Politics

In an unsuccessful coup attempt apparently by elements of the Turkish Armed Forces in Istanbul and Ankara, 265 people were killed and 1440 were injured, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım reported on Saturday. Following the incident, 2,839 soldiers and officers were detained and, according to another military official, 104 coup plotters were killed. General Hulusi Akar, held by the rebels, was later freed. On Friday, the rebels declared martial law claiming to have "taken control of the country" and said Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdo

Yesterday, three individuals committed a suicide attack on Ataturk airport in Istanbul, Turkey. The attack started with the three individuals shooting weapons near the terminal entrance. After police started to return fire the individuals blew themselves up. 41 people were killed in the attack, and at least another 239 injured, according to officials. Those killed include nationals of several countries, including Saudi Arabia and Iraq. While no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, the Turkish Prime Minister, Binali Yildirim, stat

Members of Parliament (MPs) for the Labour Party, a political party in the United Kingdom (UK), have today voted in favour of a no-confidence motion towards their leader, Jeremy Corbyn. The vote follows over 20 members of the Shadow cabinet resigning blaming Mr Corbyn's performance leading up to last Thursday's referendum on the UK's membership on the European Union (EU). The Labour party had campaigned for the UK to remain in the EU. During the vote 172 Labour MPs voted in favour of the motion, while 40 voted against it. Four ballots were sp

Victoria, Australia premier Daniel Andrews, speaking in parliament yesterday, apologised for the state's history of 'abominable' laws under which homosexuality could be punished with jail time. "For decades, we were obsessed with the private mysteries of men. And so we jailed them, we harmed them, and in turn, they harmed themselves", said Andrews. He noted that while those laws haven't been in force since the 1980s, many still have criminal records because of them. Many are trying to clear their records; so far, six have completed the proces

Members of Parliament in Italy voted yesterday in support of the introduction of same-sex civil unions. The vote passed by 369 to 193 by Italy's lower house, the Chamber of Deputies. The upper house approved the bill in February. Prime Minister Matteo Renzi called for a vote of confidence in the government and a successful vote has passed approval on the bill automatically. Italy was the last major western country where same-sex relationships were legally unrecognized. "Today is a day of celebration for so many people", Renzi wrote before th

On Tuesday, Indiana held its Democratic and Republican primaries, where voters could vote for the candidate of their choice and presidential candidates can earn delegates so they can move on to the US general presidential election. The results: Donald Trump obtained 51 of the 57 Republican delegates, while on the Democratic side, Bernie Sanders obtained at least 42 of the state's 83 pledged Democratic delegates; the Democratic party also has unpledged superdelegates who are free to vote as they choose. Donald Trump, the Republican front-runne

A bus explosion in Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, on Monday killed two Armenians and reportedly injured at least seven others. Deputy head of the rescue service at the Ministry of Emergency Situations Major-General Grigoryan said the blast was reported on Monday at 10:00pm local time (1800 UTC). In remarks to News.am, Armenian Health Minister Armen Muradyan said six injured were transported to a local medical centre. One passenger was revealed to be pregnant, and News.am reported at least five others were in critical condition. Reportedly

At least four people were killed by a suicide bomb in the Turkish city of Istanbul on Saturday morning. The suicide bomber was a fifth death. At least 36 people were injured, according to Turkish health minister Mehmet Müezzinoğlu. Reports varied on how may injured were foreigners; Minister Müezzinoğlu identified the nationalities of twelve injured from Israel, Germany, Ireland, Iceland, Iran, and Dubai. The blast occurred prematurely, according to CNN Türk. The attack took place on Istiklal Street, a popular pedestrian commercial street.

Azerbaijan Minister of Finance Samir Sharifov allegedly worked as a "triple agent" for Russian, Turkish, and US intelligence agencies, according to a report by Ukrainian online newspaper Gordon last Wednesday. Sharifov allegedly worked as a human asset for the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service before Turkish intelligence recruited him in South Yemen in 1989–1990. Soon after, he allegedly began working for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). In the Gordon article, their source ascribed this information to "sources in the Russian intellige

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, former President of Brazil, was detained yesterday as part of ongoing investigations into corruption related to Petrobras, the state-run oil company. A raid occurred at 0600 local time (0900 UTC) at a number of locations including President Lula's house in São Bernardo do Campo, near São Paulo. President Lula was held for questioning for three hours before being released. The former president is alleged to have been involved in corruption at the state oil company including kickbacks from suppliers including both cash

A petition on the UK government's website, calling for US Presidential hopeful Donald Trump to be barred from entering the country, has now passed a half-million signatories becoming the most-popular petition ever posted on the site. The signatories include a majority of UK MPs. The petition was originally submitted late November by campaigner Suzanne Kelly from Aberdeen, preceding Trump's remarks which prompted the overwhelming response. Kelly, saying her attention was drawn due to concerns over Trump's golfing developments in the area, noted

Russian officials said yesterday navigator Captain Konstantin Murakhtin, from the fighter jet shot down by a Turkish warplane on Tuesday, has been found alive. He was rescued following a twelve-hour mission to find him in Syria. The pilot, Lieutenant Colonel Oleg Peshkov, died after being shot by rebel fighters. During the rescue attempt for Captain Murakhtin, a helicopter landed in Syria after being shot at by rebel fighters. Russian marine Alexander Pozynich died during the attack. Russia's President Vladimir Putin said Pozynich and Murakht