Monday, 07 Oct, 2024

International

NATO chief convinced Syrian govt behind chemical attack

DHAKA: NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on Monday he had seen evidence about an August 21 attack in Syria that had convinced him that the Syrian authorities were responsible for a chemical weapons strike.‘I have been presented with concrete information and, without going into

Germany tries 92-year-old former Nazi

DHAKA: Germany put a 92-year-old former member of the Nazi Waffen SS on trial on Monday on charges that he executed a Dutch resistance fighter in 1944.Dutch-born Siert Bruins, who is now German, volunteered for the SS after the Nazis conquered the Netherlands in 1941.Bruins served as a

Russia sends spy ship to Mediterranean

DHAKA: Russia is sending a reconnaissance ship to the eastern Mediterranean, Interfax news agency reported on Monday, as the United States prepares for a possible military strike in Syria.The reconnaissance ship Priazovye left Russia’s naval base in the Ukrainian Black Sea port of

Mandela spends first night at home

DHAKA: Nelson Mandela has spent his first night in almost three months at his home in Johannesburg after being discharged from hospital in Pretoria.The former South African president, 95, was admitted in early June for a recurring lung infection.Family members have spoken of their

No plan for French parliament vote on Syria action

DHAKA: France’s government will not cede to calls from opposition figures to have lawmakers vote on whether to take military action in Syria.The head of parliament’s foreign affairs committee Elisabeth Guigou said on Monday, reports The Jerusalem Post.French president Francois

Japan vows quick action, public funds for Fukushima

DHAKA: Japan vowed quick, decisive action, including the use of public funds, to tackle the worsening problem of contaminated water pouring from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant, as the authorities step in to help the facility’s embattled operator.Japan prime minister Shinzo Abe said

‘Peace with Israel will be brought to a referendum’

DHAKA: Palestine president Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday night vowed to put to a referendum any agreement he reaches with Israel.Abbas, who was speaking at the opening of a meeting of the Fatah Revolutionary Council in Ramallah, said that Palestinians everywhere would be asked to approve an

‘Pacific threat shows action needed’

DHAKA: The threat that climate change poses to Pacific Island nations shows that international action on the issue is overdue.European Union Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard said on Monday, reprots The Straits Times.On the eve of this week’s Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) in the

Death toll in Philippine ferry sinking now at 108

DHAKA: Philippine divers have recovered more dead bodies from a ferry that sank after colliding with a cargo ship, raising the death toll from the incident to 108.The Coast Guard said on Monday, reports The Straits Times.Twenty-nine more passengers are still unaccounted for, more than two

Polio breaks out amid militant threats in Pakistan

DHAKA: Syed Wali desperately wants to immunise his three young children against polio but fears the Islamic militants who banned the vaccine from this remote area in northwest Pakistan will catch him if he tries to smuggle it in.‘I can afford to bring the vaccine for my children, but

China concerned about unilateral military action

DHAKA: China said on Monday it was seriously concerned about any unilateral military action against Syria after US president Barack Obama delayed a military response to last month`s chemical weapons attack near Damascus until after a congressional vote.The United States has explained to

Russia not convinced by US evidence on Syria

DHAKA: Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov says the information the US showed Moscow trying to prove that Syrian regime was behind an alleged chemical weapons attack is ‘absolutely unconvincing’.Lavrov said Monday ‘there was nothing specific’ in the evidence presented by

Egypt to try ex-President Morsi

DHAKA: Egypt`s state prosecutor says he has referred ousted President Mohammed Morsi for trial on charges of inciting the murder of protesters.The accusations relate to violence outside the presidential palace in Cairo last December when at least seven people were killed in

Migrants make it hard to find good jobs

DHAKA: More than a third of Britons say they or a family member have found it harder to secure work or a good salary because of increased competition from migrant workers.According to a survey by Lord Ashcroft, the former Conservative Party donor, 36 per cent of people said that they or

‘US has evidence sarin gas was used in Syria’

DHAKA: US state secretary John Kerry asserted on Sunday that the United States now has evidence of sarin gas use in Syria and said ‘the case gets stronger by the day’ for a military attack.A day after president Barack Obama stepped back from his threat to launch an attack, Kerry said

Putin told Assad to quit Syria, the presidency

DHAKA: A Saudi newspaper is reporting that Russian resident Vladmir Putin suggested to his Syrian counterpart and ally Bashar Assad that he give up the presidency and leave the country.Israel Radio said Sunday, reports The Jerusalem Post.According to the radio, the newspaper claims

Rafsanjani says Syria govt launched gas attacks

DHAKA: Former Iranian president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani said the Syrian government, a strong ally of Tehran, had carried out chemical weapons attacks against its own people.The semi-official Iranian Labour News Agency reported on Sunday, says The Jerusalem Post.‘The people have been

Afghan presidential hopeful Daudzai promoted

DHAKA: Probable presidential candidate Omar Daudzai was appointed as Afghanistan’s acting interior minister on Sunday, putting him in a high-profile public role seven months before the country’s first democratic transfer of power.Daudzai will move back to Kabul from Islamabad, where

‘Syria capable of confronting attack’

DHAKA: Syrian president Bashar al-Assad has said that his country is capable of confronting any external attack, a day after his US counterpart Barack Obama called for military action against him.‘Syria ... is capable of confronting any external aggression,’ state television quoted

‘Israel ready for any scenario in Syria’

DHAKA: Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that the Jewish State was prepared for ‘every possible scenario’ in neighbouring Syria after US president Barack Obama postponed a threatened missile strike.‘Israel is calm and sure of itself, the citizens of Israel