18-04-2024 BRUSSELS: Brussels police were ordered to shut down a conference for right-wing politicians, including Brexiteer Nigel Farage and Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, on Tuesday. People were stopped from entering the National Conservatism Conference a few hours after it began, organizers said – although it continued for those inside. …

17-04-2024 TEHRAN/ TEL AVIV/ GAZA CITY: Tehran is tense, two days after Iran’s unprecedented direct attack on Israel. Worried about war and its impact on Iran’s already flailing economy, a significant proportion of Iranians oppose what they see as the reckless adventurism of the country’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps …

17-04-2024 NEW YORK/ LONDON/ TEHRAN: Oil prices slipped lower after Iran’s weekend attack on Israel proved to be less damaging than anticipated, easing concerns of a quickly intensifying conflict that could displace crude barrels. Brent futures for June delivery settled at $90.10 a barrel, down 35 cents, or 0.4%. US …

17-04-2024 Bureau Report + Agencies NEW DELHI/ MUMBAI: The Indian rupee ended at a record closing low on Tuesday, as rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and worries that the Federal Reserve will delay interest rate cuts triggered a selloff in risky assets. The rupee ended at 83.5350 to …

17-04-2024 UNITED NATIONS/ KHARTOUM: Indiscriminate attacks against civilians in Sudan could constitute “war crimes and crimes against humanity,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said, one year after war erupted between rival generals in the East African country. The United Nations has said nearly 25 million people, half Sudan’s population, need …

17-04-2024 SOUTH-WEST PACIFIC OCEAN, AUSTRALIA: The people of the Solomon Islands are set to vote for their next government on April 17, in an election that could have repercussions for the rest of the Asia Pacific region due to the country’s close relationship with China. The Pacific state’s 760,000 citizens …

17-04-2024 BEIJING: The proposed design of a train station in the Chinese city of Nanjing has attracted the attention of Chinese internet users for all the wrong reasons. Authorities say the design of the North Nanjing station takes inspiration from plum blossoms, which the city is known for but online, …

17-04-2024 COPENHAGEN: Denmark’s historic old stock exchange building in the centre of Copenhagen has been engulfed by fire. The 17th Century Borsen is one of the city’s oldest buildings and onlookers gasped as its iconic spire collapsed in the flames. Everyone inside the building was able to leave and people …

17-04-2024 JERUSALEM: Israel is calling for sanctions to be imposed on Iran’s missile project after it launched an unprecedented attack on its territory. A wave of missiles and drones were fired from Iran, Iraq, Syria and Yemen on Saturday, with most being downed by Israel and its allies. Israel’s war …

16-04-2024 Bureau Report + Agencies SYDNEY: Australian police have declared Monday’s stabbing at a Sydney church a religiously motivated “terrorist act”. A 16-year-old boy was arrested after a bishop, a priest and churchgoers were attacked at a sermon at the ‘Assyrian Christ The Good Shepherd Church’. At least four people …