Syrian army, backed by Iranian fighters, advance south of Aleppo: monitor
Syrian troops backed by Hezbollah and Iranian fighters made advances on October 17 in their offensive to retake territory around the northern city of Aleppo from insurgents and jihadist fighters, a monitoring group said.
Israel says more knife attacks thwarted, four Palestinians dead
Israeli authorities said four Palestinians had been shot dead and a fifth seriously injured in thwarted knife attacks on October 17 in Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank as tensions ran high after more than two weeks of unrest.
Yemen mulls UN invitation to attend peace talks
Yemen's Saudi-backed government said on October 17 it was studying an invitation from the United Nations to attend talks aimed at ending a war between a Saudi-led coalition and Houthi militiamen who control much of the country including the capital.
Palestinians set fire to Jewish shrine; Israeli soldier stabbed
Palestinians set fire to a Jewish shrine in the occupied West Bank, and an attacker disguised as a journalist stabbed an Israeli soldier on October 16 as tensions ran high after more than two weeks of violence.
Obama, Park say DPRK must show willing to get nuclear deal
US President Barack Obama and the Republic of Korea's President Park Geun-hye said on October 16 they were open to negotiations with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on sanctions but Pyongyang needed to show it was serious about abandoning its nuclear weapons program.
RCEP, TPP significant to regional economic integration
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are both crucial for multilateral trade development, Indonesian Minister of Trade Thomas Lembong said at the 2015 Asian Economic Forum held in Jakarta on October 15.
Myanmar signs peace deal with 8 rebel groups
Myanmar's government signed its long-awaited Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) with eight of 15 rebel forces on October 15.
Syrian army and Russian jets target rebel towns north of Homs
Syrian troops and their allies, backed by Russian jets, attacked rebel-held towns north of the city of Homs on October 15, targeting a long-held and strategic enclave of opposition to President Bashar al-Assad.
Obama slows pace of US troop withdrawal in Afghanistan
Reversing policy on Afghanistan, President Barack Obama announced on October 15 he will prolong the 14-year-old US military engagement there, effectively handing off the task of pulling out troops to his successor.
Thailand to present sufficiency economy philosophy at IPU meeting
The National Legislative Assembly (NLA) of Thailand will present the country’s economic and social development model following the sufficiency economy philosophy at an Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) meeting in Geneva, Switzerland.