US to repay Iran $400m debt & $1.3b in interest

Here is a round-up of global news developments:

• The US is to repay Iran a 400 million dollar debt and 1.3 billion dollars in interest. Secretary of state John Kerry says this dates back to the 1979 Islamic Revolution period. The repayment is separate from the tens of billions of dollars in Iranian assets that are now accessible by Tehran.
• U-S President Barack Obama has hailed the implementation of the nuclear deal with Tehran but said the U-S still has profound differences with Iran. Obama also said Washington will continue to enforce sanctions against Iran’s missile program and over what it calls the country’s violation of human rights.
• Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani says the country’s nuclear deal with the P 5+1 can serve as a model for resolving regional conflicts. Rouhani says Iran’s nuclear program is now considered as a means of promoting peace in the region. He also regretted Saudi Arabia’s reaction to the implementation of the nuclear deal.
• Afghan police say a rocket has landed near the Italian embassy in Kabul, injuring two security guards. It’s not clear if the mission was the intended target. No group claimed responsibility for the attack. But the Taliban have often been behind similar attacks on foreign missions.
• European officials are expected to visit Iran in order to discuss ways of expanding energy ties. According to an E-U official a 15-member delegation will travel to Iran on a 4-day technical visit before a trip by high-level Commission staffers.
• A car-bomb explosion has torn through a neighborhood in Yemen’s southern port city of Aden. The blast claimed the lives of 10 people mostly civilians and injured several others. The explosion hit outside the residence of police chief Shalal Shaea who escaped it unharmed.
• Israeli soldiers have shot and killed another Palestinian in the occupied territories. Israeli army officials claim the Palestinian tried to stab Israeli soldiers in the West Bank city of Nablus. Meanwhile, a Palestinian has stabbed and killed an Israeli female settler in the occupied West Bank.
• In France, a man who was left brain-dead after suffering serious side-effects during a drug trial has died. According to a hospital in the western city of Rennes, five other volunteers are in stable condition. They were hospitalized a week ago when the drug trial went wrong.

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