AFP, Moscow
Russia and Iraq restored scheduled commercial airline services on Sunday for the first time since 2004, in what officials hailed as a sign of stability returning to the war-torn country.
An Iraqi Airways plane left Baghdad at 10.31 am (0731 GMT) and was expected to arrive at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport at 2.19 pm (1119 GMT), according to the Russian airport’s online departure and arrival timetables.
12 Yemeni civilians killed in Saudi-led raid
AFP, Sanaa
Twelve Yemeni civilians including women and children have been killed in an air raid by the Saudi-led coalition northeast of the capital Sanaa, an official, residents and rebel media said Sunday.
A local official told AFP the coalition air raid hit a vehicle carrying the 12 civilians on Saturday in Hareeb Al-Qarameesh in Marib province, about 70 km (43 miles) northeast of Sanaa.
Sharif’s wife to contest by-election
AFP, Lahore
The wife of former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will contest a parliamentary by-election Sunday after her husband’s seat became vacant when he was ousted from office. The Supreme Court ended Sharif’s tenure and banned him from holding public office in July following an investigation into corruption allegations against him and his family.
Maryam, Sharif’s daughter, led the campaign for the seat in Lahore, the family’s political stronghold, as her mother, Kalsum, is being treated for throat cancer in London.
Tropical storm warning for Los Cabos, Mexico
AP, Mexico City
Hurricane season roared on as Jose threatened heavy surf along the U.S. East Coast on Saturday, Tropical Storm Norma neared Mexico’s resort-studded Baja California Peninsula, and Tropical Storm Maria formed in the Atlantic Ocean and was expected to strengthen into a hurricane, taking aim at some already-battered Caribbean islands.
