Syria's foreign minister has categorically denied using chemical gasses to kill the country's own civilians this week.

Overnight talks have reinforced a ceasefire deal to allow Syrian rebels and tens of thousands of civilians to leave the war-torn eastern city of Aleppo, the media arm of Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group has said.

The UN human rights office says it has received reports of Syria's pro-government forces killing at least 82 civilians as they entered the last remaining strongholds of the rebels in eastern Aleppo.

Russia claims the Syrian army has suspended combat operations in Aleppo to allow for the evacuation of civilians from besieged rebel-held neighbourhoods - but residents and fighters are reporting no let-up in the bombing and shelling campaign.

Iraq's special forces are struggling to clear areas retaken from IS along Mosul's eastern edge, where the militants have built up fortifications and ramparts in residential areas.

At least 26 civilians are dead after an assault that killed two US service members in Afghanistan, officials say.

Islamic State appears to be using tens of thousands of people as human shields in and around Mosul, where Iraqi forces are waging a large-scale offensive aimed at retaking the country's second largest city, the UN human rights office has said.

Air strikes by the US-led coalition have killed 28 civilians, including seven children, in a village in northern Syria held by the Islamic State group, according to activists.

Civilian casualties of the war in Afghanistan rose to record levels for the seventh year in a row in 2015, as violence spread across the country in the wake of the withdrawal of most international troops, the United Nations reported yesterday.

A US military investigation has concluded that air strikes against an Islamic State checkpoint in Iraq in March probably killed four civilians, possibly including a child.

Ceasefire under threat as Independence Day imminent

Living in Yemen is like being trapped in a complex, faulty, Rubik’s Cube. Every day you face puzzles that may have no right answers. A move in any direction can lead to blindly exploding shells, airstrikes or stray bullets.