Washington / AFP US President Barack Obama will meet controversial Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte next week, the White House said, despite concerns over a war on crime that has claimed more than 2,000 lives. Since taking office two months ago, Duterte has begun making good on an election pledge to kill tens of thousands of suspected criminals, prompting criticism …

  Istanbul / AFP Turkey’s week-old cross-border offensive in Syria could become a drawn-out affair that stokes tensions with Washington if Ankara continues to take the fight to US-backed Kurdish fighters, analysts say. Turkey says its unprecedented operation aims to rid the border of both the IS group and the anti-IS Kurdish YPG militia, which Ankara considers a terrorist group. …

  London / AFP United Nations aid contracts worth tens of millions of dollars have gone to people closely associated with Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad despite US and EU sanctions, the Guardian reported on Tuesday. The newspaper’s analysis of hundreds of UN contracts granted since the Syrian conflict began in 2011 showed many awarded “to companies run by or linked to …