AFP, UN
North Korea’s UN envoy accused the United States on Tuesday of working to block economic development and denounced sanctions imposed on poor countries as a bid to “destroy modern civilization.”
Ambassador Ja Song Nam said North Korea will withstand the blow of sanctions and continue “along the road of building the socialist power by dint of the spirit of self-reliance and self-development.”
Iraqi Kurds face more sanctions
Reuters, Erbil, Iraq
Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region announced on Tuesday it was calling presidential and parliamentary elections for Nov. 1 as the Kurdish leadership moved to capitalize on a referendum that delivered huge support for independence.
The central government in Baghdad imposed further punitive measures in retaliation for the independence vote last month by slapping sanctions on Kurdish banks and halting foreign currency transfers to the Kurdish region.
Rifts in Palestinian reconciliation talks
AP, Gaza City
A new round of Palestinian reconciliation talks experienced its first sign of trouble on Tuesday as the Hamas militant group said it would not give up its vast weapons arsenal, putting it at odds with both the rival Fatah movement and Israel.
The tough comments by Hamas’ supreme leader, Ismail Haniyeh, provided a reminder of the long road that lies ahead after this week’s launch of talks with President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement.
Abbas’ prime minister, Rami Hamdallah, is in Gaza, where he has received a warm welcome in what is by far the most ambitious attempt by the Palestinian rivals to end a 10-year rift.
Indian cross-border firing kills two in Pakistan
AFP, Kashmir
Two civilians were killed and two others were wounded after Indian troops fired into Pakistani Kashmir Wednesday, in the latest cross-border violence between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
The incident took place in a village in Abbaspur sector on the Line of Control, the de facto border dividing Kashmir between Pakistan and India. “A brother and a sister were killed and two other women were wounded in firing by Indian troops,” local government official Qaiser Aurangzeb told AFP.
Mongolia names new PM
AFP, Ulaanbaatar
Mongolia named a new prime minister Wednesday, weeks after the previous leader and his cabinet were voted out over corruption allegations.Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh-a former deputy PM known for his macho image, having posed shirtless Putin-style with a hunting gun-was selected by the ruling Mongolia People’s Party (MPP), which took power in a landslide election victory a little over a year ago. Ex-premier Jargaltulgiin Erdenebat was ousted in early September by legislators who accused him of granting 800 billion tugrik ($328 million) in concessions to eight companies related to his cabinet ministers.
