https://www.scmp.com/rss/321144/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Reuters Reuters The leader of Mali’s military government, Assimi Goita, on ⁠Tuesday made his first public appearance since insurgents launched coordinated attacks over the weekend, vowing in a televised address to “neutralise” those responsible. West Africa’s al-Qaeda affiliate and a Tuareg-dominated separatist group hit Mali’s main army base and the area near Bamako’s airport in the attacks on Saturday, while also pushing Russian troops supporting government forces out of the strategic town of Kidal in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3351799/malis-junta-leader-says-situation-under-control-first-appearance-attacks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3351799/malis-junta-leader-says-situation-under-control-first-appearance-attacks?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2026 05:10:30 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A man accused of pledging allegiance to Islamic State group and plotting to attack one of superstar singer Taylor Swift’s concerts in Vienna nearly two years ago pleaded guilty as his trial began on Tuesday, Austrian media reported. The plot was thwarted, but Austrian authorities still cancelled Swift’s three performances in August 2024. The singer’s fans, known as Swifties, who had flown to Austria from across the globe to attend a performance of her record-setting Eras Tour were devastated,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351728/austrian-islamic-state-man-admits-plot-taylor-swift-concert-vienna?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3351728/austrian-islamic-state-man-admits-plot-taylor-swift-concert-vienna?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 28 Apr 2026 10:50:00 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Iran targeted countries across the Middle East with a fresh volley of missiles on Wednesday, hours after US President Donald Trump signalled tentative progress in diplomatic efforts to end the war. Tehran said on Wednesday it fired a volley of cruise missiles at a US aircraft carrier. Iran’s military said its cruise missiles at the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier group had “forced it to change its position”, warning of “powerful strikes” when the “hostile fleet” comes into range. The conflict that... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347776/israeli-military-warns-inbound-missiles-iran-says-anti-missile-defences-active?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347776/israeli-military-warns-inbound-missiles-iran-says-anti-missile-defences-active?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 23:42:50 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Multiple explosions staged by suspected suicide bombers rocked the northeastern Nigerian city of Maiduguri, killing at least 23 people and wounding more than 100 others, police said Tuesday, . The three blasts, which struck on Monday evening, came after an attack on a military post overnight Sunday to Monday, which authorities blamed on suspected jihadists. Combined with the attack on the military position the evening prior and a mosque bombing in December, the assaults have wrecked a peaceful... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3346862/suicide-attacks-nigeria-kill-23-wound-more-100?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3346862/suicide-attacks-nigeria-kill-23-wound-more-100?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Mar 2026 07:09:51 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The brother of the man who attacked a Michigan synagogue last week, who was killed earlier this month in an Israeli air strike, was a Hezbollah commander, Israel’s military claimed on Sunday. Ibrahim Ghazali was killed in Lebanon along with three other of the attacker’s relatives on March 5 - a week before authorities allege Ayman Mohamad Ghazali drove his car into a major synagogue outside Detroit and killed himself after security fired at him. The FBI’s Detroit office, which is investigating... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346686/brother-michigan-synagogue-attacker-was-hezbollah-commander-israeli-military-claims?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346686/brother-michigan-synagogue-attacker-was-hezbollah-commander-israeli-military-claims?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Mar 2026 17:12:51 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A Berlin court on Thursday jailed a Syrian man for 13 years for a jihadist-inspired knife attack on a Spanish tourist at the German capital’s Holocaust memorial. The 20-year-old suspect, named only as Wassim Al M., was convicted of attempted murder, grievous bodily harm and attempted membership of a terrorist organisation, the court said. The stabbing in February 2025 inflamed an already heated debate on migration just a few days before a general election in Germany. Presiding judge Doris Husch... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3345567/berlin-jails-man-13-years-over-stabbing-holocaust-memorial?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3345567/berlin-jails-man-13-years-over-stabbing-holocaust-memorial?