The Islamic State (IS) militants on Sunday released 19 Christian Assyrians they had kidnapped last month, a monitoring group reported.
The 19 people are the first batch of 29 Assyrians the sharia court of the IS exonerated on Saturday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, Xinhua reported.
On February 23, the IS abducted 220 Christian Assyrians during an assault it had waged on predominantly Assyrian areas, mainly in the area of Tal Tamr and its countryside in Syria's northeastern province of al-Hasakah.
The fate of the other abductees is still unknown amid reports that the rest of the Assyrians are awaiting trials in the IS courts.
There is no clear reason why would the IS even put the Assyrians on trial.
Also on Sunday, the pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV said the Syrian troops captured as many as 33 towns in the eastern countryside of Hasaka after clashes with the IS.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in New York Friday on a five-day visit to the US to a tumultuous welcome by the Indian American community as diaspora members chanted "Modi, Modi" and held placards to greet him and express their enthusiasm.
San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Barbara Mallach ruled Wednesday that Khosla, a billionaire venture capitalist, who was sued last year by the Surfrider Foundation, illegally blocked access to Martin's beach and must open it to the public.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s summit meeting with President Barack Obama will have a strong focus on defence and security issues taking place as it does in the midst of a number of international crises, US officials say.
Pakistan expectedly raked up the Kashmir issue Friday in the UN General Assembly, with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif saying the "core issue" of Jammu and Kashmir has to be resolved and pushed for a plebiscite in the state.
Several US policy experts, including a former key Clinton administration official, see the upcoming US visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as an opportunity to...
