Scotland's first minister Nicola Sturgeon on Friday launched a "new conversation" on independence, in order for Scotland to "control its own destiny". 

Pointing to polls taken after Brexit which show support for independence had increased since the 2014 referendum, Ms Sturgeon said "and while I take nothing for granted, I suspect support for independence will be even higher if it becomes clear that it is the best, or the only way to protect our interests."

A former Iraqi soldier was last week charged with war crimes in Germany for crimes allegedly committed in 2015 in Iraq. 

The soldier, known as Rami K, came to Germany as an asylum-seeker in 2015. 

He reportedly posed for a photograph carrying the heads of two Islamic State fighters, which was posted on social media.  

“The suspect raised the severed heads of two IS fighters, who had been killed in combat, by the hair into the air," AP quoted the German prosecutors as saying. 
 

The United States and China have agreed a deal to tackle climate change, formally ratifying the Paris agreement, ahead of the G20 summit in Hangzhou. 

“Just as I believe the Paris agreement will ultimately prove to be a turning point for our planet, I believe that history will judge today’s efforts as pivotal,” the US president, Barack Obama said on Saturday at a press conference with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. 

Thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets of Caracas in protest on Thursday rallying in large number against the current president, Nicolas Maduro. 

Demonstraters chanted "this government will fall" as they marched dressed in white and called for a recall referendum. They blamed the current government's socialist policies for the country's deep economic crisis with a widespread shortage of food and rising poverty. 

However, supporters of the president also rallied in large numbers, accusing the opposition of trying to launch a coup. 

One of the most significant Islamic State leaders, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, has been killed in an attack in Syria, the group announced on Tuesday. 

Mr Adnani served as a spokesperson for the group and head of operations overseas, and such is believed to have been key in attacks aimed at European targets. 

See more here. 

The United States spoke out against violence between the Turkish military and Kurdish militias in northern Syria, calling on both sides to concentrate on fighting the Islamic State.

US Defense Secretary Ash Carter told a press conference that his government had "called on both sides to not fight with one another, to continue to focus the fight on ISIL".

The Islamic State has claimed a suicide attack in Yemen on Monday, which left fifty-four people dead. 

A car ladened with explosives was driven into a militia compound in Aden, Reuters reported. 

"Around 60 dead in a martyrdom operation by a fighter from Islamic State targeting a recruitment center in Aden city," a statement published by the Amaq news agency reportedly said. 

See more here. 

After four years of intense fighting, Syrian opposition groups have left the town of Darayya, allowing Syrian government forces to take control of the region under a deal.

Government forces moved into the town as opposition fighters and civilians evacuated towards the city of Idlib. "The Syrian army completely controls Daraya and has entered all of the town. There isn't a single armed man there," an anonymous source told AFP.

The Colombian government on Wednesday signed a peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), bringing to five decades of violence. 

“Today I can say - from the bottom of my heart - that I have fulfilled the mandate that you gave me,” the Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos was quoted by Reuters as saying, referring to his 2014 electoral victory on the pledge of a peace deal. 

The deal was signed after almost four years of negotiations and will now be put forward to the public in a referendum on October 2.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein on Thursday called on the international community "to establish an international, independent body to carry out comprehensive investigations in Yemen" after a UN Human Rights Council report highlighting the extent of human rights violations. 

Over 3500 civiians are believed to have been killed since March 2015 in the conflict. 

“The perpetuation of the conflict and its consequences on the population in Yemen are devastating,” the report, released today, stated.