Rebuilding Syria’s economy: Can stability return after war? Syria’s new leadership faces an economy devastated by war and sanctions, with inflation and a decimated currency. A shopkeeper counts Syrian currency bills at a market after the ousting of leader Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, December 16, 2024 [Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters] By Alexander Kozul-WrightPublished On 8 Jan…

News Turkiye threatens military action against Kurdish forces in Syria Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan threatens military action against PKK-linked YPG group if they fail to meet Ankara’s demands. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan [File: Louisa Gouliamaki/Reuters] Published On 8 Jan 20258 Jan 2025 Turkiye has threatened to launch a military operation against Kurdish forces in…

EXPLAINER What is HMPV, the respiratory virus surging in China? HMPV infections are spreading in China, while cases of flu-like disease have also been found in India and the UK. Masked children, accompanied by adults, wait to be seen by medical staff at a hospital in Hangzhou, eastern China’s Zhejiang province, on January 6, 2025….

Light aircraft crashes at tourist hotspot in Australia, killing 3 Authorities say they are investigating the cause of the crash off island located near Perth, Western Australia. Western Australian Premier Roger Cook [Matt Jelonek/Getty Images] Published On 8 Jan 20258 Jan 2025 A light aircraft has crashed during takeoff at a popular tourist destination in…

With Trump looming, Pakistan braces for foreign policy challenges in 2025 Analysts predict a tough year, as Islamabad prepares for more US belligerence towards China, the closest Pakistan ally. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif [File: K M Chaudary/AP] By Abid HussainPublished On 8 Jan 20258 Jan 2025 Islamabad, Pakistan – Pakistan entered a new year in a…

Venezuela’s Maduro says US nationals among group of ‘mercenaries’ detained President Maduro said the group included mercenaries and ‘hit men’, describing two US detainees as ‘very high level’. Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro addresses members of the Bolivarian militia and a fighter force, in Caracas, Venezuela, on January 7, 2025 [Gaby Oraa/Reuters] Published On 8 Jan…

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,049 Here are the key developments on the 1,049th day of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. A serviceman of 13th Operative Purpose Brigade ‘Khartiia’ of the National Guard of Ukraine prepares to fire a Giatsint-B howitzer towards Russian troops at a position on a front line, in the…

US bans medical debt from credit reports as Biden nears exit Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says change will strike $49bn in medical debt from credit reports. The seal of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is seen at its headquarters in Washington, DC, the United States on May 14, 2021 [Andrew Kelly/Reuters] Published On 8 Jan…

Former Cambodian opposition MP shot dead in Bangkok ‘assassination’ Lim Kimya, 74, had refused to flee Cambodia even after former PM Hun Sen threatened to make opposition MPs lives ‘hell’. Lim Kimya, 74, pictured in 2017 was an activist and former member of Cambodia’s National Assembly [File: Tang Chhin Sothy/AFP] Published On 8 Jan 20258…

‘Massacres’: Women, children killed as Israel bombs Gaza’s ‘safe zone’ Al Jazeera’s correspondent says fear dominates in Gaza as Israeli attacks intensify, targeting the al-Mawasi ‘humanitarian safe zone’. Medical personnel attend to an injured Palestinian infant at al-Ahli Hospital following an Israeli attack on the home of the Rayhan family in the Jabalia area of…