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,”

Assad denies war crimes in interview

In an interview to Russia Today, besieged Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has denied that war crimes have been committed by his government forces and instead said he is fighting against “terrorism”. When questioned about accusations of war crimes, Assad responded by saying, "if you have an army that committed a crime against its own people, this is devoid of logic because the Syrian Army is made up of Syrian people… the army cannot withstand for twenty months in these difficult circumstances without having the embrace of the public in Syria," The President instead accused Syrian rebels of...

Bahrain deploys paramilitary National Guard

Bahraini authorities deployed the paramilitary National Guard on Saturday in a move to further clamp down on public protest, reports AP. Last month, the authorities banned all protests and public gatherings. In a statement on Saturday, the government said the National Guard would patrol "strategic locations" where arson attacks and violent clashes have taken place. Two days ago, the government revoked the citizenship of 31 human rights activists stating that they had "undermined state security".

UK to stop financial aid to India

The UK will end giving financial aid to India by 2015, announced the International Development Secretary, Justine Greening. She announced that no new grants will be made from immediate effect and the ongoing programme will be restructured and phased out by 2015. "After reviewing the programme and holding discussions with the Government of India this week, we agreed that now is the time to move to a relationship focussing on skills-sharing rather than aid. "Having visited India I have seen first hand the tremendous progress being made. India is successfully developing and our own bilateral...

Russian arms deal cancelled by Iraq over “corruption”

The Iraqi government has cancelled an arms deal with Russia worth £2.6 billion due to concerns over “corruption” within the Iraqi government. The spokesman of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told the BBC that the prime minister had suspicions over his own team. The deal would have made Russia Iraq’s second largest arms supplier after the US. A Russian military expert told the BBC that the deal was cancelled due to pressure from Washington. Igor Korotchenko, head of the Moscow-based Centre for Analysis of World Arms Trade, said that the cancellation was "absolutely unprecedented in the history...

Iran confirms shots fired at US drone

The Iranian Defence Minister has confirmed that shots were fired at US military drone last week, which they claimed had invaded their airspace. The confirmation of the incident comes within 24 hours of the Pentagon revealing it to the public, even though the attack happened on the 1st of November, just days before the US Presidential election. Brig Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, Iran’s Defence Minister said , "Last week an unidentified aircraft entered the airspace over Iran's territorial waters in the Persian Gulf, which was forced to flee due to the prompt, smart and decisive action of the Islamic...

Singh and Harper seal nuclear deal

India and Canada came to an agreement on Tuesday, to allow the exportation of Canadian uranium and other nuclear supplies for energy production in India. Almost four decades since India used Canadian nuclear technology to develop its first atomic bomb in 1974, the agreement finally came during an official visit by Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper who hopes it will “play a greater role in meeting India’s growing energy needs.” Two years ago both nations signed nuclear cooperation in Toronto for the exportation of uranium and reactors, but the two nations were unsuccessful in finalising...

Obama to become first US President to visit Burma

Newly re-elected US President Barack Obama has announced that he will visit Burma later this month, as part of a tour of South East Asia, making him the first American President to visit the country. Obama is set to visit both opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and Burmese President Thein Sein, when he visits the country from the 17 to 20 November as part of a trip that will see him visit Thailand and Cambodia. The visit has provoked some concern from ethnic communities in Burma, with Goon Tawng, a representative of the Kachin group stating , "This is good for the new government but I'm not...

Activists’ citizenship revoked by Bahrain

The Bahraini government has revoked the citizenships of 31 human rights activists. A statement, published by the interoior ministry, said that the activists have “undermined state security” and under Article 10 of Citizenship Law, the “re-evaluation of nationality” was permitted. The UN criticised the move, saying it "could aggravate the situation in the country" and urged the government "to lift them without delay". See more here .

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