resettled in US
Reuters, Washington
The United States has taken in 8,000 Syrian refugees since October and is on track to meet President Barack Obama’s goal of resettling 10,000 by the end of the fiscal year, a U.S. State Department official told reporters on Friday.
Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration Anne Richard said additional U.S. personnel had been deployed to vet refugees overseas and that many other refugees had already been vetted and were awaiting resettlement.
Pakistan, Iran agree to cooperate against IS
Dawn.com, Islamabad
Pakistan and Iran agreed on Saturday to forge close counterterrorism cooperation to deal with the militant Islamic State (IS) group and other security threats.
This was agreed at the ninth round of bilateral political consultations held in Tehran. Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry led the Pakistani delegation, whereas the Iranian side was headed by the Deputy Foreign Minister for Asia and Pacific, Ebrahim Rahimpour.
Yemen peace talks end in failure
AP, Kuwait City
The UN special envoy for Yemen announced the end of peace talks on Saturday without any major breakthrough, but also said a new round of negotiations would begin after one month.
The announcement came as fighting intensified around the capital Sanaa and after the rebels named members of a controversial political council.
2 killed in Morocco building collapse
AFP, Morocco
Rescuers today searched for a woman believed trapped under a building that collapsed in Morocco’s economic capital Casablanca, killing two people and injuring 24, officials and witnesses said.
The four-storey building in the Sbata district that came down on Friday evening had a cafe on the ground floor that had been teeming with customers and a doctor’s clinic which was also full, witnesses said.
A taxi driver who had gone into the cafe to use the restroom was killed, witnesses said.
