Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for the 15th of February, covering the latest developments you need to know.
The final day of the Munich Security Conference begins on Sunday (15 February) with discussions centered on Europe’s role in an increasingly unstable global environment, with leaders expected to address security coordination, economic competitiveness and the defence of democratic values. The morning opens with a panel titled 'Europeans Assemble! Reclaiming Agency in a Rougher World,' bringing together EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics, NATO Deputy Secretary General Radmila Sekerinska and French Armed Forces Minister Delegate Alice Rufo. Participants are expected to discuss Europe’s role and strategic positioning in a more challenging global environment.
Britain, France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands said on Saturday (14 February) they are convinced that late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a lethal toxin in a Russian penal colony two years ago. The governments issued a joint statement in London, saying analyses of Navalny’s samples conclusively confirmed the presence of epibatidine, a powerful toxin found in South American poison dart frogs and not naturally occurring in Russia.The Russian government, which has repeatedly denied any responsibility for Navalny's death, dismissed the latest allegations as "a Western propaganda hoax," according to the Russian state's TASS news agency.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security partially shuts down amid immigration dispute
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has partially shut down after Congress failed to reach agreement on immigration enforcement changes, deepening a political standoff between the White House and Senate Democrats. Congress is not scheduled to return until 23 February, although leaders say members could be recalled if a deal is reached earlier. Most DHS employees, including staff at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Transportation Security Administration and the Coast Guard, are expected to continue working because their roles are considered critical.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on Saturday (14 February) he hopes a peace agreement with Armenia will be signed this year, describing recent developments as evidence that lasting stability in the South Caucasus is within reach. Speaking at the Munich Security Conference during a panel discussion titled 'Open Corridor Policy? Deepening Trans-Caspian Cooperation', the President said the peace process had already produced tangible results on the ground. Aliyev also addressed the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), also known as the Zangezur corridor. “If peace with Armenia is achieved, the corridor from Azerbaijan through Armenia to European destinations has great cargo potential,” Aliyev said.
New Zealand flooding threat grows after road collapses leave one dead
New Zealand's weather forecaster on Sunday (15 February) warned more flooding could hit the country's North Island, a day after floods caused power outages, road collapses, home evacuations. There was "threat to life from dangerous river conditions, significant flooding and slips" as a deepening low-pressure system east of the North Island brought heavy rain and severe gales to several regions, the weather bureau said. Authorities on Sunday had a state of emergency in place for the districts of Waipa and Otorohanga, an agricultural region home to about 10,000 people that is 180km (112 miles) south of the country's most populous city, Auckland.
Kyrgyzstan has signed a series of cooperation agreements with China and Belarus at the Fifth Forum of Regional Leaders of Shanghai Cooperation Organis...
A group of Azerbaijani civil society organisations has called for increased scrutiny of Swiss building materials giant Holcim, citing court rulings an...
The Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is "outpacing containment efforts" amid conflict, weak disease surveillance and limited...
Kazakhstan has reiterated that no existing route can replace the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which carries more than 80% of the country's crude...
Iran has strongly condemned U.S. threats to impose sanctions on and bomb Oman following reported talks between Muscat and Tehran on jointly overseeing...
The United States has warned Oman against supporting any effort to impose tolls in the Strait of Hormuz, saying Washington would penalise any parties involved in facilitating such a system.
The U.S. and Iran have reportedly reached a preliminary 60-day ceasefire and nuclear talks deal, pending Donald Trump’s approval, Axios reports. Meanwhile, the GCC condemned Iran’s missile strike on a U.S. airbase in Kuwait, which Tehran said was retaliation for a U.S. strike near Bandar Abbas.
The U.N. human rights office said Israeli forces may be committing unlawful killings near the military armistice line in Gaza, after data showed that roughly a third of verified Palestinian deaths since the October truce occurred close to the boundary area.
Dozens of people were killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon on Tuesday, Lebanese officials said, straining a fragile ceasefire agreed between the countries in April. The attacks came as Iran accused the U.S. of violating a separate ceasefire with strikes near the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. and Iran have reportedly reached a preliminary 60-day ceasefire and nuclear talks deal, pending Donald Trump’s approval, Axios reports. Meanwhile, the GCC condemned Iran’s missile strike on a U.S. airbase in Kuwait, which Tehran said was retaliation for a U.S. strike near Bandar Abbas.
The World Health Organization (WHO) says ongoing conflict, funding pressures and international travel restrictions are complicating efforts to contain a fast-growing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Bolivia’s President Rodrigo Paz has taken steps towards potentially declaring a state of emergency as anti-government protests intensify in the early months of his administration.
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Kazakhstan on Wednesday for a three-day state visit focused on energy, transport and economic cooperation with one of Moscow’s closest regional partners.
Russia and Kazakhstan signed 15 agreements during President Vladimir Putin’s state visit to Astana on Thursday (28 May), including deals on Kazakhstan’s first nuclear power plant and expanded oil cooperation with Russia.
An Inca child mummy discovered high in the Andes more than a century ago has been returned to an indigenous community in north-western Argentina after spending 119 years in a museum collection.
India is expected to experience its weakest monsoon in more than a decade in 2026, raising concerns over crop production, food prices and economic growth as the country also grapples with inflationary pressures linked to the Iran conflict.
Kenyan authorities have arrested eight students on suspicion of arson following a fire at a girls’ boarding school that killed 16, according to the country’s Directorate of Criminal Investigations. The blaze, which happened in Kenya's Rift Valley, also injured dozens of students.
The British government has unveiled 300,000 new work experience and training placements for young people after a major review warned that rising youth unemployment could leave more young people disconnected from work, education and training.
Billions of dollars' worth of gold continue to be extracted illegally from Brazil’s Amazon rainforest, according to a Greenpeace study, despite President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s pledges to curb wildcat mining.
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