When violence broke out in Syria’s coastal area recently, including mass killings of civilians allegedly carried out as revenge for attacks on Syrian security forces, volunteer rescuers quickly came to help. They were part of the Syrian civil defence group known as the White Helmets, which had operated in rebel-held areas during the civil war. … Read more
Namibia’s new president was sworn in on Friday to lead a country facing high rates of unemployment, inequality and poverty. And she will be dealing with it with the additional burden of being only Africa’s second-ever directly elected female president and Namibia’s first female head of state. “If things go well then it will be … Read more
A selection of the week’s best photos from across the African continent and beyond: Gerald Anderson / Getty Images In Kenya’s capital Nairobi, the country’s finest stand to attention on Tuesday as they welcome King of the Netherlands, Willem-Alexander, with a grand procession for his three-day visit. Ahmed Mosaad / Getty Images Young people take … Read more
Beverly Ochieng, Wedaeli Chibelushi & Natasha Booty BBC Monitoring & BBC News AFP Protesters backing the civilian leaders have been out on the streets of the capital Two years ago, Sudan was thrown into disarray when its army and a powerful paramilitary group began a vicious struggle for power. The war, which continues to this … Read more
At least 15 people have been arrested in Austria and Slovakia accused of hate crimes aimed at the gay community, according to state police in southern Austria. Some 400 officers took part in raids on Friday morning on behalf of the Graz public prosecutors office. They arrested 12 men and three women, aged 14 to … Read more
Getty Images Israel’s defence minister has ordered the military to “seize additional areas in Gaza” if Hamas does not free all remaining hostages. Israel Katz said on Friday that the military would continue its ground operation in Gaza “with increasing intensity” until all of the hostages “both living and dead” were returned. It is yet … Read more
Sean Coughlan Royal correspondent PA Media The Prince of Wales took his seat in a Challenger 2 tank during a visit to Tapa Camp If royal visits are about sending a message, then the picture of the Prince of Wales in a tank near the Russian border must be one of the most direct. Prince … Read more
Iceland’s minister for children has resigned after admitting she had a child with a teenager more than 30 years ago. Ásthildur Lóa Thórsdóttir said in a media interview she had first started a relationship when the boy was 15 years old, and she was a 22-year-old counsellor at a religious group which he attended. She … Read more
The three bundled up figures, puny against the vastness of miles of snow, trudged toward a hole they had cut into the ice. Their sled was parked nearby, and the woolly dogs that pulled it were huddled on the frozen ground, barking for food. Man and dog had to move carefully out here. In some … Read more
Amid the torrent of executive orders signed by President Trump were directives that affect the language on government web pages and the public’s access to government data touching on climate change, the environment, energy and public health. In the past two months, hundreds of terabytes of digital resources analyzing data have been taken off government … Read more