IS chief Baghdadi emerges on video for first time in five years
The elusive chief of the Islamic State group Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi appeared for the first time in five years in a propaganda video released Monday by the jihadist organization.
World Headlines
Iran says it made surveillance flight over US aircraft carrier in Persian Gulf
Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guards have successfully managed a surveillance flight over a US aircraft carrier, the nation’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported Saturday.
US to donate additional $500K to restore tomb of biblical prophet Nahum in Iraq
The United States announced Friday that it would contribute an additional $500,000 to help restore the tomb believed to be the resting place of the biblical prophet Nahum in the town of Alqosh in northern Iraq.
Heavy rains cause massive flooding in cyclone-hit Mozambique
Heavy rainfall caused flooding in northern Mozambique on Sunday, just three days after Cyclone Kenneth killed at least eight people and damaged thousands of houses in the southeast African country.
Trump is ‘a threat to our world order’
Donald Trump has been branded a ‘threat to our world order’ and unworthy of a state visit, after he moved to pull the United States from the international Arms Trade Treaty.
IMF: Iran Inflation Could Reach 40 Percent Amid Sanctions
Iran’s economy is expected to shrink by six percent this year and inflation could reach 40 percent, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecasts, as the country copes with the impact of tighter U.S. sanctions.
Saudi Government Claims ‘Terror’ in Slew of Executions Condemned by Rights Groups
37 people in Saudi Arabia were executed Tuesday on terrorism-related charges, according to the Saudi Press Agency, during which ceremony the body of a dead man was later crucified.
Earth’s Magnetic North Pole Is Shifting, Prompting Fears of a Coming Global Chaos
he Earth’s north magnetic pole has been moving from its old location in Northern Canada towards Siberia. And there is a growing concern among scientists that the weakening of the Earth’s magnetic field could someday cause its north and south poles to flip. And that could lead to global chaos.
Cyclone Kenneth: Mozambique could face ‘catastrophic flooding’ as new storm makes landfall
Six weeks after a tropical storm left hundreds dead in Mozambique, another potentially destructive cyclone has made landfall.
China Plastic Waste Ban Throws Global Recycling into Chaos
From grubby packaging engulfing small Southeast Asian communities to waste piling up in plants from the US to Australia, China’s ban on accepting the world’s used plastic has plunged global recycling into turmoil.
Kim, Putin begin first summit over denuclearization, economic cooperation
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un began his first summit with President Vladimir Putin in Russia’s Far East city of Vladivostok on Thursday, with a peaceful resolution of Pyongyang’s nuclear quandary expected to top the agenda.
Gold worth billions smuggled out of Africa
Billions of dollars’ worth of gold is being smuggled out of Africa every year through the United Arab Emirates in the Middle East – a gateway to markets in Europe, the United States and beyond – a Reuters analysis has found.
Iranian parliament labels entire US military as terrorist
Iranian lawmakers on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a bill that labels all U.S. military forces as terrorist, state TV reported, a day after Washington ratcheted up pressure on Tehran by announcing that no country would any longer be exempt from U.S. sanctions if it continues to buy Iranian oil.
Putin to welcome North Korea’s Kim Jong Un to Russia for first time
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet on Thursday in the Russian Pacific port of Vladivostok to discuss the international standoff over Pyongyang’s nuclear program, a Kremlin official said.
China signals plan to flout US sanctions on Iranian oil
China signaled an intention to defy U.S. sanctions on Iran’s oil industry on Tuesday, denouncing the loss of a waiver renewal as an unacceptable threat against “normal energy cooperation” with Tehran.
Iraq, Saudi Arabia ready to up oil output as US cuts off Iran waivers
Iraq and Saudi Arabia were preparing on Monday to reap the benefits of the Trump administrations decision to end sanction waivers on Iran’s oil customers.
Trump to cut off all purchases of Iranian oil in escalation of ‘pressure campaign’
The Trump administration is requiring all countries to stop buying oil from Iran or face U.S. sanctions, an escalation of a policy that could roil world energy markets.
Egyptian voters urged to allow el-Sissi rule until 2030
Egyptian pro-government media are urging a ‘Yes’ vote on the second day of a nationwide referendum that would allow President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to stay in power until 2030.
F-35A deploys to Middle East for first time
The Air Force’s most advanced fighter jet has, for the first time, been deployed to the Middle East.
Investigator: 7 suicide attackers behind 6 of the Sri Lanka blasts
The coordinated Easter Sunday bombings that ripped through Sri Lankan churches and luxury hotels were carried out by seven suicide bombers, a government investigator said Monday.