26-02-2025 JERUSALEM/ DAMASCUS: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has demanded the complete demilitarization of much of southern Syria. It is an announcement that could make conflict between Israel and the new leadership in Syria, after the toppling of President Bashar al-Assad, more likely. In a speech to Israeli military cadets …

26-02-2025 SINGAPORE CITY: Singapore’s biggest bank says it expects to cut 4,000 roles over the next three years as artificial intelligence (AI) takes on more work currently done by humans. “The reduction in workforce will come from natural attrition as temporary and contract roles roll off over the next few …

26-02-2025 OTTAWA: The leading candidates vying to replace Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spent considerable time during a televised debate on Monday discussing the need to stand up to US President Donald Trump. The next election must be held by October 20 this year and until recently the official opposition …

26-02-2025 NEW DELHI: India and Britain will aim to more than double bilateral trade in a decade, Indian Trade Minister Piyush Goyal said on Monday, as the two countries resumed trade talks under the shadow of tariff threats from US President Donald Trump. The countries would speed up talks on …

26-02-2025 CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA: Apple plans to invest more than $500bn (£396bn) in the US over the next four years, starting with a new advanced manufacturing factory in Texas. The tech giant said it expected to create 20,000 new jobs over that time, with the “vast majority” of roles in research …

26-02-2025 KHARTOUM/ WASHINGTON: The freezing of US humanitarian assistance has forced the closure of almost 80% of the emergency food kitchens set up to help people left destitute by Sudan’s civil war, the media learned. Aid volunteers said the impact of President Donald Trump’s executive order halting contributions from the …

26-02-2025 WASHINGTON: French President Emmanuel Macron says peace “must not mean a surrender of Ukraine” during a news conference alongside US President Donald Trump at the White House. The two leaders met to discuss the war in Ukraine on the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country. Trump …

26-02-2025 CAIRO/ GAZA CITY: Hamas says talks with Israel about further steps in the Gaza ceasefire deal are conditional on Palestinian prisoners being freed as agreed. Israel said on Sunday it was delaying the release of more than 600 Palestinians in return for six living and four dead hostages who …

25-02-2025 KHARTOUM: Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces signed a charter with allied political and armed groups late on Saturday to establish a “government of peace and unity”, signatories al-Hadi Idris and Ibrahim al-Mirghani told media. Among the signatories to the charter is Abdelaziz al-Hilu, a powerful rebel leader who controls vast …

25-02-2025 WASHINGTON: Multiple US agencies have told employees not to respond immediately to a demand by President Donald Trump’s adviser Elon Musk to list their accomplishments in the past week or be fired, as a chaotic campaign to cull the federal workforce pushes forward. Trump administration-appointed officials at the FBI …