Top Ukrainian commanders from Azovstal have not surrendered

Top-ranking Ukrainian commanders have not yet surrendered from the labyrinth of bunkers and tunnels below the Azovstal steel works in Mariupol, the leader of the Russian-backed separatist region of Donetsk said on Wednesday.

Landslides, floods kill at least 10 in India

At least 10 people including a four-year-old child have died in floods and landslides this week after unusually heavy rains pummelled several parts of India, as forecasters warned on Wednesday of more deluges.

UK Tory MP accused of sexual offences freed on bail

British police said Wednesday they had released on bail a lawmaker from the ruling Conservative party the day after he was arrested on suspicion of multiple sexual offences, including rape.

Pakistan sees upsurge in terrorism with recent killings of Sikhs, Shias

Islamabad [Pakistan]: Pakistan is witnessing a new wave of terrorism with several incidents of target killings of Sikh and Shia minorities reported in the Peshawar region in recent years.

Azovstal siege ends as hundreds of Ukrainian fighters surrender

Dozens of Ukrainian fighters, some apparently unwounded, surrendered on Tuesday after weeks holed up in the bunkers and tunnels below Mariupol’s Azovstal steel works as the most devastating siege of Russia’s war in Ukraine drew to a close.

N.Korea mobilises army, steps up tracing amid COVID wave

North Korea has mobilised its military to distribute COVID medications and deployed more than 10,000 health workers to help trace potential patients as it fights a sweeping coronavirus wave, state media outlet KCNA said on Tuesday.

UN warns of ‘catastrophic’ child malnutrition due to price hikes

The cost of life-saving treatment for the most severely malnourished children is set to jump by up to 16% due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and pandemic disruptions, according to the United Nations’ children’s agency.

Chinese PM presses Shehbaz Sharif to punish Karachi university blast culprits

ISLAMABAD: China’s Prime Minister Li Keqiang on Monday repeated his government’s demand for punishment for those involved in the attack on Chinese teachers at Karachi University and asked for enhancement of security for Chinese institutions and citizens in Pakistan.

Sweden confirms it will apply to join NATO

Sweden’s Social Democrat minority government on Monday took the formal decision to apply for NATO membership, following in the footsteps of its neighbour Finland in a move that will redraw the geopolitical map of northern Europe.

China tells G7 to mind its own business

China has responded to the G7’s request that Beijing cease support for Russia amid extensive Western sanctions, stating that China decides its own position and policy based on the “merits of the matter itself,” and that the seven member nations should focus on their own issues instead of intervening in other countries’ internal affairs.

Indian court prohibits large gatherings at historic mosque

A court in north India on Monday ordered authorities to limit large Muslim prayer gatherings in the historic Gyanvapi mosque after a survey team found relics of the Hindu god Shiva and other Hindu symbols there, lawyers involved in the case said.

India to host key SCO anti-terror meet today

NEW DELHI: India is set to host a Regional Anti-Terror Structure (RATS) talks under the auspices of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in New Delhi on Monday.

China could drop nuclear bomb on Taiwan, predicts war game exercise

Taipei [Taiwan]: Taiwan has become a hot spot amid the Russia-Ukraine war and according to the latest cross-strait war game exercise China could end up dropping a nuclear weapon if it invades Taiwan.

Tensions escalate between Pakistan’s Punjab, Sindh provinces over water share

Karachi [Pakistan]: Acute water shortage along with a searing heatwave have sparked tensions between Sindh and Punjab in Pakistan over their share of the nation’s water resources.

Satellite images reveal China testing anti-ship ballistic missiles in remote deserts

New satellite images reveal that China has been honing its ship-killing skills for potential future conflicts on new target sites in Xinjiang’s remote Taklamakan Desert, and the targets are meant for testing ballistic missiles.

RUSSIA VOWS ‘MILITARY-TECHNICAL’ RESPONSE IF FINLAND JOINS NATO

The Kremlin, Friday warned it will be forced to take retaliatory “militarytechnical” steps after Finland’s leaders came out in favour of applying to join NATO. Russia’s foreign ministry warned that Moscow “will be forced to take retaliatory steps of military-technical and other characteristics” in order to counter the emerging threats to its national security.

UAE President Sheikh Khalifa dies aged 73

United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has died on Friday aged 73.

Israeli police attack funeral of slain Palestinian journalist

Masked Israeli police officers clashed with Palestinian mourners and at one point charged at the group carrying the coffin of killed Al Jazeera reporter Shireen Abu Akleh at the start of her funeral procession in Jerusalem on Friday.

IHC restrains police from arresting PTI leaders over Masjid-i-Nabwi incident

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday restrained the Islamabad police from registering the FIRs against the leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) including former Prime Minister Imran Khan over Masjid-i-Nabwi incident.

China’s uncertain wheat harvest engenders fear for global economy

Deluges and strict lockdowns in China have disrupted farming in a way that country’s winter wheat harvest next month remains one of the big uncertainties in a global economy that is already struggling with high commodity prices.

China accuses West of encouraging ‘arms race’

In response to Australia’s criticism of its security pact with the Solomon Islands, China has accused Canberra and its partners of encouraging an “arms race” in the South Pacific region.

Israel military kills al Jazeera journalist in West Bank

A prominent Palestinian-American Al Jazeera reporter was shot dead during an Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday.

North Korea fires ballistic missiles after Covid-19 outbreak

North Korea fired three ballistic missiles toward the sea off its east coast on Thursday, on the day it first reported a Covid-19 outbreak. It is the latest such move by the country racing to advance its weapons programmes South Korea said.

Over 40 injured after passenger plane catches fire on runway in China’s Chongqing

More than 40 people have been injured after a passenger plane veered off the runway during take-off and caught fire at an airport in southwest China’s Chongqing on Thursday.

Ukraine pushes Russian forces back

Ukrainian forces reported battlefield gains on Wednesday in a counterattack that could signal a shift in the momentum of the war, while Kyiv shut gas flows on a route through Russian-held territory, raising the spectre of an energy crisis in Europe.

Johnson pledges support if Sweden were to be attacked

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday said he had agreed new deals with Sweden and Finland to bolster European security, pledging to support both countries’ armed forces should they come under attack.

Hong Kong police arrest Catholic cardinal, a democratic advocate

Hong Kong’s national security police on Wednesday arrested Cardinal Joseph Zen, one of the most senior Catholic clerics in Asia, and four others who helped run a now-disbanded humanitarian fund for protesters, media reported.

Ukraine says Russia halts gas supplies at key transit point

Ukraine on Wednesday said Russia had halted gas supplies through a key transit hub in the east of the country, fuelling fears Moscow’s invasion could worsen an energy crisis in Europe.

China’s currency hits 18-month low against USD

China’s Yuan hit the lowest mark against the US dollar in the last 18 months on Tuesday, falling to 6.7134 against the USD, the lowest figure since October 30, 2020.

Pakistani rupee plunges to all-time low against US dollar: Report

The Pakistani rupee slumped to an all-time low against the US dollar on Tuesday in the interbank market.