Worldwide
USA: bakers refuse to make gay wedding cake
17 Mar 2017
A Christian couple in Oregon were fined $135,000 (£109,000) for refusing to bake a wedding cake for a lesbian couple. Aaron and Melissa Klein, who own a local bakery called Sweet Cakes in Oregon, maintain that…
UN: women’s economic empowerment
10 Mar 2017
The 61st session of the Commission on the Status of Women, taking place in New York from 13 to 24 March, will focus on 'Women’s economic empowerment in the changing world of work.’ This session gathers…
Is Iran seeking a foothold in Syria?
10 Mar 2017
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian president Vladimir Putin met in Moscow yesterday. Netanyahu opposes what he says are Iran's attempts to establish a permanent military foothold in Syria. He told his cabinet, ‘In the…
USA losing its identity?
10 Mar 2017
A national poll has found that while there is deep disagreement between Republicans and Democrats over whether Christianity is central to American identity, a majority of the population (seven out of ten) agrees that the country…
Iraq: Mosul civilians at serious risk
10 Mar 2017
Numerous attacks, including heavy artillery and mortar fire from Iraqi forces and IS, are killing civilians in Mosul, said Human Rights Watch. They are fleeing in their thousands, with a massive spike in refugees in the…
Syria: army recaptures gas fields
10 Mar 2017
The Syrian Arab Army has been kept busy in the eastern countryside of Homs since they liberated Palmyra, attacking several areas controlled by the IS forces north of the city. Among these areas are the Jazal…