Plane crashes in Kazakhstan shortly after takeoff, at least 15 dead
A Bek Air plane with 93 passengers and five crew members on board crashed near the city of Almaty in Kazakhstan on Friday shortly after taking off, killing at least 15 people, authorities in the Central Asian country said.
India tightens security for protests after Friday prayers
Indian authorities stepped up security in major cities on Friday and suspended mobile data services in some places in an effort to maintain order ahead of protests planned against a new citizenship law.
Australian wildfires threaten Sydney water supplies
Australian authorities said on Friday they are focused on protecting water plants, pumping stations, pipes and other infrastructure from intense bushfires surrounding Sydney, the country’s largest city.
Netanyahu wins party vote in boost ahead of Israeli election
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu easily won a vote to keep the Likud party helm, the party said on Friday, in a boost ahead of what is likely to be a hard-fought general election in March.
Moderate quake strikes near Iran’s Bushehr nuclear plant, no damage reported
An earthquake of magnitude of 4.9 struck near Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant on Friday but an Iranian emergency services official said there were no immediate reports of damage.
Passenger plane crashes in Kazakhstan killing at least nine
A Bek Air plane with 95 passengers and five crew members on board crashed near the city of Almaty in Kazakhstan on Friday, killing at least nine people, authorities in the Central Asian country said.
No reports of damage from quake near Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant: TV
An 4.9 magnitude earthquake struck Iran’s Bushehr province on Friday, where the country’s nuclear power plant is located, but there were no immediate reports of damage, Iranian state television reported.
Plane with 100 on board crashes in Kazakhstan
A plane with 95 passengers and five crew members on board crashed near Almaty on Friday, the airport of Kazakhstan’s biggest city said.
Fury grows after protest deaths in Indian Muslim neighborhood
Zaheer Ahmed had just returned home from work in northern India last Friday afternoon and stepped out for a smoke before lunch.
Death toll reaches 28 as Philippines recovers from Christmas typhoon
The death toll from a Christmas typhoon that tore through the central Philippines rose to 28 on Friday, with 12 people missing, the disaster agency said, as authorities moved to restore power and residents tried to repair damaged homes.
