POLITICS
Russia open to Assad’s ouster after Syria transition: diplomats
Russia has made clear to Western nations that it has no objection to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stepping down as part of a peace process, in a softening of its publicly stated staunch backing of Assad ahead of talks in New York, diplomats said, according to Reuters. "What you've got is a move that will end up...
Two Ukrainian soldiers wounded in Donbas conflict zone in last day
No Ukrainian soldiers were killed but two were wounded in the Donbas conflict zone over the last 24 hours, presidential administration spokesman for the Anti-Terrorist Operation Colonel Andriy Lysenko said at a briefing in Kyiv on Thursday. "Over the last day, we haven't lost any Ukrainian soldiers, but two were...
Russian court extends Savchenko’s arrest until April 16
A Russian-based Donetsk city court in southern Russia's Rostov region has extended the arrest of Ukrainian pilot, MP and member of the Ukrainian delegation to PACE Nadia Savchenko until April 16, 2016, her lawyer Nikolay Polozov wrote on Twitter. "The court granted the prosecutor's request to extend the...
Donbas militants continue shelling, Krasnohorivka under 82mm mortar fire
Russian-backed illegal armed groups continued provocative shelling of the Ukrainian positions in the Donbas conflict zone overnight, the press center of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) wrote on Facebook early Monday. In particular, "at night, mercenaries from pro-Russian hybrid gangs used 82mm mortars, which are banned...
Week’s Milestones. Ambiguous Biden, annoying Barna, and BPP teambuilding
U.S. Vice President encouraged the Ukrainian authorities to build a successful country. MP Oleh Barna decided not limit himself with collecting signatures for the dismissal of PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk, deciding to drag him out of the parliament’s podium during speech. The winners of the local elections held party conferences....
Daily Mail: Paris attack mastermind ‘had photos of British targets on his phone’
Investigators have discovered that Abdelhamid Abaaoud had pictures of places in Birmingham stored on his smartphone, according to well-placed sources, raising the chilling possibility that his cell was planning atrocities in Britain, according to the Daily Mail. One source said the images may have been taken by Abaaoud himself,...
At least 20 dead in Pakistan clothes market blast
At least 20 people were killed and dozens others wounded on Sunday in a blast at a used clothes market in Kurram Agency's Parachinar area, Pakistan, according to Pakistan's English-language newspaper Dawn. Hospital sources told DawnNews that 55 people were injured as a result of the blast out of which more than 15...
Militants planning to conduct conscription in Donbas – Ukraine intel
The combined-Russian separatist forces are planning to conduct conscription in the occupied territories of Donbas in spring of 2016, according to the Defense Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. "Because of bad conditions of service in Russian occupation troops, it is worsened the manning issue. Considering...
Two Syrians arrested in Geneva on suspicion of terror links — BBC
Two people of Syrian origin have been arrested in Geneva on suspicion of making, concealing and transporting explosives, the Swiss attorney general says, according to BBC News. The two are also suspected of violating a law prohibiting groups such as al-Qaeda and the so-called Islamic State (IS), according to the statment, BBC...
COP21: Landmark climate deal reached
A deal committing all countries to cut emissions, which will come into being in 2020 in an to attempt to limit the rise in global temperatures to less than 2C has been agreed at the climate change summit in Paris after two weeks of negotiations, BBC News reports. "Looking out to the room I see that the reaction is...
Another militant leader assassinated in «LPR»
After the killings of militant brigade commanders Mozgovoy and "Batman," another high-profile commander of the Cossack unit, Pavel Dryomov, was assassinated in the self-proclaimed “Luhansk People’s Republic,” according to one of separatist online media. A commander of the "sixth separate...
Saudi bombs unlawfully targeting Yemen schools – Amnesty
Saudi Arabian airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen have deliberately targeted schools, killing students and making education impossible for many children, a new report from Amnesty International suggests. Published on Friday, the report claims 34 percent of Yemeni children have not been to school since the conflict began...