Politics

  Istanbul / AFP Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that a European Parliament vote set to back a freeze of membership talks with Ankara over its relentless post-coup crackdown would have “no value”. The non-binding vote set for this week threatens to escalate tensions between the European Union and Turkey, which reached new heights in the wake of ...

  Phnom Penh / AFP Cambodia’s UN-backed court upheld life sentences for two top former Khmer Rouge leaders on Wednesday for crimes against humanity, delivering a blow to their hopes of release as they face a second trial for genocide. “Brother Number Two” Nuon Chea, 90, and ex-head of state Khieu Samphan, 85, were the first top leaders to be ...

  Yangon / AFP Scores of Rohingya Muslims have been killed in a Myanmar army crackdown since early October, when sword-wielding assailants raided police posts in the remote marshlands bordering Bangladesh. The military struck back with ground clearances, most recently backed by helicopter gunships. Access to the conflict areas is heavily restricted, but witness testimony has seeped out alleging mass rapes, ...

Aleppo / AFP Syrian pro-government forces pushed forward inside rebel-held Aleppo on Tuesday, prompting civilians to flee, as the regime pressed an assault to recapture the entire city. A week into the latest round of fighting for the city, Syrian troops had taken control of a third of the key eastern neighbourhood of Masaken Hanano, the Syrian Observatory for Human ...

  Mosul / AFP The US-led coalition bombed a key bridge in Mosul on Tuesday to isolate extremists whose stiff resistance in the east of the city is threatening to bog down Iraqi forces. The number of civilians displaced since last month’s start of the offensive against Mosul—the IS group’s last stronghold in Iraq—rose to 68,000, but most of the ...

  Jerusalem / AFP A Palestinian was shot dead at a West Bank checkpoint on Tuesday after walking towards guards with a knife in his hand, Israeli police said. “A Palestinian attempted to cross the checkpoint using the vehicle lane and approached security guards brandishing a knife,” police spokeswoman Luba Samri said in a statement. “The terrorist was neutralised,” she ...

  Ankara / AFP The Turkish government on Tuesday withdrew a controversial bill from parliament that could overturn men’s convictions for child-sex assault, after an angry public backlash that saw thousands take to the streets. Critics had said the bill—which would allow the release from jail of sex assault convicts if they marry their victims—would legitimise rape of minors. Its ...

  Arbil / AFP More than 68,000 people have fled their homes since Iraqi forces launched a huge offensive against the IS group in and around Mosul last month, the UN said on Tuesday. The figure increased significantly over the past week as forces battled deep into the densely populated city, but it falls short of pre-offensive predictions. “68,550 people ...

  Dhaka / AFP Hundreds of Rohingya have arrived in Bangladesh after fleeing violence in neighbouring Myanmar, community leaders said on Tuesday, many with horrific tales of troops killing and burning villages. Bangladesh says it has prevented hundreds more from crossing into the country, despite pleas from the United Nations to open its border after up to 30,000 Rohingya were displaced ...

  Washington / AFP Donald Trump said the United States would signal its withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade pact on his first day in the White House, one of six immediate steps aimed at “putting America first.” The Republican billionaire—who for 10 days has been sounding out cabinet picks at his Trump Tower offices in New York—made the pledge ...