Twin Bombings in Afghanistan Hit Shiite Enclave
9/5/2018, 5:40:29 PMTwo bomb blasts just minutes apart tore through a mainly Shiite Muslim neighborhood in the Afghan capital on Wednesday, killing at least 20 people and wounding 60 others and reviving fears of a growing sectarian conflict in a country already racked with violence. ✔ There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the apparently coordinated bombings in western Kabul’s Dashte Barchi neighborhood ✔ Among those killed in the second explosion were Samim Faramarz, a reporter for Tolo news, and his cameraman, Ramiz Ahmadi, the station said ✔ I fear one day terrorists will come to my door and kill me, said Mr. Taqi
UN seeks 'hope' for war-torn Yemenis as peace talks resume
9/5/2018, 5:54:57 PMGENEVA (AP) — The U.N. envoy for Yemen said Wednesday that he hopes Yemenis can draw a "flickering signal of hope" from peace talks set to resume after a two-year hiatus — a ✔ Since then, fighting has put some parts of the country on the brink of famine, fomented a massive cholera outbreak and raised the war's death toll to over 10,000 ✔ The Saudi-led coalition controls Yemen's airspace and flights from rebel-held Sanaa have been rare to nonexistent in recent months ✔ 5, 2018 one day before starting the Geneva Consultations on Yemen
UN envoy positive ahead of Yemen peace talks - despite no rebels
9/5/2018, 4:58:37 PMUN's Martin Griffiths says 'going to make it happen' at Thursday's Geneva talks despite rebel no-show. ✔ Griffiths said he hoped to see both parties in the same room ✔ Previous reports suggested there wouldn't be face-to-face meetings with intermediaries used for communication ✔ We want to understand the issues of both parties, Griffiths said ✔ UN: Possible war crimes in Yemen committed by all sides
With Yemen in turmoil, U.N. seeks to build trust as first step...
9/5/2018, 5:27:13 PMYemen's first round of peace talks in almost three years aims to build confidence between the warring sides, U.N. mediator Martin Griffiths said on Wednesday, playing down a delay in the arrival of one delegation. ✔ But Griffiths brushed off the delay, saying it was nothing unusual and he was confident it would be resolved ✔ He told reporters the first stage of talks would focus on how formal peace negotiations would work ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
New US adviser to Afghanistan raises hackles in region
9/5/2018, 5:15:12 PMISLAMABAD (AP) — The choice of Zalmay Khalilzad as a U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan has raised some hackles in the region, with many saying the veteran diplomat's tough stance ✔ ISLAMABAD (AP) The choice of Zalmay Khalilzad as a U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan has raised some hackles in the region, with many saying the veteran diplomat's tough stance on Pakistan could hinder his mission to convince a resurgent Taliban to engage in peace talks ✔ Khalilzad was also said to have been considered for U.S. secretary of state following Trump's presidential win
American Soldier Killed in Insider Attack in Afghanistan
9/5/2018, 4:06:07 PMArmy Sgt. Maj. Timothy Bolyard died from wounds suffered in the attack by an Afghan police officer. It was the latest of 102 so-called green-on-blue attacks since 2007. ✔ An Afghan security officer walks in Kabul last month ✔ Some 14,000 American military personnel are deployed in Afghanistan, with most of them assigned to the NATO train-advise-and-assist mission ✔ In other words, the report says, insider attacks have increasingly become the preferred war-fighting tactic of the Taliban
Trump warns Syria against ‘slaughter,’ denies he wanted to assassinate Assad
9/5/2018, 7:28:33 PMPresident Trump warned Syria Wednesday not to launch a “slaughter” of millions of innocent civilians trapped by government forces in a rebel-held province, and also refuted an accusation in a new book that he wanted to assassinate Syrian President Bashar Assad last year. ✔ If it’s a slaughter, the world is going to get very, very angry and the United States is going to get very angry, too ✔ You have 3 million, at least, innocent people there ✔ That was never even contemplated, nor would it be contemplated ✔ And it should not have been written about in the book
At least 20 people killed in separate bombings at Kabul wrestling club
