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Latest news from and about the homeland

Photograph: Screenshot/ BLA video A fresh wave of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances has been documented across Balochistan this month, as Baloch rights groups recorded the recovery of several bodies of men who had earlier been forcibly taken, and appealed once more to international institutions that have largely ignored the province. The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC)…

Kuwait frees one detained royal

Kuwait has released a member of the ruling family, Shaikh Abdullah Salem Al Sabah, who was arrested after tweeting comments that were critical of the government.

Shaikh Abdullah said he was questioned by the secret service police around accusations of instigating against the regime.

Sheikh Abdullah and another young Sheikh, Shaikh Nawaf Malek Al Sabah, wrote tweets that were sympathetic of the Kuwaiti opposition protests.

The Kuwaiti opposition were protesting against an amendment that allowed for a pro-government parliament to be assembled in a unexpected general election due to take place on 1st December. The opposition argue that the amendment allows the government to influence the outcome of the elections.

Arab League backs new Syrian opposition coalition

The 22 member Arab League has acknowledged the new National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces as the legal representatives for the Syrian opposition.

Meanwhile, the Gulf Cooperation Council, consisting of six members, formally recognised it as the legitimate representatives of the Syrian people.

The united representative body was established at the weekend during discussions held in Doha, Qatar.

Ivory Coast former first lady testifies at genocide trial

The former first lady of the Ivory Coast has begun testifying at her trial, where she faces charges of genocide and embezzlement amongst others, reported the AFP.

Simone Gbagbo was detained along with her husband Laurent Gbagbo, after he refused to hand over power to the opposition, following his loss at the 2010 November Presidential elections.

Since then, she has been held in the northern town of Odienne , while her husband has since been transferred to the International Criminal Court in the Hague. He faces charges of crimes against humanity.

Ecowas agrees to send troops to Mali

The West African bloc Ecowas has agreed to deploy troops to free Mali’s north from militants.

The regional leaders agreed at a summit that 3,300 soldiers, mainly from Nigeria, Niger and Burkina Faso, would be sent to Mali to retake the northern regions from Tuareg and Islamist militants.

The president of the Ivory Coast, Alassane Ouatarra, said that the soldiers can be deployed as soon as the UN Security Council approves the plan.

Abbas determined for UN upgrade

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas called Barack Obama on Sunday to congratulate him on the recent Presidential election and told him that he will press ahead with presenting a resolution to the United Nation’s General Assembly to become a non-member state. President Obama was quick to denounce the proposal as he, “reiterated the United States’ opposition to unilateral efforts at the United Nations.”

Dalai Lama slams China after wave of self-immolations

Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama has spoken out against China on Monday, after a spate of self-immolations in the past week.

Speaking to reporters in Japan, the exiled leader said,
"The Chinese government should investigate the cause (of the incidents). China does not look into it seriously and tries to end (the incidents) only by criticising me".
His comments come after at least 7 reported self-immolations in the past week alone.

China, meanwhile, continued to criticise the Dalai Lama, with Losang Gyaltsen, vice-chairman of the Tibet region's government saying,
"The Dalai Lama clique and overseas Tibetan separatists have been sacrificing other people's lives for their own secret political aims".

Irish PM lays green wreath to mark fallen British soldiers

In a historic moment, the Irish prime minister Enda Kenny, laid a wreath in honour of fallen British soldiers, during British Remembrance Sunday.

Taking part in a commemorative service in Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, marking the 25th anniversary of the IRA bombing of a Remembrance Sunday service, Kenny stood head bowed before laying a wreath at the spot of the explosion.

Laying a green wreath, the Irish prime minister's wreath stood out against the sea of red poppies, and his appearance too, by the notable absence of a red poppy.

Israel's first warning shots to Syria

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) have fired warning shots at Syria for the first time since 1973, responding to an incident on Thursday when a mortar shell fired from Syria hit an Israeli military post in the Golan Heights.

While the mortar fire caused no damage or injuries at the post, errant fire incidents from Syria have multiplied in recent weeks, which has led Israel to warn that it holds Syria responsible.

Syrian opposition groups unite

The various splinters of Syria’s opposition have reached an agreement to form a Western and Arab-backed government-in-exile and rally behind a new leader.

Representatives of Syria’s various opposition groups, including rebel fighters, veteran dissidents and religious and ethnic minorities, agreed on Sunday to join a new assembly and unanimously elected Mouaz al-Khatib, a reformist Damascus cleric, as its president.

The decision came after days of fierce arguments in Qatar, under the watch of frustrated US, Arab and other foreign officials.

Khatib, a former imam who advocates a liberal and tolerant Islam, called on all factions to unite and for soldiers to renounce the Syrian army, telling reporters:

"We demand freedom for every Sunni, Alawi, Ismaili (Shi'ite), Christian, Druze, Assyrian ... and rights for all parts of the harmonious Syrian people."

‘Choosing Jack the Ripper to guard a women’s shelter’

Geneva-based NGO, UN Watch, has slammed the election of Sudan to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and called on the United States, European Union and UN chiefs to condemn the appointment.

Criticising Sudan as “genocidal, misogynistic and repressive” Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch labelled it an “outrage”.

He stated,
“Electing genocidal Sudan to a global human rights body is like choosing Jack the Ripper to guard a women’s shelter. This diminishes the credibility of the United Nations human rights system and casts a shadow upon the reputation of the organization as a whole.”
“Sudan, whose leader was indicted by the International Criminal Court for genocide and crimes against humanity, will now help choose the members of the Commission on the Status of Women, the executive of UN Women, and UNICEF, which protects children’s rights,”