Islamabad: Senior Pakistani journalist Matiullah Jan, known for his hard-hitting criticism of the country’s military and other institutions, has been released after he was kidnapped by heavily armed men in Islamabad. Jan, a freelancer who has worked for numerous local and foreign media outlets, had been bundled into the back of a car around midday...
New Delhi/Dhaka/Kathmandu: A humanitarian crisis is deepening in South Asia as new figures reveal that more than 9.6 million people have been affected by monsoon floods, devastating large areas of India, Bangladesh and Nepal. Jagan Chapagain, Secretary General, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said: “Millions of people across Bangladesh, India and...
Riyadh: The Saudi Interior Ministry announced the Kingdom's readiness for the upcoming Haj season amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which will begin on July 29. This year's Hajj has been scaled back dramatically to include only about 1,000 Muslim pilgrims due to the pandemic. Zayed Al Tuwailan, commander of Haj Security Forces, told the media that the...
Brussels: The European Union’s top diplomat has objected to the growing use of sanctions, or the threat of sanctions, by the US against European companies and interests. “I am deeply concerned at the growing use of sanctions, or the threat of sanctions, by the United States against European companies and interests,” Josep Borrell, the EU’s...
Moscow: Even before completing key trials, The Russian military has claimed that it is ready with its experimental coronavirus vaccine, The Moscow Times reported. Last week, the Russian Defence Ministry claimed that it has developed a "safe" adenoviral vector-based vaccine, following clinical trials on a group of volunteers. According to the new report, First Deputy Defense Minister...
By Justice Markandey Katju, former Judge, Supreme Court of India Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's decision to reconvert the famed Hagia Sophia museum into a mosque is to my mind a reactionary stunt, and deserves to be condemned. Erdogan's popularity at an all time low with the Turkish economy tanking, unemployment at a record high, covid...
London: UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has urged people living in the country to return to work if they can, it was reported. Johnson has announced it is time for people to live their lives "more normally", adding that he wanted to see the public heading out into the world with more confidence, reports the Metro...
Geneva: There will be no return to the "old normal" for the foreseeable future as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, and too many countries were still headed in the wrong direction, the chief of the World Health Organization (WHO) warned. "The virus remains public enemy number one, but the actions of many governments and...
Beijing: China has said it would retaliate after US President Donald Trump ordered an end to preferential trade treatment for Hong Kong and signed a legislation to punish China for its 'aggressive actions'. China's foreign ministry said in a statement that it "firmly opposes and strongly condemns" the Hong Kong Autonomy Act, which unanimously passed the...
