World

NEW YORK: After an Israeli attack on Qatar threatened to unravel the Gulf State's relations with the US and its Gaza peace efforts, President Donald Trump has stepped up with an unprecedented security guarantee offering it military protection against attacks.

TEL AVIV: Five rockets were launched from the northern Gaza Strip toward Ashdod, a coastal city in southern Israel, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.

WASHINGTON: The White House has stated that federal job layoffs are “imminent” as a consequence of the government shutdown that began on October 1.

NEW DELHI: Violence in Bangladesh has become an everyday occurrence, and several institutions in the country are on the verge of becoming completely radicalised. If there is one institution that has stayed away from all this mess, it is the Bangladesh army.

GENEVA: The recent violence against the indigenous people in Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts has sparked concerns among world leaders about the condition of the backwards and religious minorities in the South Asian nation.

KABUL: The United Nations has warned that internet blackout in Afghanistan is disrupting earthquake relief, leaving survivors living in remote areas cut off from aid, financial services, and vital humanitarian coordination efforts, local media reported on Wednesday.

DHAKA: The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, a human rights organisation against religious discrimination, has expressed deep sorrow and anger over Chief Advisor of the interim government Muhammad Yunus’ comments dismissing the persecution of Hindu minorities across Bangladesh as “baseless”.

NEW DELHI: Large portions of the US government officially shut down on Wednesday as US President Donald Trump and Congress could not reach an agreement on a spending bill, resulting in thousands of non-essential federal employees being placed on leave.

SEOUL: South Korea on Wednesday held a ceremony to commemorate the 77th anniversary of the founding of its armed forces in a scaled-down event in the aftermath of last year's botched martial law bid.

NEW DELHI: External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar on Wednesday extended wishes to Chinese Politburo Member and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and the people of China on the occasion of the country’s founding day, expressing hope to continue work towards stabilising and rebuilding India-China ties.

SYDNEY: The Australian state of Victoria is facing a growing housing crisis, according to a report released on Wednesday.

NEW DELHI: Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Secretary (West) Sibi George represented India at Armenia's National Day celebrations in New Delhi, reaffirming the nation's commitment to the enduring friendship with the West Asian nation.

MANILA: The death toll in the 6.9-magnitude earthquake that struck Cebu province in the central Philippines could reach up to 60, the Philippines' Office of Civil Defence (OCD) said on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON: The United States government has shut down as lawmakers failed to achieve a breakthrough on a funding bill.

UNITED NATIONS: The UN Security Council adopted a resolution to transition the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission in Haiti to the Gang Suppression Force (GSF) for an initial period of 12 months.

MANILA: At least 19 people were killed and dozens injured as a 6.9-magnitude earthquake hit Cebu province in the central Philippines on Tuesday night, local media reported Wednesday.

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said that the White House is weighing actions to crack down on drug cartels "coming by land" from Venezuela.

WASHINGTON: Indian Ambassador to the United States Vinay Kwatra met the visiting officers of the Armed Forces Medical Services of India in Washington during their visit to the United States.

JERUSALEM: India and Indonesia, both non-aligned democracies with moral legitimacy in the Global South, promise a new-aligned pole of pragmatism and peace that could see them become unexpected brokers of a new Middle Eastern balance: one that safeguards Israel’s security, recognises Palestinian aspirations, and resists the manipulation of cynical actors like Pakistan, a report has stated.

TEL AVIV: Israel's Foreign Ministry on Monday claimed that the official Hamas documents recovered in the Gaza Strip revealed the terror group's direct involvement in the funding and execution of the 'Sumud' flotilla bound for Gaza.

KABUL: Flights and communication faced disruption after an internet blackout occurred in Afghanistan, sparking fears about transport, trade and worsening the country’s humanitarian and economic crisis, local media reported on Tuesday.

QUETTA: At least 10 people were killed and more than 20 others injured after an explosion occurred near Frontier Corps (FC) headquarters on Zarghun Road in Pakistan's Quetta on Tuesday, the local media reported.

SEOUL: The South Korean Cabinet on Tuesday approved a government reorganisation bill centred on abolishing the prosecution office and stripping the finance ministry of its budget planning role.

SYDNEY: Australia's central bank on Tuesday decided to keep interest rates on hold in a move that was widely anticipated by economists.

SEOUL: South Korean President Lee Jae Myung is set to hold summit talks with outgoing Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in the southeastern city of Busan on Tuesday, in what would be the first visit by a Japanese leader to a location other than Seoul in more than two decades.

NEW DELHI: The protests that have broken out in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) are a clear signal of how badly the Pakistan Army is collapsing due to rising corruption.

DHAKA: Bangladesh’s Awami League party strongly condemned the shootings in Khagrachhari district, which killed over three people and injured several others, alleging that they were carried out under the “direct orders” of the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government.

GAZA: Hamas has received a US-backed proposal aimed at ending the war in the Gaza Strip, presented by Qatari and Egyptian mediators, a Hamas source said.

NEW YORK: India has resumed extraditions to the US after a 17-year hiatus, sending over an Indian citizen wanted in the US on criminal charges, according to officials.

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump formally announced his 20-point peace plan to end the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

LONDON: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently raised the Kashmir issue at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). By selectively focusing on India, Erdogan made an attempt to divert attention from Pakistan’s denial of rights in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir and China’s persecution of Uyghurs, a report has highlighted.

KATHMANDU: Nepali nationals are used to seeing statements from the Secretariat of Nepal's former King Gyanendra Shah that called him 'His Majesty the King' even after the abolition of the monarchy 17 years ago.

NEW DELHI: US President Donald Trump’s repeated attempts at dismantling a Global South initiative, targeting its constituents ‘brick-by-brick’ with punitive tariffs and name-calling, may have rather helped the nations come closer.

SEOUL: South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Monday received diplomatic credentials from seven new ambassadors to South Korea, including the new envoy from the European Union (EU), the presidential office said.

NEW DELHI: Bangladesh, which is facing turmoil following the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government, is now cozying up to Turkey. Turkey roped in Bangladesh at the behest of the ISI, Pakistan, with the broader intention of attracting the South Asian Muslim community.