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US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is heading to Southeast Asia to “strengthen relationships” with allies as the Biden administration intensifies efforts to counter China. Austin will become the first cabinet secretary to visit Southeast Asia this week since President Joe Biden took office six months ago. “You’ll hear me talk …

Tunisian President Kais Saied has dismissed the country’s prime minister and suspended parliament following a day of rallies against the ruling Ennahda Party, a move greeted with both celebrations and protests on the streets. Saied announced on Sunday he would assume executive authority with the assistance of a new prime …

A top Chinese diplomat took a confrontational tone on Monday in rare high-level talks with the United States, accusing it of creating an “imaginary enemy” to divert attention from domestic problems and suppress China. Amid worsening relations between the world’s two largest economies, Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, the …

A mixed vaccination of first AstraZeneca and then a Pfizer COVID-19 shot boosted neutralizing antibody levels by six times compared with two AstraZeneca doses, a study from South Korea showed. The study involved 499 medical workers – 100 receiving mixed doses, 200 taking two doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech shot, and …

Forty-six Afghan soldiers sought refuge in Pakistan after losing control of military positions across the border following advances by the Taliban, Pakistan’s army said on Monday. Hundreds of Afghan army soldiers and civil officials have fled to neighboring Tajikistan, Iran, and Pakistan in recent weeks after Taliban offensives in border …

The past 12 months may have been a year marked by COVID-19, the impeachment of former US President Donald Trump, Brexit – and even Megxit, but it also marked an explosion of new billionaires across the planet. Rapid-fire public offerings, skyrocketing stock prices, and surging cryptocurrencies led to the number …

Italy asked European states on Sunday to send firefighting aircraft to help tame fires that have swept across parts of the island of Sardinia, prompting the evacuation of hundreds of people. Italy’s Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said on Facebook the country’s civil protection authority had issued the request and …

Hundreds of thousands of people have been evacuated from the coastal areas of the Chinese city of Shanghai as Typhoon In-Fa hits the coast to its south. All flights to the city and high-speed train services have been suspended. Shanghai issued the second-highest-level typhoon warning as In-Fa is expected to …

Countries across Europe have begun to tighten borders and implement stricter quarantine requirements as governments seek to prevent the spread of COVID-19 across the continent as the fast-spreading Delta variant continues to paralyze nations. Authorities in Malta have barred entry to unvaccinated travelers, while Germany has targeted people arriving from …

French President Emmanuel Macron appealed for national unity and mass vaccination to fight the resurgent coronavirus and lashed out at those fueling anti-vaccine sentiment and protests. About 160,000 people protested around France on Saturday against a special COVID-19 pass for restaurants and mandatory vaccinations for health workers. Many marchers shouted …

US President Joe Biden is battling accusations that he used his vice presidential position in Barack Obama’s administration to meddle into his son Hunter Biden’s business deals while the latter was a board member of the Ukrainian energy company Burisma. Joe Biden is being accused of using several private e-mail …

Around two-thirds of female veterans in the British armed forces have experienced bullying, harassment, or discrimination in their careers, a parliamentary report said Sunday. The report also said that women who reported serious sexual offences are “denied justice” by an inadequate military court system and complaints process. Parliament’s defense committee …

The Iraqi Ministry of Health confirmed over 9000 COVID-19 cases and 55 deaths from its complications in the past 24 hours.   The daily situation report issued by the Ministry said that 9,147 swabs have tested positive for the virus on Saturday, bringing the cumulative count of confirmed cases since …

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday said she plans to appoint additional Republicans, including a staunch Trump critic, to the committee probing the January 6 US Capitol insurrection, amid a fierce partisan showdown over who will serve on the body. Asked whether she would appoint a new set of Republicans …

A Palestinian commission for prisoners says fourteen Palestinians are currently on hunger strike in Israeli regime prisons in protest at their indefinite, unfair and unexplained illegal imprisonment at the hands of the Tel Aviv regime. In a statement released on Sunday, the Palestinian Commission of Detainees’ and Ex-Detainees’ Affairs said …

Californians are scrambling for fresh water as taps and wells run dry amid the severe drought across the West that is causing many problems. In the San Joaquin Valley in California, drought is threatening the drinking supply for thousands of rural residents, as well as the livelihoods for the farmers, …

Protesters have staged huge rallies against COVID-19 restrictions in several countries around the world as governments move to make vaccination mandatory. In France, demonstrators held rallies Saturday to protest the compulsory vaccination for certain workers and the mandatory use of a health pass imposed by the French government. French police …

Russian President Vladimir Putin has observed a naval parade in St. Petersburg to mark the country’s 325th anniversary of the Russian navy. Putin observed the drill at the Main Naval Parade on the Neva River on Sunday. During the parade, Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov reported to the president about …

US diplomatic trip comes 50 years after Henry Kissinger’s secret China visit that initiated relations between the two countries. On Sunday, Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman – the US’s second-highest-ranking diplomat – will meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Tianjin, China in what looks set to be …

Afghan forces have captured four Taliban fighters including a militant commander for carrying out this week’s rocket attack targeting the presidential palace in Kabul during the Muslim Eid al-Adha prayers, officials said Sunday. At least three rockets landed near the palace on Tuesday as President Ashraf Ghani and his top …