Eurasia

France objects to release of three men jailed for the murders of French nationals in Afghanistan.

French Prime Minister Jean Castex paid tribute on Friday to the six French aid workers who where killed by a group of gunmen on motorcycles in Niger, likening the attack to the 2015 militant attacks in Paris that shook the country.

In a Shiite stronghold, people agree that the political system is dysfunctional and needs replacing, but not if that means Hezbollah ceding its power.

Hezbollah’s leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said on Friday that his group would wait for results of a probe into the Beirut port blast, but that if it turns out to be an act of sabotage by Israel then it would “pay an equal price”.

Beijing and Tehran are in the process of finalizing an ambitious partnership covering a range of security and economic issues. According to reporting by the New York Times, the agreement will include Chinese development of Iranian transportation infrastructure, a 5G network and joint military exercises, among other points of cooperation.

China’s military-civil fusion (MCF) project aims to harness the capability of the country’s civilian sectors, including science, and technology, to advance China’s military, economic, and technological prowess.

The Atomwaffen Division (AWD) is a violent white supremacist group that seeks to ignite a race war, and has been linked to murders and other acts of violence.

The appointment of Eliot Abrams as the Administration’s top policymaker on Iran could signal a shift in U.S. policy to an effort to change Iran’s regime.

Despite the widespread international criticism China has received in recent weeks over its brutal suppression of pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong, there is little sign that Beijing is prepared to adopt a more conciliatory tone.

Saudi Arabia has ended a loan and oil supply to Pakistan due to the South Asian nation’s criticism that the Saudi-led Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is not doing enough to pressure India on the Kashmir issue, marking a new milestone in the deteriorating relations between the two allies.