30 December, 2014 19:52 No plans to transfer US military vehicles from Afghanistan to Ukraine – Pentagon The Pentagon has refused to confirm a report from a Kabul government source that the US plans to move MRAP (Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicles from its mission in Afghanistan to Ukraine, Tass news agency reported. A Pentagon representative told the agency there were no such plans at the moment, but added that the US is studying all Ukraines requests for assistance. An Afghan presidential administration official earlier informed Tass that US specialists in Afghanistan were preparing for MRAPs to be transferred to Ukraine, and that Kabul was against such a move. The official said the issue was going to be discussed by the countrys president, Ashraf Ghani, with President Barack Obama during a planned visit in January. The issue is directly connected with sustaining the countrys strategic partnership with the US, the official added. 16:50 US airstrike kills senior militant leader in Somalia A leader of al-Qaeda linked militant group Al-Shabaab was killed in a US airstrike, Somalia’s National Intelligence and Security Agency said Tuesday. With the help of the Somali national security and intelligence agency and its US counterpart, an Al-Shabaab leader was killed last night,” the agency said in a statement. On Monday, the Pentagon confirmed it had launched an airstrike, targeting an unidentified leader of the Islamist group in Saakow, some 330 kilometers west of Mogadishu. The militants have been attempting to overthrow western-backed Somalian government. In September, the US killed the group’s top leader, Ahmed Godane, in an airstrike. 16:22 Death toll rises to 11 in Norman Atlantic fire Rescuers have discovered the body of the 11th person who died on the Norman Atlantic ferry during a fire, media reports say. The statement was published on the Twitter page of Italy’s coastguard. 15:27 Turkey clears police officer who shot and killed Gezi protester An internal investigation has cleared the police officer who shot and killed Gezi protester Ethem Sarısuluk during last year’s nationwide protests, Hurriyet Daily News reported. The inquiry said the policeman, Ahmet Şahbaz, used his gun in self-defense, as he was being targeted with stones “big enough to kill someone.” The inquiry described the mass protests as a “coup attempt” to overthrow the government. 15:02 New airstrikes hit ISIS targets in Syria, Iraq The US and its allies conducted 15 airstrikes against Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Several units of fighters and buildings were hit, the US-led Combined Joint Task Force said. Seven strikes hit in Syria and eight in Iraq. 14:59 4 killed, 38 injured in Germany bus crash A bus crash on a highway in central Germany killed at least four people and injured another 38 on Tuesday, AP reported. The crash occurred near the town of Bad Hersfeld, about 100 kilometers northeast of Frankfurt. A car collided with the bus, causing it to veer off the road and down a slope. 14:12 Russia won’t leave ‘unfriendly US steps without response’ – Foreign Ministry Moscow will not leave unfriendly steps without response, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a comment on the expansion of US sanctions. The ministry’s spokesman, Aleksandr Lukashevich, described the inclusion of four Russian officials on the Magnitsky list as “politically motivated.” He also criticized as “groundless” restrictions imposed on Russian companies based on the US law on sanctions against Iran and Syria. The US actions question the “perspectives of bilateral cooperation in solving many acute international problems,” he said. 13:46 Detention of Bahrain opposition leader extended for week The detained head of Bahrain’s main Shiite Muslim opposition group has been remanded in custody for a further week, Reuters quoted a group official as saying Tuesday. Sheikh Ali Salman, secretary general of the Al-Wefaq Islamic Society, was detained Sunday after leading a protest rally over last month’s elections. The UN human right office in Geneva said it was concerned at Salman’s detention and potentially lengthy prison sentence. 13:29 Suicide car bomber rams Libya parliament HQ A suicide car bomber has rammed his vehicle into the outer gate of the headquarters of the Libyan parliament, AP reported. No one was killed in the attack in the eastern city of Tobruk, according to parliamentarian Abu Bakr Baeira. The assembly has been forced to convene in the city since Islamist-allied militias seized the capital, Tripoli, over the summer and revived a rival government. No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing. 13:15 Gambian military coup ‘foiled’ – reports Gambian soldiers launched a pre-dawn coup bid in the capital Banjul while President Yahya Jammeh was abroad, and it appeared to have been foiled, AFP reported. The presidential palace was attacked at around 0300 GMT “by armed individuals of whom some came from the presidential guard,” according to a Gambian diplomat. Army sources and residents said the attackers had been driven back. “They wanted to overthrow the regime,” a military source in the west African country said, and a Western diplomat said a coup attempt has “apparently been foiled.” 12:24 AirAsia flight overshoots runway near Boracay, Philippines An AirAsia Airbus A320 plane reportedly overshot the runway at Kalibo International Airport near Boracay, a popular Philippines tourist destination, on Tuesday evening. Posts on social media showed emergency slides being deployed from the plane, which appeared to have come to a halt on a grassy field, the Straits Times reported. Passengers said the plane came to “a very abrupt stop.” No injuries were reported. The flight was scheduled to depart at around 4.15pm on Tuesday, but was delayed by almost two hours due to bad weather, according to the paper. 11:52 Syria govt, opposition may hold talks in Moscow on January 27-29 Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad has said that the Syrian government may hold talks with opposition representatives in Moscow on January 27-29, RIA Novosti reported. Russia has already made contacts regarding the talks, he told Kyodo news agency. It is reported that representatives of Syrian opposition groups will meet with Russian public figures in Moscow on January 27. The meeting may be followed by negotiations between the opposition and Syrian government officials on January 27-29. 