February, 2017

• 19 February

  ADNOC awards CNPC 8% stake in ADCO onshore concession

  

    Abu Dhabi / WAM The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) on Sunday signed an agreement with the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) awarding it an 8 percent interest in Abu Dhabi’s onshore oil concession. CNPC contributed a sign up bonus of AED6.5 billion (US$1.77 billion) to enter the concession. The onshore concession is operated by the Abu Dhabi Company ...

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• 19 February

  Iraqi forces launch push to retake western Mosul from IS

  

    HAMAM AL-ALIL / AP US-backed Iraqi forces launched a large-scale military operation on Sunday to dislodge IS militants from the western half of Mosul city, a battle that is expected to be prolonged and difficult due to a densely packed civilian population and older, narrower streets. In a briefed televised speech on state TV, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi ...

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• 19 February

  Blast in Somalia kills 15 in Mogadishu marketplace

    MOGADISHU / AP A Somali police officer says a blast at a busy market in the western part of Somalia’s capital killed at least 15 people. Capt. Mohamed Hussein said the powerful blast thought to be from a car bomb tore through shops and food stands in Mogadishu’s Madina district Sunday. He said the bomb also wounded more than ...

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• 19 February

  US slams Russia over Ukraine rebel ‘documents’

    MOSCOW / AP The United States says it is disturbed by Russia’s decision to recognize passports and other documents issued by rebel authorities in eastern Ukraine. The recognition, in an order signed by President Vladimir Putin that was announced on Saturday, “is alarming and contradicts the agreed-upon goals of the Minsk Agreement,” the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine said on ...

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• 19 February

  UN Syria envoy Mistura seeks momentum in Geneva talks

    MUNICH / AP The UN envoy for Syria says he’s hoping upcoming peace talks in Geneva produce new momentum and that much depends upon the position the U.S. decides to take. Staffan de Mistura said on Sunday “the big question mark is where is the US.?” He told the Munich Security Conference “we have to push for momentum” at ...

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• 19 February

  Italy’s Renzi resigns as party chief, seeks renewed mandate

    ROME / AP Former Italian Premier Matteo Renzi has resigned as Democratic Party leader in a bid to win a fresh, stronger mandate before the national election in which populist political forces are positioned to pose the biggest challenge. As promised, Renzi told fellow Democratic leaders at a meeting on Sunday that he was resigning. But Renzi insisted he ...

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• 19 February

  Revived by rally, Trump turns back to governing

  

    WEST PALM BEACH / AP One day after delighting in a massive campaign-style rally, President Donald Trump is turning back to the business of governing. Trump, who is spending the weekend at his private club in Florida, plans to spend Sunday interviewing at least four candidates to be his new national security adviser. The meetings come as he seeks ...

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• 19 February

  Iran flays new US pressure, calls for ‘mutual respect’

    MUNICH / AP Iran’s foreign minister brushed aside new pressure from the United States on Sunday, declaring that his country is “unmoved by threats” but responds well to respect. President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized the 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran, the US and five other world powers, under which Tehran agreed to curb its uranium enrichment in exchange ...

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• 19 February

  Malaysia searches for 4 N Korean ‘suspects’

  

    KUALA LUMPUR / AP Investigators are looking for four North Korean men who flew out of Malaysia the same day Kim Jong Nam, the North Korean ruler’s outcast half brother, apparently was poisoned at an airport in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian police said on Sunday. Since Kim’s death last week, authorities have been trying to piece together details of what ...

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• 19 February

  Gambia’s new president commits to end human rights abuses

    BANJUL / AP As Gambia enters a new era of democracy, President Adama Barrow has reiterated his commitment to ending human rights abuses in the country. “Orders have already been given for all those detained without trial to be released,” he said on Saturday before thousands of Gambians who gathered at Independence Stadium Saturday to witness his official inauguration ...

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