9/5/2018, 6:47:25 PMCar bomb detonated as security forces and journalists gather at scene of suicide bombing ✔ Social media users who purportedly witnessed the attack said the bomber killed the guards at the club before blowing himself up inside ✔ Wednesday’s attack comes a day after the Taliban announced the death of Jalaluddin Haqqani, who founded the eponymous militant group widely suspected of being behind some of the attacks in Kabul claimed by Isis
Pompeo Leaves Pakistan Talks With No Deal on a Plan to End Afghan War
9/5/2018, 6:01:56 PMSecretary of State Mike Pompeo said the U.S. and Pakistan have still got a long way to go to reset troubled ties after a visit in which he sought Islamabad’s help in ending the war in Afghanistan. ✔ Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, center, and Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, left, listen as Prime Minister Imran Khan speaks during their meeting in Islamabad on Sept ✔ Pakistan also accuses India of using Afghan soil to support terrorists against Pakistan, an allegation New Delhi denies
Twin attacks in Afghan capital kill 20, wound 70
9/5/2018, 4:17:13 PMKABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Twin bombings at a wrestling training center in a Shiite neighborhood of Afghanistan's capital on Wednesday killed at least 20 people and wounded 70, Afg ✔ No one immediately claimed the attacks, but they bore the hallmarks of the country's Islamic State affiliate, which has carried out a wave of deadly bombings against minority Shiites ✔ The Sunni extremists of IS view Shiites as apostates deserving of death ✔ Afghan forces have struggled to combat both the Taliban and IS since the U.S. and NATO formally ended their combat mission in 2014
Pompeo tries to shore up a rocky relationship in brief visit to Pakistan
9/5/2018, 4:44:23 PMPompeo renewed demands that Pakistani leaders support a fledgling U.S. peace effort with the Taliban in Afghanistan. ✔ But the most challenging factor in any peace bid remains Pakistan, where the powerful military establishment is widely believed to have orchestrated the neophyte Khan’s election victory to ensure it retains authority over security affairs – including any resolution in Afghanistan
'Road to Disaster': Insider's book looks at how we got it so wrong in Vietnam
9/5/2018, 4:53:49 PMIn 'The Road to Disaster,' author Brian VanDeMark dissects how and why the United States erred in the Vietnam War. A 4-star book review. ✔ VanDeMark brings invaluable perspective to this evaluation ✔ Consider, for example, the U.S. bombing of North Vietnam, one of the war’s most disputed military actions ✔ America invested heavily and tragically in Vietnam…wealth, pride and blood ✔ Put these new books on your wish list right now
Suicide attack in Shiite-populated district of Kabul kills at least 20
9/5/2018, 5:01:28 PMThe bomber struck during a wrestling match in a gym, and the blast was followed by another explosion some distance away. ✔ There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, which occurred in the Dasht-e Barchi area and was followed by an explosion some distance away ✔ The cause of the second blast was unclear, and there were unconfirmed reports that a couple of journalists who had gathered to cover the first bombing were wounded ✔ The extremist group regards Shiite Muslims as heretics
3 ways Iran might respond to sanctions and what it means for oil prices
9/5/2018, 4:57:06 PMHow Iran responds to the resumption of sanctions following the U.S. withdrawal from a multilateral accord could be a big driver of oil prices in coming months. ✔ RBC looks for a steady increase in ballistic missile attacks (see chart below) fired from Yemen into Saudi Arabia, along with more provocative military maneuvers ✔ Subscribe to MarketWatch's free Need to Know newsletter ✔ We Want to Hear from You Join the conversation Comment
Turkey's Erdogan hopes Tehran summit will avert Idlib offensive
9/5/2018, 6:57:53 PMTurkey hopes a summit with Iranian and Russian leaders in Tehran on Friday will avert a Syrian government offensive on the rebel-held Idlib enclave and prevent a new influx of refugees to Turkey, President Tayyip Erdogan was quoted as saying. ✔ Erdogan, speaking to reporters on his plane back from a visit to Kyrgyzstan, also warned about the potential influx of refugees from Idlib to Turkey in the case of such an offensive, the Hurriyet said ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
Latest Skripal development is rocket fuel to existing anti-Russia fever in London