11:36 29 killed by Philippines storm, 10 missing Flash floods and landslides triggered by Tropical Storm Jangmi left at least 29 people dead and 10 missing in the Philippines, AP quoted officials as saying Tuesday. Jangmi, packing winds of 65 kilometers an hour and gusts of 80 kilometers an hour, dumped heavy rains Monday on southern Mindanao Island, sending thousands of residents to evacuation centers. The storm then pushed its way through eastern and central islands of the Philippines, where most of the deaths occurred Tuesday. As of Tuesday afternoon, the eye of the storm was 108 kilometers southwest of central Iloilo City, moving west at 19 kilometers an hour toward the western Palawan Island. 11:05 Estonia issues protest note to Russian envoy over ‘plane incident’ The Estonian Foreign Ministry summoned Russian Ambassador Yury Merzlyakov on Tuesday to issue him with a protest note over the alleged violation of Estonia’s airspace. Tallinn says a Russian An-72 entered its airspace on December 25 for about one minute. Russia’s Defense Ministry has denied allegations that an Air Force plane violated Estonias airspace, saying the plane flew over neutral waters of the Baltic Sea in strict compliance with international law. 10:44 IS claims suicide attack in Iraq that killed 16 Islamic State (also known as ISIS, or ISIL) on Tuesday claimed responsibility for a suicide attack north of Baghdad the day before that killed 16 people and wounded 34 others, AP said. The group did not mention the nationality of the attacker in a posting on its Twitter account. Monday’s attack targeted the funeral of the father of two members of pro-government Sunni militias. 10:10 Albanian sailor killed, another injured in operation to secure Italian ferry A sailor on board an Albanian tugboat has died and another was seriously injured during an operation to secure a stricken Italian ferry, AP reported, citing officials. Hundreds of people were previously rescued, and 10 people died, following a fire on the Norman Atlantic. The two Albanian sailors were apparently hit by a rope they had been trying to attach to the Norman Atlantic, which has been drifting rudderless near the Albanian port town of Vlore, police spokesman Dionis Dulaj said Tuesday. 09:49 Pakistan court remands mastermind of 2008 Mumbai attacks in kidnapping case A court in Pakistan on Tuesday remanded the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks in police custody for two days in a kidnapping case, AFP reported. The decision came a day after another court approved his release. Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi was accused over the terror siege in India’s commercial capital, and the case has worsened ties with India. Lakhvi was granted bail on December 18, drawing an angry response from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 09:20 Nearly quarter million flee due to Malaysia flooding Malaysia’s worst flooding in a decade has forced nearly a quarter of a million people from their homes, Reuters quoted officials as saying on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the government came under fire for its perceived slow response. “Exceptionally high” water levels had cut off rescuers from relief centers as the death toll rose to 21 across the northeast, according to the National Security Council. Fifteen people have been killed in neighboring southern Thailand. 08:55 5.3-magnitude earthquake hit Bushehr Province, Iran A 5.3-magnitude earthquake hit Iran’s southern Bushehr Province near the country’s nuclear power plant on Tuesday, IRNA reported on Tuesday. After the town of Shonbeh was hit at 03:49 GMT, several buildings were damaged, but no casualties were reported. The quake jolted a sparsely-populated district, and the epicenter of quake was in the Shonbeh district, some 120km southeast of Bushehr, the home to the country’s first nuclear power plant, Iran’s state TV said. 07:56 1st person diagnosed with Ebola in UK transferred to London A health worker who was the first person diagnosed with Ebola in Britain was being transferred to a London hospital from Scotland on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The woman will be treated in an isolation unit at the Royal Free hospital, the Scottish government said. The worker, who flew from Sierra Leone to Glasgow late on Sunday, was diagnosed with the deadly virus on Monday and was initially treated at Scotland’s Gartnavel Hospital. 06:00 Ruling on top Russian opposition figure to be announced, security tight near court Security has been boosted near a Moscow district court, which is set to announce its ruling in the trial of Russian opposition activist. Aleksey Navalny is facing up to 10 years in prison for allegedly embezzling over $500,000 from cosmetics company Yves Roche. Seven police vans have been deployed near the court building together with five trucks and an ambulance. The court is cordoned off by around 30 police officers, according to a RIA Novosti estimate. The courts verdict was initially scheduled for January 15. Rescheduling the announcement has caused an uproar among Navalny’s supporters. 04:47 At least 27 hurt, mostly Russians, in Thai bus crash At least 27 people were injured as a tourist bus flipped over on a road between the Phuket island destinations of Kamala and Patong. The Russian embassy in Thailand has confirmed that 25 passengers were Russians. The incident happened when the bus and a car collided on the main road, flipping the Patong-bound bus over into an entranceway next to the Kamala Falls estate. A spokesperson at Patong Hospital said the injured are being treated after sustaining various injuries, with some being seriously hurt. 02:21 Libya contracts US firm to fight fires at biggest oil port A US firefighter firm has been contracted by Libya’s recognized government to extinguish fires at storage tanks at Es Sider oil port, according to Reuters. The value of the contract is $6 million, though the company name has not been released. Fires have been raging for several days at the port. Six tanks were set ablaze after an attack between a competing government group vying for control of the country’s oil facilities at its biggest port. Three of the tanks fires have been extinguished.
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 03:41:45 +0000
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