INTERNATIONAL

On Saturday, Bosnians marked the  25th anniversary of the Srebrenica Genocide that involved the massacre of about 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica by the Serb forces. As the Serbs organised an event celebrating July 11 as the “Srebrenica Liberation Day”, Muslim Bosniaks took part in the commemoration of the massacre of Muslim men and boys. Unable to attend because of coronavirus epidemic, international community leaders took part in the commemoration ceremony via video link. Commenting on the 25th commemoration, the United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, “We grieve with the families that tirelessly seek justice for the 8,000 innocent lives lost, all these years later.” During the 1992-1995 Bosnian war, Bosnian Serb forces drove non-Serbs out of territories th...

The two neighbouring southern European countries, Serbia and Bulgaria, sharing 318 km of common borderline, have been experiencing a surge in anti-government protests over the week. Bulgaria For the third day in a row, thousands of Bulgarians protested demanding the resignation of the centre-right government of the current Bulgarian Prime Minister and the country’s chief prosecutor. Bulgarians came out to the streets in masses to protest against the endemic corruption in their country. Protesters were heard chanting “Mafia” and “Resign” during the protests. The protesters accuse Prime Minister Boyko Borissov’s third government and chief prosecutor Ivan Geshev of intentionally delaying investigations into links between graft-prone officials (officials using political corrupti...

On Friday, Ethiopian authorities said they had arrested two suspects over the killing of Haacaaluu Hundeessaa, a popular musician belonging to the majority Oromo ethnic group. The Oromo musician was shot dead last week sparking protests in Addis Ababa and the surrounding Oromiya region. The protests resulted in the death of 166 people under government-sanctioned internet blackouts. Ethiopian Attorney General, Adanech Abebe, stated that the shooter was working on commands of an anti-government group, the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF-Shene). Adanech further stated that the two arrests included the suspected shooter and an accomplice, while the third suspect was still to be caught. The nationwide protests had led to government-sanctioned internet blackouts disconnecting Ethiopia...

The Geneva-based World Council of Churches, which consists of 350 churches as members and claims to represent more than 500 million Christians, urged Turkey to reverse the decision to turn the Hagia Sophia museum back into a mosque. In a letter to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Council said the decision would create division amongst communities. The letter read, the decision "will inevitably create uncertainties, suspicions and mistrust, undermining all our efforts to bring people of different faiths together at the table of dialogue and co-operation". "In the interests of promoting mutual understanding, respect, dialogue and co-operation, and avoiding cultivating old animosities and divisions, we urgently appeal to you to reconsider and reverse your decision," the le...

As tensions rise in the West Bank over Israel weighing in plans of annexing the territory that Palestinians want for a future state, a Palestinian man is shot dead by Israeli soldiers on Thursday night.buy lipitor online buy lipitor no prescription Palestinian officials claim that the Palestinian man, Ibraheem Yakoub, had been walking along the main road of their village, Kifl Haris, with friends when he was shot dead. Israel’s army state that the troops opened fire after Ibraheem and another man started throwing firebombs at a guard post near the town of Nablus. Ibrahim Abu Yaaqoub’s relatives told Middle East Eye, an international online news outlet, that he was killed 'in cold blood' by Israeli forces. Hundreds of Palestinians gathered in Kifl Haris for Ibrahim’s funeral pr...

After a top Turkish court declared the Hagia Sophia’s conversion to a museum by Turkey’s first president as ‘illegal’, the current Turkish President, Tayyip Erdogan, declared Istanbul’s ancient building Hagia Sophia a mosque on Friday. The court ruling comes in after a 16-year legal battle stating the building as the legal property of Sultan Mehmet II who captured the city in 1453 and turned the 900-year-old Greek Orthodox cathedral into a mosque. Turkey’s top court said: “The cabinet decision in 1934 that defined it as a museum did not comply with laws,” referring to a proclamation signed by Turkey's first president. After 86 years, Muslim prayers are now going to be held in two weeks in the UNESCO World Heritage Site -Hagia Sophia. During the national address, President Erdog...

For the second time this week, Russia and China blocked a last-ditch attempt by the 13-Western countries of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to extend humanitarian aid delivery, crossing two Turkish borders, into Syria for the coming six months. The approval of extending the humanitarian aid delivery to Syria expires on Friday. The UNSC described the aid being delivered from Turkey as a “lifeline” for the millions of Syrians living in the northwest region of the country. The security council has now unsuccessfully voted four times on this resolution as the committee has been split amongst the 15-members where 13 member vote opposite to that of the Syrian allies Russia and China. Russia’s draft resolution, which China backs, states cutting the number of border crossing...

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s recent announcement, asking international students in the US to leave the country or transfer if their colleges hold classes entirely online this semester, has led to leaders of 12 Christian organisations urging the Trump administration to revoke the policy. The leaders wrote a letter to Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf, shared with The Associated Press news agency, stating that the policy "robs our country of the significant contribution," with regards to the personal and economic contributions made by international students. The letter cited Biblical passages and stated that the policy "lacks compassion" and "violates tenets of our faith". The leaders further said that "International students who have already arrived in the...

On Thursday, the United States (US) slapped sanctions on the Xinjiang Communist Party Secretary Chen Quanguo, a member of China’s Politburo, and three other senior Chinese officials over accusations of human rights abuses against the Uighur Muslims. Secretary Chen Quanguo is the most senior Chinese official to have ever been blacklisted by the US yet. This move is expected to further increase tensions between the US and China. These sanctions fall under the Global Magnitsky Act, a law that permits the US government to target human rights violators around the globe. The Act allows the US government to freeze the human rights violator's US assets, put them under US travel ban and prohibit Americans from doing any business with them. According to the United Nations (UN), approximately one...

Carmen Guntree in a recent exclusive interview with the Daily Mail had alleged that she had been continuously raped and beaten in a houseboat in Kashmir for 2 months. Carmen who is a pro-surfer had visited Kashmir in 2004 and had stayed for 2 months before running away from her alleged assaulter. ALSO READ: I Was Kidnapped and Raped Every Night For 2 Months on Houseboat by A Kashmiri, Writes Australian Surfer In her interview, she had alleged that, a man named Rafiq Ahmed Dundoo had raped her after holding her captive. She also alleged that she he forced her to wear Muslim attire, Rafiq however has said all the allegations are baseless. Rubbishing the claims, Rafiq Ahmad Dundoo, Rafiq has said that the Australian Surfer is lying to sell her book. ALSO READ: Trapped in Corona- Mumbai ...