30-07-2023 WASHINGTON: The United States has announced $345m in military aid for Taiwan, ramping up support for the self-ruled island that is claimed by China. The package will include “defence articles”, military education and training, US President Joe Biden’s administration said in a statement on Friday. The White House announcement …

30-07-2023 Bureau Report + Agencies CANBERRA/ SYDNEY: Australia has paused a military exercise with the United States after a helicopter crash left four aircrew missing. The Australian Defence Force MRH-90 Taipan helicopter crashed into waters off the northeastern state of Queensland at around 10:30pm on Friday (12:30 GMT), Defence Minister …

30-07-2023 MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin says his country and the African leaders attending a summit in St Petersburg have agreed to promote a multipolar world order and fight “neocolonialism” as he offered debt write-offs and grain to woo allies. “Russia’s attention to Africa is steadily growing,” Putin said on …

30-07-2023 BEIJING: Rain has soaked northern China as Typhoon Doksuri, one of the strongest storms to hit the country in years, forced authorities to evacuate thousands in Beijing after pummeling the Philippines and Taiwan, and lashing China’s coast. A broad area encompassing the capital faces a medium to high risk …

29-07-2023 SRINAGAR/ ISLAMABAD: After more than three decades, thousands of Shia Muslims in Indian-administered Kashmir took part in a procession to mark 8th, 9th and 10th day of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic lunar calendar. Dressed in customary black, the mourners beat their chests and chanted elegies as …

29-07-2023 Bureau Report + Agencies NEW DELHI: Authorities in India say the federal police will investigate a case of sexual assault of women seen in a video which has sparked global outrage. Federal Home Minister Amit Shah said the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) would take over the case from …

29-07-2023 SINGAPORE CITY: Singapore has hanged a 45-year-old citizen who was caught with 31 grams of heroin, the first time the city-state has executed a woman in nearly 20 years. Saridewi Binte Djamani was hanged on Friday after being convicted of trafficking “not less than 30.72 grams” of the drug …

29-07-2023 WASHINGTON: Donald Trump is accused of pressuring an employee to delete security footage at his Florida home, in new criminal charges related to his alleged mishandling of classified files. The new indictment adds one count of willful retention of defence information and two of obstruction, making 40 charges in …

29-07-2023 STOVKHOLM: A spate of Quran burnings in Sweden has badly affected the country’s image abroad and led to a deterioration of the security situation at home, security service Sapo has warned. Many Muslim-majority countries have expressed outrage. Last week protesters set fire to Sweden’s embassy in Iraq after learning …

29-07-2023 MOSCOW: Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin was photographed in St Petersburg during this week’s Africa-Russia summit. He was seen shaking hands with Ambassador Freddy Mapouka, a senior official in the Central African Republic (CAR). The image was posted on Facebook by Dmitri Syty, who reportedly manages Wagner’s operations in CAR. …