News In Brief

Doval named India's security adviser
Our Correspondent, New Delhi

Ajit Kumar Doval, former chief of India's Intelligence Bureau and one of the finest operational brains, was yesterday appointed the National Security Adviser (NSA) of India. Doval, who retired from government service nine years ago, succeeds career diplomat Shivshankar Menon in that post.  He will be the second NSA boss after M K Narayanan to have a professional career in intelligence.

'Aleppo air raids killed 2,000 in 2014'
Afp, Beirut

Barrel bombings and other Syrian government air raids on rebel districts of Aleppo and surrounding areas have killed 1,963 civilians since January, including 567 children, a monitoring group said yesterday. Government aircraft launched a bombing campaign against rebel-held districts in the east in mid-December, frequently dropping shrapnel-packed barrel bombs.

Cambodian court sentences garment workers
Afp, Phnom Penh

A Cambodian court yesterday handed suspended sentences to 23 activists and garment workers arrested during a protest crackdown amid rising concern over a textile industry that supplies a host of Western brands including Gap, Nike and H&M. They were sentenced to between one and four-and-a-half years in prison. The defendants had protesting for a minimum wage of $160 a month.

Peres, Abbas to pray at Vatican on June 8
Afp, Vatican City

Israeli President Shimon Peres and his Palestinian counterpart Mahmud Abbas will pray for peace at the Vatican on June 8, the Holy See said Thursday. Pope Francis had invited the pair to his home for a "heartfelt prayer" for peace during his three-day trip to the region.

'Time to start new  US-Cuba ties'
Afp, Havana

The head of the US Chamber of Commerce made an urgent plea Thursday to relaunch relations between Cuba and the United States. Thomas Donohue spoke at the end of the highest-profile visit of an American official to the communist-ruled island in years. Washington has maintained an economic embargo clamped on Cuba since 1962, and the two have never moved off a Cold War footing in their ties.

20 years for Facebook protests!
Afp, Tehran

An Iranian court has sentenced eight people to jail terms ranging from seven to 20 years for crimes including anti-regime propaganda posted on Facebook, an opposition website has said. They were charged with "insulting the supreme leader and the authorities, anti-regime activities, sacrilege and spreading lies," Kaleme said.