Syria on Monday called on Arab countries to invest in the war-torn nation, now again a member of the Arab League. The appeal from Syria’s economy and trade minister came during an economic conference in Saudi Arabia, ahead of a league summit in the Kingdom. The 22-member Arab League agreed …
Read More »Tractor trailer crash in Mexico kills 26
A tractor trailer and a van crashed on a highway in the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas on Sunday morning, killing 26 people, local authorities said. The two vehicles crashed about half an hour outside of the state capital Ciudad Victoria and then caught on fire, the Tamaulipas’ public security …
Read More »Thai opposition parties agree to form coalition government after shocking victory
Thailand’s two main pro-democracy opposition parties agreed to form a coalition government on Monday, one day after they swept to a landslide victory in elections that saw voters demand a change in the decades-long hold on political power by the military and the monarchy. The progressive Move Forward Party stunned …
Read More »Cyclone Mocha kills 6 in Myanmar, causes extensive damage
Cyclone Mocha lashed Myanmar’s Rakhine state on Sunday with devastating winds and heavy rain, killing at least six people and causing extensive damage, the UN and local media reported. The big picture: The storm, which packed maximum sustained winds of 155 mph as it moved ashore just north of the …
Read More »Iraqi President to attend Arab summit in Saudi Arabia
The Iraqi President, Abdul Latif Rashid, received an official invitation to participate in the next Arab summit that will be held in Saudi Arabia within days, according to a statement issued by the Iraqi Presidency. The statement illustrated that the invitation was sent from the King of Saudi Arabia, Salman …
Read More »Biden, Republicans search for outline of debt-limit deal
US President Joe Biden and congressional Republicans enter a critical week for debt-ceiling talks hoping they can find common ground on spending levels and energy regulations to avert a devastating default. Though the two sides did not appear close to an agreement, the White House has not ruled out the …
Read More »Syria’s Assad receives invitation from UAE to attend COP28: SANA
The United Arab Emirates has invited Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to attend the COP28 climate summit it is hosting at the end of this year, Syrian state news agency SANA reported on Monday. The invite was extended by UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed.
Read More »Sudan’s conflict enters second month with no end in sight
The Sudanese army carried out air strikes on Monday along the River Nile in the north of the capital Khartoum as it fought to push back its paramilitary rivals after a month of warfare, witnesses said. Intense battles in Khartoum and its sister cities of Bahri and Omdurman have raged …
Read More »Britain to send ‘hundreds’ of long-range attack drones, missiles to Ukraine
Britain has announced plans to provide Ukraine’s Western-backed military with “hundreds” of long-range attack drones, coinciding with a high profile visit to London by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to ask for more weapons. “Today the Prime Minister will confirm the further UK provision of hundreds of air defense missiles and …
Read More »Turkey heads for historic election run-off with Erdogan leading
Turkey’s High Election Board says incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has garnered 49.4% of votes in the Sunday presidential election, falling short of the 50% threshold needed to avoid a runoff. With 99% of ballot boxes opened, High Election Board head Ahmet Yener said on Monday Erdogan’s main rival Kemal …
Read More »Russia says its forces still advancing inside Ukraine’s Bakhmut
Russia said Saturday that its forces were still pushing inside the frontline town of Bakhmut and had wrested control of an area in the eastern Ukrainian city. “In the Donetsk direction, assault detachments liberated a block in the northwestern part of the city of Artemovsk,” the defense ministry said, referring …
Read More »Sudan talks to resume in Saudi amid heavy fighting
Khartoum residents described fierce battles on Saturday with fighters roving the streets and little sign Sudan’s warring sides were respecting an agreement to protect civilians ahead of ceasefire talks due to resume in Saudi Arabia on Sunday. Fighting has rocked Khartoum and adjoining areas as well as Geneina in the …
Read More »Facebook, YouTube, Twitter inaccessible in Pakistan, witnesses say
Facebook, YouTube and Twitter were inaccessible in Pakistan on Saturday after having been temporarily restored late on Friday, Reuters witnesses said. The Ministry of Interior suspended mobile broadband services across the country and blocked access to Facebook, YouTube and Twitter on Tuesday night amid unrest after former Prime Minister Imran …
Read More »Cyclone Mocha Heads to Bangladesh, Myanmar Coasts
A powerful storm packing winds of up to 175 kph barreled towards the coasts of eastern Bangladesh and Myanmar on Saturday, threatening around a million Rohingya refugees and others living in low-lying areas. After brewing in the Bay of Bengal for days, Cyclone Mocha is likely to intensify further and …
Read More »1.6 million UK households facing mortgage cost surge – Report
A British think tank has warned that nearly 1.6 million British households are yet to encounter a 2,300 pound ($2,903) payment surge following the mortgage rate increase amid the UK’s persisting housing crisis. According to the Resolution Foundation’s report, which focuses on living standards, only about half of the 7.5 …
Read More »Ukraine President Zelenskyy to visit Germany on Sunday
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will land in Berlin on Sunday, German government sources told Reuters on Saturday. Zelenskiy last visited Germany for the Munich Security ouncil in February last year just before the war broke out. It will be the ninth country he has visited since Russia’s invasion – after …
Read More »Architect of Biden’s China policy to resign
Washington’s number-two diplomat, a key foreign policy player, will soon end her three-decade career in government. US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman is set to retire, the State Department said on Friday. The 73-year-old official was heavily involved in devising Washington’s current strategy toward China and the broader Asia-Pacific, …
Read More »Modi’s BJP party on track to lose southern India Karnataka state polls
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist party was set to lose Karnataka, the only southern India state it governs, according to an early vote count Saturday that showed opposition Congress party leading in the crucial state polls. With vote counting continuing, India’s Election Commission said the Congress was leading in …
Read More »Pakistan’s Shahbaz Sharif orders those involved in violence tracked down and arrested
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif ordered authorities on Saturday to identify and arrest all those involved in violent acts after former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s arrest this week sparked deadly unrest. Khan departed the court premises late Friday night and headed towards his hometown Lahore amidst high security, after a …
Read More »Biden lays out US chemical weapons plans
Washington has pledged to finally dispose of its Cold War-era toxic arsenal. The US will destroy its last remaining chemical weapons by the fall of 2023, President Joe Biden announced on Friday, ahead of next week’s international arms control conference in The Hague. “We are on track to complete the …
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