25 members of religious cult jailed in China
Beijing: Twenty five members of a banned Christian group that China calls an “illegal cult” have been sent to prison terms of up to eight years for disturbing social order and violating local laws in the communist state.
India, China add to CO2 emission: Obama
Washington: The fast developing economies of India and China are adding to the emission of carbon dioxide, US President Barack Obama said asking Americans to be ready and adopt more and more green technologies.
Syrian troops advance near lebanon border
Beirut: Syrian Government forces captured areas near the border with lebanon on Friday, cutting supply lines for opposition fighters as the army tightens its grip northwest of the capital, state media said.
Indian man in Aus jailed for six years
Melbourne: A 24-year-old Indian man in Australia was on Friday jailed for six years for raping his inebriated Facebook friend, also an Indian. The man, who emigrated to Australia in 2009, invited the 18-year-old girl to his home last year and offered her alcohol before raping her and filming the act to blackmail her later.
UN says 110,000 have fled to Russia
Geneva: Some 110,000 people have fled to Russia from Ukraine while more than 54,000 have been displaced inside the conflict-torn country, the UN said on Friday.
Hindus among people displaced in n Waziristan
Islamabad: Over 100 Hindus are among thousands of people who have fled the restive North Waziristan tribal region due to Pakistan military’s operation against Taliban militants, media reported on Friday. The minority group are among more than 450,000 people forced to flee the onslaught which was launched against the local and foreign militants hiding in the area.
UNSC slaps sanctions on Boko Haram
United Nations: The UN Security Council has imposed sanctions against the leader of Nigeria’s Islamist Boko Haram militant organisation and its splinter group, a month after the powerful UN body designated the dreaded outfit as a terrorist group linked to al-Qaeda. The Security Council’s al-Qaeda Sanctions Committee approved the addition of Boko Haram chief Abubakar Mohammed Shekau and splinter group Ansaru to its list of individuals and entities subject to the targeted financial sanctions and the arms embargo.
Thai coup leader sets polls for October 2015
Bangkok: Thailand’s military junta will install an interim constitution next month, and elections will be held around October 2015, its leader announced on Friday.
Army commander General Prayuth Chan-ocha, who seized power in a coup last month, said the temporary constitution will allow an interim legislature and Cabinet to begin governing the country in September.
New EU leader picked despite British opposition
Brussels: European Union leaders have chosen former luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker to become the 28-nation bloc’s new chief executive, according to a top official. EU Council President Herman Van Rompuy said on Friday that leaders nominated Juncker as the next President of the European Commission, the bloc’s powerful executive arm.