04-04-2023 CARACAS: At least 44 people have been arrested in Venezuela in an anti-corruption sweep of the state oil company PDVSA and other related government bodies. The crackdown began on March 17 after a communique was issued by the anti-corruption police, who called for the prosecution of officials who “could …

04-04-2023 Bureau Report NEW DELHI/ GUJARAT: Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has lodged an appeal against his conviction for defamation, hoping to overturn a judgment that resulted in his expulsion from parliament a year before general election is due. A court in Gujarat state’s Surat city on Monday accepted his …

04-04-2023 Bureau Report MELBOURNE: The former principal of an Australian ultra-Orthodox Jewish School, Malka Leifer, was found guilty of sexually abusing two former students by a Melbourne court on Monday, local media reported. Leifer, who also holds Israeli citizenship, was extradited to Australia from Israel in 2021 after fleeing the …

04-04-2023 ISTANBUL: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan encouraged his supporters to “teach the US a lesson” in forthcoming parliamentary and presidential elections at a rally in Bagcilar district in Istanbul on Sunday. The longtime Turkish leader criticised US Ambassador to Ankara Jeff Flake for meeting with his chief election rival, …

04-04-2023 TEHRAN/ RIYADH: The foreign ministers of regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia are expected to meet “in the coming days”, according to the Iranian foreign ministry. Iran Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian held a telephone conversation with his Saudi counterpart Prince Faisan bin Farhan on Sunday following the recent warming …

04-04-2023 NEW YORK: World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) have announced they will merge to create a $21.4bn sports entertainment giant. A new publicly traded company will house UFC and WWE brands, with Endeavor Group Holdings Inc (UFC’s owners) taking a 51 percent controlling interest in the …

04-04-2023 Bureau Report + Agencies LONDON/ NEW DELHI: A leading Canadian public policy thinks tank’s director has said there is no evidence that Pakistan is funding pro-Khalistan groups such as ‘Sikhs For Justice’ (SFJ), as the Sikh community living outside India generously supports groups standing up against New Delhi. Terry …

04-04-2023 DUBAI: Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ oil producers on Sunday announced further oil output cuts of around 1.16 million barrels per day, in a surprise move that analysts said would cause an immediate rise in prices and the United States called inadvisable. The pledges bring the total volume of …

04-04-2023 WASHINGTON: Former Manhattan district attorney (DA) Cyrus Vance Jr has said that former president Donald Trump’s statements criticizing the trial court and incumbent DA Alvin Bragg could potentially strengthen the case against him with another “charge of obstruction”, according to media. While speaking with ‘Meet The Press’, the former …

04-04-2023 ISTANBUL: Turkey’s miracle baby, who was rescued from rubble in Hatay province amid the catastrophic earthquake which shook Turkey and Syria in February, finally met her mother last week, Turkey’s Ministry of Family and Social Services said. After being buried under the debris for 128 hours, baby Vetin Begdas …