US, Iran top diplomats return to nuclear talks
US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif returned to talks over Tehran’s nuclear program on Tuesday. They are seeking to resolve differences blocking a deal that would curb Iran’s nuclear program and ease sanctions on the country. The new talks came after US Republicans published a letter warning that any deal could collapse the day President Barack Obama leaves office, AP reported.
3 jailed in Myanmar for insulting Buddhism
A court in Myanmar has sentenced a New Zealand bar manager and his two business associates to two years and six months in prison for insulting Buddhism, AP said. The three, including a New Zealand national, were convicted for posting a flyer on social media that showed a psychedelic depiction of Buddha wearing headphones. Phillip Blackwood, 32, Tun Thurein, 40, and Htut Ko Ko Lwin, 26, were given two years on Tuesday for insulting religion and six months for disobeying an order from a public servant. The sentence came as the predominantly Buddhist nation grapples with a surge of religious nationalism.
Australian Roman Catholic archbishop charged with concealing child abuse in 1970s
A Roman Catholic archbishop in Australia was charged Tuesday with covering up for a pedophile priest during the 1970s, AP reported. Archbishop of Adelaide Philip Wilson said he would fight the charge, which carries a potential two-year prison sentence. New South Wales state police allege the 64-year-old failed to report child sex abuse carried out by priest James Fletcher during the 1970s when they both served in the town of Maitland, north of Sydney. Fletcher died in prison aged 65 in 2006, a year into an almost eight-year sentence for assaulting an altar boy between 1989 and 1991.
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Foreign ministers of China, Japan, S. Korea to meet this week for 1st talks in 3 years
The foreign ministers of South Korea, China and Japan will meet this week for their first trilateral talks in three years, AP quoted Seoul officials as saying Tuesday. The annual talks began in 2007. They have been suspended since they were last held in April 2012 due to territorial and history disputes, and there have been no meetings since then of the leaders of the three states. The agenda of Saturday’s meeting in Seoul includes ways to strengthen ties between the countries.
Lufthansa pilots striking Wednesday over retirement scheme
Pilots at German airline Lufthansa plan to strike on Wednesday, Reuters reported. They seek to raise the pressure on management in a dispute over an early retirement scheme and plans to expand budget flights. Pilots’ union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) said the strike would focus on short- and medium-haul flights. Lufthansa’s management remained undeterred in its efforts to offer less attractive working conditions for younger pilots, according to the union. The airline said it expected to operate about two thirds of its roughly 3,000 scheduled flights on Wednesday.
S. Korea prosecutors blame North for hacking on nuclear operator in December
South Korean prosecutors on Tuesday blamed North Korea for cyber attacks against Seoul’s nuclear reactor operator last December. The conclusion was based upon its investigation into internet addresses used in the hacking, Reuters said. “The malicious codes used for the nuclear operator hacking were the same in composition and working methods as the so-called ‘kimsuky’ that North Korean hackers use,” Seoul central prosecutors’ office said. South Korea had earlier sought help from Chinese officials after tracing multiple Internet addresses involved to a northeastern Chinese city near North Korea.
Pakistan hangs 10 convicted murderers
Pakistan on Tuesday hanged 10 convicted murderers from prisons across the country, AFP reported. This is the highest number in a single day after the government lifted a six-year-old moratorium on capital punishment, according to officials. The hangings bring to 37 the number of convicts hanged since Pakistan resumed executions in December after Taliban militants gunned down 154 people at a school in the northwest.
Over 1,400 French citizens keep contact with extremists in Syria
France’s Ministry of Interior has calculated the number of French citizens somehow connected to the warring in Syria on the side of Islamic jihadists, reported Figaro on Tuesday. According to Paris’ estimates, 1,422 French citizens have ties to extremists in fighting in Syria. Of them 413, including over 100 women are fighting in Syrian on Islamists’ side right now. About 300 holders of French passports are now making their way to Syria and some 260 former terror fighters have returned to France. Besides all of them some 360 French citizens at home are keeping contacts with extremists in Syria. Approximately 80 French citizens have died fighting in the country.
Prime suspect in Nemtsov murder has alibi – lawyer
The prime suspect in the murder of Russian opposition figure Boris Nemtsov, Zaur Dadaev, who previously confessed to the murder, now states that he has an alibi. According to his lawyer, Dadaev claims to have been“somewhere else” at the time of the murder. The defense team says they will officially declare the alibi to court if Dadaev's claim is proven to be true. At the moment the layers are checking the credibility of he alibi. The existence of an alibi was previously voiced by another suspect involved in the case – Tamerlane Eskerhanov. According to him, on the night of the murder, he was in a nightclub.
