Author: Prima News

 Migrants in Libya, including young girls, are at risk of being killed, tortured, raped or put into domestic slavery, according to a U.N. report that called for a moratorium on the return of migrant boats to the country until human rights are ensured. Libya has become a transit route for migrants fleeing conflict and poverty to Europe across the Mediterranean since the fall in 2011 of dictator Muammar Gaddafi to a NATO-backed uprising. Factional conflict has split the country into western and eastern factions since 2014. In recent years, the EU and EU member states have supported and trained the Libyan…

Freed Belarusian dissident Maria Kalesnikava urged European governments on Tuesday to enter a dialogue with President Alexander Lukashenko, saying failing to engage with him would only strengthen Russian influence over Belarus. Kalesnikava was released in December and expelled from the country after serving more than five years in prison for leading protests that were crushed by Lukashenko following a disputed election in 2020. Now she has added her voice to a debate on whether Europe should open talks with the veteran authoritarian leader – as the United States did last year – or continue to shun him over his human rights record…

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday unveiled the first-ever Defense Industrial Strategy, outlining more than $500 billion in planned defense-related investments over the next decade, aimed at strengthening national security, expanding domestic industry, and creating high-paying jobs across the country. “In total over the next decade, Canada will invest $180 billion directly in defense procurement, $290 billion in defense and security-related infrastructure, and create over $125 billion in additional downstream economic benefits,” Carney said at a news conference in Montreal, detailing the scale of the initiative. He highlighted the importance of leveraging Canada’s existing defense sector, and said: “The…

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that France and India do not want to “submit to any form of hegemony” and emphasized their commitment to the rule of law and international norms. “We believe in a third way, in a free and open Indo-Pacific, in cooperation in defense technology and trade, and in the determination not to submit to any form of hegemony,” Macron said at a news conference with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as part of his three-day visit to India. Modi hosted Macron in Mumbai, India’s financial hub, where the two sides held delegation-level discussions. Macron…

Russia and Ukraine on Tuesday accused each other of overnight airstrikes as the two countries began a new round of peace talks mediated by the US in Geneva, Switzerland. The Russian Defense Ministry claimed in a statement that air defenses shot down 151 Ukrainian drones overnight, with 79 of them downed over the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. It later said another 27 Ukrainian drones were shot down between 7 am and 9 am Moscow time (0400-0600GMT). A fire also broke out at the Ilsky oil refinery in the southern Krasnodar region due to the attack, covering an…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that 2,000 children have been returned from Russian control as part of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative. In a statement on Telegram, Zelenskyy emphasized that each return resulted from sustained efforts by Ukrainian officials, public organizations, and international partners. “Today we have an important result – 2,000 Ukrainian children who were able to return home from Russian control as part of the Bring Kids Back UA initiative. Each of these returns was made possible thanks to the daily work of our people, public organizations and international partners,” he said. Zelenskyy noted that…

Muslims in Türkiye, Oman, Singapore and Australia will begin fasting in Ramadan on Thursday, after authorities in the four countries confirmed the start of the holy month based on astronomical calculations. Safi Arpagus, head of the Turkish Presidency of Religious Affairs, said the first Tarawih (special nightly prayers during Ramadan) will be held on Wednesday evening and the first day of fasting will be on Thursday. Oman also confirmed that Muslims in the country will start fasting in Ramadan on Thursday. Authorities in the Gulf country said that Wednesday will be the last day of Shaaban, the eighth month in…

Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) has reopened discussions with Paramount Skydance (PSKY) over a potential takeover, giving the studio until February 23 to submit its final offer. This comes nearly two months after Warner Bros rejected Paramount’s initial $30-a-share bid in favour of a deal to sell its streaming and studio businesses to Netflix.Warner Bros’ board said Paramount has addressed many issues noted in previous offers. “To be clear, our Board has not determined that your proposal is reasonably likely to result in a transaction that is superior to the Netflix merger,” Warner Bros Chairman Samuel DiPiazza Jr. and CEO David Zaslav…

I have been inundated with messages from many concerned and well-respected stakeholders in the last fortnight. The contents of their messages are virtually the same. In all, they basically sought clarifications on the decision of the Senate to retain Section 60(3 & 5) of the Electoral Act, 2022, in the ongoing reform of our country’s electoral governance framework. Regrettably, I could not respond to any of these messages for at least two reasons. First, I was on a national assignment outside the shores of our fatherland when I received the messages. Due to the import of the task at hand,…

The United Nations said that its teams attempted to coordinate eight humanitarian missions on Friday and five were fully facilitated. The remaining three – which included a mission to reach a water treatment plant in Khan Younis – were denied by Israel. Saving lives, beating famine The successful missions collected food and medical supplies from the Kerem Shalom/Karem Abu Salem crossing. Teams also monitored humanitarian cargo at the Kissufim and Kerem Shalom loading platforms. Speaking in New York, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric noted that four months have passed since the ceasefire agreement came into effect in Gaza, and the humanitarian scale-up has saved countless lives and pushed back famine. Yet many people are still “living in extremely harsh conditions, and the humanitarian response continues to face significant obstacles, especially…