Breaking News, Latest Philippines Headlines, World, Entertainment, Politics, Weather & Video News
by Cécile FEUILLATRE Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) – The fall of Aleppo marks the victory of an authoritarian alliance stretching from Tehran to Moscow, analysts say — and the biggest win yet for President Bashar al-Assad since civil war erupted in 2011. His regime’s total control over east Aleppo, declared Thursday, was obtained with pitiless brute force that has reduced much of the country’s former economic heart to rubble, in a war that has […]
by Kamal Taha Agence France-Presse AMMAN, Jordan (AFP) – Gunmen killed four Jordanian policemen in a new shootout Tuesday in Karak, where a weekend attack claimed by the Islamic State group left 10 people dead, an official said. Security forces came under fire during an operation to track down suspects following Sunday’s assault, whose victims included a Canadian tourist, government spokesperson Mohammed Momani said. “The operation is ongoing but has entered its final stages and […]
by Adem ALTAN with Stuart WILLIAMS in Istanbul Agence France-Presse ANKARA, Turkey (AFP) – Russian investigators arrived in Turkey on Tuesday to probe the assassination of Moscow’s ambassador at an Ankara art show, as both sides pledged the murder would not damage improving relations. Veteran diplomat Andrei Karlov was shot nine times in the back by off-duty Turkish policeman Mevlut Mert Altintas at the art gallery opening of a show of Russian photography on […]
by Karam al-Masri with Maya Gebeily in Beirut Agence France-Presse ALEPPO, Syria (AFP ) – Thousands of traumatised Syrians left the rebel enclave of Aleppo on Monday under a complex evacuation agreement that will see regime forces exert full control over the battered city. Families had spent hours waiting in below-freezing temperatures, sheltering from the rain in bombed-out apartment blocks and waiting desperately for news on a new wave of departures. The operations resumed on […]
by Rim Haddad and Karam al-Masri Agence France Presse ALEPPO, Syria (AFP) – The Syrian government suspended the evacuation of civilians and fighters from the last rebel-held parts of Aleppo on Friday, leaving thousands of people trapped and uncertain of their fate. Russia, which helped to broker the deal with Turkey, said its operation was now “complete” with all women and children moved from the city. Ankara and a Syrian military source said the evacuation […]
by Hui Min NEO Agence France Presse BERLIN, Germany (AFP) – The fall of Aleppo has unleashed a mixture of outrage and impotence in the West, in which fury at the relentless carnage has mingled with guilt over the failure to stop it. Even the European public — who marched in the millions over the siege of Sarajevo or against the Iraq War — stayed at home as the Russian-backed Syrian regime smashed the country’s […]
by Rim Haddad with Maya Gebeily in Beirut Agence France Presse ALEPPO, Syria (AFP) – A convoy of ambulances and buses left rebel territory in Aleppo on Thursday in the first evacuations under a deal for opposition fighters to leave the city after years of fighting. The rebel withdrawal will pave the way for President Bashar al-Assad’s forces to reclaim complete control of Syria’s second city, handing the regime its biggest victory in more than five […]
by Rim Haddad Agence France Presse ALEPPO, Syria (AFP) – Once renowned for its bustling souks, grand citadel and historic gates, Aleppo’s Old City has been rendered virtually unrecognisable by some of the worst violence of Syria’s war. For centuries, Aleppo was Syria’s economic and cultural powerhouse, attracting tourists from around the world to its celebrated heritage sites. But now, only gaunt stray cats roam the rubble-strewn alleyways of its Old City, a UNESCO World […]
UNITED NATION, United States (AFP) — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is alarmed by reports of atrocities against “a large number” of civilians, including women and children, in recent hours in the Syrian city of Aleppo, his spokesman said Monday. “While stressing that the United Nations is not able to independently verify these reports, the secretary-general is conveying his grave concern to the relevant parties,” said spokesman Stephane Dujarric. Ban has asked his envoy Staffan de […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The threat from the Islamic State group will likely endure for years to come, even if it loses all the territory it once held under its so-called “caliphate,” experts warned Monday. In a report, 20 experts on the Middle East and jihadism also described how organizations such as Al-Qaeda and the group formerly known as the Al-Nusra Front are adapting methods and continuing to expand. A US-led coalition has since […]
by Raziye Akkoc with Ezzedine Said in Istanbul Agence France Presse ANKARA, Turkey (AFP) – Turkey detained over 200 people including dozens of officials from pro-Kurdish parties and struck Kurdish militants in Iraq Monday in response to this weekend’s twin bombings claimed by a radical Kurd separatist group. The toll from Saturday’s attacks near an Istanbul football stadium and an adjacent park rose to 44 Monday, Health Minister Recep Akdag said. Most of the dead were police […]
ALEPPO, Syria (AFP) – by Karam al-Masri with Sara Hussein in Beirut Syria’s army battled to take more ground from rebels in Aleppo Thursday after President Bashar al-Assad said victory for his troops in the city would be a turning point in the war. Three weeks into a major offensive to retake all of Aleppo, government troops have captured about 85 percent of territory rebels controlled in the city’s east and were continuing to push […]
