Pakistani border guards and Afghan Taliban forces traded cross-border fire on Monday morning, officials said, a day after Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers closed the Torkham border crossing amid increasing tensions between the two neighbors. Six Pakistani civilians and one Afghan soldier were killed on Sunday in the shelling and gunfire, according …
Read More »Tehran: Munich conference held in the name of security to charm war-mongers
Iran has blasted the organizers of the 2023 Munich Security Conference for not giving an equal chance to all members of the international community to present their views, saying the event took place under the slogan of security but actually promoted war. Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani said during a …
Read More »Biden makes unannounced trip to Kyiv ahead of Russia-Ukraine war anniversary
US President Joe Biden promised new military aid for Ukraine worth $500 million during a surprise visit to Kyiv on Monday, almost a year to the day since Russia’s invasion. Biden also said additional sanctions would be announced this week against the Russian elite and companies trying to evade sanctions …
Read More »Bodies of 18 migrants found abandoned in truck
Six people have been charged with human trafficking in Bulgaria following the incident Prosecutors in Bulgaria have charged six people with human trafficking following the discovery near the capital, Sofia, on Friday of an abandoned truck containing the remains of 18 Afghan migrants who died of suffocation. “The victims died …
Read More »West not willing to engage in Ukraine peace efforts: Kremlin
Russia says Western countries have not yet shown a willingness to engage in peace efforts to resolve the war in Ukraine. The Kremlin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov made the remarks on Sunday after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko suggested arranging a meeting between Russian and US leaders. “So far there is no …
Read More »Syria calls for ‘urgent’ international action to stop Israeli aggression
The Syrian Foreign Ministry has strongly condemned an Israeli air strike on Damascus that killed at least five people and heavily damaged residential buildings, calling for “urgent international action” to stop the Israeli regime’s aggression. Syria’s official news agency SANA cited the country’s Foreign Ministry as making the call in …
Read More »Thousands missing a week after Cyclone Gabrielle hits New Zealand
‘Steep mountain ahead,’ prime minister says as 11 deaths confirmed so far after storm sweeps north and east of the country. At least 11 people have died and thousands are missing in New Zealand after Cyclone Gabrielle hit the North Island last week. The cyclone hit the northern part of …
Read More »Israeli diplomat removed from African Union summit
A bloc official says the envoy was removed because she was not duly accredited to attend the event in Ethiopia. A senior Israeli diplomat has been removed from the African Union’s annual summit in Ethiopia as a dispute over Israel’s accreditation to the bloc escalated. A video posted on social …
Read More »Turkey ends earthquake rescue efforts in all but two provinces
Turkey has ended rescue efforts in all provinces except the two hardest hit by last week’s massive quake that killed tens of thousands of people, the Turkish disaster agency said Sunday. “In many of our provinces, search and rescue efforts have been completed. They continue in Kahramanmaras and Hatay provinces,” …
Read More »This is what Taliban will do with former US military bases: Plan revealed
The Taliban administration will move ahead with plans to turn former foreign military bases into special economic zones for businesses, the acting deputy prime minister for economic affairs said in a statement on Sunday. The acting commerce minister had told Reuters in December that his ministry was working on the …
Read More »US mass shooting leaves 9 children wounded, including 5-year-old, in Georgia
At least nine children have been wounded in a mass shooting at a gas station in Columbus, Georgia, US, as gun violence assumes alarming proportions in the United States. The nine victims, including a 5-year-old boy, were taken to a local hospital for treatment for non-life-threatening injuries, authorities said, adding …
Read More »US, South Korea stage joint air exercise after North’s ICBM launch
The United States and South Korea have held a joint air exercise involving US strategic bombers after North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in a “sudden launching drill”. On Sunday, Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the exercise, where South Korea’s F-35A, F-15K, and US F-16 fighters escorted …
Read More »Record number of Britons turning to food banks amid cost-of-living crisis
An “ever-increasing” number of households in the UK, including teachers, pensioners, and employees of the NHS, are turning to food banks for assistance as a result of the cost of living issue and the country’s high inflation, according to new statistics. The research conducted by the Independent Food Aid Network …
Read More »Survivors rescued 12 days after Turkey earthquake
More than 46,000 people were confirmed dead in the aftermath of the earthquakes which struck Turkey and Syria Three survivors, one of whom was a child, were successfully rescued from the rubble of a building in Turkey’s Hatay province on Saturday, according to the Anadolu news agency. However, a reporter …
Read More »Syria accuses Israel of deadly strike on central Damascus
Multiple casualties were reported in a “residential neighborhood” of the Syrian capital At least one missile hit the Kafar Souseh neighborhood of Damascus overnight, severely damaging a residential building and causing multiple deaths and injuries, state news agency SANA reported early on Sunday, blaming the Israeli military. A volley of …
Read More »Biden Administration Facing Criticism for Ohio Toxic Train Derailment Response
Facing scrutiny from Republicans and Democrats for what critics are calling a slow response to the Feb. 3 toxic train derailment in East Palestine, the Biden administration on Feb. 17 announced it would send more help to the eastern Ohio village after pleas from Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, Sen. J.D.Vance …
Read More »Tunisia unions protest over economic woes, official’s arrest (Pictures)
Thousands of Tunisian trade unionists held protests across the country on Saturday over worsening economic woes and the arrest of a top union official. The North African country is in drawn-out talks with the International Monetary Fund for a bailout loan, which the powerful UGTT workers’ federation has warned could …
Read More »UK PM: It’s time to double down on support for Ukraine
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called on world leaders Saturday to “double down” on support for Ukraine, saying additional arms and security guarantees are needed to protect the country and the rest of Europe from Russian aggression now and in the future. Sunak delivered the message in a speech to …
Read More »US declares Russia committed ‘crimes against humanity’ in Ukraine
The Biden administration formally concluded that Russia has committed “crimes against humanity” during its nearly year-long invasion of Ukraine, US Vice President Kamala Harris said on Saturday. “In the case of Russia’s actions in Ukraine we have examined the evidence, we know the legal standards, and there is no doubt: …
Read More »Finland wants to join NATO alongside Sweden: PM Marin
Finland still wants to join NATO together with Sweden despite Turkey’s objections to its neighbor’s membership bid, Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Saturday. “We have sent a very clear signal and a very clear message to Turkey and also to Hungary… that we want enter NATO together and …
Read More »