There are 17997 articles

  • UK parliament approves EU treaty

    The UK has effectively ratified the EU's reform treaty - despite the decision by Irish voters to reject it. A last-ditch Tory bid to delay the process for four months was defeated by a margin of 93, and peers later gave the EU Amendment Bill a third reading. Royal Assent is expected within 24 hours, as EU leaders are set to meet in Brussels to discuss.. More

  • China and Japan strike gas deal

    Japan and China have struck a deal for the joint development of a gas field in the East China Sea, resolving a protracted bilateral dispute. Japanese private sector firms will take part in China's project to develop the Chunxiao gas field, which is known as Shirakaba in Japan. A small crowd of Chinese protesters denounced the deal outside the Japanese.. More

  • Baghdad blast death toll rises

    The death toll from a car bomb attack at a market in Baghdad, Iraq's capital, has risen to at least 63, Iraqi officials have said. The Iraqi government said on Wednesday it will "defeat the terrorists and ... maintain the security achievements" after the bombing, which occurred in the Shia Muslim neighbourhood of Hurriyah the previous evening. A.. More

  • Israel ready to ease Gaza blockade if truce holds

    Israel said on Wednesday it would ease its blockade of the Gaza Strip as part of an imminent truce but warned that its military was ready to intervene if the Egyptian-brokered deal failed. "Israel has accepted Egypt's proposals," Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's spokesman Mark Regev said. "If the fighting indeed ceases Thursday as planned,.. More

  • Zimbabwe politician stays jailed

    Zimbabwe's main opposition party has lost a legal bid for its secretary general to be freed from custody. The Movement for Democratic Change argued that Tendai Biti - who is expected to face a treason charge - was not being legally detained. But a high court judge said Mr Biti's detention on his return from South Africa was lawful. The MDC's.. More

  • US interrogation policy condemned

    A US Senate committee has criticised military officials for the manner in which they developed interrogation techniques used at Guantanamo Bay. Pentagon lawyers testified to the Armed Services Committee that methods such as water-boarding were based on training given to soldiers on resisting torture. Chairman Sen Carl Levin said they had then.. More

  • Taiwan ups pressure in islands row

    Taiwan's president has reiterated the island's claim to a chain of disputed islands in the East China sea, urging Japan to treat calls for talks on sovereignty seriously. "In the past, Japan would not talk about the sovereignty issue with Taiwan, but if Japan does not change its attitude ... our relations will be affected," Ma Ying-jeou said. Ma's.. More

  • Car bomb targets Baghdad bus stop

    A car bomb has exploded in northern Baghdad killing at least 11 people and wounding dozens of others. The explosion hit a bus stop in the mainly Shia Muslim neighbourhood of Hurriya, Iraqi police said. The bomb appeared to have been timed to go off during the early evening rush hour, when the bus stop was crowded with waiting passengers. It is.. More

  • Israel-Hamas truce announced

    Israel and Hamas will begin a ceasefire on Thursday, a Palestinian official has said. "Implementation of the truce will begin at 6am (0300 GMT) on Thursday," the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said on Tuesday. Hamas said it would respect the six-month deal, which materialised after months of mediation by Egypt. "Hamas.. More

  • Sarkozy overhauls the military as France plans return to NATO

    President Nicolas Sarkozy on Tuesday launched a major overhaul of the French military, cutting back the armed forces, beefing up intelligence and setting a course for France's return to NATO command. A leaner, more mobile and high-tech military will allow France to confront new threats, in particular terrorism which poses the greatest danger, Sarkozy.. More

  • China floods kill 171, more rain expected

    Soldiers scrambled to shore up soggy levies with sandbags Tuesday in southern China as forecasters warned that more heavy rain in the central region could trigger flooding on the country's second-longest river. The death toll rose to 171, state-run media said. The high waters swamped crop land in the south, forcing farmers to wade into their fields.. More

  • Japan executes notorious cannibal killer

    Japan on Tuesday executed three people including notorious serial killer Tsutomu Miyazaki, a fetishist convicted of murdering four young girls and eating some of their bodies, officials said. Miyazaki, 45, was nicknamed the "killer nerd" for his obsession with sexual cartoons and pornography. But defence lawyers contended he was mentally.. More

  • Chad: EU force 'aiding rebels'

    Chad's president has accused European troops deployed in his country of co-operating with rebel forces who have captured towns in the east. Idris Deby's accusation on Tuesday comes after a spokesman for the opposition forces said the rebels had captured the town of Am Dam, about 600km east of Ndjamena, the capital. "We took the town in the middle.. More

  • Southern China flooding kills 57, more rain ahead

    Massive flooding across a broad stretch of southern China killed almost 60 people and forced 1.3 million others from their homes, state media reported Monday. People were forced to flee their homes across nine provinces, including Sichuan, still reeling from last month's earthquake that killed nearly 70,000 people, the official Xinhua News Agency said... More

  • Taliban seize Afghan villages

    The Taliban has taken control of eight villages in Arghandab district in Afghanistan, and have said they plan to march towards Kandahar city. About 500 fighters are said to be involved in the ongoing Taliban offensive, which got under way on Monday, Al Jazeera has learnt. Afghan and US-led forces in Afghanistan are said to be preparing to repulse.. More