World News - The Morning Sun

Anton Koen, a former police officer who now runs a private security firm that specializes in tracking and recovering hijacked and stolen vehicles, prepares to go out on patrol east of Johannesburg, South Africa, Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2023. Experts have warned that the South African police are losing the battle against crime and that has led those citizens who can afford it, to turn to a booming private security industry. (AP Photo/Denis Farrell)

As police lose the war on crime in South Africa, private security companies step in

The private security industry in South Africa is booming as police struggle against record levels of crime. The country of about 60 million recorded a daily average of 75 killings and 400 robberies … more

By MOGOMOTSI MAGOME | 1/7/24

FILE - Trucks carrying humanitarian aid line up at the Rafah Border Crossing, Egypt, on the way to Gaza, Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. A cumbersome process of Israeli inspections and other hurdles is slowing the entry of aid into Gaza, two U.S. senators say after a visit to Egypt's Rafah crossing into to besieged territory. Hundreds of trucks are lined up at Rafah, sometimes waiting weeks to go through the process. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil, File)

Cumbersome process and 'arbitrary' Israeli inspections slow aid delivery into Gaza, US senators say

A cumbersome process of Israeli inspections and other hurdles are slowing the entry of aid into Gaza. That's according to two U.S. senators after a visit to Egypt's Rafah crossing into the besieged … more

By LEE KEATH | 1/6/24

A minibus explodes in Kabul, killing at least 2 civilians and wounding 14 others

A Taliban official says a minibus has exploded in a mostly Shiite Muslim neighborhood in Afghanistan’s capital of Kabul, killing at least two civilians and wounding 14 others. Saturday's attack … more

1/6/24

In this photo taken from a video released by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024, Su-25 ground attack jets fire rockets during a Russian air force mission in Ukraine. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

Russian shelling kills 11 in Donetsk region while Ukraine claims it hit a Crimean air base

Eleven people were killed Saturday in Russian shelling in Ukraine’s partially occupied Donetsk province, according to regional Gov. Vadym Filashkin. Five children were among the dead and eight … more

1/6/24

Security officers carry ballot boxes for distribution in Dhaka, Bangladesh,Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024. An apparent arson fire on a train in Bangladesh’s capital killed four people late Friday and added to the country’s extreme tension ahead of Sunday’s parliamentary elections that the opposition is seeking to boycott and disrupt with a general strike. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu)

Bangladesh's main opposition party starts a 48-hour general strike ahead of Sunday's election

Bangladesh’s main opposition party has started a 48-hour general strike on the eve on a general election, calling on people to boycott the vote because it says the government of incumbent Prime … more

By JULHAS ALAM | 1/6/24

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, shakes hands with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan at Vahdettin, a private residence of the Presidency, in Istanbul, Turkey, Saturday, Jan. 6, 2024. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)

Blinken opens latest urgent Mideast tour in Turkey as fears grow that Gaza war may engulf region

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has kicked off his latest urgent Middle East diplomatic mission in Turkey as fears mount that Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza may explode into a broader … more

By MATTHEW LEE | 1/6/24

Revolutionary Guard members stand over the flag-draped coffins of victims of Wednesday's bomb explosion during their funeral ceremony in the city of Kerman about 510 miles (820 kms) southeast of the capital Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 5, 2024. Iran on Friday mourned those slain in an Islamic State group-claimed suicide bombing targeting a commemoration for a general slain in a U.S. drone strike in 2020. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Death toll in Islamic State-claimed suicide blasts rises to 91

Iranian officials say the death toll from an Islamic State group-claimed suicide bombing has risen to at least 91. State TV on Saturday quoted a spokesman for the country’s emergency services as … more

1/6/24

United Arab Emirates acknowledges mass trial of prisoners previously reported during COP28

The United Arab Emirates has acknowledged it is conducting a mass trial of 84 inmates previously reported by dissidents as it hosted the United Nations COP28 climate talks last month. That trial … more

By JON GAMBRELL | 1/6/24

This photo provided by Kyaw Ko Lin shows a view of Laukkaing city in Shan state, Myanmar, Nov. 20, 2023. An alliance of ethnic armed groups in northeastern Myanmar has reportedly achieved one of the main goals it set when it launched an offensive last October by taking control of Laukkaing, a key city on the border with China, according to local residents and independent media accounts on Friday Jan. 5, 2024. (Kyaw Ko Lin via AP)

Myanmar confirms that a key northeastern city near China has been seized by an armed ethnic alliance

Myanmar’s military government has acknowledged that it withdrew its forces from a key city on the northeastern border with China after it was taken over by an alliance of ethnic armed groups it has … more

By GRANT PECK | 1/6/24

Tourists from Kenya sit by a bonfire outside a cottage in Drang village, northwest of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023. This is the time of "Chillai Kalan," also called "The Great Winter," a Kashmiri phrase which defines the harshest 40 days of cold in disputed Kashmir that commence in late December and extend into January and early February. Renowned for its breathtaking landscapes, Kashmir in winter transforms into a wonderland. Tourists fill its hotels to ski, sledge and trek the Himalayan landscape.(AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

AP PHOTOS: In idyllic Kashmir's 'Great Winter,' cold adds charm but life is challenging for locals

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — The skies are overcast. On the plains, temperatures have dropped below freezing. High on the mountains, peaks are draped in thick snow. This is the time of “Chillai … more

By DAR YASIN | 1/6/24

Chef Failatu Abdul-Razak attempts to break a world record for marathon cooking in Tamale, northern Ghana on Friday Jan. 5, 2024. Failatu Abdul-Razak had cooked local dishes non-stop for over 110 hours as of Friday afternoon at a city hotel as part of her effort to surpass the Guinness World Record for a cook-a-thon of 119 hours and 57 minutes held by Irish chef Alan Fisher. (AP Photo)

