, but stressed the soldiers were not taking part in a "mass gathering," and most were in their shelters during the ...

Poland Holds Tight Vote with EU Role at Stake

This is Beirut 01/06 13:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Poland Rafal Trzaskowski Rafal Trzaskowski Presidential Elections

Voters in Poland began casting ballots on Sunday in a tight presidential election with major implications for the country's role in Europe and for abortion and LGBTQ rights. Warsaw's pro-EU mayor, Rafal Trzaskowski, 53, an ally of the centrist government, was facing off against nationalist historian Rafal Trzaskowski, 42. Opinion polls ...

Two Bridges in Russia Collapse in 'Blasts', 7 Dead

This is Beirut 01/06 12:25 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Russia Vladimir Putin Ukraine Bryansk

The overnight collapse of two bridges in Russian regions bordering Ukraine that killed seven people was caused by explosions, Russian officials said Sunday, treating them as "acts of terrorism." In Russia's Bryansk region bordering Ukraine, a blast caused a road bridge to collapse onto a railway line late Saturday, derailing a ...

Iran Warns of Retaliation if Europeans Make 'Political' Use of UN Nuclear Report

This is Beirut 01/06 10:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Iran United Nations IAEA

Iran on Sunday warned it would retaliate if European powers "exploit" a UN report showing it has stepped up production of highly enriched uranium. The report by the International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran had sharply increased its stockpile of uranium enriched to up to 60 percent, close to the roughly 90 percent level needed for atomic ...