CAIRO: A “disappointing” fortnight of UN talks in Bonn has left much work to be done just five months before a crucial climate summit, diplomats and analysts said, after negotiations failed to make concrete advances on efforts to tackle global warming.
IRBIL, Iraq: Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government is working to establish two oil firms, the latest move in the battle between Irbil and Baghdad to control the oil sector in the semi-autonomous region.
The KRG’s new oil firm KROC would specialize in oil exploration, while the second — KOMO — would focus on oil exports and marketing from the semi-autonomous region, a spokesperson said in a statement on Friday.
The regional government has presented the idea and discussed it with the federal government in Baghdad recently, the KRG spokesperson said in a statement.
NEW YORK: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on authorities in Beirut to respect the decision of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon, which on Thursday imposed life sentences on two members of Hezbollah for involvement in the 2005 bombing that claimed the life of former prime minister Rafik Hariri.
Hariri was killed on Feb. 14, 2005, by a suicide bomber who targeted his armored convoy on the Beirut waterfront. The blast killed 21 other people and injured 226.
BUENOS AIRES: Israel has praised Argentina for holding a Venezuelan plane that included Iranian crew, saying the flight shows Tehran is trying to expand its influence in South America.
Washington also made clear it is keeping close tabs on the investigation into the Boeing 747, which was loaded with automotive parts and raised questions because its 19 crew members is an unusually large number for a cargo plane.
THE HAGUE: The International Criminal Court on Wednesday dropped its war crimes case against a Libyan general after prosecutors confirmed he was dead.
The decision came more than a year after Libyan officials reported that assailants killed Mahmoud Al-Werfalli, a commander in the self-styled Libyan Arab Armed Forces, by opening fire on his car in the eastern city of Benghazi.
The court said judges terminated proceedings against Al-Werfalli after studying evidence that included witness statements, photographs and social media posts.