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Mar 2026 09:32:26 +0000 Reuters Reuters Iranian ⁠Kurdish militias have consulted with the United States in recent days ⁠about whether, and how, to attack Iran’s security forces in the western part of the country, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter. The Iranian Kurdish coalition of groups based on the Iran-Iraq border in the semi-autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan has been training to mount such an attack in hopes of weakening the country’s military, as the United States and Israel pound Iranian targets with... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3345359/us-and-kurds-discuss-potential-iran-military-operation-sources?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3345359/us-and-kurds-discuss-potential-iran-military-operation-sources?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Mar 2026 04:33:42 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Pakistan bombed major cities in Afghanistan including the capital Kabul on Friday, with Islamabad’s defence minister declaring the neighbours at “open war” following months of tit-for-tat clashes. Journalists in Kabul and Kandahar heard blasts and jets overhead until dawn, as Pakistan launched air strikes on the Afghan capital and the southern power base of the Taliban authorities. Pakistan’s latest operation came after Afghan forces attacked Pakistani border troops on Thursday night over... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3344796/pakistan-declares-open-war-afghan-taliban-after-morning-strikes-kabul-kandahar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3344796/pakistan-declares-open-war-afghan-taliban-after-morning-strikes-kabul-kandahar?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 01:01:15 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg The Trump administration is withdrawing forces from Syria as part of a strategic shift now that the government of President Ahmed al-Sharaa is taking control of the fight against terror groups, according to a senior US official. A significant US troop presence is no longer required in Syria, according to the official who detailed the decision on condition of anonymity, but the Trump administration is ready to respond to Islamic State threats in the region. Some US personnel are leaving as part... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343947/us-pulls-forces-syria-new-government-exerts-control?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343947/us-pulls-forces-syria-new-government-exerts-control?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Feb 2026 23:04:52 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Canberra banned an Australian citizen with alleged ties to the militant Islamic State (Isis) group from returning home from a detention camp in Syria, the latest development in the case of fraught repatriation of families of Isis fighters. The woman was planning to join another 33 Australians – 10 women and 23 children – and fly on Monday from Damascus, Syria, to Australia, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said on Wednesday. But the group was turned back by Syrian authorities to the Roj... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3343932/australian-citizen-syria-alleged-isis-ties-banned-returning-home?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3343932/australian-citizen-syria-alleged-isis-ties-banned-returning-home?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Feb 2026 12:16:32 +0000 Reuters Reuters Austrian prosecutors ⁠have filed terrorism-related and ⁠other charges against a now 21-year-old suspect arrested just before a 2024 Taylor Swift concert in Vienna, who they said planned to carry out an Islamist militant attack. The Vienna prosecutors’ office plans to bring a criminal case against the unnamed suspect in Wiener Neustadt, a town near Vienna, accusing him of producing a small amount of the explosive triacetone triperoxide and attempting to buy weapons ⁠illegally, it said in a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3343770/austria-files-terror-charges-against-suspect-over-planned-2024-taylor-swift-attack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3343770/austria-files-terror-charges-against-suspect-over-planned-2024-taylor-swift-attack?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Feb 2026 17:08:09 +0000 Reuters Reuters The US military said it completed a withdrawal from a strategic base in Syria on Thursday, handing it over to Syrian forces, in the latest sign of strengthening US Syrian ties that could enable an even larger American drawdown. The al-Tanf garrison is positioned at the tri-border confluence of Syria, Jordan and Iraq. Established during Syria’s civil war in 2014, the United States initially relied on it as a ‌hub for operations by the US-led coalition against Islamic State militants who once... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343413/us-pulls-out-strategic-military-base-and-hands-it-over-syria?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3343413/us-pulls-out-strategic-military-base-and-hands-it-over-syria?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Feb 2026 04:28:36 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Thousands of mourners gathered in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad, on Saturday to start burying the 32 people killed in a suicide bombing ‍at a Shiite mosque during Friday prayers, as the city tightened security and authorities arrested four people believed to have helped the bomber. The Islamic State group (Isis) has claimed responsibility for the attack, the deadliest in Islamabad since the 2008 Marriott hotel bombing. Minister of Interior Moshin Naqvi told a press conference on Saturday that... