Syria conflict: Russia to halt Aleppo action to allow aid in
Russian forces are due to suspend military action in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo shortly to allow in desperately needed humanitarian aid.
It is not clear if Syrian rebel groups will also cease fire during the daily three-hour window.
But UN officials say that is too short to take in enough to help the large numbers of people in need.
Intense fighting has been continuing in Aleppo between rebels and Russian-backed Syrian government forces.
There are also reports of a toxic gas attack on a rebel-held area. Medical staff say four people died and many other were injured. The gas is thought to have been chlorine dropped in a barrel bomb.
'People have self-immolated to get to Australia' – immigration minister's response to Nauru files
Peter Dutton dismisses revelations and accuses asylum seekers of making false claims of sexual assault
Australia’s immigration minister, Peter Dutton, has accused asylum seekers of setting themselves on fire, deliberately self-harming, or making false allegations of sexual assault in order to come to Australia.
On Thursday Dutton dismissed the revelations contained in the Nauru files published by the Guardian, which contain graphic reports of sexual assault, child abuse and self-harm written by detention centre staff and said: “Most of that’s been reported on before.”
He said: “I won’t tolerate any sexual abuse whatsoever. But I have been made aware of some incidents that have been reported, false allegations of sexual assault, because in the end people have paid money to people smugglers and they want to come to our country.
Armed police on the streets of London won’t stop terrorism while ordinary Muslims are labelled extremists
The definition of what constitutes radicalisation is now so loose that almost anyone who takes an interest in the troubles in the Middle East could fall foul of the referral systemROBERT VERKAIK
The arresting presence of Robocop-style armed police officers on the streets of London will no doubt reassure the public that the Government is doing all it can to combat the threat of terrorism. But Met Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe warned last week that it is a question of when, rather than if, attacks like those recently witnessed in France and Belgium will be visited on Britain. Is this an admission of failure in counter-terrorism policy or just a realistic assessment of the terrible threat we must all now learn to live with?
Policemen with machine guns can only combat the symptoms of the violent jihad. Once a terror attack has begun and innocent lives taken it is already too late. A committed terrorist can kill dozens of people before even the most rapid response team is on the scene.
Out of sight, out of mind? Europe’s migrant crisis still simmers
Latest update : 2016-08-11
A year after hundreds of thousands of refugees snaked their way across southeastern Europe and onto global television screens, the roads through the Balkans are now clear, depriving an arguably worsening tragedy of poignant visibility.
Europe’s migrant crisis is at the very least numerically worse than it was last year. More people are arriving and more are dying. But the twist is that, compared with last year, a lot of it is out of sight.
Take the border between Greece and Macedonia. Summer crops have replaced the city of tents at the border outpost of Idomeni, even if some locals are convinced there is an unseen population hiding in the surrounding forests, waiting for smugglers to assist them on their onward journey.
If people abandon me, I will go away, leave Manipur: Irom Sharmila
- Rahul Karmakar, Hindustan Times, Imphal |
- Updated: Aug 11, 2016 12:22 IST
She was hailed as an icon for her 16-year fast that won her legions of supporters at home and acclaim across the world.
But Irom Sharmila found herself lonely within hours of calling off her protest on Tuesday. In an interview to HT, the 44-year-old reflected on her struggle and her days ahead. Excerpts:
People are not happy with your breaking the fast…
Nobody told me to fast then (November 2000). So can’t I make my own decisions now? I anticipated people’s support because I sacrificed my life for a mass cause. When I was released and in need of their support, they remained silent.
No longer divine, Japan's emperor wins people's hearts with his humanity
SHIFT IN THOUGHT
Until 1945, Japanese thought their emperor was remote, and descended from gods. Emperor Akihito has changed the monarchy's image, and his suggestion this week that he might like to abdicate was met sympathetically.
TOKYO — On Monday, Kumiko Ono, a Japanese language teacher in Oita, Kyushu, listened as Emperor Akihito spoke to his people in a TV address for only the second time. She appreciated what she heard.
"I really like the current emperor. He has talked about a lot of the bad things that happened in the war, such as in Okinawa and the Philippines," she says. "He's very close to the people, like a regular person."
It's a remarkable assessment in a country whose people, until the end of World War II, had never even heard the voice of their emperor, who was considered to be divine.
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