With banku and jollof rice, Ghanian chef tries to break world cook-a-thon record

A chef in Ghana has been preparing banku and other regional dishes on live TV since New Year’s Day as she tries to break a world record for marathon cooking. The attempt is being cheered on and … more

By FRANCIS KOKUTSE | 1/5/24

In this photo provided by the Belarusian Presidential Press Service, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko attends the New Year Eve's children's charity event held as part of the country's charity campaign Our Children, in the Palace of the Republic in Minsk, Belarus, Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023. (Belarusian Presidential Press Service via AP)

Belarus' authoritarian leader tightens control over the country's religious groups

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has signed a law into effect that significantly tightens control over various religious denominations and organizations. The law, published on the presidential … more

By YURAS KARMANAU | 1/5/24

Palestinian demonstrators wave Hamas and their national flags during a protest against the killing of top Hamas official Saleh Arouri in Beirut, in the West Bank town of Arura, on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024. Arouri, the No. 2 figure in Hamas, was killed in an explosion blamed on Israel. He is the highest-ranked Hamas figure to be killed in the nearly three-month war between Israel and Hamas. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Hezbollah leader says his group must retaliate for suspected Israeli strike in Beirut

The leader of the Lebanese militia Hezbollah says his group must retaliate after a presumed Israeli strike hit a Beirut neighborhood this week, killing a senior Hamas official. Without a response, … more

By BASSEM MROUE, WAFAA SHURAFA and NAJIB JOBAIN | 1/5/24

FILE - South Africa's Oscar Pistorius starts in the men's semi-finals of the 400-meter in the Olympic Stadium at the 2012 Summer Olympics, London on Aug. 5, 2012. Oscar Pistorius is due on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024 to be released from prison on parole to live under strict conditions at a family home after serving nearly nine years of his murder sentence for the shooting death of girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day 2013. (AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus, File)

Track star, convicted killer, now parolee. A timeline of Oscar Pistorius's life

A list of the major moments in the life of Oscar Pistorius, the South African double-amputee Olympic runner who was released from prison on parole Friday having served nearly nine years of a murder … more

By GERALD IMRAY | 1/5/24

People walk on the street towards the grave of the late Iranian Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani as a mosque is seen in background in the city of Kerman about 510 miles (820 kms) southeast of the capital Tehran, Iran, Thursday, Jan. 4, 2024. Investigators believe suicide bombers likely carried out an attack on a commemoration for an Iranian general slain in a 2020 U.S. drone strike, state media reported Thursday, as Iran grappled with its worst mass-casualty attack in decades and as the wider Mideast remains on edge. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iran mourns those slain in Islamic State-claimed suicide blasts as death toll rises to 89

Iran is mourning those slain in an Islamic State group-claimed suicide bombing targeting a commemoration for a general slain in a U.S. drone strike in 2020. The funeral Friday came as the death toll … more

By AMIR VAHDAT, VAHID SALEMI and JON GAMBRELL | 1/5/24

FILE- INS Chennai, a Kolkata class destroyer, is moored at a jetty in Mumbai, India, Friday, Nov. 18, 2016. The Indian navy said on Friday, Jan. 5, 2023, that it has deployed the ship and a patrol aircraft in the Arabian Sea following a hijacking attempt onboard a Liberia-flagged bulk carrier. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade, File)

Indian Navy deploys ship and patrol aircraft following bid to hijack a Liberia-flagged bulk carrier.

The Indian navy says it has deployed a ship and a patrol aircraft in the Arabian Sea following a hijacking attempt onboard a Liberian-flagged bulk carrier. It says the vessel sent a message … more

1/5/24

Rescuers inspect the wreckage of trains after a collision in Cicalengka, West Java, Indonesia, Friday, Jan. 5, 2024. The two trains collided on Indonesia's main island of Java on Friday, causing several carriages to buckle and overturn, officials said. (AP Photo/Abdan Syakura)

Trains collide on Indonesia's main island of Java, killing at least 3 people

Two trains have collided on Indonesia’s main island of Java, causing several carriages to buckle and overturn and killing at least three people. Officials say the accident happened near a train … more

By ADI MARSIELA | 1/4/24

In this undated photo provided on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024, by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, with his daughter visits a factory that produces transport erector launchers in North Korea. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

North Korea's Kim orders increased production of mobile launch vehicles as tensions grow with US

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has ordered authorities to increase production of mobile launch vehicles for missiles, saying the country faces a looming military showdown with its enemies. The … more

By HYUNG-JIN KIM | 1/4/24

Mourners carry the coffin of Saleh Arouri, one of the top Hamas commanders, who was killed in an apparent Israeli strike Tuesday, as they pass in front of a graffiti that shows late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, during his funeral in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, Jan. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Thousands attend the funeral of a top Hamas official killed in an apparent Israeli strike in Beirut

Thousands of people have taken to the streets in Beirut for the funeral of Saleh Arouri, top commander of militant Palestinian group Hamas, who was killed earlier this week in an apparent Israeli … more

By FADI TAWIL and BASSEM MROUE | 1/4/24

Families of victims of the explosions gather at the courtyard of a hospital in the city of Kerman, about 510 miles (820 kilometres) southeast of the capital Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 3, 2024. Two bombs exploded Wednesday at a commemoration for a prominent Iranian general slain by the U.S. in a 2020 drone strike, Iranian officials said, as the Middle East remains on edge over Israel's war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. (Sare Tajalli, ISNA via AP)

Iran suspects suicide bombers carried out attack on commemoration for slain general that killed 84

Investigators believe suicide bombers likely carried out an attack on a commemoration for an Iranian general slain in a 2020 U.S. drone strike. That's according to a state media report Thursday, … more

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