WORLD NEWS

World News

Latest news from and about the homeland

Rwandan genocide memorial in Nyamata (Fanny Schertzer) German prosecutors have arrested a German-Rwandan national on suspicion of complicity in genocide and 25 counts of murder during the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis in Rwanda. The suspect, identified only as Innocent S. under German privacy rules, was arrested in the central German state of Hesse on Wednesday. According to Reuters,…

China calls for inclusive government to end Iraq crisis

China called on Monday for an inclusive government in Iraq as a prompt political solution to ongoing violence.

Expressing concern about the violence and the rise of ISIS, China's Middle East envoy, Wu Sike, told Iraqi Prime Minister, Nuri al-Maliki that "the stability of Iraq is key to the peace and stability of the entire Middle East, as well as that of the world", Reuters reported.

Myanmar president warns media freedom maybe curtailed, as rioting continues

Myanmar's president Thein Sein warned Tuesday that newly established media freedoms maybe curtailed if press coverage led to further rioting, reports ChannelNewsAsia.

"We have attained one of the highest levels of press freedom in Southeast Asia, with the right to speak and write freely, because of political reform which is crucial in the transition process," Mr Sein said.

"However, if media freedom threatens national security instead of helping the nation, we warn that we will take action under existing laws," he added.

His speech came as social media users in Myanmar reporting unprecedented outages on Facebook and Twitter, according to the Wall Street Journal. Some users have accused the government of limiting access.

War crimes witnesses deported to Congo despite concerns for their safety

Three Congolese witnesses of Congolese war crimes for the International Criminal Court (ICC), were deported, Sunday, despite concerns about their safety in Congo, reports NL Times.

The trio, who were held in a Congolese prison before being called to The Hague in 2011 as witnesses of war crimes, had their asylum claims rejected by Dutch authorities.

Amnesty International, strongly opposed the Dutch decision, and warned that the three witnesses would face severe rights violations upon arrival in Congo.

Ukraine regains significant territory in eastern regions

The Ukrainian authorities last weekend seized control over a number of eastern towns after ignoring calls to extend a ceasefire, reports The Guardian.

Declaring a turning point in the conflict against separatists, Ukrainian President, Petro Poroshenko, said,
“It’s not a total victory. But the purging of Slavyansk of these bands, made up of people armed to the teeth, has incredible symbolic importance.”

Israel Foreign Minister ends alliance with Netanyahu over lack of military action against Hamas

Israel’s Foreign Minister, announced Monday that he was ending his party’s alliance with the ruling bloc after the Prime Minister refused to launch a full-scale attack on Gaza, reports The Times.

Bosnian Serb charged with crimes against humanity for running detention centres

A Bosnian Serb who ran illegal camps where prisoners were tortured and killed during the Bosnian Serb conflict, Friday, was charged for committing crimes against humanity, reports Agence France Presse.

Bosnia’s war crimes court sentenced Branko Vlaco to 15 years in prison for setting up and running four ‘detention centres’ in Sarajevo.

“Vlaco took part in expulsions and executions of civilians,” judge Minka Kreho said while reading the verdict. 

Arrests made over Palestinian murder

Israeli police have made several arrests in relation to the murder of Palestinian teenager Mohammad Abu Khdair.

The police said the suspects were Jewish, and told the BBC that Khdair was murdered “because of his nationality”.

A post-mortem suggested that the teenager was beaten and burned alive, following his abduction in East Jerusalem.

His death has caused an escalation of tension in the region, already high after the deaths of three Israeli teenagers.

Kurdistan officials discuss self-determination in Washington

The Kurdistan president’s chief of staff, Faud Hussein, briefed American diplomats on Washington on plans to hold an independence referendum last week.

“We spoke with Americans about self-determination, and self-determination that is done through a referendum, said Faud Hussein speaking to Rudaw on Thursday.

Faud Hussein was on an official visit to Washington with the Kurdistan Foreign Relations Minister Falah Mustafa to meet their American counterparts.

Former Argentine military officers sentenced to life in murder case

Two former senior military officers have been found guilty of the murder of Bishop Enrique Angelelli in 1976, shortly after the junta seized power in Argentina.

Former army General Luciano Benjamin Menendez and former Vice-Commodore Luis Fernando Estrella were sentenced to life in prison for the killing.

The bishop, who was an outspoken left-wing member of the church, died in a car crash, and officials at the time claimed it was a traffic accident.

Guatemala sentences former rebel leader for civil war killings

The former leader of a left-wing militant group in Guatemala has been sentenced to 90 years for his involvement in killings of government supporters.

Fermin Felipe Solano was found guilty of the killing of 22 pro-government farmers, the first time a civil war rebel leader has been convicted for crimes, reported the BBC.

The court said that Solano had ordered the killings, in the village of El Aguacate, when he was the leader of a rebel group belonging to the now extinct Revolutionary Organisation of the People in Arms (ORPA).