Section: The Gulf Today (United Arab Emirates)
Pope in surprise visit to comfort women in Rome
Vatican City: Pope Francis surprised 20 former prostitutes on Friday by knocking on their door in Rome and popping in for a chat. The Argentine, who has repeatedly described the human trafficking behind much prostitution as “a crime against humanity,” sat down with the group, including two women from Albania, seven from Nigeria and six from...
Ukraine troops put on ‘high alert’
KIEV: Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko put his troops on the border with Russian-held Crimea and in the country’s eastern regions on “high alert” after he warned that Vladimir Putin is seeking to reignite conflict in the disputed territories. The command came a day after the Russian president said Ukrainian agents had engaged in...
Putin accuses Ukraine of ‘terror’ over alleged Crimea raids
Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday accused Ukraine of waging “terror” over alleged attempted incursions into annexed Crimea that Kiev has fiercely denied. Russia’s security agency announced it had thwarted “terrorist attacks” in Crimea by Ukrainian military intelligence and beaten back an armed assault, claims that have...
Back in Ukraine, freed pilot launches new hunger strike
Kiev: A Ukrainian pilot released from a Russian jail in May launched a fresh hunger strike on Tuesday in protest over Kiev’s failure to secure the return of other prisoners of war in the separatist east. A Russian court sentenced the 35-year-old army helicopter navigator Nadiya Savchenko to 22 years in prison in March over the 2014 killing...
Journalist killed in Kiev car bombing buried in Belarus
Minsk: Thousands of mourners in Belarus on Saturday bid farewell to prominent independent journalist Pavel Sheremet, killed by a car bomb in Kiev, as he was buried back in the homeland where he clashed with the authorities. Sheremet — who was born in Minsk but took Russian citizenship — was blown up while driving near his home in the heart of the...
Top independent reporter dies in Kiev car bomb
Kiev: A car bomb in Kiev on Wednesday killed a pro-Western reporter from a news site whose founder was beheaded 16 years ago after probing the alleged crimes of Ukrainian leaders. The killing of 44-year-old Pavel Sheremet — a Russian national born in Belarus — added a new degree of uncertainty and fear to a country struggling with a pro-Moscow...
Ukraine army deaths soar in July
Kiev: Ukraine’s army suffered its deadliest month since August 2015 as international diplomacy fails to stem more than two years of fighting in the nation’s east. Seven soldiers were killed and 14 wounded in the past 24 hours, the biggest daily death toll since May, military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said on Tuesday. That brings the...
Ukrainian villagers and relatives mourn MH17 crash victims on second anniversary
Petropavlivka: Villagers held a vigil on Sunday at the site in eastern Ukraine where Flight MH17 was shot down two years ago, as bereaved relatives marked the anniversary with emotional memorial services. The Malaysia Airlines passenger jet was hit by a surface-to-air missile on July 17, 2014, during heavy fighting between Kiev’s armed...
UN sees possible war crimes in Ukraine
Kiev: The United Nations (UN) on Thursday said Ukraine’s forces had indiscriminately shelled residents while pro-Russian insurgents and Kiev battalions had summarily killed civilians in what may have constituted “war crimes.” The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) study painted a bloody picture of inhumane treatment...
Nato, Russia to meet after alliance troop boost
Brussels: Nato and Russia on Wednesday hold their first talks since the alliance agreed at a summit in Warsaw to beef up its presence in eastern Europe because of fears over the Kremlin’s expansionism. The meeting between ambassadors from the 28-nation alliance and Russia is the first since April and just the second since 2014, when the...
