Tuesday, 26 Nov, 2024

International

Philippine police officer freed, rebels surrender

DHAKA: A Philippine police chief who was reported abducted on Tuesday by Muslim rebels has emerged free hours later after convincing his captors to surrender in a twist to a nine-day hostage standoff in the south of the country, officials said.Philippine interior secretary Mar Roxas and

Sexual harassment rises high in Afghan police

DHAKA: An unpublished UN report on female police officers in Afghanistan found accounts of pervasive sexual assault and harassment by their male colleagues, according to Afghan and Western officials familiar with the report.The report, which the United Nations has circulated only among

Minor girl gang-raped by 5 ‘minor’ boys in India

DHAKA: An 11-year-old was allegedly gang-raped by five teenagers high on sniffing glue in India’s Guwahati town of Assam province.The police have detained the five suspects, whose parents claimed their children ‘are less than 16 years old’, reports Hindustan Times.The five allegedly

15 injured in Russian nuclear submarine blaze

DHAKA: Fifteen seamen were in the hospital on Tuesday after a fire broke out on a Russian nuclear submarine, federal investigators said, contradicting earlier reports that nobody was hurt in Monday’s blaze.The fire started during welding works on the navy submarine Tomsk, which was

Car bomb explodes on Syria-Turkey border

DHAKA: A car bomb exploded on the Syrian side of the main Bab al-Hawa crossing with Turkey on Tuesday and at least a dozen people were taken to nearby hospitals.Syrian opposition activists on the border said, reports The Jerusalem Post.The explosion occurred at a roadblock manned by

North Korea dismisses UN human rights inquiry

DHAKA: North Korea on Tuesday rejected the findings of a UN human rights inquiry as part of a political plot ‘fabricated and invented by forces hostile’ to Pyongyang.North Korean ambassador So Se Pyong, addressing the UN Human Rights Council, said, reports The Jerusalem Post:‘Such a

China to take serious look at UN report on Syria

DHAKA: China’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday that the government would take a serious look at a report by UN investigators which confirmed the use of sarin nerve agent in an August 21 gas attack outside the Syrian capital.Ministry spokesman Hong Lei made the comment at a daily news

France, Russia admit attack differences

DHAKA: Russia and France’s foreign ministers have disagreed over who is to blame for the chemical weapons attack in Syria.After talks in Moscow, France’s Laurent Fabius said the UN’s report into the August incident left no doubt that the Syrian government was responsible.But

Employment gap between US rich, poor widest on record

DHAKA: The gap in employment rates between America’s highest- and lowest-income families has stretched to its widest levels since officials began tracking the data a decade ago, according to an analysis of government data conducted for media.Rates of unemployment for the lowest-income

UN inquiry decries widespread abuses in N Korea

DHAKA: Testimony by North Koreans exiles, including former political prison camp inmates, points to patterns that may amount to widespread and systematic violations by the state.United Nations human rights investigators said in their first report on Tuesday, reports The Straits Times.Camp

‘Syria can hurt enemies even without chemical weapons’

DHAKA: Syria’s decision to dismantle their chemical weapons arsenal, in agreement with the US-Russia brokered deal, in no way damages Syria’s ability to hurt its enemies.Syrian prime minister Wael al-Halki said, Israel Radio reported, according to The Jerusalem Post.According to the

Philippine army says Muslims rebels fleeing

DHAKA: Philippine forces freed scores of civilian hostages on Tuesday as fighting subsided in a port city where hundreds of rogue Muslim guerrillas have been battling for more than a week.The fighting, in which nearly 100 people have been killed, has highlighted lingering grievances in

France to press Russia over UN resolution

DHAKA: French foreign minister Laurent Fabius is visiting Moscow to try to persuade Russia to support a UN Security Council resolution on Syria.On Monday, UN weapons inspectors said the nerve gas sarin was used against civilians on a relatively large scale in a suburb of Damascus last

US, UK insist UN chemicals report ‘blames Syria’

DHAKA: The US, UK and France say a UN report confirming a chemical weapons attack in Damascus has vindicated their stance that Syria was to blame.The US and UK ambassadors to the UN said technical details showed only the regime could have been responsible for the attack on August

Malala, Snowden nominated for EU prize

DHAKA: European lawmakers have nominated several candidates for the bloc`s top human rights prize, including Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai and US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden.The European parliament said in a statement late on Monday they were among seven nominees for this

US naval base gunman named

DHAKA: A gunman who died after killing 12 people at a naval installation in Washington DC has been identified as a former Navy serviceman.Aaron Alexis, 34, of Fort Worth, Texas, died in a gun battle with police during the rampage at Washington Navy Yard.Eight others were injured in the

12 killed in Washington shootout

DHAKA: At least 12 people were killed and at least four injured in a shooting at a naval installation in Washington DC.A gunman was killed at the scene. Police were initially searching for two additional "potential" gunman but one has since been ruled out.Shots were reported at 08:20

‘Convincing evidence of Syria chemical attack’

DHAKA: United Nations inspectors said on Monday there is ‘clear and convincing evidence’ that chemical weapons were used on a relatively large scale in an attack last month in Syria that killed hundreds of people.The inspectors said ‘the environmental, chemical and medical samples

Washington airport halts departures

DHAKA: Departures have been halted at Washington’s Reagan National Airport due to a shooting at the United States Navy Yard, an official said on Monday.Chris Paolino, a spokesman for Reagan National Airport, said inbound aircraft are still landing and that the airport remains open to

Costa Concordia freed from rocks

DHAKA: Engineering officials in Italy said they have succeeded in lifting the cruise ship Costa Concordia free of rocks, 20 months after it ran aground.Efforts to right the ship, one of the largest and most daunting salvage operations ever undertaken, are expected to last up to 12