Syria peace talks set to begin in Istanbul
10/27/2018, 11:42:41 AMThe talks will address numerous issues in the conflict, including demilitarised zones and a political path forward. ✔ Talks have been sponsored by the Arab League and its various members, by Russia, France, Turkey and Iran, and by the UN through its set of Geneva summits ✔ If that doesn't happen the EU won't pay for reconstruction, she added ✔ Even Moscow is saying do not expect breakthroughs during the summit
How war reporting has changed
10/27/2018, 8:13:13 AMPolitics, finance and technology have changed the role of on-the-ground reporters. A foreign correspondent for more than 40 years, Patrick Cockburn says the march of fake news should remind us of the vital need for eyewitness accounts ✔ War reporting is easy to do but difficult to do well ✔ I should add hurriedly that the reverse is true of The Independent which has added considerably to its foreign staff, including three additional correspondents covering the Middle East in recent times
Turkey hosts summit to seek solutions to end war in Syria
10/27/2018, 10:03:17 AMISTANBUL (AP) — The leaders of Turkey, Russia, France and Germany are holding a summit in Istanbul to discuss security and humanitarian and political issues in Syria, hoping to lay the groundwork for eventual peace in a country devastated by years of war. The leaders meeting Saturday afternoon are expected to promote the preservation of a cease-fire in Syria's northwestern province of Idlib. The agreement last month prevented a Syrian government offensive on the last rebel stronghold that many feared would have set off another refugee crisis. Other discussion topics include access for humanitarian aid, early preparations for the drafting of a constitution and eventual reconstruction of the war-torn country.
Turkey hosts Syria summit with French, German, Russian leaders
10/27/2018, 11:54:32 AMThe leaders of Russia, France and Germany arrived in Istanbul on Saturday for a four-nation summit aiming to find a lasting political solution to the Syrian civil war and salvage a fragile ceasefire in a rebel-held northwestern province. ✔ On Friday, Syria's UN envoy Bashar Jaafari maintained that the buffer zone is temporary and that Idlib would eventually revert to government control ✔ Turkish media reported that Erdogan will discuss the crisis in one-on-one talks with leaders on the summit's sidelines
Israel says Syria and Iran behind Gaza rocket attacks
10/27/2018, 9:46:32 AMOrders to hit Israel with rockets from Gaza Strip were given from Damascus with Iranian involvement, Israeli army says. ✔ Conricus told reporters Israel's response would not be limited geographically ✔ The Israeli military said it had struck about 80 sites across Gaza by early Saturday morning, including a security headquarters building ✔ In the Field Daily life in Gaza: 'There is no future in this place'
Turkish foreign minister met Russian counterpart ahead of Syria...
10/27/2018, 9:12:30 AMTurkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu met his Russian counterpart Sergei Lav... ✔ Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Germany’s Angela Merkel, France’s Emmanuel Macron and Turkey’s Tayyip Erdogan are due to meet in Istanbul later to discuss the latest developments in Syria’s rebel-held Idlib province and the political process for the resolution of the conflict
Keep UC scientists at two nuclear laboratories. They may be what prevents a devastating war - Los Angeles Times
10/27/2018, 11:02:53 AMUC may be complicit in our nuclear arms race, but their presence at Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore reduces the likelihood that we'll ever use the weapons they've developed. ✔ The inclusion of contractors such as Bechtel was a mistake ✔ To the editor: Fihn’s points in the article about the UC involvement in maintaining nuclear weapons are well taken ✔ Furthermore, the labs also do great research (I am a former employee of one) that produces non-nuclear technologies of help to everyone ✔ Let’s not tar UC’s reputation for keeping us safe for all these years
Mattis Says Khashoggi Killing Could Destabilize Middle East
10/27/2018, 8:52:15 AMDefense Secretary Jim Mattis said any role Saudi Arabia played in a journalist’s killing could destabilize the Persian Gulf region and beyond, leveling rare criticism at a military ally. ✔ Mr. Mattis said America’s shared security interests with Israel and its Arab allies remain and our respect for the Saudi people is undiminished, without mentioning Prince Mohammed ✔ We stand with our partners who favor stability over chaos, and we support unity of effort among our nations’ militaries in response to shared threats and challenges, for in such unity is the real power to set and to maintain peace
The 20 photographs of the week
