Former bodyguard of Hezbollah leader killed in Israeli strike over Syria, says Hezbollah official

Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — Former bodyguard of Hezbollah leader killed in Israeli strike over Syria, says Hezbollah official.

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  • Bangladesh has erupted over jobs reserved for the children of ‘freedom fighters.’ Here’s what you need to know

    Huge protests across Bangladesh escalated into deadly violence this week with clashes between students, pro-government supporters and armed police fueling widespread anger over civil service job quotas opponents say are discriminatory.

  • Israeli settlers attack foreign activists and Palestinian farmers in West Bank

    Masked Israeli settlers attacked a group of Palestinian farmers and foreign activists accompanying them for protection in the West Bank town of Qusra on Sunday, according to victims of the attack and videos obtained by CNN.

  • Kamala Harris criticised for ‘boycott’ of Netanyahu speech to Congress

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  • Tony Blair government warned Israel over ‘out of control’ troops in West Bank

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  • Kenyan protesters vow to seize country’s main airport as deadly unrest continues into sixth week

    Protesters in Kenya have vowed “a total shutdown” as they seize control of Nairobi’s main international airport on Tuesday as deadly anti-government demonstrations intensify, now entering their sixth week.

  • Navy aviator scores first air-to-air victory by a US female fighter pilot

    A US Navy fighter pilot has become the first American woman to score a victory in air-to-air combat, the service has revealed.

  • Bangladesh student group suspends protests over death toll

    The Bangladeshi student group leading demonstrations that have spiralled into deadly violence suspended protests Monday for 48 hours, with its leader saying they had not wanted reform "at the expense of so much blood".Nahid Islam, leader of the main protest organiser Students Against Discrimination, told AFP that "We are suspending the shutdown protests for 48 hours".

  • Bangladesh protesters give government 48 hours to meet new set of demands

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  • Rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah sign ‘Beijing declaration’ of unity after China talks

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  • ‘Island of peace’ Israeli-Palestinian restaurant in Berlin vandalised

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  • Outcry as Israeli parliament approves bill declaring UN relief agency ‘terrorists’

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  • Bangladesh student protest leader says he fears for his life

    Bangladeshi student protest leader Nahid Islam lay in a hospital room in the capital Dhaka on Monday, bruised and battered and in fear for his life.The 26-year-old sociology graduate leads Students Against Discrimination, the main group organising demonstrations against employment quotas for sought-after government jobs that spiralled into deadly violence.The group suspended the protests for 48 hours on Monday, with Nahid saying it had not wanted to see "so much blood, so much killing, so much damage to life and property".His soft-spoken manner -- unusual among Bangladeshi student leaders -- belies his steely determination.Nahid personally led protests against the quotas, which critics say are used to benefit ruling Awami League party loyalists, until Friday.Wearing a national flag as a bandana, he roused demonstrators with the chant: "Quota or merit? Merit, merit."However, in the early hours of Saturday, a group of people identifying themselves as police detectives broke through the gate of a friend's house where he had been staying due to a government-imposed curfew.He fled to the roof but to no avail."Four, five people forcibly took me down and took me to their car. I was blindfolded and handcuffed," Nahid told AFP in an interview in hospital.He said he was driven to a house 30 or 40 minutes away and interrogated."Why we are doing this, what is our purpose, why we were not withdrawing the protests, who was behind this movement," Nahid said he was asked."They were not happy with my replies and then at one stage they started beating me, they hit me with something like an iron bar and at one stage I lost consciousness."He said he found himself on a roadside in Dhaka's east when he came to his senses early on Sunday morning. A rickshaw took him home and his family took him to hospital.Nahid asked AFP not to identify where he was being treated for fear of being attacked by members of the ruling party's youth league or police."Me and many other coordinators are fearful for their lives," he said, displaying a large purple bruise on his right arm. "A few of my fellow coordinators are missing."- 'Irresponsible behaviour' -Nahid has not been able to get a job since graduating from Dhaka University but has been involved in student politics since joining protests against the employment quotas in 2018.This time, the demonstrations snowballed into some of the worst unrest of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's tenure.Authorities cracked down on protesters and ordered a curfew, while a widespread internet shutdown was imposed on Thursday.Nahid accused authorities of "irresponsible behaviour", "provocative remarks" and repression, blaming them for the escalating tension. "People are expressing their anger at the government," he said. "We want justice for people who were martyred in the movement and injured."The ministers, the heads of law enforcement agencies who ordered the attack, shooting, we want their resignation," he said.The scale of the violence remained unclear on Monday but an AFP tally of victims reported by police and hospitals put the death toll from the clashes at 163, including several police officers.Information is limited by official reticence and the internet shutdown, which Nahid demanded be lifted."The government is completely controlling media," he said."In Bangladesh the human rights situation has gravely collapsed."We are not sure how many people were killed."mma/slb/pbt

  • UN envoy warns that threat of terrorism is `resurging' with attacks by Islamic State extremists

    The top U.N. envoy for Syria told the Security Council on Monday that the threat of terrorism is “resurging” with attacks by Islamic State extremists set to double this year, endangering civilians already facing a “protracted state of displacement and dire humanitarian conditions.” U.N. Special Envoy Geir Pedersen said Syria is “riddled with armed actors, listed terrorist groups, foreign armies and front-lines” 13 years after President Bashar Assad’s crackdown on peaceful protests against his government turned to civil war.

  • Israel orders evacuation of part of Gaza humanitarian zone

    Strikes are reported near Khan Younis, after people are told to leave eastern areas in the zone.

  • Protesters Gather at Ben Gurion Airport Ahead of Netanyahu’s Trip to United States

    Protesters gathered at the Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv, Israel on Sunday, July 21, ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s departure for the United States the following day.Footage filmed by Instagram user @ksenia.davida shows a group of protesters waving Israeli flags at the airport.According to The Times of Israel, protesters were urging Netanyahu not to travel before a hostage deal is signed with Hamas.Ahead of his departure on Monday morning, Netanyahu said a planned meeting with US President Joe Biden was expected to go ahead in Washington. Credit: @ksenia.davida via Storyful

  • Blair government accused IDF of acting like Russian army in West Bank

    Tensions over Palestinian death toll have eerie parallels to western concerns about current Israeli operations

  • At least 26 villagers killed in latest violent attack in central Mali

    At least 26 people were killed after an armed group attacked a village in Mali’s central region, near the border with Burkina Faso, a government official said Monday, the latest violent attack in the conflict-hit region. The assailants attacked villagers as most of them worked in their farmlands in the Dembo village on Sunday evening, said Moulaye Guindo, the mayor of Bankass town where Dembo is located. Such attacks are becoming increasingly frequent in central Mali as the country’s military junta also struggles to contain violence in the northern region.