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3342745/31-killed-pakistan-mosque-suicide-blast-extremely-powerful-explosion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3342745/31-killed-pakistan-mosque-suicide-blast-extremely-powerful-explosion?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Feb 2026 03:39:14 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse First, the jihadists sent a letter saying they were coming to the village to preach, said Nigerian chief Umar Bio Salihu. When no one attended, they went on a rampage, killing people and torching houses, he said. Salihu is the traditional chief of Woro, a small, Muslim-majority village in west-central Nigeria where alleged jihadist gunmen are reported to have perpetrated a massacre late Tuesday. Details were still emerging from the attack, but it was one of the country’s deadliest in recent... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3342625/survivors-recount-terror-nigeria-massacre-where-people-were-burned-inside-houses?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3342625/survivors-recount-terror-nigeria-massacre-where-people-were-burned-inside-houses?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 06:45:50 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The last 89 Christians held captive since criminal gangs attacked three churches in northern Nigeria in mid-January were released on Thursday, following a spate of mass kidnappings in the country. The worshippers, dressed in yellow and including children, arrived on a bus escorted by security forces, and were received by the governor of Kaduna state, Uba Sani, who said 183 people were initially abducted. They were snatched from three churches during Sunday services on January 18, in the Kurmin... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3342570/remaining-89-kidnapped-nigerian-christians-released-captivity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3342570/remaining-89-kidnapped-nigerian-christians-released-captivity?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Feb 2026 20:25:52 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The Nigerian army said on Sunday it killed a top commander of Boko Haram and 10 members of the Islamic extremist group in a night raid in the northeastern part of the country. Abu Khalid, a commander of Boko Haram in the Sambisa Forest in Borno state, was a key figure within “the terrorist hierarchy, coordinating operations and logistics in the Sambisa axis,” army spokesman Sani Uba said in a statement. The soldiers attacked the Boko Haram militants on Saturday night in the Kodunga area of Borno... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3342019/nigerian-army-kills-top-boko-haram-commander-10-militants-night-raid?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3342019/nigerian-army-kills-top-boko-haram-commander-10-militants-night-raid?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Feb 2026 15:21:24 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The Islamic State extremist group on Friday claimed responsibility for an attack in Niger on an air force base in the capital that wounded four soldiers and damaged an aircraft. The claim of responsibility was contained in a statement on Amaq News Agency, the group’s propaganda wing, that said it was “a surprise and coordinated attack” that inflicted heavy losses. State television reported that Niger’s forces responded quickly to the assault early on Thursday, killing 20 of the attackers and... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3341894/islamic-state-claims-bold-attack-nigers-strategic-airport-hub?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3341894/islamic-state-claims-bold-attack-nigers-strategic-airport-hub?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Jan 2026 16:00:13 +0000 Reuters Reuters Niger’s military ruler Abdourahamane Tiani on Thursday blamed the French, Benin and Ivory Coast presidents for sponsoring an attack on Niamey international airport, an accusation he made without offering any evidence. Gunfire and ‍loud explosions echoed around Niger’s international airport in Niamey shortly before midnight in what two security sources described as a “terrorist attack”, before calm returned to the capital on Thursday morning. Tiani accused French President Emmanuel Macron,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3341777/nigers-junta-accuses-foreign-leaders-sponsoring-attack-airport-thanks-russians?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3341777/nigers-junta-accuses-foreign-leaders-sponsoring-attack-airport-thanks-russians?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Jan 2026 04:32:52 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The European Union has listed Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organisation over Tehran’s bloody crackdown on nationwide protests, the bloc’s top diplomat said in a post on social media on Thursday. Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign policy chief, said that foreign ministers unanimously agreed on the designation. “Any regime that kills thousands of its own people is working towards its own demise,” she said. “This will put them on the same footing with al-Qaeda, Hamas, Daesh,”... