| Naval base a terror target as two arrested in Australia operation Posted: 22 Dec 2015 04:23 PM PST  Two men were arrested on Wednesday during a counter-terrorism operation in Sydney, with a key Australian naval base among locations they were allegedly targeting, police said. Following the latest raids, a 24-year-old faces charges of making a document likely to facilitate a terrorist attack and another man, 20, with conspiracy to "do an act in preparation to commit a terrorist act". New South Wales police Deputy Commissioner Catherine Burn said the latest arrests related to evidence gathered late last year when 15 people were taken into custody and an alleged plan to kidnap and behead a member of the public was uncovered.
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| Bowe Bergdahl arraigned at North Carolina Army base Posted: 22 Dec 2015 03:55 PM PST  Wearing a dress blue uniform, Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl faced a military judge Tuesday for the first time since the U.S. Army decided to proceed with a military trial that could result in a life sentence for ...
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| UN renews attempt to get aid into Syria Posted: 22 Dec 2015 03:09 PM PST  The UN Security Council Tuesday renewed a resolution facilitating the cross-border delivery of aid to millions of Syrians, while complaining previous such measures were not seen through on the ground. The resolution extends authorization for UN humanitarian convoys to cross into Syria without the consent of the Damascus regime, in line with a previous text adopted in July 2014 and due to expire in January. The document said the Security Council was "gravely concerned at the lack of effective implementation of its resolutions" calling for greater facilitation of aid deliveries.
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| QASU FAMILY ODYSSEY 2 Posted: 22 Dec 2015 01:33 PM PST Map tracks migrant's journey from Iraq to Germany. ; 2c x 3 inches; 96.3 mm x 76 mm; |
| UN demands Syria allow urgent aid deliveries to 13.5 million Posted: 22 Dec 2015 12:15 PM PST UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Facing a worsening humanitarian crisis in Syria, the United Nations Security Council unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday demanding that all combatants but especially the Syrian government allow the urgent delivery of desperately needed food and medicine to more than 13.5 million people. |
| Turkish tanks pound Kurdish militants in week-long military campaign Posted: 22 Dec 2015 12:12 PM PST  By Seyhmus Cakan DIYARBAKIR, Turkey (Reuters) - Turkish tanks on Tuesday pounded Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) targets in Cizre, a southeastern town at the heart of a military operation that the army said has killed 127 Kurdish militants in a week. Black smoke rose from buildings in the town after shelling from hilltops and the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) said at least 23 civilians had been killed in the violence. A 16-year-old boy was killed in Diyarbakir, the largest city in the region, from a gunshot wound to the chest during protests against the curfews, security sources said.
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| Soldier who walked of Afghan post appears in military court Posted: 22 Dec 2015 11:29 AM PST  FORT BRAGG, North Carolina (AP) — Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl faced a military judge Tuesday for the first time since the U.S. Army decided to proceed with a military trial that could result in a life sentence for his disappearance in Afghanistan in 2009.
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| 1 Million Migrate to Europe in 2015, and Now German Police Warn of Terrorism Posted: 22 Dec 2015 11:00 AM PST  The International Organization of Migration announced Monday that the number of migrants and refugees to enter Europe through "irregular" means this year has crossed 1 million, a 400-percent increase over 2014. War, poverty, persecution, and rules in Middle Eastern countries against refugees holding legitimate jobs have prompted many to leave their homes in countries from Ukraine to Senegal and even camps built to house those fleeing war in Syria. More than 800,000 of those entering Europe came through Greece, mostly via a route from Turkey to the island of Lesbos.
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| U.N. blames Saudi-led coalition for most attacks on Yemeni civilians Posted: 22 Dec 2015 10:36 AM PST  By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights told the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday that a Saudi-led coalition's military campaign in Yemen appeared to be responsible for a "disproportionate amount" of attacks on civilian areas. Speaking at the council's first public meeting on Yemen since the Saudi-led bombing campaign began nine months ago, Zeid Ra'ad al Hussein said he had "observed with extreme concern" heavy shelling from the ground and air in civilian areas of Yemen including the destruction of hospitals and schools.
