Dozens Rescued Off Cyprus Coast
Dozens of migrants were rescued off the coast of Cyprus on Wednesday after their small fishing boat ran aground near the holiday resort of Paphos, the island's authorities said. Police said 92...
Tag: Geography of Asia
Demolition of Decades-Old Lebanese Brewery Begins
Demolition of one of the Middle East's oldest breweries began this week in the Lebanese capital to make way for a luxury apartment complex, a project that has irked activists. Bulldozers worked atop...
Bus Bombing Hits Syria’s Homs, Five Dead
A bomb attack on a bus in Syria's third city Homs killed five people and wounded at least seven on Wednesday, state media reported. The blast hit a small bus carrying passengers in the Al-Zahraa...
Evacuation Deal Reached For Four Syrian Towns
Four Syrian towns are to be evacuated under an agreement between pro-government forces and rebels, in the latest of a series of deals to end crippling years-long sieges. The agreement, brokered by...
Freed From IS, But Iraq’s Qaraqosh Is Now A Ghost Town
In the Iraqi Christian town of Qaraqosh, time stands still. The Islamic State group was expelled in October 2016, but life has not returned to its once-vibrant and wealthy neighbourhoods. It has a...
Disputed Iraqi Province Votes To Fly Kurdish Flag
Provincial councillors in disputed, oil-rich Kirkuk province voted Tuesday to fly the Kurdish regional flag over government buildings, a move likely to increase tensions with Baghdad. Kirkuk is at...
Tigers Found Deep In the Thai Jungle Sparks Hope For the Rare Species
Rare wild tigers have been discovered by scientists after the cats wandered past a set of camera traps set deep in the Thai jungle. The group of small tigers are one of two breeding populations of...
No Peace Deal In Syria Without US Role
A political deal to end the Syrian conflict is not possible without a strong US role, the opposition's chief negotiator told AFP, warning that Washington's absence was threatening ongoing peace...
Wild Thai Tiger Cub Footage Sparks Hope For Endangered Species
Conservationists on Tuesday hailed the discovery of a new breeding population of tigers in Thailand as a "miraculous" victory for a sub-species feared wiped out by poaching. Images of four mothers...
Film Festival Opens In Cinema-Less Saudi Arabia
The Saudi Film Festival opened Monday with 58 homegrown cinematic works to be screened in the ultra-conservative kingdom that continues to ban public cinemas. "Welcome to all of you, filmmakers,...
Backgammon, Football After War Reaches Damascus District
When Syria's war came to 73-year-old Joseph Mghazi's street in the Abbasiyeen neighbourhood of Damascus, he ignored his neighbour's entreaties to halt his habitual streetside backgammon games. "We...
Qatar Announces GBP5bn UK Investment
One of the largest investors in the UK has committed £5bn of new money to invest in transport, property and digital technology. The Middle Eastern state of Qatar said that it was optimistic about...
Qatar Set To Invest GBP5bn In UK Over Next Five Years
Qatar will invest £5 billion in Britain within five years in a boost for the post-Brexit economy, Prime Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani announced Monday. "Over the next...
Saudi Cuts Taxes On Oil Firms Ahead of Aramco Sale
Saudi Arabia on Monday cut taxes on oil companies in a major move that could attract investments in its energy giant Aramco, expected to be offered to investors in 2018. King Salman decreed a new set...
Japan Loans Manila Military Planes For South China Sea
The Philippines Monday took delivery of two Japanese military surveillance aircraft to help it patrol vital sea lanes in the South China Sea, despite Manila's increasingly conciliatory stance to...
Pakistan Building Border Fence With Afghanistan
Pakistan has begun building a fence along its border with Afghanistan to curtail the movement of militants, its army said, in a move criticised by its eastern neighbour for dividing communities. The...
Carrie Lam Elected Hong Kong’s New Chief Executive
Carrie Lam (2nd L) smiled as officials counted votes during the election arrie Lam, Hong Kong's former deputy chief and Beijing's choice, elected as city's new leader, Chinese media report. Hong...
NATO Troops Race Winter To Give Afghan Forces A Morale Boost
The target is behind a slope, the advance is unprotected: crawl, fire! Italian instructors in western Afghanistan have been using the relatively quiet winter to bolster Afghan troops against the...
In Iraq’s Mosul, A School Becomes A Field Hospital
Fifteen-year-old Mohammed enthusiastically helps the staff of a makeshift hospital set up in the bullet-scarred school in west Mosul where he himself studied before jihadists seized Iraq's second...
UN Syria Envoy Urges Foreign Powers To Help Restore Ceasefire
The United Nations' Syria envoy sent an urgent appeal Saturday to Russia, Iran and Turkey seeking help to restore a ceasefire, warning that escalating violence was threatening peace talks in Geneva....