EU’s Mogherini says meeting with Iran useful, contributed to nuclear deal
Head of EU foreign policy, Federica Mogherini, said that her talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will contribute to advancing the negotiations over Iran's nuclear program. “This was a useful meeting and I am confident it will contribute to advancing the process in the coming days and week,”Mogherini said on Monday after the ongoing P5+1 nuclear negotiations with Iran. Following the meeting, Mogherini and the three European foreign ministers of Germany, France and Britain stressed the need to work towards reaching agreement, as the deadline for a framework deal approaches at the end of March. A full accord is due by July 1.
Anti-Russia sanctions, Minsk deal implementation to be connected – Merkel
Germany will urge EU leaders at a summit later this week to commit to tying any relaxation of sanctions against Russia to the implementation of the Minsk peace deals, Dow Jones quoted German Chancellor Angela Merkel as saying Monday. She will urge her counterparts at the Brussels summit this Thursday and Friday to agree to a “political commitment that sanctions and the implementation of Minsk are closely connected.” The decision on new sanctions will not be considered before June, RIA Novosti reported, citing Merkel.
UN Human Rights Council delays consideration of war crimes report on 2014 Gaza conflict
The UN Human Rights Council in Geneva has postponed until June the discussion on the report about the events in 2014 in Gaza, Tass reported. On March 9, the UN said its investigators who were looking at possible war crimes by sides of the conflict between Israel and Hamas had asked to postpone publication of their report until June, to allow further time to consider further evidence they had received.
Pakistani police break up church attack protests in Lahore
Police in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore broke up Christian protesters with tear gas and baton charges Monday, Reuters said. The protests came a day after suicide bombers killed at least 16 people outside two churches, one Catholic and one Protestant. The protesters, angry at the lack of security for Christians in the majority-Muslim country, blocked a major highway in the city. Sunday’s attacks, claimed by a faction of the Pakistani Taliban, occurred minutes apart in a majority-Christian suburb of Lahore.
Bosnia donates 550 tons of arms to Iraq
Bosnia has donated more than 550 tons of surplus arms and ammunition to Iraq, the Balkan country’s defense minister said Monday. The move is part of Bosnia’s involvement in the US-led coalition against Islamic State militants, Reuters reported. The donation was made on request from the US and comprises arms and ammunition produced decades ago, Minister Zekerijah Osmic said.
Kurds in Iraq probe 2 possible Islamic State chemical weapon attacks
Kurdish forces in Iraq are investigating two other possible chemical weapons attacks by the Islamic State group, AP reported, citing a top official. The two purported chemical weapon attacks resemble one reported last week by Kurdish officials. They say an independent laboratory concluded the militants used chlorine gas against its Peshmerga forces in a January 23 truck suicide attack. The claims were not immediately verified by international authorities. The two newly announced attacks happened on December 26 and January 28, but the authorities did not discuss them for fear of causing panic.
Burned belfry of Moscow’s Novodevichy Convent to be restored by autumn
The belfry of the world famous Novodevichy Convent in Moscow, which is on a UNESCO world heritage list, has been closed for restoration following a fire that broke out last night, Tass reported, citing officials. The belfry’s cupola and some of its bells will have to be replaced, Deputy Culture Minister Grigory Pirumov said Monday. Only the cupola needs replacing because it was exposed to a very strong wind and high temperatures and has been knocked out of shape and moved sideways as a result, he said.
Saudi 2015 execution tally rises to 45
A man convicted of murder was beheaded in the Saudi capital on Monday, taking to 45 the number of executions since January 1, AFP said. The beheading of Saad bin Abdullah al-Jadid was reported by the official SPA news agency. Saudi Arabia has carried out around 80 executions annually since 2011, with 87 recorded last year.
EU to maintain sanctions against Crimea
The EU will maintain sanctions against Crimea, Russia, and wants the UN to consider similar measures, RIA Novosti reported, citing a statement of EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini. The EU reaffirmed its position not to recognize the reunification of the Crimean peninsula with Russia after a year has passed since that event, according to the statement approved by the EU’s foreign ministers.
