IS militants set ablaze 2 oil wells
Baghdad, Dec 17: Two oil wells in Iraq’s Kirkuk province were set ablaze by Islamic State (IS) terrorists, said Minister of Oil Ihsan Abdul-Jabbar Ismail, adding that the fires have been successfully extinguished. The Iraqi oil companies have managed “to extinguish the fires in the two wells of Khubbaz oilfield in Kirkuk province at an unprecedented time” on Wednesday, Xinhua news agency quoted Ismail as saying in a letter sent to Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi. In his letter, Ismail praised the efforts of the employees of the Iraqi North Oil Company and the national oil companies that support extinguishing the oil wells, stressing that “this is the appropriate response to terrorism that targets the national oil wealth”. (IANS)
120 migrants intercepted
Cairo, Dec 17: More than 120 Europe-bound migrants, including eight women and 28 children, were intercepted in the Mediterranean Sea by Libya’s coast guard, the U.N. migration agency said Thursday. The International Organization for Migration tweeted that a vessel carrying the migrants was stopped late Wednesday off the coast of the North African country and the passengers were returned to Libyan territories. “We reiterate that Libya is not a port of safety,” the IOM said. Safa Msehli, an IOM spokesperson in Libya, tweeted that 126 migrants from the vessel were taken to detention centers inside Libya. (AP)
Yemeni military redeployed
Aden, Dec 17: The two warring military factions in Yemen — forces loyal to the government and units of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) — have completed redeployment in the country’s areas under the Saudi Arabia-led coalition’s supervision. Local military officials told Xinhua news agency on Wednesday that “the process of redeployment warring troops was completed successfully under the auspices of observers of the Saudi Arabia-led coalition”. “The Saudi-led coalition succeeded in ending the military escalation in the strategic southern regions and reunited its two nominal allies,” an official said. (IANS)
Nigeria to reopen land borders
Abuja, Dec 17: Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the immediate reopening of the country’s four land borders which were shut 16 months ago in a bid to curb smuggling,a Minister announced. “The President has approved the reopening of four land borders — Seme, Ilela, Maigatari and Mfum,” Xinhua news agency quoted Minister of Finance, Budget, and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed as saying to reporters on Wednesday . (IANS)