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3341739/eu-designates-irans-revolutionary-guard-terrorist-group-amid-bloody-crackdown?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3341739/eu-designates-irans-revolutionary-guard-terrorist-group-amid-bloody-crackdown?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Jan 2026 16:00:27 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened to end all US support for Iraq if Nouri al-Maliki, a former prime minister with ties to Iran, returns to the post. Trump, in his latest blatant intervention in another country’s politics, said that Iraq would make a “very bad choice” with Maliki, who has been nominated as prime minister by the largest Shiite bloc. “Last time Maliki was in power, the Country descended into poverty and total chaos. That should not be allowed to happen again,” Trump... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3341488/trump-warns-iraq-against-returning-former-prime-minister-power?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3341488/trump-warns-iraq-against-returning-former-prime-minister-power?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Jan 2026 03:17:07 +0000 Reuters Reuters A US aircraft carrier and supporting warships have arrived ‍in the Middle East, two US officials told Reuters on Monday, expanding US President Donald Trump’s capabilities to defend US forces, or potentially take military action against Iran. The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and several guided-missile destroyers have crossed ⁠into the Middle East region, which comes under the US military’s Central Command, the officials told Reuters. Trump said on Thursday the United States had an... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3341308/amid-us-iran-tensions-us-aircraft-carrier-enters-middle-east-region-officials-say?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3341308/amid-us-iran-tensions-us-aircraft-carrier-enters-middle-east-region-officials-say?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Jan 2026 17:24:59 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service A 17-year-old in the US who expressed interest in joining the Islamic State (Isis) has pleaded guilty to trying to kill one New Jersey police officer and attacking backup police with a knife. Fasihullah Safar, of Alexandria, Virginia, would be sentenced as an adult on charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault, aggravated assault of a law enforcement officer and motor vehicle theft, Burlington County prosecutors said on Friday. Safar was initially charged as a juvenile before the case... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341088/us-teen-inspired-isis-pleads-guilty-attempted-murder-police-officer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341088/us-teen-inspired-isis-pleads-guilty-attempted-murder-police-officer?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 24 Jan 2026 04:12:32 +0000 Reuters Reuters Syria on Tuesday announced a ceasefire with Kurdish forces it has seized swathes of territory from in the northeast and gave them four days to agree on integrating into the central ‌state, which their main ally, the United States, urged them to accept. The lightning government advances in recent days and the apparent withdrawal of US support for the continued holding of territory by the Syrian Democratic ‍Forces represent the biggest change of control in the country since rebels ousted Bashar... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3340614/syria-gives-kurds-4-days-accept-integration-us-signals-end-support?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3340614/syria-gives-kurds-4-days-accept-integration-us-signals-end-support?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Jan 2026 18:49:18 +0000 Laura Zhou Laura Zhou China has condemned Monday’s suicide attack on a Chinese restaurant in Kabul, urging the Taliban to take further measures to protect the safety of its citizens in Afghanistan. Foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Beijing had made “urgent representations” following the attack in a heavily guarded part of the capital that killed at least seven people – one Chinese national and six Afghans – and injured several others. Guo added that China had asked the authorities to “further adopt effective... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3340584/china-urges-taliban-tighten-security-after-suicide-attack-restaurant-kabul?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3340584/china-urges-taliban-tighten-security-after-suicide-attack-restaurant-kabul?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Jan 2026 14:00:09 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A day after a sweeping deal was announced between the Syrian government and the country’s main Kurdish-led force, the agreement appeared to be falling apart on Monday. After new outbreaks of clashes Monday, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces issued a statement calling for “all of our youth” to “join the ranks of the resistance”. “Just as our comrades in 2014 forged a historic resistance in Kobani and turned it into a graveyard for (the Islamic State group) ... today we affirm with the same... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3340481/syria-deal-kurdish-fighters-appears-unravel-islamic-state-prisoners-escape?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3340481/syria-deal-kurdish-fighters-appears-unravel-islamic-state-prisoners-escape?