Judge rules that same-sex mariage can continue in Utah
A federal judge has denied the Utah state government’s request to put a hold on same-sex marriage in the state, meaning the unions may continue. The issue has been particularly divisive in Utah, a traditionally red state with a sizable Mormon population. Yet US district judge Robert J. Shelby ordered that Utah begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples immediately, writing that “the state’s current laws deny its gay and lesbian citizens their fundamental right to marry and, in doing so, demean the dignity of these same-sex couples for no rational reason.”
White House castigates Syrian government for recent bombings
The White House criticized Monday recently reported missile and bomb attacks on civilians by the Syrian government, saying Damascus must honor its commitment to allow delivery of humanitarian aid. ”The attacks over the weekend killed more than 300 people, many of them children,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a statement. “The Syrian government must fulfill its November commitment to do more to facilitate the safe and unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance, so that millions of Syrian men, women, and children have access to urgently needed services.”
Iraqi military forces eliminate camps of Al-Qaeda-linked militant group
The Iraqi military forces have destroyed two of Al-Qaeda-linked militant group’s camps in Anbar province, the country’s Defense Ministry said. Aerial photographs of the camps and intelligence information indicated“the arrival of weapons and advanced equipment from Syria to the desert of western Anbar and the border of Nineveh province,” the ministry’s spokesman said. Military forces located 11 militant camps near the border with Syria.
Syria National Coalition threatens to boycott Geneva-2 peace talks if bombings continue
Syria National Coalition says it will not attend planned peace talks in Geneva if bombings “the Assad regime is carrying” out continue. The statement follows an aerial attack that killed more than 300 people in an eight-day bombing campaign on Aleppo. The so-called Geneva 2 talks, slated for January 22, 2014, are aimed at ending the 33-months long civil war that, according to UN estimates, has claimed lives of 126,000 people.
Iraqi gunmen kill four in attack on TV station
Iraqi gunmen besieged the local government television station, Salahuddin, in the northern city of Tikrit on Monday, killing four of its employees. The gunmen, who were wearing explosive vests, stormed the premises after detonating a car bomb near the entrance, according to Reuters’ sources. The confrontation ended when a firefight with security forces at the channel killed the militants responsible for the attack. “Two of the attackers blew themselves up when security forces raided the station and the others were killed in the clashes,”said a senior police officer.
New round of Turkey and Israel talks for Gaza flotilla raid
A senior Turkish diplomat met with an Israeli delegation in Istanbul last week to discuss compensation for the victims of the Mavi Marmara raid. “The talks did not stop. The recent meeting is a part of the ongoing process,” a Turkish Foreign Ministry official told Hurriyet Daily News. The Israeli delegation was headed by National Security Adviser Yossi Cohen, and the group met with Undersecretary of the Foreign Ministry, Feridun Sinirlioğlu. Israel made a deadly raid on the Gaza-strip bound and Turkish-owned flotilla in 2010, leading to the deaths of nine. Dozens were also wounded. Compensation talks after Israel’s prime minister issued an apology to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The process has been on hiatus for several months. “There are still differences regarding the amounts, but they have narrowed,” Haaretz quoted a senior Israeli official.
450 Muslim Brotherhood inmates go on hunger strike in Egypt
More than 450 jailed Muslim Brotherhood members have launched a hunger strike over their “inhuman treatment” by the Egyptian prison system, Lebanese website Naharnet reports. The prisoners have been “banned from family visits, legal counseling, medical care and (live in) overcrowded and unhygienic cells,” the organization said on its twitter page. Thousands of Muslim Brotherhood members were arrested by the Egyptian security forces following the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi on July 3 and violent Islamist protests across the country.
13 hurt as tour bus crashes off Freeway 10 in Baldwin Park, Calif.
Los Angeles County Fire has transported 13 people after a bus crashed off the westbound 10 Freeway in Baldwin Park on Monday. Two people suffered moderate injuries, while the rest had minor injuries, KABC reported. Shortly after 4:30am the bus, believed to be coming from a casino in Palm Springs, went off the road and into a small drainage canal. It then reportedly hit a light pole and came to lean on a fence. Crews had to force entry into the bus.
Dubai police seize $31mn worth of drugs
Police in Dubai have made a record drug seizure of some 4.6 million Captagon pills, an amphetamine-like stimulant, worth more than $31 million, AFP said. Five people of different Arab nationalities were implicated in the shipment, three of whom have been arrested. The operation codenamed “Nine Ball” dealt a major blow to drug trafficking in the United Arab Emirates, the Khaleej Times reported, citing Dubai’s police chief, Major General Khamis Mattar al-Mazeina.
At least 20 killed in Iraq attacks
A new wave of attacks across Iraq has killed at least 20 people and wounded dozens, AP reported. The government earlier pressed on with its offensive to hunt down Al-Qaeda-linked militants in the country’s volatile western desert. On Monday, in an attack near Baghdad’s western suburb of Abu Ghraib, militants fired mortar rounds into a military base, killing three officers and three soldiers, a police officer said. Seven soldiers were wounded. Hours later, a bomb went off next to a passing military patrol in the same area, killing two, and two other soldiers were wounded.
Philippines police ban caps, sunglasses to fight crime at Manila malls
Police in the Philippine capital have banned the wearing of caps and sunglasses in shopping malls. The move is aimed at stopping criminals concealing their identity from security cameras, AFP reported. The ban was imposed after a gang looted a jewelry store at a popular suburban Manila shopping mall on December 15. The suspects used baseball caps to hide their identities. Those wearing caps and sunglasses will not be allowed into malls and will be stopped by security guards.
