US blacklists paramilitary chief after base attacks

AFP, Washington

The United States on Wednesday declared a powerful Iraqi Shiite paramilitary leader to be a terrorist after a series of rocket attacks, vowing to step up pressure on his ally Iran. The State Department listed Ahmad al-Hamidawi, secretary general of armed faction Kataib Hezbollah, as a “specially designated global terrorist,” freezing any US assets he may hold and making US transactions with him a crime.

Teenager's remains found in lion enclosure

BBC, London

The remains of a teenage boy have been found in the lion enclosure of a Lahore zoo, a day after he went missing. Officials said they are investigating how Muhammad Bilal, 17, made it over the fence and what caused his death. But locals have blamed Bilal's demise on staff incompetence, and earlier this week the zoo's offices were ransacked. The state-back Lahore Safari, established in 1982, is Pakistan's largest and oldest animal park.

Uncertainty looms ahead of US-Taliban deal signing

AFP, Doha

Washington and the Taliban are set to sign a deal Saturday to secure America’s exit from its longest war through gradually withdrawing troops and starting talks between Kabul and the insurgents. The agreement will likely be heralded as marking the start of a hopeful new era for Afghanistan, which has seen 40 years of conflict.