
-
Indian army says new exchange of gunfire with Pakistan
-
Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre takes own life in Australia: family
-
Hundreds of buildings damaged, dozens injured in 6.3 Ecuador quake
-
India and Pakistan's Kashmir fallout hits economy too
-
Francis's funeral to be grand farewell to 'pope of the poor'
-
Pogacar faces defiant Evenepoel at Liege-Bastogne-Liege
-
Chelsea eye great escape against Barcelona in Women's Champions League
-
Iran, US to hold new round of high-level nuclear talks
-
'Energy and effort' pay off for Reds as Blues' woes continue
-
Albatross and closing birdie lift China's Liu to LPGA Chevron lead
-
On the horizon? Wave of momentum for high seas treaty
-
Developing countries should fast-track US trade deals: World Bank president
-
Grizzlies' Morant 'doubtful' for must-win game 4 v Thunder
-
Trump in Rome for pope funeral in first foreign trip of new term
-
Trump says Russia-Ukraine deal 'very close' after new Kremlin talks
-
US rookies lead PGA pairs event with McIlroy and Lowry in hunt
-
Trump tariff promises get a reality check
-
Warriors coach Kerr 'relatively optimistic' injured Butler will play game 3
-
Postecoglou hopes 'Stonecutter's Credo' can inspire Spurs
-
PSG lose unbeaten Ligue 1 record ahead of Arsenal showdown
-
Venezuela accuses El Salvador president of 'human trafficking'
-
Own goal takes Sundowns to African final against Pyramids
-
Scores of buildings damaged, 20 injured in Ecuador quake
-
US stocks extend rally as market eyes busy calendar next week
-
Pope's death triggers surge of disinformation he fought against
-
Rovanpera takes control of Rally Islas Canarias
-
Zelensky insists Crimea is Ukrainian as US envoy meets Putin
-
Patel and Mendis help Sunrisers beat Kings in Dhoni's 400th T20
-
Copa del Rey ref statements 'unacceptable': Real Madrid after boycotting final build-up
-
Insurance CEO's accused killer pleads not guilty to federal murder charges
-
FBI arrests Wisconsin judge for shielding undocumented migrant
-
Brazil ex-president Collor de Mello jailed for corruption
-
Zelensky insists Crimea 'belongs' to Ukraine as US envoy meets Putin
-
Real Madrid boycott Copa del Rey build-up over referee complaints
-
Trinidad and Tobago votes for parliament, PM, with opposition in lead
-
IMF chief hails 'constructive' Spring Meetings held under tariff uncertainty
-
Iran FM Araghchi in Oman ahead of nuclear talks with US
-
Dozens of buildings destroyed, 20 injured in Ecuador quake
-
Young Barca must 'enjoy' Real Madrid Copa final fight: Flick
-
Pakistan and India border closure separates families
-
Brazil's Bolsonaro 'stable' after post-surgery setback
-
Catholics in secular Cuba hail Francis as 'bridge'
-
US envoy Witkoff, Putin discuss 'possibility' of direct Russia-Ukraine talks
-
Community seeks answers after French school knife killing
-
German prosecutors seek jail terms in VW 'dieselgate' trial
-
Sabalenka makes winning start at Madrid Open
-
EU, US should de-escalate and negotiate trade deal: IMF Europe director
-
Russia accuses Ukraine of killing general in car bombing
-
Emery wants FA Cup glory and Champions League berth for Villa
-
Buildings destroyed, one injured in Ecuador quake

Hundreds of IS jihadists surrender as Kurds advance inside Syria jail
Hundreds of Islamic State group fighters surrendered Wednesday in a Syria prison where they had been holed up for days, as US-backed Kurdish forces tightened the noose around remaining jihadists.
More than 100 jihadists of the Islamic State group last week attacked Ghwayran prison in the Kurdish-controlled northeastern city of Hasakeh.
The brazen assault on the Kurdish-run facility involved a double suicide bombing and saw the jihadists free fellow IS members, seize weapons and take over several cell blocks, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
It is considered the most sophisticated attack carried out by the group since it was territorially defeated in Syria nearly three years ago.
More than 1,000 men have so far surrendered to Kurdish forces combing areas inside and outside the prison, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces and the Observatory said Wednesday.
"Terrorists are still holed up in some pockets in a northern" section of the jail, said Farhad Shami of the SDF's media office, adding that "precise operations" were ongoing to eliminate the threat.
Fighting in and around the prison since Thursday has killed 181 people, including 124 IS jihadists, 50 Kurdish fighters and seven civilians, according to the Observatory.
With operations under way inside the prison, there were fears for the fate of minors detained at Ghwayran, which held more than 700 boys among 3,500 IS suspects prior to the attack.
- 'Nightmare scenario' -
"They say they fear they'll be shot down if they try to come out. They are begging for food, water, medicine," said Human Rights Watch researcher Letta Tayler, adding she had made contact with three inmates, including one minor, trapped inside the jail.
They are calling for the United Nations "or other international organisations to negotiate their safe exit," Tayler said.
A tense standoff has gripped the prison, with Kurdish forces and their IS foes facing either a bloodbath or talks to end the fighting.
Kurdish forces have cut off supplies of food and water to the jail for two days to pressure holdout jihadists to surrender, the Observatory said.
"The most likely way this ends is with the total defeat of the IS fighters at the prison," said Nicholas Heras, an analyst at the Newlines Institute.
"But the nightmare scenario for the SDF and the US-led coalition is a drawn out standoff that kills hundreds, including many children prisoners."
Since Monday, Kurdish forces have freed at least 32 prison staff, some of whom appeared in video footage that IS had shared on social media after launching the attack, the Observatory says.
Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said a Syrian IS jihadist was negotiating with Kurdish forces to end the mutiny and secure medical care for wounded jihadists.
Shami of the SDF media office said the SDF had made calls for IS to surrender, but he refused to refer to them as formal negotiations.
- 'International problem' -
Ghwayran is the prison with the largest number of suspected IS members in Syria, the Observatory says.
Kurdish authorities say more than 50 nationalities are represented in Kurdish-run prisons, where more than 12,000 IS suspects are held.
The Kurdish administration has long warned it does not have the capacity to hold, let alone put on trial, the thousands of IS fighters captured in years of operations.
"This issue is an international problem," the administration's top foreign policy official, Abdulkarim Omar, told AFP on Wednesday.
"We cannot face it alone."
He called on the international community to "support the autonomous administration to improve security and humanitarian conditions for inmates in detention centres and for those in overcrowded camps".
The proto-state declared by IS in 2014 once straddled large parts of Iraq and Syria.
After five years of military operations conducted by local and international forces, its last rump was eventually flushed out on the banks of the Euphrates in eastern Syria in March 2019.
M.Fischer--AMWN