1 dead as African peacekeepers fire on C. Africa protesters
African peacekeepers shot dead a protester in the capital of the Central African Republic on Monday, AFP reported. The Chadian soldiers opened fire on stone-throwing protesters who accused them of complicity with rebels, witnesses say. Several hundred Christian demonstrators had massed outside Bangui airport to call for the departure of President Michel Djotodia. The former rebel became the first Muslim leader of the majority Christian nation after a March coup. The protesters were also demanding the departure of Chadian troops within the African Union’s MISCA force.
300 killed in 8 days of Syria’s air raids on Aleppo – monitoring group
Syrian warplanes have killed more than 300 people in an eight-day bombing campaign against rebel-held parts of the northern city of Aleppo, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Monday. “From December 15 to 22, 301 people have been killed, including 87 children, 30 women and 30 rebels,” said the monitoring group, which relies on activists and witnesses on the ground. The army adopted the tactic because of a lack of ground forces, AFP quoted a security source as saying. He said the heavy civilian toll was because the rebels were in residential areas.
8 troops killed in attacks west of Baghdad
Attacks in and near a western Baghdad suburb have killed four officers, Iraqi officials said. Militants fired mortar rounds into a military base in Abu Ghraib, west of the Iraqi capital, killing three officers. The attack also wounded seven soldiers. In the same area, a bomb went off next to a military patrol, killing a soldier. Two other soldiers were wounded.
Communist Party tells China media not to report ‘wrong points of view’
China’s ruling Communist Party told the state media on Monday that they should not be reporting on wrong points of view. New guidelines adopted to enforce “core socialist values” suggest that the media must“steadfastly uphold the correct guidance of public opinion.” The rules, published by Xinhua news agency, said the media should “not provide channels for the propagation of the wrong points of view.” Core socialist values include “ideals like democracy, equality and rule of law, but also the guiding position of Marxism in today’s China,” according to the guidelines.
Kuwait’s Cabinet ministers resign en masse
Kuwait’s entire Cabinet submitted their resignations Monday to the prime minister, parliament speaker Marzouq al-Ghanim said. The move could pave the way for a cabinet reshuffle, Reuters reported. “I hope… that Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber al-Mubarak al-Sabah will succeed in reshuffling the government,” the speaker said.
EU bans arms exports to Central African Republic
The EU on Monday banned the export of arms and sending mercenaries to the Central African Republic. The ban follows a UN Security Council resolution this month requiring all countries to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer of arms to the country, which remains wracked by sectarian violence, Reuters said. The ban covers financial and technical assistance, including mercenary personnel. French President Francois Hollande said earlier the 28-nation EU would decide next month on a joint operation in the republic to support a French military intervention.
Yemen reopens international airports after closure
Yemen has reopened its international airports after a brief closure Monday due to a strike by workers at the civil aviation authority, the transport minister said. Earlier in the day, workers went on strike after a dispute with the Finance Ministry over the aviation authority’s independence. The finance ministry froze the authority’s funds, Reuters reported. Transport Minister Waed Batheeb promised the workers that he would help to resolve the issue.
Al-Qaeda in Yemen offers rare apology over hospital attack
In a rare public apology, Al-Qaeda’s branch in Yemen has said that one of its fighters disobeyed orders and attacked a hospital during a December assault that killed 52 people, AP reported. In a video posted on militant websites, Qassim al-Rimi, commander of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, said that the attackers were warned in advance not to enter the hospital within the complex. “Now we acknowledge our mistake and guilt,” Al-Rimi said. “We accept full responsibility for what happened,” he said, adding he was ready to “pay blood money for the victims’ families.”
China says aircraft carrier tests in South China Sea successful
China’s first and only aircraft carrier has successfully carried out a series of tests during a training mission in the disputed South China Sea, Reuters reported, citing state media. The drills this month off the coast of Hainan Island mark the first time China has sent a carrier into the South China Sea. This was also the first time it has maneuvered with the kind of strike group of escort ships US carriers deploy, analysts say. “The Liaoning successfully performed several tests of the combat system… and organized for the first time comprehensive combat training,” China Daily reported.
Civilians killed as Pakistan launches offensive against Taliban – witnesses
Residents of Pakistan’s ethnic Pashtun region of North Waziristan accused government troops on Monday of killing dozens of civilians after military launched an operation against Taliban insurgents, Reuters reported. The operation started after a December 18 suicide bomb attack on a checkpoint in North Waziristan. Officials said at least 23 militants had been killed in clashes with security forces in the Mir Ali region of North Waziristan following the attack. Authorities imposed a curfew across the lawless region and residents said many people had fled from their homes after days of shelling and helicopter raids.
Yemen shuts airports due to strike
Yemen shut its international airports on Monday after workers at its civil aviation authority went on strike, officials said. The strike was due to a dispute with the finance ministry over the independence of the civil aviation authority, Reuters reported. The Finance Ministry froze the authority’s funds, according to an official at the Transport Ministry. Officials at Sanaa, Aden and Mukalla airports confirmed the shutdown.
NATO soldier killed in eastern Afghanistan
NATO has said one of its service members was killed in attack in eastern Afghanistan. The soldier died after coming under direct fire by enemy forces on Monday, AP reported, citing a statement from the US-led International Security Assistance Force. The coalition provided no other details or the nationality of the killed soldier. The death brings to eight the number of coalition deaths so far this month.
US will reimpose sanctions if Iran breaks a nuclear deal – Rice
The US and the West will find ways to to reimpose sanctions on Iran if Tehran violates the recent nuclear P5 + 1 agreement. “We will not construct a deal or accept a deal in which we cannot verify exactly what they are doing,” national security adviser Susan Rice told CBS. “And if they’re caught, we will ensure that the pressure is reimposed on them.” Under November’s deal, Iran agreed to halt its nuclear program for six months in exchange for limited relief from sanctions. media agencies
