DHAKA: Damascus signed a major oil exploration deal with a Russian company in the Syrian capital Wednesday, which will allow for exploration in a section of Syrian waters.The deal was signed by Syrian oil minister Suleiman Abbas, Syria’s General Petroleum Company and the Russian

DHAKA: Pope Francis on Wednesday called for humanitarian aid access in Syria and ‘social harmony’ in South Sudan on his first Christmas in the Vatican after months of shaking up the papacy with his humble style and common touch.Pope Francis also pleaded for divine aid to rescue child

DHAKA: Militants in Iraq targeted Christians in two separate bomb attacks in Baghdad on Wednesday, killing at least 37 people.Iraq officials said, reports Today’s Zaman.In one attack, a car bomb went off near a church during Christmas Mass in the capital’s southern Dora neighbourhood,

DHAKA: Pope Francis has used his first Christmas Day address to urge access for humanitarian aid in Syria.He told thousands of pilgrims in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican to pray for a peaceful end to violence in Syria and other conflict zones, reports the BBC.The Argentine pope also

DHAKA: Thousands of Britons woke up to flooding and power cuts on Christmas morning after torrential rainfall and hurricane-force winds battered the country.Three severe flood warnings are in place along with over 350 secondary warnings and alerts, largely across southern and central

DHAKA: At least 20 people were killed in bomb attacks in Christian areas of Baghdad on Wednesday, including a car bomb that exploded near a church after a Christmas service, police and medics said.A bomb in a parked car went off while worshippers were leaving a church in the Doura

DHAKA: A surgeon has been suspended over allegations that he ‘branded’ his initials onto a patient’s liver.The letters were reportedly found by a colleague who was performing a routine operation on the unnamed patient.University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust confirmed

DHAKA: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has urged the country’s military to bolster its combat readiness, saying a war could break out ‘without any prior notice’.North Korea state media reported on Wednesday, says The Times of India.The call comes at a time of heightened tension on

DHAKA: Devyani Khobragade’s lawyer Wednesday said US authorities goofed up in the investigation and arrest of the Indian diplomat on charges of visa fraud as a federal agent made a ‘serious’ mistake in reading the paperwork submitted regarding her domestic help`s salary.Daniel

DHAKA: A car bomb has exploded near a church in the Iraqi capital, as Christians celebrated Christmas Day, killing at least 14 people.Iraq police and medics said, reports Al Jazeera.The bomb went off in the Doura district on Wednesday while worshippers were leaving the church, police

DHAKA: Two Turkish ministers stepped down Wednesday, the first heads to roll over a massive graft probe that has presented prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan with the biggest challenge to his 11 years in power.Economy minister Zafer Caglayan and interior minister Muammer Guler announced

DHAKA: Pope Francis is set to make his first Christmas address as pontiff in front of thousands of pilgrims in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican.The Argentine pope is expected to tackle themes such as global poverty, which he has focused on since taking over from Benedict in March this

DHAKA: Two Taliban rockets landed inside the US embassy compound in Kabul early on Wednesday, causing no casualties but underlining Afghanistan’s continuing security problems as many foreigners in the capital marked Christmas Day.‘At approximately 6:40 local time in Kabul,

DHAKA: The Thai prime minister has proposed the formation of a national reform council to find solutions to the political turmoil that is splitting the country and paralysing governance.Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra`s announcement on Wednesday means she can portray herself as being

DHAKA: North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has warned war could break out "without any prior notice" and urged his military to bolster its combat readiness, state media reported.The call on Wednesday comes one day after a US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University report said that

DHAKA: There have been riots in the Egyptian city of Mansoura, after the bombing of a police station that killed 14 people.Police said on Tuesday three bombs had been planted before the explosion at the police station, two of which went off at almost at the same time. The third one, found

DHAKA: The US government has offered help to anyone who misses the 24 December deadline to enrol for the new health insurance - known as "Obamacare".It said anyone who failed to finish their application through a dedicated website - HealthCare.gov - could still obtain a policy for the New

DHAKA: The Iranian parliament has voted to consider a proposal to pick another city as the nation`s capital, potentially moving the seat of government from the overcrowded Tehran.Iran`s official news agency IRNA said on Tuesday that politicians had accepted outlines of the proposal with

DHAKA: The United Nations Security Council has approved plans to almost double the number of UN peacekeepers in South Sudan.The 15-member council unanimously authorised on Tuesday a request by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to boost the strength of the UN mission in South Sudan to

DHAKA: Egyptian police arrested former Prime Minister Hisham Qandil in an apartment in Giza governorate, according to state-run news agency EGYNews.Qandil had been sentenced by a court to one year in prison for contempt. It said he failed to carry out a ruling to nationalize a private