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Jan 2026 23:22:02 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A blast at a Chinese restaurant in central Kabul on Monday killed at least seven people and wounded more than a dozen others, emergency services said. An Agence France-Presse journalist saw police vehicles and an ambulance at the scene following the explosion on a street known for its flower sellers in the Shahr-e-Naw area. Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran said the explosion occurred at the Chinese Noodle restaurant, which he said mainly served Chinese Muslims. “A Chinese Muslim, Ayub, and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3340473/explosion-chinese-restaurant-kabul-kills-7-injures-dozen-more?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3340473/explosion-chinese-restaurant-kabul-kills-7-injures-dozen-more?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Jan 2026 16:58:11 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A third round of retaliatory strikes by the US in Syria resulted in the death of an al-Qaeda-affiliated leader, who officials say had a direct tie to the Islamic State member responsible for last month’s ambush that killed two US soldiers and one American civilian interpreter in the country. US Central Command announced that the strike in northwest Syria on Friday killed Bilal Hasan al-Jasim, who they claim was “an experienced terrorist leader who plotted attacks and was directly connected” to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3340286/us-strike-syria-kills-leader-tied-isis-ambush-left-3-americans-dead?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3340286/us-strike-syria-kills-leader-tied-isis-ambush-left-3-americans-dead?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Jan 2026 21:48:45 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US and allied forces carried out “large-scale” strikes against the Islamic State jihadist group in Syria on Saturday, the US military said, in the latest response to an attack last month that left three Americans dead. Washington said a lone gunman from the militant group carried out the December 13 attack in Palmyra – home to Unesco-listed ancient ruins and once controlled by jihadist fighters – that killed two US soldiers and a US civilian interpreter. “The strikes today targeted ISIS... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3339465/us-says-it-carried-out-new-large-scale-strikes-against-isis-syria?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3339465/us-says-it-carried-out-new-large-scale-strikes-against-isis-syria?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 10 Jan 2026 21:54:49 +0000 Reuters Reuters Britain’s and France’s air forces conducted a joint operation ‍on Saturday evening to bomb a suspected underground arms cache previously used by the Islamic State (Isis) in Syria, Britain’s defence ministry said. “Royal Air Force aircraft have completed successful strikes against Daesh in a joint operation with France,” the ministry said in a statement, using the Arabic acronym for Isis. “This facility had been occupied by Daesh, most likely to store weapons and explosives. The area around the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3338643/britain-and-france-bombed-suspected-isis-arms-dump-syria-uk-defence-ministry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3338643/britain-and-france-bombed-suspected-isis-arms-dump-syria-uk-defence-ministry?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 03 Jan 2026 23:54:12 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The FBI said on Friday it had disrupted a plot to attack a North Carolina supermarket and fast-food restaurant on New Year’s Eve, arresting a man who officials said was inspired by Islamic State and had pledged loyalty to the extremist militants. Christian Sturdivant, 18, of Mint ‍Hill, North Carolina, was charged with attempting to provide material support to a foreign terror organisation after officials say he communicated his attack plans to an undercover FBI (Federal bureau of Investigation)... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3338580/fbi-says-it-disrupted-potential-new-years-eve-attack-inspired-islamic-state?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3338580/fbi-says-it-disrupted-potential-new-years-eve-attack-inspired-islamic-state?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 18:16:21 +0000 Agencies Agencies US President ‌Donald Trump said on Friday that a US military strike targeting Islamic State militants in Nigeria was originally supposed to take place on Wednesday but he ordered it delayed by a day. “They were going to ‍do it earlier,” Trump told Politico in an ‌interview. “And I ⁠said, ‘nope, let’s give a Christmas present’. … They didn’t think that was coming but we hit them hard. ‌Every camp got decimated.” Thursday’s strikes marked a major escalation in an offensive that the West African... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3337859/trump-says-he-ordered-nigeria-strike-delayed-day-give-christmas-present?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3337859/trump-says-he-ordered-nigeria-strike-delayed-day-give-christmas-present?