10/27/2018, 8:18:50 AMTurmoil in Latin America and partying in New Jersey – the week captured by the world’s best photojournalists ✔ Rio de Janeiro, Brazil A ballet dancer adjusts her shoe before performing at the Municipal theatre ✔ Venezuelan migrant Alejandra, 37, has turned to sex work in Colombia because of the lack of work Photograph: Raúl Arboleda/AFP/Getty Gaza Strip Palestinian children drink water drawn from a cistern in a poor neighbourhood in the city of Khan Yunis Photograph: Thomas Coex/AFP/Getty Gaza City Relatives mourn the death of Montaser Mohammad Ismael al-Baz during his funeral ceremony at Nuseirat refugee camp
Government backtracks on defence agreement with Saudi Arabia after Khashoggi killing
10/27/2018, 9:14:01 AMA memorandum of understanding on defence exports to Saudi Arabia is of "low priority" and not under active negotiation. ✔ Defence Minister Christopher Pyne had pursued deeper industry ties with Riyadh, but on Friday a spokeswoman told Fairfax Media the talks were preliminary and of low priority ✔ I think the government would be very wise to pull their horns in on this one ✔ Experts said Australia's response should be informed by the findings of the Turkish investigation
Hain will 'neither retract nor apologise' for naming Philip Green
10/27/2018, 9:58:57 AMLabour peer defends decision to name Arcadia chairman facing allegations of sexual harassment and racial abuse ✔ What is the point of being a member of parliament, either in the Commons or in the Lords, if you don’t discharge your responsibilities and, where appropriate, use the privileges that you have in order to promote justice and liberty ✔ And on this third occasion, obviously I did not do this lightly, either
EU human rights award for Ukraine’s Sentsov recognises his plight
10/27/2018, 9:29:47 AMundefined ✔ When the European Parliament on Thursday gave a standing ovation after granting Ukrainian film-maker Oleg Sentsov a prestigious human rights prize named in honour of Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov, the 42-year-old was almost 7,000km away in a Siberian prison ✔ Through lawyers his only point of contact with the rest of the world while imprisoned at the White Bear prison in Russia’s Yamalo-Nenets region Mr Sentsov insists he is a Ukrainian national and never agreed to taking on Russian citizenship
Saudi Arabia says it is beacon of 'light' against Iran despite...
10/27/2018, 10:12:29 AMSaudi Arabia and key ally Bahrain said on Saturday that Gulf states are playing ... ✔ has prompted a global outcry and strained Riyadh’s ties with the West ✔ The next wave of U.S. sanctions against Iran are due to come into effect on Nov 4 ✔ Saudi Arabia and the UAE have denied any involvement ✔ The Guards accused them of creating plots and tensions ✔ Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles
The inconvenient truth about the US-bound migrant caravan
10/27/2018, 11:13:04 AMThe migrant caravan Trump is so obsessed about is a direct result of US foreign policy. ✔ The US-based Centre for Justice & Accountability notes: Of those victims identified in the UN-sponsored Historical Clarification Commission, 83 percent were indigenous Maya ✔ Witness Mexico: The other side of the wall ABOUT THE AUTHOR Belen Fernandez Belen Fernandez is the author of The Imperial Messenger: Thomas Friedman at Work, published by Verso
Palestinian militants agree truce with Israel after exchange of fire over Gaza protests
10/27/2018, 11:06:18 AMPalestinian militants said on Saturday they would halt attacks into Israel from the Gaza Strip after they fired the heaviest rocket salvoes across the border since August. ✔ The Israeli military said it holds Hamas accountable for the events in Gaza ✔ Oman’s foreign affairs minister Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah said on Saturday the sultanate was offering ideas to help Israel and the Palestinians come together but was not acting as mediator ✔ Peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians broke down in 2014
Ivan the 'Terrible' Wasn't Terrible at All - an Oligarch-Busting, Virtuous Hero, Demonized by the West
10/27/2018, 8:26:09 AMRussia and the World at the time of Ivan's Birth Russia has long been considered the land of darkness. Beginning with the Renaissance disdain for the medieval world, the rise of international banking, the Polish/Jewish alliance in Central Europe, and the British Enlightenment, Russia and Spain have been stigmatized as just a bit better than animals. ✔ Nobles he could not.19 Purification through Asceticism: Noble Treason and the Oprichnina The beginning of the 1560s was a time of great military and diplomatic victories for Russia ✔ Издание Сретенского монастыря, Москва 32 Зимин АА, АЛ Хорошкевич (1982) Россия времени Ивана Грозного
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