Donor countries at an international aid conference in Kuwait have pleged over 2.4 billion US dollars to help those caught up in Syria's civil war.

The UN is hoping to raise 6.5 billion dollars this year, its largest-ever funding appeal ever for a single crisis.

Speaking at the meeting, China's Special Envoy to Middle East says the Chinese government is paying close attention to the humanitarian situation in Syria.

Wu Sike is also calling for all parties involved to seize the current opportunity to promote a political solution to the Syrian crisis.

The fund raising meeting comes a week before peace talks connected to Syria are due to be held in Geneva.

Ahead of the Geneva II conference, Syrian President Bashar Assad has met with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif to discuss Iran's potential invovement in the peace talks.

The UN has not yet invited Iran to attend, although a final decision has yet to be made.

 

Lebanon arrests commander of al-Qaida linked group

Authorities in Lebanon say they've arrested a key commander of an al-Qaeda-linked organization.

The Lebanese military has captured Jamal Dafterdar during a raid in a village in the western part of the country.

Dafterdar is said to be one of the key commanders of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades.

This is the group which claimed responsiblity for November's deadly blast outside the Iranian embassy in Beirut which left over 20-people dead.

Authorities say the Abdullah Azzam Brigades is an offshoot of al-Qaeda in Iraq.

On top of the Beirut bombing, the organization has also been blamed for a number of other attacks around Lebanaon.

The US has labelled the group a terrorist organization.

 

70 killed, 147 wounded in attacks in Iraq

At least 70 people have been killed in a series of attacks across Iraq on Wednesday.

Close to 150 others have been wounded in the attacks.

The attacks have been centered in Baghdad and in the eastern province of Diyala.

In Baghdad, 10 separate bombs ripped through different parts of the city, leaving close to 40 dead and over 100 others hurt.

In Diyala, three bombs hit a funeral procession, leaving 14 dead and over 25 others wounded.

The attacks in Baghdad and to the east come as Iraqi forces continue to battle al-Qaeda-linked insurgents in the western province of Anbar.

Forces there have been losing ground to insurgents who have been maintaining footholds in two major cities since the beginning of the year.

 

Trial of Westgate terror attack suspects begins in Kenya

The trial of four men accused of assisting in the Westgate mall terror attacks in Nairobi, Kenya last year has begun.

Two private security guards working at the mall have already testified, describing how a group of heavily armed men entered the mall in September and began spraying bullets randomly at shoppers.

The four Somali nationals currently being tried are facing a total of 7-charges, including giving support to terrorist groups.

The deadly attack at the upscale shopping mall in Nairobi in September left 67-people dead and over 200 others wounded.

It's believed the attack was retribution by the al-Shabaab militant group for the Kenyan military's involvement in trying to root al-Shabaab out of power in parts of neighboring Somalia.

 

U.S. airstrike kills 8 Afghan civilians: gov't

In an incident which could undermine plans for a post-2014 security agreement, Afghan authorities say a US airstrike has left 8 civilians dead.

Among the dead are said to be 7-children.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has issued a condemnation of the attack, which took place Tuesday in the eastern province of Parwan.

The Afghan government has sent a team to the area to investigate and draw up a report on the incident.

The Afghan government has been demanding the US stop assaults on Afghan villages as a pre-condition before signing a security agreement with the US to allow American troops to remain in Afghanistan after the end of this year.

 

Thai caretaker PM sticks with Feb. 2 election

The election will not be delayed. Thailand's caretaker prime minister says the vote will go ahead on February 2nd, as planned.

Yingluck Shinawatra spoke following a meeting Wednesday morning with around 70 representatives from various groups in Thailand, discussing whether to postpone the election until May.

Yingluck says the majority in that group stated they want the vote to go ahead next month.

Protest leader Suthep Thaugsuban has vowed to disrupt the election.

His supporters have been blockading government buildings and intersections in Bangkok.

Suthep wants to force the caretaker prime minister from office in favour of a People's Council, and is demanding electoral reform ahead of any national vote.

 

China detains 582 for online train ticket scalping

Chinese police have arrested 582 suspects for online ticket scalping and confiscated 33,000 tickets.

This is part of the offical crackdown on ticket hoarding ahead of the Spring Festival travel rush.

Many passengers have complained about difficulties in booking tickets on the official China Railway Corporation website, blaming "ticket snatching" software.

The programs allow people to easily buy and re-sell hundreds of tickets. 

Special forces have been monitoring the website for irregular transactions and passing along their findings to railway police field teams.

Spring Festival falls on Jan. 31. It is the most important Chinese holiday for family reunions.