Investigators bring charges against 3rd suspect in Nemtsov killing
Investigators have brought charges against Khamzat Bakhayev, who was detained in connection with murder of Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, RAPSI quoted Bakhayev’s lawyer Sophia Rubasskaya as saying on Monday. Bakhayev, who pleaded not guilty, was charged with murder and illegal weapons trafficking. On March 8, the Basmanny District Court in Moscow ordered to arrest five suspects in the case.
Israeli candidates campaign in last day before parliamentary election
Israeli election candidates are making their final appeals to voters Monday, the eve of the parliamentary election. It will determine whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can secure another term in office. Latest polls have shown Netanyahu’s Likud party trailing the centrist Zionist Union by about four seats, AP said. Netanyahu’s rival, Zionist Union leader Isaac Herzog, promises to repair ties with the Palestinians and the international community and also bring relief to the country’s struggling middle class.
Houthis militants lift house arrest on Yemeni PM, cabinet
Yemen’s dominant Houthi group on Monday released Prime Minister Khaled Bahah and his cabinet ministers after nearly two months under house arrest, Reuters quoted government spokesman Rajeh Badi as saying. Bahah said on his Facebook page the move was a goodwill gesture to ease talks on Yemen’s political transition. Bahah, who resigned in January after the Houthis captured the presidential palace, said he had no intention of resuming his post.
More than 50 IS fighters killed by airstrike in Iraq
More than 50 fighters of Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) have been killed in an airstrike that targeted their meeting in the north of Ramadi, Al Arabiya reported, citing the operations command of Iraq’s al-Anbar province. Those killed reportedly included foreign militants with senior command posts within ISIS.
Afghan forces kill 10 militants affiliated with ISIS
Afghan security forces have killed 10 fighters who claimed to be from the Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) in Afghanistan, Reuters reported. The militants, all associated with the IS, were killed in an operation in the southern province of Helmand on Sunday, according to Defense Ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri. One of the militants as Hafiz Wahidi, the nephew and successor of Mullah Abdul Rauf, a veteran militant killed last month in a drone strike.
Leaders of Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan to meet in Astana on March 20
The presidents of Kazakhstan, Russia and Belarus will meet in Astana on March 20, TASS quoted a spokesman for the Kazakh leader as saying on Monday. Vladimir Putin and Aleksandr Lukashenko have reportedly confirmed they will attend the meeting. Multilateral trade and economic cooperation will be discussed, and the presidents are also expected to focus on global economic issues and the Ukrainian crisis.
Iran, US resume nuclear talks in Switzerland
US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif resumed nuclear talks on Monday in the Swiss city of Lausanne, Reuters said. The aim of the negotiations is to try to narrow gaps before a March 31 deadline for a political deal. Kerry has urged Tehran to make concessions that would allow six world powers to reach a political framework agreement for a nuclear deal that would lift sanctions in exchange for curbs on Tehran’s nuclear program.
Putin orders combat alert for Northern Fleet
President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Northern Fleet, certain units of airborne forces and the Western Military District to be put on full combat alert from 05:00 GMT on Monday, TASS reported. Snap checks will serve to evaluate the capabilities of the Northern Fleet to ensure Russia’s military security in the Arctic, according to Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu.
Brazilian protesters in 150 cities demand president’s ouster
Hundreds of thousands of Brazilians marched on Sunday in more than 150 cities around the country to demand President Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment amid a sprawling graft inquiry at state-run oil firm Petrobras, AP reported. The biggest of the protests took place in Sao Paulo. Prosecutors call a kickback scheme at Petrobras the biggest corruption scandal ever uncovered in Brazil. At least $800 million was paid in bribes and other funds by construction and engineering firms in exchange for inflated Petrobras contracts.
Venezuela’s Maduro granted legislative powers
The Venezuelan parliament has granted President Nicolas Maduro legislative powers on Sunday for a period lasting nine months. It comes in the midst of the current situation in the country, which the leader has in the past described as an attempted coup by the US. The decree has already become known as the ‘anti-imperialist law’ and comes at Maduro’s own request, shortly after sanctions imposed on Venezuela by the Obama administration’s targeting of high-ranking government officials. This took place just as the country was holding massive military drills, presumably as a show of force to Washington. Critics of Maduro’s political apparatus have continued raising the issue of human rights and believe the new decree to be a power grab.
6.3 magnitude earthquake hits near Papua New Guinea
An earthquake measuring 6.3 in magnitude has struck off the coast of Papua New Guinea, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). The quake’s epicenter was located six miles (nine km) northwest of the town of Rabaul, on the northeastern part of the island. No casualties or damages have been reported thus far
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