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U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration is preparing an overhaul of arms export policy to increase the emphasis on human rights, a departure from former President Donald Trump’s prioritization of economic benefits to U.S. defense contractors, four people familiar with the initiative said. Defense companies and activists scrutinize such policies for …

Belgian customs officers arrested 45 people on Wednesday as part of the country’s biggest operation into cigarette counterfeiting. The country has become a hub for cigarette trafficking to neighboring countries. Officers arrested 17 people of Ukrainian and Bulgarian nationality during a pre-dawn raid on a sweatshop in an industrial area …

Former US President Donald Trump on Wednesday challenged in court last week’s U.S. Justice Department order to turn his tax returns over to a House of Representatives committee, part of his long campaign to keep details of his wealth secret. In a filing in federal court in the District of …

The team said that if this method succeeds commercially, the country will have an environmentally friendly fuel that could possibly replace petroleum, diesel, and compressed natural gas (CNG). The scientists also want to develop an indigenous magneto-electrolytic hydrogen generator. Scientists from India’s leading research facility, the Indian Institutes of Technology-Bombay, …

Southern Europe has been suffering an unprecedented heatwave fed by hot air from North Africa. Temperatures in Turkey’s Marmaris recently reached an all-time high of 45.5 Celsius (114F). Forest fires have been raging in Turkey’s Mediterranean region for seven days, necessitating the evacuation of residents from the worst affected areas …

Marking the first anniversary of last year’s deadly explosion in Beirut, the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement has stressed the need to shed light on the truth about the national tragedy, urging the authorities to seriously follow up on the investigation into the incident. According to Press TV, in a statement …

Turkey has slammed as “irresponsible” a US-declared program to offer potential resettlement to Afghans who served American occupation forces or worked for US-based organizations through third countries, including Turkey, insisting that the move would generate a “great migration crisis” in the region. “The US Department of State’s statement said on Aug. …

The Secretary General of Hezbollah Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah enemies are plotting to drag the Lebanese resistance movement into a civil war and tarnish its image, following the murder of a member by a number of extremists, saying the group will not be lured into such a trap. At a meeting …

The Taliban have claimed responsibility for a deadly attack on the Afghan defense minster’s house in the capital, Kabul, threatening to carry out more attacks against top government officials. A coordinated bomb-and-gun attack occurred near the residence of acting Defense Minister General Bismillah Mohammadi in downtown Kabul on Tuesday evening. Mohammadi survived …

India has deployed warships to the South China Sea in what New Delhi proclaims to be a bid to expand security ties with “friendly countries” and in an apparent move to join and play a bigger role in a US-led scheme to counter China near Chinese territorial waters. According to …

Tunisia’s President Kais Saied has sacked the country’s ambassador to the United States and the governor of Sfax province. It has been the latest in a string of dismissals in the recent past. On July 25, the president dismissed Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi and suspended parliament for 30 days, in …

On the first anniversary of the deadly Beirut port explosion, the Lebanese diaspora – along with supporters across the world – are using social media to mourn and call for justice. Lebanese have taken to social media to remember the Beirut port explosion, which took place one year ago on …

Britain has been granted “dialogue partner” status by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, a step forward in London’s push to build stronger diplomatic ties in Asia following its exit from the European Union. Britain has been seeking the status as part of its post-Brexit policy shift to focus more …

Several lightning bolts hit a Bangladesh wedding party within a few seconds Wednesday, killing 16 people and injuring the groom, officials said. The group had just left a boat at the riverside town of Shibganj to take shelter from the thunderstorm when the lightning struck, a government administrator for the …

No explanation is given for fresh wave of dismissals by President Kais Saied who has been ruling by decree since late July. President Kais Saied has fired Tunisia’s ambassador to the United States and the governor of a key province, the latest dismissals since he provoked a political crisis last …

Martin Griffiths, during visit to Ethiopia, says ‘blanket’ accusations are ‘unfair’ and ‘need to stop’. The United Nations’ new humanitarian chief has denounced “dangerous” accusations by Ethiopian government officials that aid workers were biased in favour of rebels in Tigray, where a brutal conflict between federal troops and forces loyal …

The largest clinical trial investigating the best gap between first and second COVID-19 vaccine doses for pregnant women has been launched in the UK. Following 130,000 pregnant women being vaccinated in the US and no safety concerns being raised, the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna vaccines were recommended by the independent experts …

Turkey has slammed as “irresponsible” a US-declared program to offer potential resettlement to Afghans who served American occupation forces or worked for US-based organizations through third countries, including Turkey, insisting that the move would generate a “great migration crisis” in the region. “The US Department of State statement said on …

Seven African Arab states have rejected a recent decision by the African Union (AU) Commission to grant the Israeli regime an observer status at the continental body. Several Arab media outlets, including London-based al-Araby Al-Jadeed, reported that the embassies of Algeria, Egypt, Comoros, Tunisia, Djibouti, Mauritania, and Libya in Ethiopia …

The Taliban claimed responsibility on Wednesday for a car bomb attack on the residence of Afghanistan’s acting defence minister, while a blast near the office of the main security agency in Kabul just hours later wounded three people. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said the group targeted the residence on Tuesday …