Beirut: Austria said on Thursday it would pull out of a UN force on the Golan Heights after battles between Syrian troops and rebels there, in a blow to a mission that has kept the Israeli-Syrian war front quiet for 40 years.
Israel, anxious for the international mission to remain in place, worried that the Golan could become a springboard for attacks on Israelis by Islamist militants fighting to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
"While appreciating Austria's longtime contribution and commitment to peacekeeping in the Middle East, we nevertheless regret this decision and hope that it will not be conducive to further escalation in the region," the Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
But the departure of the Austrians, who make up about 380 of the 1,000-member United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), threatens the whole operation....
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03:46 AM, Jun 07, 2013
United Nations: A combination of increasingly tough financial sanctions, an arms embargo and other international restrictions on trade with North Korea have not stopped Pyongyang's illicit nuclear arms program but appear to have significantly delayed it, according to a confidential report by a UN panel of experts seen by Reuters on Tuesday. "While the imposition of sanctions has not halted the development of nuclear and ballistic missile programs, it has...
05:06 AM, May 15, 2013
Hyderabad: An aircraft carrying senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader LK Advani made an unscheduled landing at the old airport at Begumpet in Hyderabad on Monday, after developing a technical snag. Advani was on his way from New Delhi to Bangalore to campaign for BJP for the May 2013 elections in Karnataka, party sources said. The former deputy prime minister had to wait for nearly two hours at the airport...
03:57 AM, Apr 30, 2013
United Nations: The UN Security Council has listed Syria's Army and intelligence agency and an allied militia as sexual war criminals for assaults on women and children, along with the al Qaeda movement in Mali and various African rebel movements. The "name and shame" tally of sexual predators and outlaws was in a report on Wednesday adopted unanimously by the UN Security Council as part of a debate on 'Women...
11:29 PM, Apr 17, 2013
Washington: The International Monetary Fund has announced that it is recognising Somalia's new government after a 22-year break in relations with the once-chaotic country, part of a general push by the United States, United Nations and the West toward encouraging rehabilitation there. The US formally recognised the African nation's new government in January the first time the US had recognised a Somali government since 1991, when warlords overthrew longtime dictator...
10:30 AM, Apr 13, 2013
New York: Members of the UN Security Council have condemned in the strongest terms the killing of five Indian peacekeepers in South Sudan and asked that the perpetrators be brought to justice. The members condemned the April 9 attack by unidentified armed persons on a UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) convoy in Jonglei, South Sudan, in which five Indian peacekeepers and at least seven civilians were killed, said a...
11:50 AM, Apr 10, 2013
Assad's most powerful foreign backer Russia said the war would not be resolved peacefully as long as rebels insist on his overthrow. ...
01:05 AM, Jan 24, 2013
India and Mauritius, the strategically located Indian Ocean island nation on January 4 decided to intensify counter-piracy cooperation and explored ways to scale up bilateral trade and investment. External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid called on visiting Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag and discussed a host of bilateral issues. Purryag, who is of Indian origin, on January 3 began a week-long visit to India. ...
03:36 PM, Jan 04, 2013
United Nations: The end of 2012 will see India complete an eventful two-year term as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, leaving the high-table of the world body with confidence of returning "very" soon having established its credentials as a dominant global power. India joined the 15-nation Council in January, 2011, after a gap of 19 years, winning an overwhelmingly high number of votes, which its Permanent Representative...
03:45 PM, Dec 21, 2012
United Nations: The UN Security Council on Wednesday condemned North Korea's missile launch and will continue discussions on how to respond to Pyongyang's violations of a UN ban on North Korean ballistic missile development, the council president said. "Members of the Security Council condemned this launch, which is a clear violation of Security Council resolutions 1718 and 1874," Moroccan UN Ambassador Mohammed Loulichki, president of the Security Council this month,...
09:18 AM, Dec 13, 2012
New Delhi: India on Wednesday reacted strongly to the rocket launch by North Korea, saying the "unwarranted action" by that country has adversely impact peace and stability in the Korean peninsula. In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs said India was concerned over the rocket launch which was in violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1874. India also asked North Korea to refrain from such action. North Korea on...
12:57 PM, Dec 12, 2012
Washington: US intelligence has predicted that in 2030, India could be the rising economic powerhouse of the world as China is seen today and that it will continue to consolidate its power advantage over Pakistan. "In 2030 India could be the rising economic powerhouse that China is seen to be today. China's current economic growth rate - 8 to 10 per cent - will probably be a distant memory by...
11:02 AM, Dec 11, 2012
Washington: The US on Wednesday said that the Palestinian bid for a non-member observer states at the United Nations General Assembly would be a "mistake" and the move would not take them any closer to their goal of a statehood. With majority of nations deciding to vote on the resolution in this regard at UN General Assembly, the United States appears to be isolated on this particular issue. "This resolution...
04:45 AM, Nov 29, 2012
United Nations: The UN Security Council, under India's presidency, has imposed global sanctions against the dreaded Pakistan-based Haqqani militant network and the group's chief of suicide operations. The Council's Afghanistan/Taliban Sanctions Committee on Monday added the Haqqani group and Qari Zakir to its list of entities which face an assets freeze, travel ban and arms embargo. The move comes the same day that the US State Department designated Zakir as...
09:56 AM, Nov 06, 2012
External Affairs Minister SM Krishna addressed the UN General Assembly in New York on Monday. In an exclusive interview to CNN-IBN, Krishna spoke about the steps underway to tackle piracy and bring our captive sailors back. "Piracy is a scrouge that needs to be fought with the cooperation of other countries. Families (of captive sailors) have been coming to meet me. I've been very moved. We are on the (UN) ...
09:49 AM, Oct 02, 2012
Beirut: Bombs planted by rebels exploded at a school building occupied by pro-government militias in Damascus on Tuesday and world leaders discussed Syria's deepening crisis at a UN General Assembly meeting, but without proposals to resolve it. Vastly outgunned, rebels fighting to topple President Bashar al-Assad have increasingly relied on home-made bombs to target their opponents, striving to level the playing field against state forces using fighter jets, artillery and...
03:04 AM, Sep 26, 2012
Aleppo: Syrian combat aircraft and artillery pounded Aleppo late into the night as the army battled for control of the country's biggest city, where rebel fighters said troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad had been forced to retreat. During the day on Tuesday large clouds of black smoke rose into the sky after attack helicopters turned their machineguns on eastern districts for the first time in the latest fighting and...
03:58 AM, Aug 01, 2012
Washington: The Obama Administration has condemned the decision of Russia and China to veto the UN Security Council resolution on Syria, saying "those who voted against the resolution are on the wrong side of the history". The resolution on Thursday sought sanctions against Syrian. However, Russia and China vetoed it, while India was among the 11 countries that voted in favour. "The decision by a very small minority of the...
09:51 AM, Jul 20, 2012
United Nations: Pitching for an early reform of the UN Security Council, India has said several countries yearn to be recognised for their contribution to world affairs and resistance to expansion of the body was "unacceptable" to the large majority. India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Hardeep Singh Puri, said there was "palpable desire" among the membership for early reform of the Security Council to make it reflective of contemporary...
04:47 PM, Jul 03, 2012
Ankara/Amman: Turkey accused Syria on Sunday of shooting down a military reconnaissance jet in international airspace without warning and called a NATO meeting to discuss a response to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Amid growing acrimony between the once-friendly neighbours, Syria said its forces had shot dead "terrorists" infiltrating its territory from Turkey, which along with Western and Arab nations has backed the cause of Syrians fighting Assad. Turkey's Foreign Minister...
10:10 PM, Jun 24, 2012