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Dec 2025 23:39:35 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Forcibly recruited into a rebel militia affiliated with Islamic State, two boys have revealed the “torment” of living in its camps as members committed massacres in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s northeast. The two minors freed from the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) gave Agence France-Presse an unprecedented account of the shadowy group, notorious for its extreme brutality. Paluku, a frail 12-year-old, spent two months with the ADF after rebels killed his mother during an attack on his... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3337778/brutal-life-child-recruits-under-shadowy-rebel-group-dr-congo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3337778/brutal-life-child-recruits-under-shadowy-rebel-group-dr-congo?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Dec 2025 05:41:01 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the US launched a “powerful and deadly” strike against Islamic State forces in Nigeria, after spending weeks accusing the West African country’s government of failing to rein in the persecution of Christians. In a Christmas evening post on his social media site, Trump did not provide details or mention the extent of the damage caused by the strikes. But a video posted by ‍the Pentagon showed at least one projectile launching from a warship. A US... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3337749/us-launches-strikes-against-isis-nigeria-trump-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3337749/us-launches-strikes-against-isis-nigeria-trump-says?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 25 Dec 2025 23:37:30 +0000 Reuters Reuters Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was booed by an angry crowd gathered at the famous Bondi Beach on Sunday to honour the victims of a gun attack ‍a week earlier that targeted a seaside Jewish Hanukkah festival event. The nation marked a day of reflection on Sunday to honour the 15 people killed and the dozens wounded in the attack by two gunmen. With security tight and flags at half-staff on government buildings, a minute of silence was held at 6.47pm local time, the time the attack... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3337255/australian-pm-albanese-booed-bondi-beach-attack-victims-honoured?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3337255/australian-pm-albanese-booed-bondi-beach-attack-victims-honoured?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 21 Dec 2025 22:10:04 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called on Sunday for Jews in Western countries to move to Israel to escape rising antisemitism, one week after 15 were shot dead at a Jewish event in Sydney. “Jews have the right to live in safety everywhere. But we see and fully understand what is happening, and we have a certain historical experience. “Today, Jews are being hunted across the world,” Saar said at a public candle lighting marking the last day of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah. “Today I call... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3337254/israeli-foreign-minister-urges-jews-move-israel-week-after-sydney-attack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3337254/israeli-foreign-minister-urges-jews-move-israel-week-after-sydney-attack?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 21 Dec 2025 21:11:13 +0000 Reuters Reuters When a gunman murdered 35 people in Tasmania in 1996, Australia’s political leaders united to implement some of the West’s toughest gun laws. Nearly three decades later, after 15 people were killed at a Jewish festival at Bondi Beach, consensus is more elusive. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s call for tighter gun controls is meeting resistance from ascendant right-wing populists and some mainstream conservatives, revealing a more polarised landscape that contrasts with Australia’s response to... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3337147/australias-albanese-faces-fierce-battle-over-gun-laws-after-bondi-beach-shooting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3337147/australias-albanese-faces-fierce-battle-over-gun-laws-after-bondi-beach-shooting?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Dec 2025 01:10:21 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Donald Trump’s administration launched the military strikes on Friday in Syria to “eliminate” Islamic State (Isis) group fighters and weapons sites in retaliation for an ambush attack that killed two US troops and an American civilian interpreter almost a week ago. At least five Isis members, including a cell leader, were killed in the overnight strikes, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. A US official described it as “a large-scale” strike that hit 70 targets in areas across... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3337143/us-strikes-isis-fighters-syria-after-3-americans-killed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3337143/us-strikes-isis-fighters-syria-after-3-americans-killed?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Dec 2025 23:09:15 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran Extremist movements in the Philippines have come under scrutiny since it was revealed that two suspected terrorists had visited the country weeks before they killed 15 people in Australia, but observers argue that such threats have waned and officials should avoid “overreach” in linking the case. Sajid Akram, 50, and his son Naveed Akram, 24, had allegedly opened fire on people at Sydney’s Bondi Beach during a Hanukkah celebration on Sunday. The older man was killed while Naveed was in critical... