South Sudan leader says Khartoum has 'declared war' South Sudan's President Salva Kiir Mayardit (L) with his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao Photo: Reuters
South Sudan's President Salva Kiir said on Tuesday Khartoum had "declared war" on his country, as violence between the world's newest nation and Sudan intensified. Kiir made the comment during a meeting with his Chinese counterpart on a visit aimed at shoring up ties with Beijing - a key ally and the largest economic partner of diplomatically isolated Khartoum. "It (the visit) comes at a very critical moment for the Republic of South Sudan because our neighbour in Khartoum has declared war on the Republic of South Sudan," he said. Kiir's comment came after Sudanese warplanes bombed South Sudan's oil-rich border regions overnight, as violence between the two neighbours persisted despite international appeals for restraint. Read more . . .
Top military officers targeted in Syrian conflictBy BASSEM MROUE, Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — The gunmen walked into an apartment building before dawn earlier this month in the quiet Damascus suburb of Jaramana, went to the fifth floor and knocked on the door. When the police commander opened up, the men shot him dead and left. Syrian President Bashar Assad's opponents appear to be resorting increasingly to assassinations of loyalist military officers in an escalation of their campaign to bring down the regime. At least 10 senior officers, including several generals, have been gunned down in the past three months, many of them as they left their homes in the morning to head to their posts. The latest occurred Tuesday, when attackers shot and killed a retired lieutenant colonel and his brother, a chief warrant officer, at a home supplies store in another suburb of the capital, according to the state news agency. Elsewhere in Damascus, an intelligence officer was killed, opposition activists said. Read more . . . ______________________________________________________________________________________ |
News BriefsChinese workers freed in Sudan, flown to Kenya
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Former Jamaican PM calls on Caribbean states to work together
Lost mushroom pickers considered eating dog Dan Conne says he and his wife and son thought they were going to die after getting lost while picking mushrooms and spending nearly a week in the rugged forest of southwest Oregon. They spent the nights huddled in a hollow log and considered sacrificing their pit bull, Jesse, for food. Read more . . .
Philippines earthquake death toll rises (CNN) -- The death toll climbed to 48 on Tuesday from a strong earthquake that rocked the Visayas region of the Philippines, state media reported. Another 92 people were reported missing as the nation's military scrambled 1,000 government troops to deal with the disaster, according to the Philippines News Agency. Read more . . .
Norwegian terror suspect Breivik tells court he deserves a medal Mr. Breivik appeared in court for a final custody hearing dressed in a dark suit, composed and smiling subtly as he flashed his handcuffed arms in what his lawyer described as an extremist gesture in front of the media, survivors, and victims’ families.Read more . . . |
Iraq executes fourteen in one day "Fourteen Iraqis were executed yesterday (Tuesday)," the official said, asking not to be named. "They were convicted of terrorism and other crimes committed in 2006 and 2007." "Most of them are from Al-Qaeda, among them the wali (leader) of Mosul," the official said. Read more . . .
Argentina turns to UN over UK Falklands The country's President, Cristina Fernandez Kirchner, said: "We will present a complaint to the UN Security Council and the UN General Assembly, as this militarisation poses a grave danger to international security." The sabre-rattling between Britain and Argentina over the Falklands is increasing ahead of the 30th anniversary of the war which broke out on April 2, 1982. Read more . . . |
