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Iraq recorded 829 COVID-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health said today, Monday. The daily epidemiological report on the COVID-19 situation stated that 18 COVID-19 deaths were registered today. On the other hand, 1,330 patients have achieved full recovery. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 in …

Greek public health sector workers protested in Athens over pay and conditions on Monday as hospitals struggled with a new surge in COVID-19 cases and authorities considered further restrictions. The protesters said they were underpaid, overworked, and understaffed. They called for more hirings, for the government to include them on …

The European Union agreed on Monday to draft a framework for possible sanctions on Russian mercenaries who could be deployed to West Africa’s Sahel region, France’s foreign minister said. Reuters reported in September that Mali’s military junta was in discussions about deploying Russia’s Wagner Group in Mali, which France says …

The death toll from Sudan’s latest anti-coup protests at the weekend has risen to eight, medics said Monday, bringing the total number killed since last month’s military takeover to 23. Three teenagers were among those who lost their lives during the latest mass protests on Saturday, which were met with …

A bomb blast in the Afghan capital of Kabul wounded two people on Monday, the Taliban’s interior ministry said, just two days after a similar explosion that was claimed by the Islamic State militant group. Both devices were of a magnetic type attached to vehicles that have become common in …

The Iraqi army and al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Forces-PMF) launched on Saturday a large-scale security operation to pursue ISIS operatives sheltering in mount Hemrin territory. According to a press release issued by the PMF command, the operation covered the territory between Baghdad-Kirkuk and Qara Tappa roads via eight axes: the …

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday that Western countries, rather than Belarus, were ultimately responsible for a migrant crisis on the Belarus-Poland border, pointing to wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Russia is a key ally of Belarus, which the European Union has accused of mounting a “hybrid attack” by …

Schools in New Delhi will be closed for a week and construction sites for four days, the Indian capital’s chief minister said on Saturday, as the city tries to protect people in a worsening air pollution crisis. Arvind Kejriwal said talks on a potential complete lockdown in the capital were …

A magnetic bomb attached to a passenger minivan exploded in a heavily Shi’ite area of the Afghan capital Kabul on Saturday, causing an unknown number of casualties, Taliban officials and local residents said. A recent spate of such attacks has heaped more pressure on the Taliban rulers, who took power …

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in the Sudanese capital Khartoum and other cities on Saturday to protest against a military takeover, despite security forces firing tear gas and bullets to disperse them, witnesses and medics said. One protester was killed by live fire from security forces …

Iraq’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the suspension of direct flights between Iraq and Belarus and the temporary withdrawal of the work permit of the honorary Belarusian consul in Baghdad. Ahmed Al-Sahaf, the Ministry’s spokesperson, said to Al-Iraqiya News, “the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has temporarily withdrawn the work …

Iraq’s Ministry of Defense reported the killing of an ISIS prominent official in Kirkuk governorate on Friday. The Ministry said in a statement, “The 3rd regiment launched an operation in the Albu Muhammad area of Wadi al-Shay in Kirkuk which resulted in the killing of the leader of the sniper …

The UK and the European Union inched away from a diplomatic cliff edge on Friday but remained miles apart in a post-Brexit spat that risks escalating into a cross-Channel trade war. Talks to resolve differences over Northern Ireland trade have dragged on for almost a month, with EU officials increasingly …

Indonesia’s top religious body has declared that Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are forbidden under Islamic law and should not be traded in the world’s biggest Muslim majority nation. The country’s powerful Ulema Council issued a fatwah, or religious edict, as virtual currency trading soars in Indonesia and elsewhere. Fatwas have …

World powers will push for sanctions against anyone who disrupts Libya’s electoral process and political transition, according to draft conclusions of a conference they are holding later on Friday in Paris. The meeting, which will include the leaders of France, Libya, Germany and Egypt, as well as the US vice …

The United States and Qatar have agreed that Qatar will represent the diplomatic interests of the United States in Afghanistan, a senior US official told Reuters, an important signal of potential direct engagement between Washington and Kabul in the future after two decades of war. Qatar will sign an arrangement …

Belarusian and Russian paratroopers staged joint drills on Friday near the Polish and Lithuanian borders, during a standoff between Belarus and the EU over migrants camped in freezing forests at the frontier. The exercise at the Gozhsky training ground involved airborne units landing and carrying out combat training, including capturing …

Austria’s government is likely to decide on Sunday to impose a lockdown on people who have not been vaccinated against the coronavirus as daily infections have surged to record levels, Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg said on Friday. Schallenberg did not say when the lockdown would take effect, but the two provinces …

Rebellious Tigrayan forces threatened on Friday to “hunt down” foreigners they said were supporting the Ethiopian government as mercenaries and technical experts in a year-long war. Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) spokesperson Getatchew Reda said the foreigners could be from Turkey, China, Israel, or the United Arab Emirates, without offering …

An explosion hit a mosque in the Spin Ghar district of Nangarhar province in eastern Afghanistan, wounding at least 12 people including the imam of the mosque, local residents said. Atal Shinwari, a resident of the area, said the blast occurred at around 1:30 p.m. when explosives apparently located in …