Political - NsNewsWire

Prayers on chairs ban sparks outrage in Bangladesh

A ban on using chairs in mosques has provoked outrage in Muslim-majority Bangladesh, with critics saying it will exclude the elderly and infirm from prayers. The Islamic Foundation, an autonomous government agency, issued the fatwa over the weekend, saying devotees must instead use prayer mats, reports AFP. But the move has attracted criticism both from […]

Xi stresses role of reform, vows “strategic focus” amid new normal

HANGZHOU, May 28 (NsNewsWire) — Chinese President Xi Jinping has highlighted the role of reform in China’s adjustment to the “new normal,” saying reform is the recipe for boosting development and China should maintain its “strategic focus.” Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military […]

Iran holds an anti-Islamic State cartoon contest

Not long after staging a cartoon contest satirizing the Holocaust, a group in Iran launched another event — this time, aimed at the Islamic State extremist group. According to its organizers, Iran’s House of Cartoon, the anti-Islamic State cartoon contest has received more than 800 submissions from countries as far afield as Brazil and Australia reports Ishaan […]

Denial of rights in Burma, Bangladesh lead to trafficking: HRW

DHAKA, May 27 (NsNewsWire) — Rohingya and other survivors of dangerous boat voyages from Burma and Bangladesh describe horrific treatment by unscrupulous smugglers and traffickers in Burma, and abuse and neglect aboard ships, Human Rights Watch said today. A regional meeting scheduled on May 29, 2015, in Bangkok must find solutions to the so-called boat […]

Malaysia mass graves: police find 139 suspected sites

Malaysia, May 25 (NsNewsWire) — A total of 139 grave sites and 28 human-trafficking camps have been found in a remote northern Malaysian border region, according to the country’s top police official. National police chief Khalid Abu Bakar revealed the findings at a press conference a day after the government announced the discovery of camps […]

U.S. in South China Sea: troubleshooter or troublemaker?

The U.S. has long vowed to defend freedom of navigation in the South China Sea. However, this tactic of accusing China, whose island construction activities have always been within its own territorial waters, may be ill thought-out. For details: www.xinhunet.com

Myanmar vows to work with Bangladesh, other countries to address “boat people” issue

YANGON, May 24 (NsNewsWire) — Myanmar has pledged to cooperate with Bangladesh and other countries to address the issue of “boat people” at sea, hoping that the issue will be resolved amicably with Bangladesh as the latter is a friendly neighbor of Myanmar, said a statement of Myanmar’s Foreign Ministry published Sunday. However, Myanmar, like […]

U.S.-Gulf summit to kick off without key leaders

WASHINGTON, May 14 (NsNewsWire) — U.S. President Barack Obama is set to hold a summit of Gulf nations this week, but it is overshadowed by the absence of several key leaders amid rumors of rift over the U.S. handling of its ties with Iran. The meetings are slated to begin at the White House on […]

North Korea executes defense chief with an anti-aircraft gun: South Korea agency

SEOUL , May 13 (NsNewsWire) — North Korea executed its defense chief by putting him in front of an anti-aircraft gun at a firing range, Seoul’s National Intelligence Service told lawmakers, the latest in a series of high-level purges since Kim Jong Un took charge in Pyongyang. Hyon Yong Chol, 66, who headed the isolated […]