International

Sharif tells court he cannot return to Pak


Lahore: Submitting his latest medical report to the Lahore High Court via his lawyer, Pakistan's former prime minister Nawaz Sharif informed that his doctors have advised that he should not step outside as contracting Covid-19 could be fatal for him. The Sharif family patriarch is in London undergoing treatment for complicated coronary artery disease and...

Oli absents himself from crucial ruling party meet


Kathmandu: The much-awaited meeting of Nepal’s ruling communist party failed to sort out the differences between PM K.P. Sharma Oli and the rival faction led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda” as political issues did not figure during the brief deliberations. The meeting of the Standing Committee of the Nepal Communist Party (NCP) was held at the...

Afghan peace talks: Taliban blames govt for delay


Kabul: A key member of the Taliban's political office in Doha has blamed the Afghan government for delays in the peace negotiations between the two sides which are aimed at ending the decades-long war in the country. The talks were expected to begin 10 days after the February 29 deal between the US and the...

Abducted Pak journalist released in Islamabad


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...

South Asia flood situation grim; 9.6 million people swamped


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...

Saudi gears up for scaled-down Hajj beginning July 29


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...

EU ‘concerned’ over US sanctions policy


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...

Covid-19 vaccine ready for use: Russian military


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...

Good schools take a nation forward; not mosques or temples


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...