15-08-2024 TOKYO: Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will not seek re-election as leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which he says needs a “new start”. The 67-year-old LDP veteran is expected to step down as PM after the party elects a new leader in September. Support for Kishida, …

15-08-2024 JERUSALEM: A far-right Israeli minister has led hundreds of Jewish Israelis into Jerusalem’s most contested holy site, with many defying the Israeli government’s long-standing ban on Jewish prayer there. The visit by National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to the al-Aqsa Mosque compound, known to Jews as Temple Mount, has …

14-08-2024 Bureau Report + Agencies NEW DELHI/ KOLKATA: Hospital services were disrupted in several Indian cities on Tuesday after a doctors’ protest spread nationwide following the rape and murder of a trainee medic in the city of Kolkata, authorities and media said. Thousands of doctors marched on Monday in Kolkata …

14-08-2024 LONDON: Seven people have been charged using terror laws over a Palestine Action protest at an Israeli-based defence firm’s site, the Crown Prosecution Service said. The incident happened at the Elbit Systems UK building near Patchway, Gloucestershire, on 6 August. The CPS said it would be submitting to the …

14-08-2024 WASHINGTON: The FBI has opened an investigation into allegations from the Trump campaign that it was targeted by hackers working for the Iranian government. “We can confirm the FBI is investigating the matter,” the agency said in a short statement on Monday without specifically naming the former president or …

14-08-2024 UNITED NATIONS/ SANA’A: Flooding in Yemen has left at least 57 people dead and thousands displaced, the UN has said. More than 34,000 families were affected by the heavy rains, which began in late June and intensified in early August, according to the UN humanitarian affairs office (OCHA). It …

14-08-2024 Bureau Report MELBOURNE: The Australian city of Melbourne has banned rental electronic scooters with officials saying they posed unacceptable safety risks. The U-turn by the city’s council comes after it first welcomed the scooters in February 2022, saying they would operate a two-year trial. However, hundreds of accidents since …

14-08-2024 ATHENS: A new evacuation alert for the Greek seaside town of Nea Makri has been ordered on Tuesday, as fierce wildfires continue to affect the suburbs of Athens. One person has died, with a body, believed to be of a woman, found inside a shop in the town of …

14-08-2024 DHAKA: A murder investigation has been opened into Bangladesh’s ex-premier Sheikh Hasina over the police killing of a man during civil unrest. Six other top figures in the previous government are also being investigated following weeks of deadly unrest in the capital Dhaka. Mamun Mia, a lawyer who brought …

13-08-2024 By SJA Jafri + Agencies ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s former spymaster who was once tipped for the army’s top job – has been taken into military custody. Lt Gen Faiz Hameed has been accused of abusing his power and raiding a private property development business during his time as head of …