World News

President Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday called snap elections for June 24, saying economic challenges and the war in Syria meant Turkey must switch quickly to the powerful executive presidency that goes into effect after the vote.

China is using its $1 trillion-plus investment initiative in infrastructure projects as a way to expand its military footprint, projecting power and influence around the globe from the Horn of Africa into the Middle East and South Asia, says a report released this week.

Syria’s UN ambassador told the United Nations Security Council Tuesday that a UN security team traveled to the town of Douma, outside the capital Damascus, to ascertain whether it was safe for global chemical weapons experts to visit the site of a suspected chemical weapons attack last week that killed dozens.

Russia told the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday there was no point establishing a new inquiry to determine blame for chemical weapons attacks in Syria because the United States and its allies had already acted as judge and executioner.

Miniature human brains, or human brain organoids, can survive and grow after being implanted in the skulls of mice. It’s the first time human cerebral organoids have been installed inside another species.

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow on Tuesday downplayed the likelihood of the U.S. rejoining the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, saying the request by President Trump is more of a ‘thought than a policy’ right now.

CIA Director Mike Pompeo met secretly with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in recent weeks to set up a meeting between Mr. Kim and President Trump, two administration officials said Tuesday.

French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to outline his vision for the future of Europe as he addresses the European Parliament.

Mixed and contradictory reports emerged from Syria Saturday night over a mystery blast that rocked an Iranian base located on the outskirts of Aleppo.

China has expressed its intention, amid ongoing talks, to assist Iran in building several small nuclear power plants for civilian use, an Iranian lawmaker stated on Sunday according to Fars news agency.

Russian government-sponsored hackers are compromising the key hardware of government and business computer networks like routers and firewalls, giving them virtual control of data flows, Britain and the United States warned on Monday (Apr 16).

Researchers in the US and Britain have accidentally engineered an enzyme which eats plastic and may eventually help solve the growing problem of plastic pollution, a study said on Monday (Apr 16).

EU foreign ministers have discussed new sanctions on Syria, Iran, and Russia in light of the chemical warfare in Syria.

Syria’s air defense system responded to a missile attack on the Shayrat airbase in the city of Homs early Tuesday morning Hezbollah and Syrian army sources reported, according to Lebanon’s Daily Star. The missiles were intercepted and shot down, the report claims.

President Trump on Monday ordered a hold on new economic sanctions against Russia over its support for Syria and said he remain committed to pulling U.S. troops out of the war-torn nation, despite what was widely seen as a successful strike with allies on President Bashar Assad’s chemical weapons infrastructure over the weekend.

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned on Sunday that further Western attacks on Syria would bring chaos to world affairs, as Washington prepared to increase pressure on Russia with new economic sanctions.

President Donald Trump on Sunday defended his use of the phrase ‘Mission Accomplished’ to describe a U.S.-led missile attack on Syria’s chemical weapons program, even as his aides stressed continuing U.S. troop involvement and plans for new economic sanctions against Russia for enabling the government of Bashar Assad.

Russia’s stock market opened lower on Monday morning, amid renewed concerns over the prospect of imminent U.S. sanctions.

An armada of 12 warships — the largest US strike force since the 2003 Iraq war – is steaming toward the Middle East as President Trump mulls an attack on Syria in retaliation for a chemical weapons attack on civilians, according to a report.

The US and its allies fired more than 100 cruise missiles at Syria, a significant number of which were intercepted by Syrian air defenses, Russia and Syria said Saturday.