Ankara attacks: Turkey in mourning after blasts kill almost 100

 

BBC

Turkey is beginning three days of mourning after two blasts at a peace rally in the capital, Ankara, killed at least 95 people on Saturday, the deadliest ever such attack in Turkey.

The attack left 245 people injured, with 48 of them in a serious condition.

TV footage showed scenes of panic and people lying on the ground covered in blood, amid protest banners.

The government called the blasts a “terrorist act” and angrily rejected allegations that it was to blame.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said there was evidence that two suicide bombers had carried out the attack, which comes three weeks before a re-run of June’s inconclusive parliamentary elections.

Afghan conflict: US investigates Kunduz hospital bombing

 

BBC

President Barack Obama says the US has launched a “full investigation” into air strikes that killed 19 people at an MSF-run Afghan hospital on Saturday.

The US military says a strike targeting Taliban in the northern city of Kunduz may have caused “collateral damage”.

Offering his “deepest condolences”, Mr Obama said he expected a “full accounting of the facts” and would then make a definitive judgement.

At least 12 MSF staff members and seven patients were killed in the incident.

The UN called the strikes “inexcusable and possibly even criminal”, with Secretary General Ban Ki-moon calling for a thorough and impartial investigation.

Japanese high school teacher’s scathing, two-foot-long note to students is nothing short of epic

Meg Murphy

Being a teacher is one of the most rewarding yet difficult jobs one can do; on the one hand, you’re helping to shape the next generation, and you get to help kids learn and grow. On the other hand, though, kids will be kids, and you’ll always have those one or two students who really know how to get under your skin.

Even the most patient teacher has their limit-they’re still human after all. Like this Japanese high school teacher, who apparently had it “up to here” with students spitting their gum out on the floor. So what did he do? Wrote a scathing note of epic proportions and pinned it to the wall for all to see.

This is a picture I took of a manhole cover here in Japan

France launches Syria anti-IS strikes

 

BBC

France has carried out its first air strikes against Islamic State militants in Syria.

The president’s office said that French planes struck targets identified during reconnaissance missions conducted over the past fortnight.

France co-ordinated with regional partners for the operation, a brief statement said.

French jets have previously carried out air strikes against IS targets in neighbouring Iraq.

“Our country thus confirms its resolute commitment to fight against the terrorist threat represented by Daesh,” the French Presidency said, referring to the militant group by another of its acronyms.

Thousands of refugees pour into Austria as European crisis intensifies

  Around 13,000 people entered Austria on Saturday, according to the Red Cross, after being forced away from Croatia, Hungary and Slovenia

Agence France-Presse

Sunday 20 September 2015 06.31 BST

Thousands of refugees have streamed into Austria after being shunted through Croatia, Hungary and Slovenia as Europe’s divided nations stepped up efforts to push the migrants into neighbouring countries.

The continent’s biggest migratory flow since 1945 has opened a deep rift between western and eastern members of the European Union over how to distribute the refugees fairly, and raised questions over the fate of the Schengen agreement allowing borderless travel within the 28-nation bloc.

Clashes as Israeli soldiers storm Al-Aqsa compound

  Israeli security personnel use tear gas as they enter compound to arrest Palestinian ‘stone throwers’.

13 Sep 2015 06:51 GMT

Clashes have erupted after a number of Israeli soldiers entered the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem, police and witnesses said.

The Israeli security personnel used tear gas as they entered the compound to arrest what they called Palestinian “stone throwers”.

The disturbances came with tensions running high after Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon last week outlawed two Muslim groups from entering the mosque compound – Islam’s third holiest site.

Israeli security forces closed the mosque’s compound to worshippers following the clashes.

Japanese expat turns frustration with ordering from Amazon UK into a comic

Jamie Koide

Moving to a different country can be fun and exciting, but it can also be tough. Most expats go through a period of culture shock where they realize that some of the stereotypes they were led to believe about a certain country may not be true, and that the way things work in their new home may not always be an improvement on the way things were done back in their old one.

We’ve presented some things Japan doesn’t get right from a Westerner’s point of view in the past, but this time we’d like to show you a comic drawn by a Japanese illustrator living overseas, detailing some of the not-so-pleasant points of living in the UK and how some in particular made her quit shopping at Amazon.

Migrant crisis: Austria and Germany await more arrivals

 



Austria and Germany are expecting thousands more migrants to arrive from Hungary after Budapest eased restrictions on their travel.

Throughout Saturday, by bus, train and on foot, people travelled to the Austrian border before moving on to Vienna and Munich.

Austrian officials are laying on more trains as needed.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is to hold talks with her coalition partners on a crisis that has divided the EU.

After days of confrontation and chaos, Hungary opened its borders with Austria and bussed thousands of migrants to the frontier.

Up to 10,000 arrived at the border, according to the Austrian authorities, who have said they do not plan to limit the numbers crossing into the country.

Bangkok bomb: Thai police charge man ‘linked to Erawan blast’

 

BBC

Police in Bangkok have charged a man in connection with the bomb attack that killed 20 people in the Thai capital nearly two weeks ago.

Officers say the suspect, who was charged with illegal possession of weapons, was involved in the attack.

However, they say he is not the man seen on CCTV footage leaving a bag at the Erawan Shrine before the explosion.

The bomb tore through the crowded shrine on 17 August, injuring more than 100, mostly tourists.

The man, who was described as a 28-year-old foreigner by police, was arrested in Nong Jok on the outskirts of Bangkok on Saturday.

Fans are raving over this amazing Doraemon x Grand Theft Auto V crossover



Many of Japan’s classic anime series have managed to engage young viewers from one generation to the next. Perhaps one of the most famous examples is Doraemon, which keeps gaining more viewers the longer it runs. Since its hit television adaptation in 1979, the series has slowly taken the world by storm, finally reaching English-speaking audiences last summer after a partnership with Disney.

That said, in over 30 years few changes have been made to the original series, with its characters never having to grow up like the rest of us. As viewers got older, many of them started wondering what kind of teenagers and adults the original cast would have become. Some of the franchise’s movies, along with a commercial series by Toyota featuring Jean Reno as Doraemon, have set out to answer a few of these questions, but what about fans who didn’t imagine a future quite so bright? It seems the only answer would require illustrating it on your own, which is exactly what one artist did when he decided to reinvent the main cast as characters from video game smash Grand Theft Auto.