06-04-2026 HAVANA: Cuba’s government says it will pardon 2,010 prisoners as a “humanitarian” gesture. Their release during Easter’s Holy Week follows pledges made in March to release dozens of inmates as the United States increases pressure on Cuba’s leadership. Thursday’s announcement, reported by state media, is the second prisoner amnesty …

06-04-2026 KUWAIT CITY: Kuwait says a power and desalination plant has been hit by an Iranian attack, as Gulf countries continue to face heavy retaliatory strikes on the 35th day of the United States and Israel’s war on Iran. Authorities in Kuwait said the plant was struck before midday local …

05-04-2026 WASHINGTON/ TEHRAN: A missing US service member whose fighter jet was shot down over Iran has been rescued by US forces, President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post early Sunday. “WE GOT HIM! My fellow Americans, over the past several hours, the United States Military pulled off …

05-04-2026 NEW JERSEY: In the center of the suburban town of Robbinsville, New Jersey, sits the largest modern Hindu mandir outside India. What visitors from around the world see is a breathtaking display of craftsmanship hand-carved stone from Rajasthan assembled across a sprawling 185-acre complex. The temple has gone viral …

05-04-2026 WASHINGTON: A blinking fault light on NASA’s Orion spacecraft signaled an unwelcome setback at the start of the historic Artemis II mission: the toilet was out of order. Fortunately for the four astronauts on board for the 10-day mission, the issue was quickly resolved, with mission control confirming; “Happy …

05-04-2026 CAIRO/ ISTANBUL: Eight ⁠Muslim-majority countries have issued a joint statement that “strongly ⁠condemned” Israel’s one-sided bill to impose the death penalty on Palestinians convicted of fatal attacks. Pakistan, Turkiye, Egypt, Indonesia, ⁠Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, ⁠and the United Arab Emirates condemned “increasingly discriminatory, escalating Israeli practices that entrench a …

05-04-2026 TEHRAN: Iran’s two largest steel plants have been shut down due to multiple rounds of US-Israeli air strikes, the companies operating them say. “Our initial estimate is that restarting these units will take at least six months and up to one year,” Mehran Pakbin, deputy head of operations at …

05-04-2026 By SJA Jafri + Agencies ISLAMABAD/ BEIJING/ KABUL: Pakistan and Afghanistan have confirmed they are holding talks in China aimed at ending the worst conflict between the South Asian neighbors since the Afghan Taliban returned to power in 2021. Senior officials from both countries are holding preliminary talks in …

05-04-2026 United States President Donald Trump has announced that Pam Bondi is out as US attorney general, in his second major cabinet-level shake-up in less than a month. Trump confirmed the decision in a post on Truth Social on Thursday, after a slate of media reports suggested he was considering …

05-04-2026 MOSCOW/ HAVANA: Russia plans to send a second ship carrying oil to Cuba, the Russian energy minister has said, as the Caribbean nation struggles under a crippling United States blockade. Energy Minister Sergei Tsivilev said on Thursday that the cargo was being loaded and would be brought to Cuba. …