Latest International agreements News
US postpones decision on aid to Israeli army battalion accused of abuses against Palestinians
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken has determined that an Israeli army battalion committed grave human-rights abuses against Palestinians in the West Bank before the war in Gaza. But he said in a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson that he is postponing a decision on blocking...
Egypt sends delegation to Israel, its latest effort to broker a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas
CAIRO (AP) — Egypt sent a high-level delegation to Israel for talks Friday seeking to push through a cease-fire agreement with Hamas and avert an Israeli offensive on Gaza’s town of Rafah — on the border with Egypt — which it warned could ruin regional stability, officials said. ...
France and the Philippines to start talks on a `visiting forces agreement,' French envoy says
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — France and the Philippines will begin talks next month on a defense pact that would allow troops from each country to hold exercises in the other’s territory, the French ambassador said Thursday. French and Philippine officials will meet in Paris next...
Hamas again raises the possibility of a 2-state compromise. Israel and its allies aren't convinced
The Palestinian militant group Hamas has said for more than 15 years that it could accept a two-state compromise with Israel — at least, a temporary one. But Hamas has also refused to say that it would recognize Israel or renounce its armed fight against it. For Israel and many...
Mexican president claims that criminal groups are 'respectful' and 'respect the citizenry'
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s president said Thursday that the country’s violent criminal gangs and drug cartels are essentially “respectful people” who “respect the citizenry” and mostly just kill each other. The claims by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador are...
Hamas official says group would lay down its arms if an independent Palestinian state is established
ISTANBUL (AP) — A top Hamas political official told The Associated Press the Islamic militant group is willing to agree to a truce of five years or more with Israel and that it would lay down its weapons and convert into a political party if an independent Palestinian state is established along...
Russia vetoes a UN resolution calling for the prevention of a dangerous nuclear arms race in space
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Russia on Wednesday vetoed a U.N. resolution sponsored by the United States and Japan calling on all nations to prevent a dangerous nuclear arms race in outer space, calling it “a dirty spectacle” that cherry picks weapons of mass destruction from all other weapons that...
Another ex-State Department official alleges Israeli military gets 'special treatment' on abuses
WASHINGTON (AP) — A former senior U.S. official who until recently helped oversee human-rights compliance by foreign militaries receiving American military assistance said Wednesday that he repeatedly observed Israel receiving “special treatment” from U.S. officials when it came to scrutiny...
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
LONDON (AP) — The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its...
Global plastic pollution treaty talks hit critical stage in Canada
Thousands of negotiators and observers representing most of the world’s nations are gathering in the Canadian city of Ottawa this week to craft a treaty to stop the rapidly escalating problem of plastic pollution. Each day, the equivalent of 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic are...