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| Iraq forces advance into centre of IS-held Ramadi Posted: 22 Dec 2015 10:34 AM PST  Iraqi security forces advanced Tuesday into the centre of Ramadi for a final push aimed at retaking the city they lost to the Islamic State group in May, officials said. "We went into the centre of Ramadi from several fronts and we began purging residential areas," said Sabah al-Noman, spokesman of the elite Iraqi counter-terrorism service. The fresh push was launched on Monday night and aims to result in the full recapture of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province in western Iraq.
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| Iraqi troops advance in battle for IS-held city of Ramadi Posted: 22 Dec 2015 10:23 AM PST  BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraqi forces on Tuesday reported progress in the military operation to retake the city of Ramadi from the Islamic State group, saying they made the most significant incursion into the city since it fell to the militants in May.
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| Bavaria minister says refugees with false passports may have ISIS link Posted: 22 Dec 2015 09:59 AM PST A senior Bavarian politician said on Tuesday that refugees with forged Syrian passports have disappeared in Germany and there are grounds for suspicion that they may have had contact with Islamic State militants, German media reported. The minister spoke after top-selling daily Bild reported that about a dozen refugees were in Germany with false passports originating from the same place as those held by two Islamist militants involved in attacks in Paris on Nov. 13 which killed 130 people. Bild cited government sources as saying the passports were stolen and had "the same forgery features" as those held by the two Paris attackers. |
| EU gets one million migrants in 2015, smugglers seen making $1 billion Posted: 22 Dec 2015 09:43 AM PST  By Tom Miles GENEVA (Reuters) - More than 1 million refugees and migrants came to the European Union this year, while almost 3,700 died or went missing in perilous journeys which reaped huge profit for smugglers, the International Organization for Migration said on Tuesday. "This is three to four times as many migrants and refugees coming north as we had in 2014, and the deaths have already far surpassed the deaths last year," IOM chief William Lacy Swing told Reuters. Another 20 percent were Afghans, and 7 percent were Iraqis, IOM and the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR said in a joint statement.
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| The Long Battle for Ramadi Posted: 22 Dec 2015 09:23 AM PST Iraqi ground forces stormed Ramadi on Tuesday in an attempt to wrest control of the Iraqi city from the Islamic State, which has controlled it for months. |
| IRAQ RAMADI Posted: 22 Dec 2015 09:07 AM PST Map locates Ramadi in Iraq's Anbar province; 1c x 3 inches; 46.5 mm x 76 mm; |
| What you need to know about artificial intelligence, and the imminent robot future Posted: 22 Dec 2015 09:00 AM PST  From autonomous warfare to still-distant sentience, artificial intelligence in 2015 is nothing like we expected. Here are three things every geek who dreamed of a robot future needs to know.
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| Forged passports 'spark security fear in Germany' Posted: 22 Dec 2015 08:50 AM PST  About a dozen migrants may have entered Germany on forged Syrian passports like those used by two Paris suicide bombers, according to a news report Tuesday which authorities did not confirm. Bild newspaper, citing unnamed government sources, said the passports bore the "same forgery characteristics" as those carried by two men involved in the November 13 France attacks claimed by the Islamic State group. The passports were stolen blanks issued by the Syrian government, but filled in by forgers with the personal details of people who then joined tens of thousands on the refugee trail to Europe, according to Bild.
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| Iraq FM denies any link to abduction of Qataris Posted: 22 Dec 2015 08:17 AM PST  Iraq's foreign minister denied Tuesday any link between his government and the kidnappers of 26 Qatari hunters, allegedly people linked to Shiite militiamen on whom Baghdad relies heavily against the Islamic State group. "I categorically deny that the Iraqi government has any link to the (kidnapping) case," Jaafari said.
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| Egypt hires consultancy to check airport security after Russia crash Posted: 22 Dec 2015 08:12 AM PST  By Ahmed Aboulenein CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt has hired global consultancy Control Risks to review security at its airports after the crash of a plane carrying Russian holidaymakers that killed all 224 aboard and damaged the country's tourism industry. Egypt said this month it had found no evidence so far of terrorism or other illegal action linked to the October crash, but Russia said in November that the jet was brought down by a bomb. Islamic State, the militant group that has seized swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria, claimed responsibility and said it had smuggled a bomb on board hidden in a soft drink can.
