Pressure builds on Yemen’s warring parties as peace talks focus on port
Yemen’s warring parties are being pressed to agree thorny confidence-building measures, including the status of a strategic Red Sea port, in consultations on Wednesday before the close of the first U.N.-led peace talks in two years.
On Iraq’s border with Syria, Iran-backed militia warily eye U.S. forces
From a desert hillside guarded by Iraqi Shi’ite paramilitaries, commander Qasim Muslih can spot Islamic State hideouts across the frontier in Syria. But he also keeps a wary eye on U.S. warplanes soaring overhead.
Philippine Congress extends Mindanao martial law until end-2019
The Philippine Congress approved a 12-month extension of martial law in the restive Mindanao region on Wednesday, after President Rodrigo Duterte argued for maintaining tough security measures to stop Muslim extremists from regrouping.
China says detained Canadian may have broken foreign NGO law
If International Crisis Group (ICG) employee Michael Kovrig was carrying out “relevant activities” for the group in China without it being registered, then he may have broken China’s foreign NGO law, China’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.
Syrian state seizes opponents’ property, rights activists say
Syria’s government has been using a little-known anti-terrorism law to seize property from dissidents and their families as it takes back control of areas that were held by rebel groups, rights groups and some of the people affected say.
Pressure builds on Yemen’s warring parties as peace talks tackle key port
Yemen’s warring parties are being pressed to agree thorny confidence-building measures, including the status of a strategic Red Sea port, in consultations on Wednesday ahead of the close of the first U.N.-led peace talks in two years.
Former Malaysian PM Najib, 1MDB ex-CEO face fresh corruption charges
Malaysian prosecutors on Wednesday filed new graft charges against former prime minister Najib Razak and the former chief executive of scandal-linked state fund 1MDB, in the latest cases over alleged theft of billions of dollars from the fund.
Crisis Group says no word from China on detained Canadian employee
The International Crisis Group (ICG) on Wednesday said it had received no information from Chinese officials about the detention of its employee, former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig, and that it was seeking consular access to him.
Weeding out foreigners: strains over Thailand’s legalization of marijuana
Thailand is set to become the first Asian country to legalize medical marijuana, but a battle is brewing between local and foreign firms over control of a potentially lucrative market.
‘Aware of atrocities’: Twitter CEO responds to critics of Myanmar tweets
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey on Wednesday said he was “aware of the human rights atrocities and suffering in Myanmar,” responding to criticism over his tweets about his meditation retreat in the country that did not mention the plight of Rohingya Muslims.
