Turkey declares three days of national mourning

Thousands of protesters took to the streets in Europe on Saturday after two explosions ripped apart Turkey’s capital Ankara on Saturday, killing at least 95 people and injuring 246 more. The blasts took place near the city’s central railway station, where people had gathered for a peace march to end the violence between Kurdish separatists and the Turkish government. Prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu declared three days of national mourning and said suicide bombers might have been involved. The pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party, which had attended the rally, said its members were the main target for the bombings.

Four killed, five wounded in Israel-Palestine violence

Two Palestinian children, aged 12 and 15, were shot dead, and five Israelis were wounded in two separate knife attacks across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories on Saturday. In another incident, Israeli police killed a 19-year-old Palestinian refugee, who claimed he had stabbed two police officers. Earlier in the day, two Israeli men were wounded when a 16-year-old Palestinian, Ishaq Badran, attacked them with a knife, police said. The boy was killed by the Israeli police soon after. The toll for the last 11 days of violence between the two countries has reached 24, even as concerns were raised about the brewing of a new Palestinian uprising.

US offers compensation to Kunduz airstrike victims

The Pentagon has announced that it will pay compensation to the families of the 22 people killed and those injured in the United States’ airstrike on a Medicins Sans Frontieres hospital in the Afghan city of Kunduz on October 3. While the amount was not disclosed, Pentagon spokesperson Peter Cook said the administration would seek additional authority from the Congress to make the payments if necessary. MSF had earlier demanded an independent investigation of the incident, saying 33 people are still missing after the attack.

North Korea ready for war with US, says Jong-Un

North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-Un said the country was ready to fight any war the United States started against it, while presiding over a massive military parade marking the 70th anniversary of his party’s rule. Jong-Un's announcement was made amidst a display of thousands of troops, tanks, armoured vehicles and missiles, and was met with huge applause from tens of thousands of spectators. Satellite images had captured the scale of the military parade four days ago, showing 800 tents, 700 trucks and 200 armoured vehicles.

Nepal PM Sushil Koirala resigns

Nepal’s Prime Minister Sushil Koirala resigned on Saturday and its Parliament looked to elect a new leader even as protests continued along a key border trade point with India. Accepting the resignation, President Ram Baran Yadav asked Koirala to conduct daily administrative functions till a new government is formed. Koirala, however, is in the running to become Prime Minister again, although KP Sharma Oli, chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist, is the front-runner. More than a dozen political parties have extended support to Oli.