Iran rules out U.S. talks as ceasefire deadline looms
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf has ruled out a new round of negotiations with the U.S. in Islamabad on Tuesday “und...
In the wake of intense militia clashes, South Sudan's airstrike hit the east, killing at least 19. Tensions continue to rise in a region still scarred by civil war, as political rivalries and a brutal attack fuel fears of another deadly conflict.
An airstrike by South Sudan's airforce killed at least 19 people in the country's east, residents said, less than two weeks after government forces withdrew from the area following intense fighting with an ethnic militia.
The clashes in Nasir, near the Ethiopian border, between national forces and the White Army, a loosely organised group mostly comprising armed ethnic Nuer youths, had threatened to reignite the 2013-2018 civil war in which hundreds of thousands of people died.
The government accuses the party of First Vice President Riek Machar, a Nuer, of collaborating with the White Army, which fought alongside Machar's forces during the civil war against the predominantly ethnic Dinka troops loyal to President Salva Kiir. Machar's party has denied involvement.
A South Sudanese general was among around 27 soldiers killed on March 7 when a U.N. helicopter trying to evacuate them from Nasir came under attack.
South Sudan's Information Minister Michael Makuei told journalists at a news conference the airforce bombed Nasir on Monday morning.
Kang Wan, a community leader in Nasir, said it happened late on Sunday night, and that of the 19 dead, 15 people were killed immediately, while the others later succumbed to their wounds. Another resident said they saw 16 bodies and that three others had died.
"All of them they got burned, everything got burned," Wan told Reuters by telephone.
Medecins Sans Frontieres said its hospital in nearby Ulang received three wounded patients from Nasir on Monday morning.
"Two of them were declared dead on arrival due to the severe burns they had sustained," MSF said in a statement, giving no further details.
Nasir County Commissioner James Gatluak Lew, who is allied to Machar, said the South Sudanese armed forces were likely seeking revenge for the helicopter attack.
Last week Uganda said it had deployed special forces in South Sudan's capital Juba to "secure it". The South Sudanese government at the time denied the presence of Ugandan troops in the country.
However, Makuei said in a statement some Ugandan army units were in the country "to back up and support the (national army) according to their needs".
Iran accuses the United States of breaching a ceasefire after a commercial ship was seized in the Gulf of Oman, vowing retaliation, as Israel warns south Lebanon residents to avoid restricted areas.
Progessive Bulgaria, led by pro-Russian Eurosceptic Rumen Radev is on track to form Bulgaria’s next government, after official results showed a runaway victory for the coalition in the Balkan nation's parliamentary elections on Monday (20 April).
Pakistan is confident it can bring Iran to talks with the United States, a senior official said, citing “positive signals” from Tehran, as JD Vance is reportedly set to visit Islamabad on Tuesday for peace talks, according to Axios.
A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake has struck off Japan’s north-eastern coast, triggering urgent tsunami warnings with waves of up to 3 metres expected, prompting residents to seek immediate safety.
Blue Origin, the U.S. space company of billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, successfully reused and recovered a booster for its New Glenn rocket launched from Florida on Sunday (19 April), in the latest chapter of its intensifying rivalry with Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
Britain’s government outlined plans on Tuesday (21 April) to reduce household energy bills by encouraging wind and solar producers to adopt long-term fixed contracts.
The escalating conflict involving Iran, the U.S. and Israel is fuelling what could become the most severe energy crisis the world has ever faced, according to the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA).
A Canadian woman has been shot dead and 13 others injured in a shooting at the Teotihuacan pyramids on Monday, one of Mexico’s most visited tourist attractions.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 21st of April, covering the latest developments you need to know
Japan on Tuesday unveiled its biggest overhaul of defence export rules in decades, scrapping restrictions on overseas arms sales and opening the way for exports of warships, missiles and other weapons.
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