A disturbing video showing beheading of American journalist Steven Sotloff by dreaded terror group ISIS is authentic, US officials said on Wednesday.
From the Syrian civil war to the Ukrainian crisis to the terror unleashed by the dreaded Islamic State, there was no lack of news in 2014. In this five-part series, rediff.com presents a selection of the year's most enduring moments year from around the world.
A 'soft' approach must be nurtured to complement the hard-line of spending billions in physical conflict; that is the only way to 'degrade and destroy' ISIS.
From the Syrian civil war to the Ukrainian crisis to the terror unleashed by the dreaded Islamic State, there was no lack of news in 2014. In this five-part series,rediff.com presents a selection of the year's most enduring moments year from around the world.
The strategic Karakoram Highway, which links Kashghar in Xinjiang with Gilgit and Abbottabad through the KhunjerabPass, has been damaged at more than 50 places from Gojal to Besham, leaving hundreds of commuters and over 50 foreign tourists stranded.
During last week's Nuclear Security Summit, President Obama asked the media to leave and then screened videos depicting plausible scenarios pertaining to nuclear terrorism.
The latest militant assault on the Afghan capital comes as the Taliban intensify their nationwide offensive against the US-backed government in Kabul.
Ten images that show it's an odd, odd world we live in.
Air quality in the city of 16 million is usually bad in winter.
The four young men from Kalyan who joined the jihad in Iraq are likely to provide technical support to the Internet-savvy ISIS.
Some of the best photographs, clicked across the globe in January.
One shocking finding of the investigation was the extent to which sexual violence was committed against detainees, often extremely brutally, by the Sri Lankan security forces, with men as likely to be victims as women.
Rediff.com shows you how people across the world cope with the unremitting July heat wave.
'Rajapaksa's victory poses a serious foreign policy challenge for the Modi government,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Omar Khorsani has called repeatedly for the most barbaric of attacks. He is very adept on social media. He is, in other words, eerily similar to the ISIS leader Baghdadi.' 'The crux of the army's 'strategic asset' policy -- its policy of regarding militants as those that can help Pakistan pursue its regional interests -- is that Pakistan needs help in weakening India or in keeping its presence minimal in the region.' Michael Kugelman reveals what the world can expect next from the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, the terrorists responsible for the Peshawar school massacre.
'We should expect a cold-blooded, transactional relation that requires a lot of engagement and mutual trust to sustain,' says Constantino Xavier, Fellow, foreign policy, Brookings India.
These 10 images show that it's an odd world out there.
According to Twiplomacy, a study conducted by global public relations and communications firm Burson-Marsteller, United States Barack Obama is the most followed leader on the microblogging site, followed by Pope Francis, Narendra Modi, and Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the White House.
The latest updates on the fallout of one of the most daring strikes carried out by the Indian Army, attacking terrorists across the Line of Control in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
They may have travelled there to join the dreaded Islamic State militant group.
These 12 photographs show what a mad, mad world we live in!
15 photographs that prove we live in an odd, odd world!
We bring you a presentation of some of the best photos from around the world in the month gone by
Here's a glimpse at what happened around the world last week
These 10 images prove it's a mad, mad world
'As India progresses and takes an increasingly hardline approach to Pakistani hostility, the young and restless population of Pakistan, sooner than later, will demand 'Gazwa e Hind' (conquest of India),' warns Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Speaker Karu Jayasuriya questioned the president's decision to suspend parliament till November 16, saying it will have "serious and undesirable" consequences on the country.
Sirisena's sacking of Wickremesinghe was the culmination of an year of bitter relations between them on several policy matters. The president has been critical of the prime minister and his policies, especially on economy and security.
The United States has offered rewards amounting to USD 20 million (around Rs 127 crore) for tips on whereabouts of four top leaders of the Islamic State, a day after the terror group claimed responsibility for its first attack on American soil.
For Make in India's success, Modi govt msut remove policy paralysis.
After frequent incursions in Ladakh area, Chinese People's Liberation Army troops have been spotted at forward posts along the Line of Control on the Pakistani side of Kashmir, ringing alarm bells in the security grid.
A round-up of our favourite photographs of the week gone by.
These 10 images show that we live in a bizarre world
Sri Lankans on Thursday voted in large numbers in the bitterly contested presidential election in which incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa is seeking a record third term against his friend-turned-foe Maithripala Sirisena, with an unusually high voter turnout in Tamil and Muslim areas.
'Tibetans will participate in future conflicts with India (in all probability, some were already present in Galwan).' 'As nobody in India would like to have a deadly fight with Tibetan soldiers and officers, the issue needs to be closely followed,' observes Claude Arpi.
-- Seven suicide bombers believed to be members of an Islamist extremist group carried out the series of explosions. -- Police have so far arrested 24 people - mostly members of an Islamist extremist group - in connection with the blasts
Two days later, Afghanistan and Pakistan are still trying to dig out people from the rubble, even as panic spreads across the region.
Several hundred Indian nationals may be stranded in the Najaf province of Iraq, unable to return home because their employer refuses to return their passports, Amnesty International said on Saturday.
Unlike in the presidential polls, victory might not have been complete, at least as yet, for Mahinda Rajapaksa's electoral rivals. While his one-time aide and confidant, Maithripala Sirisena, became president without any issues after defeating him, incumbent Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who again may not command an absolute majority in the 225-member parliament, would have to count on his 'national government' concept to carry the day and the nation with him, this time round, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Over two dozen Muslims have been elected to the Lok Sabha. This shows that all is not lost for India's Muslims, suggests Mohammad Sajjad.