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3337025/philippines-being-unfairly-targeted-australias-bondi-beach-shooting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3337025/philippines-being-unfairly-targeted-australias-bondi-beach-shooting?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Dec 2025 06:48:02 +0000 Reuters Reuters There is no evidence indicating that the two suspects involved in the Bondi Beach attack received any form of military training while in the Philippines, the Philippines’ National Security Adviser said on Wednesday. In a statement, Eduardo Ano said that a mere visit to the country does not substantiate allegations of terrorist training, and the duration of their stay would not have permitted any meaningful or structured training. The alleged father-and-son gunmen opened fire on a Hanukkah... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3336840/bondi-beach-attack-philippines-rejects-outdated-violent-extremism-portrayal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3336840/bondi-beach-attack-philippines-rejects-outdated-violent-extremism-portrayal?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Dec 2025 01:15:05 +0000 Reuters Reuters A man who allegedly opened fire on a Jewish Hanukkah celebration on Sydney’s famed Bondi Beach was charged with 59 offences, including murder and terrorism, police said on Wednesday. The alleged father-and-son perpetrators killed 15 people on Sunday in an attack that shook Australia and intensified fears of rising antisemitism and violent extremism. Funerals of the Jewish victims of the attack began on Wednesday amid anger over how the gunmen – one of whom was briefly investigated for links to... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3336691/alleged-bondi-beach-shooter-face-charges-funerals-begin-victims?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3336691/alleged-bondi-beach-shooter-face-charges-funerals-begin-victims?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Dec 2025 01:09:13 +0000 Reuters Reuters Standing in the rain outside a suburban Sydney railway station, seventeen-year-old Naveed Akram stares into the camera and urges those watching to spread the word of Islam. “Spread the message that Allah is one wherever you can … whether it be raining, hailing or clear sky,” he said. Another since-deleted video posted in 2019 by Street Dawah Movement, a Sydney-based Islamic community group, shows him urging two young boys to pray more frequently. Authorities are now trying to piece together what... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3336613/alleged-bondi-beach-shooters-radicalisation-shocks-australia-he-was-nice-person?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3336613/alleged-bondi-beach-shooters-radicalisation-shocks-australia-he-was-nice-person?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Dec 2025 08:09:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A father and son were driven by “Islamic State ideology” when they fired on Bondi Beach in one of Australia’s deadliest mass shootings, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Tuesday. Sajid Akram and his son Naveed opened fire on Jewish crowds thronging the famous beach for Hanukkah on Sunday evening, killing 15 people and wounding dozens more. Authorities said the attack was designed to sow panic among the nation’s Jews, but have so far given little detail on the gunmen’s deeper... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3336556/bondi-beach-shooting-likely-motivated-islamic-state-ideology-albanese?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3336556/bondi-beach-shooting-likely-motivated-islamic-state-ideology-albanese?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 16 Dec 2025 00:47:11 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that “we will retaliate” after two US service members and one American civilian were killed in a Syria attack that the US blames on the Islamic State group. “This is an Isis attack,” the president told reporters at the White House before departing for the Army-Navy American football game in Baltimore. He paid condolences to the three Americans killed and said three others who were wounded “seem to be doing pretty well”. The attack on US troops in Syria... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3336353/us-syrian-soldiers-injured-joint-patrol-ancient-city-shot-state-media?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3336353/us-syrian-soldiers-injured-joint-patrol-ancient-city-shot-state-media?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Dec 2025 15:19:51 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain A year after the curtain fell on the Assad regime’s five-decade reign of terror, Syria is emerging as a rare beacon of renewal in a conflict-weary region. President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former jihadi filled with revolutionary zeal to rebuild his home after 14 years of civil war, has successfully consolidated power and won broad international recognition. Over the past 12 months, Syria has “transformed from a global pariah to a fully fledged, integral component of the international community”,... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3336269/syrias-year-epic-transformation-earns-it-trumps-protection?