Prime minister would have to step down if 172 members of the 342-member House vote against him Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan faces a no-confidence motion in the national assembly – a major challenge to his political career – on Saturday as political uncertainty deepens in the country. The parliament …
Read More »Saudi Arabia sets a limit of 1m Hajj pilgrims this year
Saudi Arabia says Muslims from inside and outside the country will be able to perform the Hajj providing they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and no older than 65. Saudi Arabia has said it will allow one million people – from both inside and outside the kingdom – to perform …
Read More »WHO: Two-thirds of people in Africa may have had COVID
The global average of true infection numbers is believed to be 16 times higher than the number of confirmed reported cases – but could have been 97 times higher in Africa, WHO says. More than two-thirds of people living in Africa may have contracted COVID-19 over the past two years, …
Read More »President Xi defends China’s ‘zero-COVID’ policy as cases soar in Shanghai
China’s President Xi Jinping commended the country’s “tested Zero-Covid” strategy on Friday even as Shanghai prepared nearly 130,000 beds for new coronavirus patients. At an event to honor Olympic athletes, Xi lauded the country’s efforts to hold the recent Winter Games which he said showed the country’s virus policy “once …
Read More »Ukraine says over 30 killed, 100 wounded in strike on evacuees in train station; Moscow denies
More than 30 people were killed and over 100 were wounded in a rocket strike on a railway station in east Ukraine on Friday as civilians tried to evacuate to safer parts of the country, the state railway company said. It said two rockets had struck a station in the …
Read More »Kremlin says Russia’s operation in Ukraine could end ‘in foreseeable future’
The Kremlin said on Friday that what it calls Russia’s “special operation” in Ukraine could end in the “foreseeable future” since its aims were being achieved and work was being carried out by both the Russian military and Russian peace negotiators. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov also said Moscow understood that …
Read More »France | Police hunting for man who left a parcel bomb at Toulouse Cathedral
Police forces were hunting for a man who left a parcel bomb in the Cathedral of Toulouse, Southwestern France, on Friday, ahead of the first round of voting in France’s presidential race on April 10, police said. The man deposited the parcel around 0700 GMT at the altar of the …
Read More »Pakistan’s top court blocks PM Khan’s move to stay in power
Imran Khan had tried to sidestep a no-confidence vote, saying it was a foreign conspiracy. The supreme court has said the vote must proceed. Imran Khan again faces being turfed out of power after the nation’s supreme court ruled Pakistan’s parliament should be restored so that he can face a …
Read More »China: UNHRC’s suspension of Russia sets a ‘dangerous precedent’
The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC)’s suspension of Russia’s membership will set a dangerous precedent, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday. The UN General Assembly on Thursday adopted a resolution suspending Russia’s membership in the Geneva-based UNHRC over reports of “gross and systematic violations and abuses of human rights” …
Read More »Massive fire reported in northern occupied Palestinian lands
Local media in the occupied Palestinian lands reported a massive fire in northern occupied lands on Friday. The fire is reported to be burning a structure in the northern city of Acre on Friday afternoon. Hebrew-language media reported that a fire broke out in a structure under construction and rescue …
Read More »Iraq, Iran FMs stress implementation of bilateral agreements
The foreign ministers of Iraq and Iran discussed bilateral relations, the Ukraine conflict as well as regional developments in a phone call on Friday. Fuad Hussein and his Irani counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian held a telephone conversation on Friday morning. The two sides exchanged congratulations on Nowruz as well as the …
Read More »UN suspends Russia from human rights body, Moscow quits
The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday suspended Russia from the U.N. Human Rights Council over reports of “gross and systematic violations and abuses of human rights” in Ukraine, prompting Moscow to announce it was quitting the body. The U.S.-led push garnered 93 votes in favor, while 24 countries voted …
Read More »Sri Lanka opposition to move no-confidence motion if economic crisis unaddressed
Sri Lanka’s main opposition party on Friday asked the government to take effective action to resolve an economic crisis or face a no-confidence motion, as business leaders from garments, tea and other industries warned exports could fall 20 to 30 percent this year. The heavily indebted country has little money …
Read More »At least 2 killed in martyrdom-seeking operation in Tel Aviv (Video)
At least two people have been killed and several seriously wounded in a martyrdom-seeking operation in Tel Aviv’s city centre. Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency service said it received reports of a shooting at “several scenes” around downtown Tel Aviv. It said it had evacuated six people to a nearby …
Read More »DHL cargo plane breaks in two during emergency landing in Costa Rica (Video)
A cargo plane carrying mail and packages skidded off the runway and broke in two during an emergency landing in Costa Rica on Thursday, causing the temporary closure of the international airport in San Jose. Smoke was billowing from the bright yellow plane of German logistics giant DHL as it …
Read More »Spain PM in Morocco to mend ties after Western Sahara shift
Spain says the meeting is an opportunity to open a ‘new stage’ in ties with Morocco-based on ‘mutual respect’ and ‘avoid future crises’. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is set to meet Moroccan King Mohammed VI during a two-day visit to Rabat that seeks to mark an easing of diplomatic …
Read More »Armenia, Azerbaijan prepare for peace talks after flare-up in Nagorno- Karabakh region
Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders order their foreign ministers to begin the preparation for a future peace treaty. Armenia and Azerbaijan are preparing for peace talks, their officials said on Thursday, after a recent flare-up in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met …
Read More »Turkey halts Khashoggi murder trial and transfers it to Saudi Arabia
The trial in absentia of 26 Saudi suspects will be transferred from Istanbul to Riyadh A Turkish court has suspended the trial in absentia of 26 Saudis accused of the gruesome killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi and said the case should be transferred to Saudi Arabia. The decision …
Read More »Ex-president Hadi transfers ‘powers’ to ‘leadership council’ in new victory for Yemen’s resistance
The former Yemeni president, a staunch ally of Riyadh, has handed over his self-proclaimed powers to a newly established body, in what appears to be another sign of the failure of the Saudi-led war that began seven years ago with the main goal of reinstalling him by force. A Thursday …
Read More »Meta suspends Facebook accounts to tackle misinformation ahead of Philippines polls
Meta Platforms Inc on Wednesday suspended a network of over 400 accounts, pages, and groups ahead of general elections in the Philippines as the Facebook parent moves to crack down on hate speech and misinformation. Concerns about online hate speech have increased as candidates and supporters increasingly turn to social …
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