A COVID-19 vaccine developed by German biotech firm BioNTech and U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has shown potential and was found to be well tolerated in early-stage human trials, the companies said on Wednesday. The drug is one of 17 being tested on humans in a frantic global race to find …
Read More »France freezes role in NATO naval force amid Turkey tensions
France is temporarily pulling out of a NATO naval operation in the Mediterranean, in a move that indicates there was not enough support from the alliance following an aggressive encounter with Turkish ships last month. French Ambassador to NATO Muriel Domenach sent a letter on Tuesday to NATO Secretary-General Jens …
Read More »Trump Ramps Up Attack on NYT, Says Russia Bounty Story’s ‘Secret Source Probably Doesn’t Even Exist’
Democrats have asked Congress to consider new sanctions against Moscow over media claims that Russia has been paying Taliban-affiliated militants to kill American and other coalition troops serving in Afghanistan. Russian officials have vocally denied the allegations, and accused those pushing them of trying to further undermine Russia-US ties. US …
Read More »Palestinians Protest Against Israeli Plans to Extend Its Sovereignty Over West Bank
Earlier this week, Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz said that the 1 July deadline for Israel to extend its sovereignty over some parts of the West Bank, was not “a sacred date,” stressing that his priorities lay in tackling COVID-19, not new territory. Palestinians take to the streets of Ramallah …
Read More »Johnson warns Israel UK will not recognize any changes to 1967 line
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned Israel against proceeding with plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank, calling them illegal. Writing in an article published in Hebrew on the front page of Israel’s top-selling daily, Yediot Aharonot, Johnson, despite saying he is a “passionate defender of Israel,” …
Read More »Iran, Russia, Turkey issue joint statement on Syria
Presidents of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Russian Federation, and the Republic of Turkey issued a joint statement, emphasizing their strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria. President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, H.E. Hassan Rouhani, President of the Russian Federation, H.E. Vladimir …
Read More »What is Canada Day? We explain
Canada Day is exactly what it sounds like: a federal holiday to celebrate the country and show off national pride. When is it? July 1 is Canada Day. How did it start? July 1 commemorates the joining of Canada’s original three provinces (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the Canada province, …
Read More »Coronavirus: Iraq confirms 2415 new cases, total reaches 51,524
Iraq reported 2415 new cases of Coronavirus during the past 24 hours, the Iraqi Ministry of Health announced on Wednesday. The new casualties were distributed as: Baghdad / Rusafa 341 Baghdad / Al-Karkh 235 Baghdad / Medical City 42 Najaf 165 Sulaymaniyah 181 Erbil 58 Dohuk 1 Kerbala 115 Kirkuk …
Read More »Six Dead, 17 Injured in Explosion at Thermal Power Station in India’s Tamil Nadu
At least Six people are reportedly dead and 17 have sustained injuries in a boiler blast at the Neyveli Thermal Power Station in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu on Wednesday. The blast occurred in Unit 5 of Plant 2. Contract workers and permanent staff were active at the …
Read More »Turkey accuses ‘biased’ France of allowing Libya embargo violations in support of Haftar
Ankara has taken aim at France for allegedly ignoring violations of an international arms embargo placed on Libya, claiming that illegal activity was being carried out to benefit commander Khalifa Haftar. According to Reuters, Turkey’s ambassador to Paris, Ismail Hakki Musa, said on Wednesday that the United Arab Emirates and …
Read More »Italy reports “biggest seizure of amphetamines in the world”: $1B worth of pills from ISIS in Syria
Italian police said Wednesday that they had seized a world record 15-ton haul of amphetamines made by ISIS in Syria. The drug, in the form of 84 million Captagon tablets, was worth about one billion euros ($1.1 billion), police said in a statement, describing the operation as “the biggest seizure …
Read More »Turkish envoy says France suspending role in NATO naval mission
Turkey’s ambassador to France on Wednesday said that Paris had informed NATO it was suspending its involvement in a naval operation in the Mediterranean after a probe into an incident between French and Turkish warships did not back Paris’ claims. Ties between NATO allies France and Turkey have soured in …
Read More »Pakistani PM says ‘no doubt’ India was behind the deadly attack
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has told Parliament he had no doubt that India was behind a deadly attack on the stock exchange building in the southern city of Karachi. Four gunmen armed with grenades attacked the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Monday, killing two guards and a policeman before security …
Read More »US buys almost the entire world stock of Covid-19 drug remdesivir
The Trump administration has bought up virtually the entire stock for the next three months of one of the drugs proven to work against Covid-19, leaving none for the UK, Europe, or most of the rest of the world. On Monday the US Department of Health and Human Services (HSS) …
Read More »Two Iraqi civilians killed in US-led drone strike
At least two Iraqi civilians have reportedly been killed in a drone strike by the US-led military coalition purportedly formed to fight the Daesh terrorist group in the country’s northern province of Salahuddin. A security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, that the civilians were killed in an area on …
Read More »Euro zone factory downturn eased in June as lockdowns loosened
The downturn in eurozone manufacturing was not as bad as initially thought last month after more economies in the bloc eased restrictions imposed to quell the spread of the coronavirus, a survey showed. Over 10 million people have been infected by the virus globally and more than 500,000 have died, …
Read More »Hong Kong police make first arrest under new security law
Hong Kong police made their first arrest under a new national security law imposed by China’s central government, arresting a protester Wednesday for carrying a flag calling for Hong Kong’s independence. The man was arrested after police had issued multiple warnings to the crowd at a protest in the city’s …
Read More »Turkey: Up to 60 migrants feared dead after boat sinks
Up to 60 migrants may have been trapped in a boat that sank in an eastern lake last week, Turkey’s interior minister said Wednesday. Turkey launched a search-and-rescue mission involving helicopters and boats after the boat carrying migrants across Lake Van was reported missing on June 27. So far rescue …
Read More »UN says Afghan army mistakenly fired mortars that killed 23
The U.N. mission in Afghanistan said its findings indicate the Afghan military had mistakenly fired the mortars this week at a busy market in southern Helmand province that inflicted heavy civilian casualties. A car bombing and mortar shells struck the market in Sangin district on Monday, killing 23 people, including …
Read More »U.S. to work with Turkey on F-35 parts until 2022, state media citing Pentagon says
The United States will continue working with Turkish companies producing some parts of F-35 fighter jets until 2022, Turkey’s state-owned Anadolu agency quoted a Pentagon spokeswoman as saying on Wednesday. Turkey said in May it was still producing and delivering parts for the stealth jets despite being suspended from the …
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