8 October 2014 Last updated at 08:15
Last year, approximately one thousand Palestinian children were arrested by Israeli forces, often for no reason. Advocates point to systemic abuse, including beatings and forced confessions, but the Israeli military remains steadfast.
On that warm summer night in early June, Mahmood recalls, he was walking down the village road with his friend Hussein. The two of them were discussing whether it would be possible to smoke rolled-up tobacco leaves like cigarettes. They saw the two military vehicles from far away, but they're not an unusual sight in Ya'abad; the Jewish settlement of Mevo Dotan is located on an opposite hillside and the Israeli army patrols through the surrounding Palestinian villages in order to protect the settlers. But then the vehicle suddenly stopped next to them.
Kobane: Syrian Kurds 'launch operation against IS'
Fighting has continued overnight around the Syrian border town of Kobane, with reports of Kurdish forces launching an operation against Islamic State (IS).
It follows the US-led coalition's most sustained air strikes so far targeting the extremists' positions in the town.
The UN envoy for Syria has urged the international community to act now to prevent IS from seizing the town.
Staffan de Mistura told the BBC that the fall of Kobane would be "a massacre and a humanitarian tragedy".
Turkey has come under increasing pressure to do more to help the Kurdish forces fighting in Kobane.
Is Europe taking the Ebola threat seriously?
As Spain reports the first case of Ebola contracted on EU soil, DW speaks to one of Germany's leading virologists Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit about the threat the deadly virus may pose to Europe.
There was always a chance that the virus would be imported to Europe, but the fact that it was contracted by a nurse in a controlled environment was not predicted. How could this have happened?
Nobody expected it, and I simply don't understand how it could have happened. They will investigate and find out how it came to pass but it is a surprise, because in actual fact, Europe is well-prepared. And even in light of the case, we remain well-prepared. So nothing has changed in terms of the basic situation here.
One idea that has been mooted is that the nurse became infected by touching clothes that had been worn by the patient. Is that a possibility?
It is a possibility. If there were blood or other bodily fluids on the clothing, they would carry the risk of infecting someone, but everyone knows that, and I find it hard to believe that such a silly mistake could have been made.
Kids Behind Bars: Israel's Arbitrary Arrests of Palestinian Minors
Last year, approximately one thousand Palestinian children were arrested by Israeli forces, often for no reason. Advocates point to systemic abuse, including beatings and forced confessions, but the Israeli military remains steadfast.
When the soldiers came to get him, Mahmood says, he wasn't afraid. He crumples a handkerchief in his hand while shaking his head. Maybe a little bit afraid, he mumbles, when the six soldiers pointed their assault weapons at him. Or when they bound his wrists with zip ties, covered his eyes and shoved him on the floor of their four-by-four.
Myanmar Frees 3073 political prisoners weeks before south-east Asia summit
October 8, 2014 - 12:22AMLindsay Murdoch
South-East Asia correspondent for Fairfax Media
Myanmar has freed more than 3000 prisoners four weeks before a south-east Asia summit that will be attended by international and regional leaders including US President Barack Obama.
Among those released were prisoners of conscience and former military intelligence officers, including associates of former prime minister Khin Nyunt, who was freed from house arrest under a similar amnesty in 2012.
Mynamar, which is also called Burma, has boosted its reformist credentials in the past by releasing political prisoners, often shortly before diplomatic meetings and summits.
West African forces to counter Boko Haram from November
A regional force put in place to counter the Boko Haram jihadist group in Nigeria will start operations in November, West African leaders decided after a summit in Niger on Tuesday.
The leaders agreed to speed up the creation of a headquarters for the force and have military battalions deployed "to our respective borders" by November 1, the heads of state said in a joint statement.
The new headquarters for the force is now due to be completed by November 20, the leaders added.
The announcement followed a day of talks between the leaders of Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Benin, and the foreign minister of Cameroon.
"After gaining independence, the survival of our countries has never been so threatened by the menace of terrorism, by the forces of division and by organised crime," said Niger's President Mahamadou Issoufou who hosted the
In Babylon, Iraqis shield ancient symbols of identity from Islamic State
Islamic State militants, still some 37 miles from Babylon, have already taken a toll on Iraqi cultural heritage sites. 'For those who want to take pride in Iraq, Babylon is the best we have,' says the site's archaeological director.
BABYLON, IRAQ — The fortunes of the ancient city of Babylon have waxed and waned with the rise and fall of empires. Today, the biggest threat to this powerful symbol of diversity are the Islamic State jihadis who swept out of Syria to capture large swathes of Iraq, looting archaeological treasure and blowing up shrines and sites they consider blasphemous along the way.
“Babylon is a symbol of strength. For those who want to take pride in Iraq, Babylon is the best we have. It is a symbol of unity from north to south,” says archaeological director Hussein Fleih.
In Iraq, that unity is now under threat, with the country splintering along sectarian and ethnic lines. The Kurds hold the north, Shiites the south, and Sunni militants the rest as a newly-formed mixed government in Baghdad pushes to keep everyone together under one flag.
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