US general takes over command of forces in Afghanistan
9/2/2018, 2:59:30 PMThe handover comes at a time in the 17-year war that saw little progress by Afghan or US forces against the Taliban. ✔ Hopes of a breakthrough in achieving peace talks were raised by an unprecedented ceasefire over the Eid holiday in June but optimism was dampened by the fighters' dramatic assault on the city of Ghazni last month ✔ It is time for this war in Afghanistan to end, he said
Saudi-led coalition admits deadly Yemen strike on bus was unjustified
9/2/2018, 12:06:15 PMThe Saudi-led coalition in Yemen has admitted that an airstrike that struck a school bus last month, killing dozens of civilians, was unjustified. ✔ Thousands of Yemenis vent anger against Riyadh and Washington as they take part in a mass funeral in the northern Yemeni city of Saada, a stronghold of the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, for children killed in an air strikeCredit:AFP The coalition pledged to hold accountable anyone who contributed to the error
U.S. military command changes hands in Afghanistan
9/2/2018, 12:23:13 PMIn an impassioned speech, outgoing commander Gen. John W. Nicholson asked the Taliban to “stop killing your fellow Afghans.” ✔ By Pamela Constable September 2 at 8:11 AM KABUL The outgoing U.S. military commander in Afghanistan, Gen ✔ Accusations of political pressure and bribery have been roiling the pre-election process and vetting of candidates ✔ There is much fighting and talking left to do, Votel said, but we are up for it
Germany's foreign minister tells his fellow countrymen to fight racism
9/2/2018, 2:48:20 PMHeiko Maas's comments followed demonstrations by about 4,500 far-right protesters in Chemnitz, who were rallying against migration after a German was killed, allegedly by two migrants. ✔ Soeren Bartol, a politician with the Social Democrats, tweeted that after the end of the protests he and his group 'were attacked by Nazis' who destroyed their party flags and physically attacked some of them ✔ Huge crowds waving German flags march in Chemnitz, east Germany, on Saturday in a fresh anti-immigration protest
Tearful mourners line up to bid farewell to east Ukraine rebel chief
9/2/2018, 3:00:41 PMThe funeral in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk of a pro-Russian rebel leader killed in an explosion last week drew vast crowds of mourners on Sunday, Reuters footage from the breakaway region showed. ✔ A woman who described herself as Zakharchenko’s former neighbor, Natalya, was also crying ✔ Slideshow (5 Images) We will not forgive this, she added ✔ It was placed on the gun-carriage of a large artillery weapon, which was then towed past the crowds by a truck ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
Khamenei says war unlikely but urges boosting Iran's defenses
9/2/2018, 12:51:12 PMIranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday war was unlikely but called on Iran's armed forces to boost their defense capacities, according to his official website, as the country faces increased tension with the United States. ✔ The imposition of (U.S.) sanctions and pressures and the lack of rapid action by Europe to fulfill their commitments will have serious consequences, Kamal Kharrazi, a former foreign minister who heads a top foreign policy council, told Burt, IRNA reported
Leaked secret directive shows UN won’t help to rebuild Syria until there’s ‘political transition’
9/2/2018, 3:23:44 PMAn internal UN document that was leaked to the media says the organization won’t provide humanitarian assistance to war-torn Syria until there’s a deal on “political transition.” The UN had earlier denied such a directive existed. ✔ The Russian minister explained that he first suspected that such a directive may exist within the UN after UNESCO had rejected Moscow’s appeal for help in restoring partially destroyed World Heritage sites in the ravaged ancient city of Palmyra ✔ There was no ‘secret directive’ issued by any department at the UN, Stephane Dujarric, the secretary-general’s spokesperson, told TASS news agency at the time
Ukrainian city remembers Jews on Holocaust anniversary
9/2/2018, 1:01:49 PMLVIV, Ukraine (AP) — The Ukrainian city of Lviv, once a major center of Jewish life in Eastern Europe, is commemorating the 75th anniversary of the annihilation of the city's Jewi ✔ Then called Lwow, it was the third largest Jewish community in prewar Poland after Warsaw and Lodz, with most working as merchants, manufacturers or artisans ✔ In June 1941, Germany attacked the Soviet Union, its former ally ✔ The idea for this artwork seems almost mystically delivered to me, Stevens said
‘The city is orphaned’: 120,000 mourners bid farewell to murdered Donbass leader in Donetsk (PHOTOS)