9/5/2018, 4:15:55 PMThe recent development in the Skripals poisoning case is guaranteed to plunge already dire relations between Moscow and London through the floor. ✔ But they are pertinent in of themselves, given the context ✔ Worryingly, in 2018 we have reached the stage that George Orwell described in his classic novel, 1984: The enemy of the moment always represented absolute evil, and it followed that no past or future agreement with him was possible ✔ Western ideologues should take a moment to consider that Orwell wrote his classic work as a warning not as a blueprint
The Latest: Draw set for 11th wheelchair event at US Open
9/5/2018, 6:57:29 PMNEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on the U.S. Open tennis tournament (all times local): 2:30 p.m. The draw has been set for the 11th wheelchair tennis competi ✔ NEW YORK (AP) The Latest on the U.S. Open tennis tournament (all times local): 2:30 p.m. The draw has been set for the 11th wheelchair tennis competition at the U.S. Open ✔ American David Wagner, the top-ranked quad player in the world, is attempting to win his fourth U.S. Open quad singles title and his ninth in doubles
The Latest: 2010 French Open champion Schiavone retires
9/5/2018, 7:30:25 PMNEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on the U.S. Open tennis tournament (all times local): 3:10 p.m. Francesca Schiavone has retired from tennis after a career i ✔ Schiavone, 38, said she accomplished both her goals as a player, which were to win at Roland Garros and reach the top 10 in the world ✔ She would peak at No. 4 the highest ever for an Italian woman in 2011 ✔ She also played the longest Grand Slam match for a woman that year, overcoming six match points to beat Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-4, 1-6, 16-14 in 4 hours, 44 minutes in the fourth round of the Australian Open
The Latest: Osaka advances to her first Grand slam semifinal
9/5/2018, 5:46:44 PMNEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on the U.S. Open tennis tournament (all times local): 1:15 p.m. Naomi Osaka dominated Lesia Tsurenko 6-1, 6-1 at the U.S. Op ✔ NEW YORK (AP) The Latest on the U.S. Open tennis tournament (all times local): 1:15 p.m. Naomi Osaka dominated Lesia Tsurenko 6-1, 6-1 at the U.S. Open to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal ✔ The 29-year-old Tsurenko, who had struggled with the heat during her three-set win Monday over Marketa Vondrousova, grabbed her legs several times during the match, but did not ask for any medical help
Tony Blair Institute confirms donations from Saudi Arabia
9/5/2018, 8:00:04 PMundefined ✔ The close relations between Mr Blair and the government in Riyadh are in contrast to his successor as Labour leader ✔ He announced in late 2016 that he would close that advisory firm, which was built on a complex structure of vehicles called Firerush and Windrush, and instead focus on philanthropic activities
Javad Zarif: Trump to 'abuse' UN Security Council to slam Iran
9/5/2018, 7:59:16 PMForeign minister accuses US president of planning to blame Iran for 'horrors US clients have unleashed' across Mideast. ✔ He also wrote the hashtag and word #chutzpah to suggest Trump's audacity ✔ Presumably (per @nikkihaley ’s remarks) Iran will be represented at the meeting by either @HassanRouhani or @JZarif ✔ Inside Story Is Donald Trump on a relentless quest to corner Iran
Sweden election: Anti-EU party rises in towns where ‘everything is falling to pieces'
9/5/2018, 7:21:13 PMSWEDEN Democrats leader Stefan Lofven is gathering a huge following from the nation’s small towns where locals have clobbered together in a bid to crackdown on immigration. ✔ Stefan Lofven is gathering a huge following from the nation’s small towns (Image: GETTY) Mining town Ljusnarsberg is one of many densely-populated towns where a spike in the amount of asylum seekers swarming to the EU member state has triggered a surge in support for the anti-immigration, anti-EU party led by Mr Lofven ✔ Cuts to public services has left residents in Kopparberg with the nearest police station being 25 miles away in Lindesberg
At least 20 dead in blasts at sports center in Afghan capital
9/5/2018, 6:15:50 PMA suicide attack at a wrestling club in a Shi'ite neighborhood of the Afghan capital Kabul and a second explosion apparently targeting emergency services and journalists at the site killed at least 20 people and wounded 70 on Wednesday, officials said. ✔ After nine journalists died in a single incident in April, when a suicide bomber apparently targeted them while they were covering another attack in Kabul, at least 14 journalists have now been killed in Afghanistan so far this year ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
Thousands in Yemen's Saada protest over air strikes that killed...
