Authorities in Belarus have authorized police to use lethal force if necessary against anti-government protesters, prompting more European Union sanctions. The move comes after officials confirmed that at least 713 people were detained since Sunday during mass protests against the reelection of the country’s authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko in a disputed vote.
Authorities in Kyrgyzstan have detained a former president, banned protests, and imposed a curfew in the Central Asian nation’s capital, amid mounting unrest over disputed elections. At the same time, Kyrgyzstan’s divided parliament appointed as the new prime minister a convicted kidnapper who escaped from prison with help from his supporters.
Free Iran news editor M. Hanif Jazayeri has tweeted that security forces sent by Ayatollah Khamenei were attacking civilians protesting against the Islamic regime in Tehran Thursday night.
The U.S. government has finally issued an official policy on the inadmissibility of foreigners affiliated with Communist or totalitarian parties. The critical new rule appears to be the Trump administration’s response to an epidemic of Communists, mainly from China, that have stolen billions of dollars in taxpayer-funded scientific research while working in the United States with Uncle Sam’s permission.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on the phone Wednesday to discuss cooperation in fighting COVID-19 as well as security matters in relation to Iran and Syria, World Israel News (WIN) reports.
Officials in the former Soviet nation of Kyrgyzstan say they have annulled the results of Sunday’s parliamentary elections after violent protests in the capital Bishkek killed at least one person.
In contrast to a low-key stance it has adopted in the past, China is now pushing hard for leadership posts in United Nations agencies, frequently resorting to bribery and economic coercion in doing so, the Washington Times reported on Sunday. As one of the five Permanent Members of the UN Security Council, China has veto power.
Germany’s government has condemned the latest anti-Semitic attack that overshadowed the 30th-anniversary commemoration of the reunification of Germany.
Shortly after tweeting a video of himself at Walter Reed Medical Center where he is being treated for COIVD-19, US President Donald Trump briefly left the Maryland hospital Sunday to conduct a drive-by salute to supporters gathered outside, Fox News reports. Wearing a black mask and seated in the back of a hermetically sealed, bulletproof SUV with his driver and security detail, Trump waved to a rallying crowd of people he had described in his earlier video as “great patriots.” The President then returned to the medical center to continue treatment.
Armenia says it is ready to discuss a ceasefire in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, where heavy fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces in recent days has killed dozens and left scores wounded. The announcement comes amid international calls to end the most significant escalation in years.
U.S. President Donald Trump arrived at a famed military hospital Friday after confirming that he and First Lady Melania Trump had tested positive for the coronavirus.
The European Union is considering the possible high-risk deployment of EU military observers to Libya in the event a ceasefire holds in the war-torn North African country, Politico reports. Libya has been the scene of a years-long civil war between Tripoli’s UN-backed Government of National Accord headed by Fayez al-Sarraj, and rebel General Khalifa Haftar, leader of the Libyan National Army (LNA).
Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden were in a verbal war as they debated issues ranging from Trump’s leadership on the coronavirus outbreak to deadly riots, job losses, and how the Supreme Court will impact the nation’s future.
The United Arab Emirates is making a bid to become a defense powerhouse in the Middle East less than two months after striking a historic deal to normalize relations with Israel, bulking up its military as it seeks a seat on the U.N. Security Council.
U.S. security officials are warning that violent domestic extremists pose a threat to the presidential election next month, amid what one official called a “witch’s brew” of rising political tensions, civil unrest and foreign disinformation campaigns.
Israeli Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that Israel is not ruling out a preliminary strike against Iran, the Jerusalem Post reports. The PM made his statement during a memorial service for those who died in the Yom Kippur War, when Arab states led by Syrian and Egyptian armies ambushed Israel in a surprise attack on October 8th 1973. At the time of the strike which led to war, Israel had been observing Yom Kippur, the most solemn and holy day in the Jewish calendar, and a time when the country comes to a standstill.
After learning that career analysts disputed there was Trump-Russia “collusion” in the run-up to the 2016 election, CIA Director John Brennan personally edited the intelligence report on Russian interference in the election in order to continue justifying the ongoing “collusion” probe, RealClearInvestigations (RCI) reported Thursday.
Russian troops deployed to Belarus for military exercises last week have not yet left, potentially challenging the security of NATO countries in the Baltic region.
Saudi Arabia on Monday said it broke up a terrorist cell that had received training from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, arresting 10 people and seizing weapons and explosives.
China’s recent takeover of Hong Kong is raising fears Taiwan is the next target in Beijing’s aggressive push for regional control, said White House National Security Adviser Robert C. O’Brien.