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| Iraqi troops storm into center of Islamic State-held Ramadi Posted: 22 Dec 2015 08:04 AM PST  "Our forces are advancing toward the government complex in the center of Ramadi," the counter-terrorism units' spokesman Sabah al-Numani said. "The fighting is in the neighborhoods around the complex, with support from the air force."Iraqi intelligence estimates the number of Islamic State fighters entrenched in the center of Ramadi, capital of Western Anbar province, at between 250 and 300.
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| Iraqi family braves perilous journey to new life in Germany Posted: 22 Dec 2015 07:58 AM PST  HEIDELBERG, Germany (AP) — The Qasus do not normally cry, but this felt nothing like normal. Like hundreds of thousands before them and untold more to come, the Iraqi family had just completed a disorienting dash across Europe and found refuge in Germany.
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| QASU FAMILY ODYSSEY Posted: 22 Dec 2015 07:44 AM PST Map tracks migrant's journey from Iraq to Germany.; 4c x 5 inches; 195.7 mm x 127 mm; |
| Egypt hires consultancy firm to check airport security after Russia crash Posted: 22 Dec 2015 06:03 AM PST  By Ahmed Aboulenein CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt has hired global consultancy Control Risks to review security at its airports following the crash of a plane carrying Russian holidaymakers over the Sinai Peninsula, killing all on board and hurting the country's tourism industry. Egypt said this month it had found no evidence so far of terrorism or other illegal action linked to the October crash, in which 224 people were killed, but Russia said in November that the plane was brought down by a bomb. Islamic State, the militant group that has seized swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria, claimed responsibility and said it had smuggled a bomb on board hidden in a soft drinks can.
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| Questions and answers about Europe's migration crisis Posted: 22 Dec 2015 06:02 AM PST  BRUSSELS (AP) — One million — and counting. The International Organization for Migration says its statistics show the number of people fleeing conflict or poverty who have arrived in the European Union by sea this year has hit the seven-digit mark.
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| Work on new Russian nuclear reactors in Iran 'to start next week' Posted: 22 Dec 2015 05:46 AM PST  Russia will start constructing two nuclear reactors in Iran next week, as Tehran seeks to reduce its reliance on oil and gas with 20 facilities over the coming years, an official said Tuesday. The start of construction follows a historic deal between Iran and world powers in July that ends a decade-long standoff over Tehran's nuclear programme. Iran plans to build 20 more nuclear plants in the future, including four in Bushehr.
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| Iran's growing clout spurs Saudi action on Syria Posted: 22 Dec 2015 05:05 AM PST  After years of tense relations with President Bashar al-Assad, Saudi Arabia has adopted a bolder approach towards Syria, prompted by rival Iran's growing regional influence. The kingdom recently brought Syrian political and armed opposition factions together for unprecedented talks in Riyadh, the culmination of months of manoeuvring by the Sunni Muslim power. The step highlighted Saudi Arabia's rising profile in efforts to end the war in Syria, where Shiite Iran gives military and financial support to Riyadh's longtime opponent Assad.
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| Iraq denies responsibility for abduction of Qatari hunters Posted: 22 Dec 2015 05:05 AM PST  Iraq's foreign minister denied on Tuesday that his government had anything to do with the kidnapping of a group of Qatari hunters in the south of the country this month. "I deny categorically that this issue (of the kidnapping) has any relation to the Iraqi government," Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari told reporters at a news conference with his Kuwaiti counterpart in Kuwait. The Gulf Cooperation Council, of which Qatar is a member, described the abduction as "an action that harms the bonds of brotherly relations between Arab brothers," state media in another member, Saudi Arabia, reported on Tuesday.
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| Control Risks to review Egypt's airport security after Russian plane crash Posted: 22 Dec 2015 04:58 AM PST  CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt has hired global consultancy Control Risks to review security at some of its airports, tourism minister Hisham Zaazou said on Tuesday, after a plane carrying Russian tourists crashed over the Sinai Peninsula in October killing all aboard. Egypt said this month it had found no evidence so far of terrorism or other illegal action linked to the crash, which killed 224 people, but Russia said in November that the plane was brought down by a bomb. ...
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| US candidates split along odd lines on Mideast regime change Posted: 22 Dec 2015 04:52 AM PST  WASHINGTON (AP) — America's 2016 presidential candidates are split on promoting regime change in the Middle East, but not along the usual party lines.