9/2/2018, 12:26:02 PMAt least 120,000 people have attended the funeral of Aleksandr Zakharchenko, the leader of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, who was killed by an explosion in a cafe in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk on Friday. ✔ Zakharchenko’s remains were placed on display in the lobby of the State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre in the center of Donetsk ✔ Zakharchenko was married, and is survived by four sons ✔ It is a blatant provocation aimed at undermining the implementation of the Minsk Agreement in eastern Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Saturday
Iran leader demands military boost its defences as tensions mount over 'missiles in Iraq'
9/2/2018, 2:47:38 PMIRAN'S Supreme Leader has demanded that the military boost their defence capacities amid fears the country is building ballistic missiles in neighbouring Iraq. ✔ Five of the officials said it was helping those groups to start making their own ✔ The Iraqi government and military declined to comment at the time ✔ Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said last month the Islamic Republic's military prowess was what deterred Washington from attacking it
Russia’s WORLD DOMINATION manual: Putin 'using 1997 book to topple US as superpower'
9/2/2018, 12:01:43 PMRUSSIA is using a political manual published in 1997 to topple the US as the dominant global superpower, it has been claimed. ✔ Of course this book was published before the advent of social media – but it is clear Facebook and Twitter have been instrumental in Russia’s ability to sow racial and social conflict from inside the US ✔ Incumbent president Donald Trump has insisted there was no collusion between his campaign and Russia
Study of Portuguese and Spanish explodes as China expands role in Latin America
9/2/2018, 1:57:26 PMThousands more Chinese students are taking up Latin American languages with an eye to improved employability ✔ A lot of corruption, I have to say! she said of the Car Wash scandal that has engulfed Brazil’s political elite ✔ Sun plans to visit Brazil after graduating, but will stick to São Paulo, one of the safer corners of a country that suffered a record 63,880 homicides last year ✔ According to Zhang’s account, the student asked her Brazilian assailant if she could finish her homework first
Duterte visit showcases Netanyahu's roster of tough-guy pals
9/2/2018, 1:39:18 PMJERUSALEM (AP) — The first-ever visit of a leader of the Philippines is sure to be touted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as another success in his campaign to enhance Israel ✔ Orban drew criticism last year for praising Miklos Horthy, Hungary's World War II-era ruler, who introduced anti-Semitic laws and collaborated with the Nazis ✔ In a break from his predecessors, Trump has refrained from criticizing Israeli settlement activity and delivered Netanyahu two major international gifts, recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal
Germans told to 'get off the sofa' and stand against far-Right violence
9/2/2018, 12:06:12 PMThe “silent majority” of “decent” Germans must take a stand against far-Right extremism in the wake of neo-Nazi riots that saw immigrants chased through the streets, the country’s foreign minister said Sunday. ✔ My generation has been given freedom, the rule of law and democracy ✔ There were fears of clashes as rival groups of far-Right and far-Left protestors demonstrated in the city, but police numbers have been massively increased with reinforcements from around the country following Monday’s riots, and were able to keep control
‘Get up off sofa and speak up’: German FM blasts right-wing extremists after Chemnitz riots
9/2/2018, 1:43:09 PMGerman society must firmly stand against the outbursts of right-wing extremism, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said. His call came after right-wing protesters clashed with police at an anti-migrant rally. ✔ The public disturbances in Chemnitz began last week, when a 35-year-old German man, known as Daniel H ✔ in police files, was fatally stabbed in a street fight ✔ The initial altercation is believed to have been sparked by a verbal argument ✔ three days after the protests over the man’s death began
Putin leads mourners at funeral of 'Soviet Sinatra' Iosif Kobzon
9/2/2018, 2:00:26 PMPresident Putin sat with Iosif Kobzon's widow Nelli at the funeral in Moscow. Mr Kobzon sold tens of millions of records in the Soviet Union and was known for his striking baritone. ✔ Her husband Kobzon was born into a poor Jewish family in the eastern Ukrainian town of Chasov Yar in 1937 Elders of Soviet space exploration era, first ever female cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova (pictured right) and first space walker Alexei Leonov (pictured left) speak during the funeral ceremony Kobzon was born into a poor Jewish family in the eastern Ukrainian town of Chasov Yar in 1937 - in the darkest hour of purges instigated by Soviet leader Josef Stalin
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