IS Officially Claims Responsibility For Jakarta Attacks
The IS group has issued an official statement claiming responsibility for today's attacks in Jakarta.
Analyst Charlie Winter has tweeted the IS group's claim of responsibility for the Jakarta attacks. The claim says there were four attackers who used light weapons and suicide vests.
British Mother 'Took Toddler To Join IS'
A British mother is alleged to have taken her toddler to Syria to join the IS group and posed the child with guns for photos, a court in Birmingham has heard.
Tareena Shakil, 26, is thought to be the first British woman to have returned from IS-controlled territory to face terror charges.
Reports Of Fresh Explosions In Jakarta
Second Convoy Reaches Madaya
The second aid convoy in a week has reached the besieged Syrian town of Madaya.
The convoy of 40 trucks is carrying flour, medical supplies and hygiene products to the rebel-held town near the Lebanese border.
A smaller convoy is headed to two Shi'ite villages under siege by rebels.
Russia Says Assad's Fate Does Not Depend On Talks
In her press briefing this afternoon, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also talked about Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his fate, which she said did not depend on peace talks in Vienna or New York.
Instead, Assad's fate should be decided by the Syrian people, Zakharova said.
Russia Accuses Turkey Of Pursuing 'Hidden Game' In Syria
Turkey is playing a "hidden game" in pursuit of its own "opportunistic interests" in Syria, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said.
"Suffice it to recall the acquisition, in violation of the UN Security Council's resolution, of smuggled oil through its territory, that is, IS oil. Not to mention the regular supplying by the Turkish authorities, including weapons, to various extremist groups in Syria, among whom are openly terrorist [groups]," Zakharova said.
Russia Slams France For 'Strange, Unbecoming' Remarks Over Syria Air Strikes
Comments by French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius accusing Russia of carrying out air strikes on civilian targets are "strange and unbecoming," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has said.
"You know, the other day, the French Foreign Minister, Mr. Fabius, at the end of his meeting in Paris with the coordinator of the so-called supreme committee of the forces of the Syrian revolution, Mr. Hijab [the former Syrian prime minister chosen to be the representative of Syrian opposition groups in talks] showed photos of starving residents in Madaya and other, as he put it, towns besieged by the Syrian regime. Then he accused Russia of of military actions against the civilian population of Syria, and even of bombing schools. To put it mildly, all this looks strange and unbecoming, since we're talking about the French foreign minister," Zakharova said, according to RIA Novosti.
Turkey Hits IS Targets In Syria, Iraq
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said that Turkish land forces fired nearly 500 times on IS targets in Syria and Iraq in response to a January 12 suicide bombing in Istanbul that killed 10 German tourists.
"After the incident on Tuesday … close to 500 artillery and tank shells were fired on [IS] positions in Syria and Iraq," Davutoglu said.
"Close to 200 [IS] members including so-called regional leaders were neutralized in the last 48 hours. After this, every threat directed at Turkey will be punished in kind."
Turkey says it has killed 200 IS militants across its south eastern border in the last 48 hours.