Global

Kenya: Noordin Haji: Man to watch in 2019

Noordin Haji is a man with a white goatee, a man who never smiles — at least not in public — and the man who everyone will watch next year as he attempts to unmask cartels and convict the masterminds. As the Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr Haji knows that the collective eye of the

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Kenya lifts abortion ban on global charity Marie Stopes

Kenya has lifted a ban on Marie Stopes carrying out abortions in the country after a review found it had not actively encouraged women and girls to have them, a move that will prevent many unsafe terminations. Kenyan authorities had directed Marie Stopes to suspend abortions and post-abortion care on Nov. 14 after complaints a

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US government shutdown to continue until agreement on border wall reached, Trump says

President Donald Trump greets members of the five branches of the military by video conference on Christmas Day, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2018, in the Oval Office of the White House. (AP Photo) U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday said the partial shutdown of the federal government was going to last until his demand for funds

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Amnesty International Says Police in Sudan Have Killed 37 Protesters

Amnesty International says it has “credible reports” that Sudanese police have killed 37 protesters in clashes during anti-government demonstrations that erupted last week across much of the country. In a statement late Monday, the London-based rights group said the use of lethal force by security forces against unarmed protesters was “extremely troubling” given that more

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Pakistan: Nawaz Sharif gets 7 years in corruption cases

A Pakistani court on Monday sentenced former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to seven years in jail in two corruption cases. Sharif himself was present in the accountability court in the capital Islamabad to hear the much-anticipated verdict after a 15-month legal process in the cases, popularly known as Al Azizia Steel Mills. The court acquitted

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White House in disarray sows distrust in Mideast ahead of peace plan roll-out

Jim Mattis. (photo credit: REUTERS) Trump’s defense secretary, Jim Mattis, and his top counter-ISIS official, Brett McGurk, resigned in protest last week over the president’s Syria policy, his treatment of longstanding allies and his perceived acquiescence to international strongmen. WASHINGTON – The implosion of US President Donald Trump’s Syria policy team has rattled Middle Eastern

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Two boys reported missing at sea during rescue of 69 migrants, Spain says

In this Friday, Dec. 21, 2018, photo, migrants sit in a rubber dinghy after Proactiva Open Arms, a Spanish NGO, spotted and rescued them in the Central Mediterranean Sea at 45 miles (72 kilometers) from Al Khums, Lybia. (AP Photo) Spain’s maritime rescue service said two children were reported missing at sea when 69 migrants

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A popular journalist fled danger in Somalia. He returned home and was killed.

Awil Dihar Salad knew firsthand the dangers of practicing journalism in Somalia. The veteran reporter had spent years working there, but he fled the Horn of Africa nation in 2005, fearing he could be targeted. When he finally returned, he hosted a popular talk show on Universal TV. But despite his precautions, Salad was killed

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Trump Syria pullout ‘blow’ to Tel Aviv: Israeli experts

Decision to pull US troops from Syria is ‘defeat for Israel’, Hebrew-language Yedioth Ahronoth declares JERUSALEM-U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw troops from Syria has come as a “major blow” to Tel Aviv, according to Israeli analysts. On Wednesday, Trump — citing the defeat of the Daesh terrorist group — announced that U.S. troops

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US: James Mattis to step down as defense secretary over differences with Trump

US: President Trump announced Thursday that Defense Secretary Jim Mattis would leave his position in February, marking the departure of an influential figure who has steered the Trump administration toward foreign policy continuity and restraint. Mattis’s departure could add new uncertainty to which course the administration might take on its global challenges, including Iran and

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