Afghanistan-Pakistan quake: Rescue efforts expanded
Rescue efforts are being stepped up to help those affected by the magnitude-7.5 earthquake which hit remote areas of Afghanistan and Pakistan on Monday.
More than 300 people are known to have died, and at least 2,000 were injured.
Rescue teams have been sent to remote mountainous areas where the effects of the quake are still unclear.
The quake's focus was deep, reducing its impact. Victims included 12 Afghan schoolgirls killed in a stampede as they tried to leave their classes.
"They fell under the feet of other students," a disaster official in the province of Takhar told Reuters.
Reports said many people across the region, afraid of a new quake, spent the night sleeping outside in temperatures close to freezing.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, in a televised address, urged those living in affected areas to help the rescue effort.
Istanbul has more Syrian refugees than all of Europe says David Miliband
Head of the International Rescue Committee says Turkey has nearly two million refugees and says rising numbers globally are “a grisly world record”
Nearly 60% of refugees are living in cities today and there are currently more Syrian refugees in Istanbul than in all the rest of Europe, the head of the International Rescue Committee has said.
David Miliband told The Associated Press in an interview Monday that “the iconic image” of a refugee being someone in a camp has changed.
He said so many people are fleeing conflict and chaos that there’s no room for them in camps. Equally important, he said, is that most people don’t want to be in refugee camps and when they’re displaced for a long time, they want to earn a living — even if that means working in the black market.
Isis executes three people by tying them to ancient Palmya pillars and blowing them up
Locals in Palmyra told the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights about the gruesome executionIsis has murdered three people in Palmyra by tying them to ancient pillars and blowing them up.
The the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), an information office documenting human rights abuses during the Syrian war, said Isis "tied three individuals it had arrested from Palmyra and its outskirts to the columns... and executed them by blowing up" the columns.
The incident reportedly happened this Sunday, according to local sources who spoke to the SOHR.
The identity of the executed people or what their alleged crimes were is unknown.Bronze Age warrior's tomb unearthed in 'spectacular find' in southern Greece
Archeologists in Greece have discovered a trove of gold rings, jewels and weapons inside the tomb of a warrior dating back to 1,500 B.C. Authorities say the grave is the most spectacular find of its kind in decades.
An international team led by US researchers from the University of Cincinnati (UC) found the wooden coffin of the unknown soldier near the ancient palace of Pylos on southern Greece's Peloponnese peninsula.
The warrior had been laid to rest with a remarkable store of more than 1,000 artifacts, including gold and silver goblets, gold signet rings, necklaces, engraved gemstones and an ornate ivory-and gilt-hilted sword.
In a statement, the Greek Culture Ministry said the Mycenaean-era grave was the "most important to have been discovered in 65 years."
Plunderers had looted a monumental beehive tomb that was uncovered several decades ago in the same area, near Pylos' Palace of Nestor, but the newly discovered grave has remained untouched.Malaysia 'binges' on prosecutions of critics
Lindsay Murdoch
South-East Asia correspondent for Fairfax Media
Bangkok: Malaysia's government has embarked on a "binge" of prosecutions against its critics, using criminal laws to crush peaceful expression, according to Human Rights Watch.
In a new 145-page report, Human Rights Watch documents the arrests of scores of people with critical views, including opposition politicians, activists, journalists and ordinary citizens, as well as the suspension of two critical newspapers, the blocking of websites and the declaration that peaceful protests were unlawful.
The New York-based organisation released the report on Tuesday, ahead of a summit of world leaders in Kuala Lumpur next month, expected to include US President Barack Obama and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
Revealing details of little-known cases, Human Rights Watch said the summit will present an opportunity for world leaders to press Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak to reform draconian laws and end censorship.Tokyo overturns Okinawa's ban on US base relocation work
The Japanese government Tuesday overturned a move by Okinawa's governor to stop work on a US base relocation site, marking the latest fight in a long-running battle over the controversial project.
The proposal to move the Futenma air base, first mooted in 1996, has become the focus of anger among locals, who insist it should be shut and a replacement built elsewhere in Japan or overseas.
Earlier this month, outspoken Okinawa governor Takeshi Onaga revoked approval for work on the base in Japan's southernmost island chain.
"We have decided to nullify (Okinawa's) cancellation of the approval," land and infrastructure minister Keiichi Ishii said after a cabinet meeting Tuesday.
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