Asia

Love in a time of torture

A young man’s account of sadistic torture in a Syrian secret prison, and how a girl’s note helped him through his pain. Arrested during a protest in the first days of the Syrian uprising, a young man endured acts of sadism and torture at the hands of Bashar al-Assad’s secret […]

Indonesian Women Hail Passing of Immigration Law

Indonesian women have welcomed the passage of the Immigration Law that boosts the rights of foreign spouses of Indonesian citizens. Isabelle Mace Panggabean, 31, who is half French and half Indonesian and married to an Indonesian, hailed the new law, saying said she would now be able to gain permanent […]

Pakistani refugees released on bail Monday

A group of almost a hundred Pakistani refugees and asylum seekers, including several dozen children and a baby born in detention, will be released on bail Monday. The Thai Committee for Refugees, which helped organise the release, said the 96 people — most of whom were arrested in December — […]

Pakistani refugees freed on bail from Thai jail

BANGKOK – ALMOST 100 Pakistani refugees have been freed from Bangkok’s overcrowded immigration prison in an initiative spearheaded by Thai human rights activists. The Thai Committee for Refugees says the 96 members of Pakistan’s Ahmadiyya Muslim sect were freed on bail on Monday in the first such large-scale release of […]

Bethlehem Bible College Celebrates Graduation

Bethlehem – PNN – Bethlehem Bible College held a graduation ceremony to celebrate the students graduating from its biblical studies, tour guide and mass media programs Friday night. Graduates, dignitaries, family and friends attended the ceremony It was the 24th biblical studies, 7th tour guide and 4th mass media class to […]

Israeli troops kill 20 in Syrian border protests

MAJDAL SHAMS, Golan Heights (Agencies) – Israeli troops opened fire on Sunday as protesters from Syria stormed a ceasefire line in the occupied Golan Heights, with Damascus saying 20 demonstrators were killed and scores more were wounded. The clashes, marking the anniversary of the 1967 Mideast war, drew Israeli accusations […]

Is this the Asian century?

Last month, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) released a report in its annual meeting held in Vietnam entitled “Asia 2050 — realising the Asian century.” In a breath-taking sweep of economic trends and visions it describes two possible scenarios — first an “Asian century,” which is expected, and the other […]

Panel announces suggested political reforms

By Hani Hazaimeh AMMAN – The National Dialogue Committee (NDC) on Saturday handed its recommendations on measures to reinvigorate political life in the country, including new elections and political parties laws, to the government, its chairman, Taher Masri, said. Masri, Senate president and a former prime minister, said that the […]

Bangladesh to swing away from secularism back to Islam

Bangladesh, in a dramatic U-turn from secularism, will adopt Islam as the state religion and allow religion-based political parties to function. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday came out in favour of retaining Islam as the state religion, moving away from/flouting the secular provisions in the constitution that were incorporated […]

Syrian city holds mass funerals

Residents bury dozens of people killed by security forces during marches on “Children’s Freedom Friday” in Hama Most shops are closed in the central Syrian city of Hama as funerals are held for scores of protesters shot dead by security forces a day earlier, local residents say. The Syrian Observatory […]

Saudi king brokers Yemen ceasefire

Ruling party officials and opposition tribesmen agree to a one-week truce, news agencies report King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia is said to have mediated a one-week ceasefire between pro- and anti-government forces in Yemen, amid unconfirmed reports that Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Yemeni president, was travelling to the kingdom for […]

Prisoners of past

It is too late for peace initiatives of the type South Africa’s Zuma is working for Libya Writing on the wall is unmistakable for the rogue regimes in the Middle East. Their time is up. The unprecedented attack on the presidential palace in Yemen on Friday, which injured President Ali […]