Australian PM Faces Criticism For Overseas Family Holiday

CANBERRA, Dec 19 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, has come under fire for going on holiday with his family, while bush-fires continue to burn across the country. Responding to news of the holiday, members of the Opposition Labour Party accused the prime minister of abandoning rural communities, currently…

Flights Delayed As Dense Fog Engulfs Delhi

NEW DELHI, Dec 19 (NNN-PTI) — Dense fog engulfed the Indian capital and its surrounding areas on Thursday morning (this morning), as departures and arrivals of many flights and trains were delayed, due to poor visibility. Regular commuters faced difficulty driving on major highways, since visibility was less than 50…

Iran Threatens To Further Reduce Nuke Commitments

TEHRAN, Dec 19 (NNN-TASNIM) – Iran threatened to further reduce its commitments to the 2015 landmark nuclear deal, if the European Union (EU) “keeps failing” to protect the Islamic republic’s interest. Iran’s move to reduce commitments under the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), results…

Chinese Envoy Concerned Over Continued Jewish Settlement Activities In Occupied Palestine

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 19 (NNN-XINHUA) – Chinese UN envoy expressed concern, over continued settlement activities by Israel, in occupied Palestinian territory. At a Security Council meeting on the Middle East, China’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Wu Haitao, noted that, settlement activities continued to advance and expand, and more…

Kazakhstan’s Parliament Approves Spaceport Cooperation With Russia

NUR-SULTAN, Dec 19 (NNN-KAZINFORM) – The lower house of Kazakh parliament, approved amendments to a Kazakh-Russian agreement, on building the Baiterek space rocket complex, at Baikonur Cosmodrome. Kazakh Minister of Digital Development, Innovation and Aerospace Industry, Askar Zhumagaliev said, Kazakhstan plans to allocate 233 million U.S. dollars, to modernise the…

France To Provide Jordan With 250 Million Euros In Soft Loans

AMMAN, Dec 19 (NNN-PETRA) – France signed some agreements with Jordan, agreeing to provide the latter with a total of 250 million euros (277 million U.S. dollars) in soft loans. The soft loans will be used to develop the judiciary and water sectors, and reconstruct the sewage system in Balqa…

Iraqi Parliament Adjourns Session Due To Disputes Over Draft Election Law

BAGHDAD, Dec 19 (NNN-NINA) – Iraq’s parliament decided to adjourn its session until next Monday, after it passed part of the draft election law. In a televised press conference, Parliament Speaker, Mohammed al-Halbousi, announced the adjournment after the majority of 207 lawmakers at the session passed the first 14 articles…

Landslide In Metro Construction Site Kills Four In Uzbekistan

TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, Dec 19 (NNN-AGENCIES) – Four workers were killed by a landslide, in the open section of a construction site of Yunusabad metro line in Tashkent, Uzbek Emergency ministry said. Earlier in the day, the ministry said, continued rainfall has caused a collapse of 250 cubic metres of soil…

Yemeni warring sides meet on UN ship to discuss Hodeidah ceasefire

ADEN, Dec 19 (NNN-SABA) – Representatives from Yemen’s government and the Houthis, tasked with monitoring a ceasefire, brokered by the United Nations met on a ship, on the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah. An official of the military in Hodeidah said that, “representatives of the two-warring sides boarded a…

India’s West Bengal Chief Minister Hits Streets For Third Day Against New Citizenship Law

NEW DELHI, Dec 19 (NNN-PTI) – Chief Minister of India’s eastern state of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, hit the streets for the third straight day, against the controversial new citizenship law, demanding its revocation, officials said. Banerjee, along with her party colleagues, began a protest march from Howrah Maidan, which…