Headlines- While the US military claims to have disabled two tankers attempting to reach Iranian ports, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claims to have captured an oil tanker in a "special operation" in the Gulf of Oman.
- Four people have died as a result of an Israeli air strike on the village of Toura in Lebanon.
- In order to prevent the ships from entering or leaving Iranian ports, the U.S. Central Command reported that it had redirected 57 commercial vessels and destroyed four more.
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio defends recent operations and says the US expects an answer from Iran on a possible settlement on Friday.
- Iran launched three drones and two ballistic missiles against United Arab Emirates air defenses on Friday.
Category: News & Views
UN Report: More than 113 Million...
The FAO report says that 2018 was the third consecutive year in which the number of people facing all levels of food insecurity topped the 100 million mark, although it was slightly better than 2017’s number of 124 million people. The study said some countries were less affected by severe weather events such as drought and flooding
New Zealand’s New Gun Control Laws...
The bill, which passed 119-1, bans military-style semi-automatic rifles and automatic assault rifles like the weapons used in the March 15 attack on the al-Noor and Linwood mosques in Christchurch that left 50 worshippers dead. Police Minister Stuart Nash said the massacre revealed that far too many New Zealanders have access to dangerous guns
With Removal of IS, Syrians Search...
Syrians who are in search of their missing family members say they are provided with little information when reaching out to officials from SDF and the U.S.-led coalition. Many hope their loved ones could be in refugee camps under the SDF control or IS prisons that were captured recently
Is Britain Heading for Constitutional Crisis?
Exasperation is rising across the country that is angrily split down the middle over staying a member of the EU or quitting. The one thing uniting the nation is frustration bordering on contempt for the country’s political class
Slovaks Elect Newcomer Caputova as President
Relative newcomer Zuzana Caputova had 58 percent of the vote with almost 95 percent of returns counted in Saturday’s runoff election, topping European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic, who had 42 percent
Thailand Anti-Junta Parties Form Opposition Alliance,...
Sudarat Keyuraphan, Pheu Thai’s prime ministerial candidate, announced the coalition Wednesday in Bangkok, claiming it had won at least 255 seats in the 500-seat chamber that were up for grabs in Sunday’s general election. As of Monday, initial results from the vote counting showed Pheu Thai winning 137 seats versus 97 seats for the military-backed Phalang Pracharat party
Morocco, UN, AU urged to fast-track...
Western Sahara President Brahim Ghali has urged the African Union, the United Nations and Morocco to fast-track the long delayed referendum on the self-determination of the Arab nation
Independent Experts to Look at Aircraft...
An independent panel of experts will take a look at how U.S. regulators certify airplanes are safe to fly after two deadly crashes of Boeing 737-Max 8 jets
UN Officials: 13 Million in Congo...
2 million people were newly displaced last year; 7.3 million children are out of school; 300,000 children die each year before their fifth birthday; 3 in 10 women are reported to be victims of sexual violence; and in January alone there were 7,000 cases of measles and 3,500 cases of cholera
Thais Voting in First Election Since...
Thailand’s powerful King Maha Vajiralongkorn issued a statement on the eve of the election that said the role of leaders is stop “bad people” from gaining power and causing chaos. Invoking a speech by his father, the previous Thai king who died in 2016 after reigning for seven decades,