14-08-2023 TEHRAN/ SHIRAZ: At least four people were killed during a terrorist attack on a shrine in Iran’s central city of Shiraz on Sunday less than a year after a similar attack on the same site according to state media. “Four people have been killed so far following a terrorist …

14-08-2023 JAKARTA: The Miss Universe Organization has cut its ties with its Indonesia franchise following allegations of sexual harassment, a move that also led to the cancellation of an upcoming Malaysia edition. The decision comes in response to a complaint wherein more than half a dozen women alleged that all …

14-08-2023 BAGHDAD: Iraq’s Ministry of Telecommunications has announced its decision to lift the ban on the Telegram messaging app, which had been imposed due to concerns over security and data leaks. The ban was initially enacted earlier in the week, citing instances of personal information leaks from official state institutions …

13-08-2023 Bureau Report + Agencies NEW DELHI/ HARYANA: Hindu far-right organizations have called for an economic boycott of Muslim businesses and keeping Muslims out of villages after deadly communal violence broke out in India’s Haryana state. Sectarian clashes erupted in Nuh district on July 31 after a religious procession by …

13-08-2023 JERUSALEM/ RAMALLAH: Palestinian officials welcomed their first Saudi Arabian ambassador, even as the kingdom mulls over establishing formal diplomatic relations with Israel. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s diplomatic adviser Majdi al-Khalidi received a copy of the credentials of Ambassador Nayef al-Sudairi as a non-resident envoy in Jordan on Saturday, according …

13-08-2023 ROME/ NEW YORK: More than 250 ancient artefacts have been handed back to Italy by the United States following a revelation that they were stolen. Italy’s art police unit uncovered that these treasures had been unlawfully acquired and then sold to US museums and private collectors during the 1990s. …

13-08-2023 Accra ACCRA/ NIAMEY: An emergency meeting between Wester African nations on the coup in Niger has been postponed indefinitely as concerns over the health of detained President Mohammed Bazoum increase. Members of the Economic Cooperation of West African Nations (ECOWAS) were due to meet in the Ghanaian capital Accra …

13-08-2023 LONDON: Brits and dog-walkers in particular have been warned over the country’s only venomous snake following several sightings in the same area. A total of 12 adder sightings have been reported in the North East so far this year. The reptiles are mostly harmless but can lash out when …

12-08-2023 Bureau Report + Agencies NEW DELHI: India’s government has moved three bills in the lower house of parliament aimed at overhauling some colonial-era criminal laws, ranging from the controversial sedition law to strengthening laws that protect women and minors. On the last day of the monsoon session of the …

12-08-2023 SALT LAKE CITY: US President Joe Biden has called China a “ticking time bomb in many cases” because of its economic challenges, saying the country was in trouble because of weak growth. The US president pointed to the country’s high unemployment and ageing workforce, saying: “China is in trouble.” …