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3336269/syrias-year-epic-transformation-earns-it-trumps-protection?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 13 Dec 2025 08:00:19 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Syria is joining the global coalition against Islamic State, a US official said on Monday hours after President Donald Trump welcomed his Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa for historic White House talks. Sharaa, whose rebel forces ousted long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad late last year, was the first Syrian leader to visit the White House since the Middle Eastern country’s independence in 1946. But the 43-year-old’s landmark visit to the Oval Office came just days after Washington removed him... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3332254/trump-hosts-syrias-president-sharaa-white-house-renews-temporary-waiver-sanctions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3332254/trump-hosts-syrias-president-sharaa-white-house-renews-temporary-waiver-sanctions?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 10 Nov 2025 19:19:46 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrived in the United States on Saturday for a landmark official visit, his country’s state news agency reported, a day after Washington removed him from a terrorism blacklist. Sharaa, whose rebel forces ousted long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad late last year, is due to meet US President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday. The interim leader met Trump for the first time in Riyadh during the US president’s regional tour in May. US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3332079/syrias-leader-arrives-us-trump-visit-after-removal-terrorism-blacklist?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3332079/syrias-leader-arrives-us-trump-visit-after-removal-terrorism-blacklist?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Nov 2025 23:10:17 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Nigeria reeled on Monday from US President Donald Trump’s claim over the weekend that Christians were being systematically killed in the West African country, with blanket coverage across local media. “They’re killing the Christians and killing them in very large numbers,” Trump said in comments while travelling on Air Force One on Saturday. “We’re not going to allow that to happen.” The false idea of a genocide against Christians in Nigeria has been floating around right-wing circles in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3331458/trumps-threat-us-military-action-clashes-nigerias-reality?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3331458/trumps-threat-us-military-action-clashes-nigerias-reality?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Nov 2025 07:22:42 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Multiple people who had allegedly been plotting a violent attack over the Halloween weekend were arrested Friday in Michigan, FBI Director Kash Patel said in a social media post. The law enforcement effort was focused on suburban Detroit. Patel said more information would be released later. Investigators believe the plot was inspired by Islamic State extremism and are investigating whether those in custody were potentially radicalised online, according to two people briefed on the investigation... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3331137/fbi-foils-halloween-weekend-attack-plot-michigan-director-kash-patel-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3331137/fbi-foils-halloween-weekend-attack-plot-michigan-director-kash-patel-says?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 31 Oct 2025 19:32:53 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The man who attacked a Manchester synagogue made an emergency call to police during the rampage to “pledge allegiance” to Islamic State, UK counterterrorism police revealed on Wednesday. The attacker, identified as Jihad al-Shamie, 35, was shot dead by police within seven minutes of the attack, in which two Jewish people were killed – one likely by a stray police bullet. But “in the initial stages of the attack … a call was made by the attacker to police claiming to pledge allegiance to the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328280/manchester-synagogue-attacker-pledged-allegiance-islamic-state-police?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3328280/manchester-synagogue-attacker-pledged-allegiance-islamic-state-police?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Oct 2025 16:00:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Police arrested 260 people and deployed tear gas in Pakistan’s poorest province during a strike on Monday, as protesters demanded accountability over a suicide attack claimed by Islamic State (Isis). Businesses shut and demonstrators took to the streets across more than a dozen cities in Balochistan in response to a September 2 bombing at a political rally that killed 15 people. In the provincial capital Quetta, police arrested protesters blocking a road and fired tear gas to disperse... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3324782/least-60-arrested-pakistan-protest-over-suicide-attack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3324782/least-60-arrested-pakistan-protest-over-suicide-attack?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Sep 2025 12:45:26 +0000