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| U.S. leads 25 strikes against Islamic State: statement Posted: 22 Dec 2015 04:26 AM PST The U.S.-led coalition staged a fresh round of strikes on Monday against Islamic State with 17 in Iraq and eight in Syria, the Combined Joint Task Force said in a statement. The strikes near five Iraqi cities included seven near the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, which hit six tactical units and 12 fighting positions, according to the statement released on Tuesday. In Syria, four strikes near Mar'a hit four Islamic State tactical units and a vehicle, the military said. |
| Suspected Islamist extremists arrested in Bosnia Posted: 22 Dec 2015 04:19 AM PST SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — Police in Bosnia said Tuesday that they have detained 11 people suspected of links with the Islamic State group and its militants fighting in Syria and Iraq. |
| AP Poll: Islamic State conflict voted top news story of 2015 Posted: 22 Dec 2015 04:07 AM PST NEW YORK (AP) — The far-flung attacks claimed by Islamic State militants and the intensifying global effort to crush them added up to a grim, gripping yearlong saga that was voted the top news story of 2015, according to The Associated Press' annual poll of U.S. editors and news directors. |
| Syrian foreign minister to visit China this week Posted: 22 Dec 2015 02:47 AM PST  Syria's foreign minister will visit China this week, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, amid a renewed bid by Beijing to play a more active role in finding an end to conflict in the Middle East. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem will be in China from Dec. 23 to Dec. 26 and will meet his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a daily news briefing.
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| Bosnian police arrest 11 over Islamic State links Posted: 22 Dec 2015 01:37 AM PST Bosnian police said on Tuesday that several locations have been raided and 11 people arrested in a search for suspects believed to be connected with Islamic State. "So far 11 individuals suspected of terrorism, financing of terrorist activities and recruiting Islamic State fighters have been arrested in raids on 13 locations," a spokeswoman for the police directorate of Bosnia's autonomous Bosniak-Croat Federation said. "During the raids, an evidence has been found indicating connections with the ISIL structures," the statement from the prosecutor's office said, using an alternative name for Islamic State. |
| AP photographer walks refugee road, forges bond with family Posted: 22 Dec 2015 01:35 AM PST  I never imagined that I would grow so close, and so quickly, to perfect strangers. But the Qasu family will live in my hearts for the rest of my days.
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| Regime change debate creates unusual 2016 alliances Posted: 22 Dec 2015 12:56 AM PST WASHINGTON (AP) — America's 2016 presidential candidates are split on promoting regime change in the Middle East, but not along the usual party lines. |
| Iraq bans French poultry products after bird flu outbreak Posted: 22 Dec 2015 12:37 AM PST  BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq has banned all fresh and frozen poultry imports from France where an outbreak of avian flu has been reported, Deputy Agriculture Minister Mahdi al-Qaisi said on Tuesday."The ban is temporary until the World Organization for Animal Health declares France free from the flu," he told Reuters.Several cases of H5N1 bird flu have been detected in France since last month, the first known ones in the country in eight years, according to the French agriculture ministry. (Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed. Writing by Maher Chmaytelli, editing by William Hardy)
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| Saddam Hussein’s Billion-Dollar Bank Heist Posted: 22 Dec 2015 12:00 AM PST  When Saddam Hussein swiped $1 billion from Iraq's central bank on the eve of the U.S. invasion, it was just the start of the stealing.
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| UN mulls 'light' options to monitor possible Syria truce: envoys Posted: 21 Dec 2015 09:42 PM PST  By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations is mulling "light touch" options for monitoring a possible ceasefire in Syria that would keep its risks to a minimum by relying largely on Syrians already on the ground, diplomatic sources said. The U.N. Security Council on Friday unanimously called on Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to draw up within a month options for monitoring a ceasefire in Syria. It is the second time since the Syrian civil war broke out in March 2011 that the council backed a plan for peace talks and a truce.
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| Passing away in 2015: some notable deaths Posted: 21 Dec 2015 09:36 PM PST  Paris (AFP) - From legendary Egyptian actor Omar Sharif to Germany's ex-chancellor Helmut Schmidt and Nobel-winning author Gunter Grass, here are some of the notable figures who died in 2015:
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