Kasmaal  Independent Somali news and analysis website .

Former culture minister Cho Yoon-sun gets suspended jail term A Seoul court sentenced Kim Ki-choon, the former chief of staff to former President Park Geun-hye, to three years in prison Thursday for his role in drafting a “blacklist” of artists critical of the government. The Seoul Central District Court handed him the jail sentence after […]

Iran’s launch on Thursday of a rocket it says can deliver a satellite into space was a provocative action that violates a U.N. Security Council resolution as well as the spirit of the Iran nuclear deal, the U.S. State Department said. “We consider that to be continued ballistic missile development,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert […]

More than 100 injured as Israeli forces fire tear gas on worshippers re-entering holy after two weeks of protests. More than 100 Palestinians have been injured as Israeli forces fired tear gas, stun grenades and sound bombs at worshippers who returned to Jerusalem’s al-Aqsa Mosque compound for the first time in nearly two weeks. As […]

The new round of US sanctions against Russia is “extremely cynical,” President Vladimir Putin said, accusing Washington of using its political advantage for business purposes. If the US implements new sanctions against Russia, “it will be particularly regrettable because this would be an act of aggravation and exceptional cynicism,” Putin said. “It’s an obvious attempt [by the […]

Nineveh (IraqiNews.com) A police officer was arrested on Thursday on charges of smuggling the families of Islamic State (IS) elements from Nineveh governorate to Salahuddin governorate, the Ministry of Interior said. “The arrest was based on intelligence information as security forces ambushed the police officer on a road lining between Baiji and Tikrit cities while […]

The leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah said on Wednesday that the group was close to defeating Nusra Front militants in the battle along the Syrian-Lebanese border. “We are in the face of a very big military victory,” Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said in a televised speech. The militants have “effectively lost” most of the land they held […]

The Syrian Democratic Forces have been fighting for several months to capture the northern city, which has become infamous as the Syrian heart of ISIL’s so-called “caliphate”. The SDF “are now in control of 50 per cent of Raqqa city despite the fierce resistance mounted by ISIL”, Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory […]

Palestinians rejoice as new restrictions at entrance of holy site, including metal railings, are removed after protests. Israel has removed more security installations from the entrance to al-Aqsa Mosquecompound in occupied East Jerusalem after protests and deadly unrest in recent days. Newly installed railings, gates and scaffolding where cameras were previously mounted were removed from the entrance to […]

The essence of the new anti-Russian sanctions awaiting Donald Trump’s approval is to block the joint EU-Russian Nordstream II pipeline project and to tie Trump’s hands in building trade relationship with Moscow, Virginia State Senator Richard Black told RT. Black said he believes that in pushing for Russia sanctions, Congress is attempting to use a […]