World news
Yemen pro-government fighters kill al-Qaida leader in south

SANAA(Yemen): Pro-government fighters in Yemen attacked and killed a senior al-Qaida leader and three people traveling in his convoy near a security checkpoint in the southern Abyan province on Friday, Yemeni officials said. Ali Abed al-Rab bin Talab, better known as Abu Anwar, was the extremist
More than 100,000 police on duty in France for New Year's Eve: Minister

PARIS: More than 100,000 police will be deployed throughout France to guard New Year's Eve celebrations that come six weeks after the jihadist attacks in Paris, interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve said on Thursday. The minister said that while there was "no direct threat" of an attack, "all Europe
Prosthetic limbs give hope to survivors of terrorism

While the use of landmines planted by armies has fallen globally since the 1990s, the number of civilians hit by improvised explosive devices has skyrocketed, according to Action on Armed Violence. Peshawar: Pakistani teen Ali Shah was on his way to school when he lost half of his right han
Relatives of drowned Syrian toddler receive warm welcome in Canada

YORK: Four months after images of his lifeless body on a Turkish beach sparked outrage around the world, Alan Kurdi's relatives have arrived in Canada, ready to start a new life and determined the child's death not be in vain. The three-year-old's uncle, Mohammed Kurdi, his wife, and their five c
Over 100 homes lost in Australia bushfires

MELBOURNE: More than 100 homes burned down in a leading Australian tourist area in bushfires on Christmas Day and the situation remained dangerous on Saturday, as officials predicted more blazes to come later in the hot southern summer. While around 500 firefighters and 13 firefighting aircraft bat
Zimbabwe to adopt Chinese yuan as its main currency

Zimbabwe has announced it will soon adopt the Chinese yuan as the main currency for use. Zimbabwe is the first country apart from China to use the yuan as its currency in the domestic market; it has been the legal tender along with the US dollar and South African Rand for the last couple of years.
Brazil Declares Emergency After 2,400 Babies Are Born With Brain Damage

Brazilian health authorities are sounding the alarm about a mosquito-borne virus that they believe may be the cause of thousands of infants being born with damaged brains. The pathogen, known as Zika and first discovered in forest monkeys in Africa over 70 years ago, is the new West Nile - a viru
Russia to build six nuclear plants in India in 20 years

MOSCOW: Russia plans to build at least six new nuclear power units in India in the next 20 years, President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday. Speaking after talks with visiting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Putin also said that Moscow and New Delhi were successfully cooperating in productio
Afghan forces battle to push back Taliban in Helmand

Afghan forces battled on Wednesday to push back Taliban fighters who have overrun Sangin in Helmand province and officials denied insurgents' claims that police and administrative buildings in the district centre had fallen. Earlier Acting Defence Minister Masoom Stanekzai said reinforcements had
Daesh can’t destroy US, says Obama

HONOLULU: US President Barack Barack Obama said Daesh can’t destroy the United States. In a year-end interview with NPR News, Obama says he understands why people are worried. Earlier this month, a radicalized married couple who had pledged allegiance to Daesh opened fire on the husband’s co-worker
Nearly 80 still missing in Indonesian ferry accident

SIWA, Indonesia: Nearly 80 people are still missing nearly 24 hours after a ferry ran into trouble in rough seas off the coast of Indonesia’s Sulawesi, with authorities not ruling out the possibility of a sinking. ADVERTISING 5 The transport ministry has confirmed three peop
World Bank approves $1 billion loan to Egypt

CAIRO: The World Bank Group has announced a $1 billion loan to Egypt, the first installment of an $8 billion financing plan to help the country carry out key economic reforms. Yesterday's statement says the $8 billion loan will be disbursed over a four-year period to support Egypt's efforts to "r
US announces $88 million in food aid to Ethiopia

ADDIS ABABA: The United States government has announced $88 million to help feed hungry people in drought-stricken areas of Ethiopia, bringing the total amount of humanitarian aid to the country in 2015 to more than $435 million. The Ethiopian government is appealing for $1.4 billion from the int
US could start lifting Iran sanctions in January under nuclear deal

The United States appears poised to lift at least some sanctions against Iran – possibly as early as January. The secretary of state, John Kerry, said in a letter on Wednesday to the Senate foreign relations committee that Iran is fulfilling its obligations under the international agreement in wh
UN kicks off race for next secretary-general

THE UNITED NATIONS: The United Nations kicked off the race to be the next secretary-general with a letter that for the first time invited candidates to become the world’s top diplomat. The choice of the UN chief has for decades been the purview of the five permanent Security Council members — Brita
Fires cost Indonesia $16 bn, twice the tsunami bill: WB

JAKARTA: Indonesia’s economy took a $16-billion hit this year from forest fires that cloaked Southeast Asia in haze, more than double the sum spent on rebuilding Aceh after the 2004 tsunami, the World Bank said Tuesday. The fires and resulting haze are an annual occurrence caused by slash-and-burn
Nepal’s new constitution ensures unity, prosperity

RIYADH: Once popular as the Himalayan Kingdom, it is now officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal after adopting the first democratic constitution in a historic step to unite the country for progress and prosperity. In an interview with Arab News on the development Ananda Prasad Sharma,
Obama warns Americans against blaming Islam for terrorism

WAHINGTON DC: US President Barack Obama has warned Americans to refrain from blaming Islam for terrorism and said that ISIS and other terror groups were depicting the fight against terrorism as a war between Islam and the West. According to the Dawn, it was Obama's third address to his nation sin