9/5/2018, 7:29:03 PMThousands of Yemenis massed in the Houthi stronghold of Saada on Wednesday, calling for the prosecution of the Saudi-led coalition for an air attack last month that killed dozens of people, including 40 children traveling on a bus. ✔ Security Council and the International Court of the Justice to prove their humanity ✔ Houthi followers demonstrate to show rejection of an offer by the Saudi-led coalition to pay compensations for victims of an air strike in Saada, Yemen September 5, 2018 ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
Analysis | The 2 most overlooked, inexplicable stories from Bob Woodward’s Trump book
9/5/2018, 7:08:19 PMA couple telling anecdotes that didn't get as much love Tuesday. ✔ By Aaron Blake September 5 at 2:54 PM President Trump's denials of the stories in Bob Woodward's new book on Wednesday turned to tacit admission ✔ But we're losing so much money in trade with South Korea and others, Trump pushes back at one point, according to Woodward
Trump says he did not discuss assassinating Syria's Assad
9/5/2018, 6:57:10 PMU.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he did not discuss assassinating Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, disputing an account in a forthcoming book by journalist Bob Woodward. ✔ FILE PHOTO: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attends an interview with Russian television channel NTV, in Damascus, Syria in this handout released on June 24, 2018 ✔ Excerpts were published by the Washington Post on Tuesday ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
Colombia's ELN releases three hostages as Duque evaluates talks
9/5/2018, 6:24:52 PMColombia's Marxist ELN rebels have released three soldiers held hostage for nearly a month, the country's human rights ombudsman said on Wednesday, as new right-wing President Ivan Duque evaluates whether to continue peace talks with the insurgents. ✔ The soldiers Orlando Yair Vega Diaz, Juan Pablo Rojas Ovando and Eduardo Caro Banol, in the power of illegal group the ELN since August 8, 2018, were handed over to a humanitarian commission comprised of the ombudsman and the Episcopal Conference of Colombia, the ombudsman said on Twitter
The tunnels that will let you DRIVE under the Suez Canal
9/5/2018, 4:10:56 PMTwo tunnels have been built north of the city of Ismailia, some 87 miles north-east of Cairo, and two more near Port Said, at the northern end of the Suez, on the Mediterranean coast. ✔ Egypt is due to open four new tunnels under the Suez Canal, taking the travel time down from hours or even days to just a few minutes ✔ Two more run underneath the old and new canals near Port Said, at the northern end of the Suez, on the Mediterranean coast ✔ The vehicle tunnels will be 3.8km long (2.37miles) and the rail tunnel 5.6km (3.48miles)
Why the Woodward effect damages Trump
9/5/2018, 6:22:17 PMThe credibility contest is key as Washington's chronicler in chief takes on the commander in chief. ✔ Why the Woodward effect damages Trump Getty Images The publication of Fear: Trump in the White House pits America's commander in chief against Washington's chronicler in chief ✔ Getty Images Robert Redford alongside the reporter he portrayed in the film All The President's Men Though Woodward is a consummate Washington insider, there's also a sense of detachment about his work
Apple, Samsung and Facebook blasted over 'human rights violations and child labour'
9/5/2018, 4:47:21 PMTHE WORLD’S top technology companies collectively caused 223 human rights violations, ranging from child labour to data breaches, reveals a shocking new report. Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Sa… ✔ TCE is known to cause varying types of cancer and to produce birth-defects in the children of expectant mothers ✔ The biggest companies must act as the standard bearers for corporate governance ✔ Their boards must question their role in the communities they operate in and their impact on society
Museum: Centuries old Torah not burned in Rio blaze
9/5/2018, 7:11:38 PMRIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil's National Museum said Wednesday that centuries-old Torah scrolls, considered to be some of Judaism's oldest documents, had been moved before a massiv ✔ RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) Brazil's National Museum said Wednesday that centuries-old Torah scrolls, considered to be some of Judaism's oldest documents, had been moved before a massive fire ravaged the place and gutted much of the largest collections of national history artifacts in Latin America ✔ (Museu Nacional Brasil via AP) This undated handout photo provided by Brazil's National Museum shows a representation of the Egyptian dwarf god Bes, circa 350 A.C., at the National Museum of Brazil in Rio de Janeiro
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