22-03-2022 Bureau Report + Agencies KABUL/ WASHINGTON/ ISLAMABAD: General Kenneth McKenzie, the commander of the US Central Command, talking to reporters on Friday raised concerns regarding Daesh’s presence and activity in Afghanistan. He said Daesh (ISIS/ ISIL) has a few thousand fighters in Afghanistan, and they have carried out some …

22-03-2022 PARIS/ MOSCOW: The European Space Agency has confirmed that it’s indefinitely suspending its ExoMars rover mission with partner Roscosmos, Russia’s state space corporation. The ESA had previously said that the mission was “very unlikely” because of Russia’s war in Ukraine. The decision to suspend cooperation with Roscosmos was taken …

22-03-2022 ISTANBUL/ MOSCOW/ KYIV: Turkey has said Russia and Ukraine made progress on their negotiations to halt the war and the two sides were “close to an agreement”. Russian forces invaded Ukraine on February 24 with President Vladimir Putin calling his country’s actions a “special operation” meant to demilitarize Ukraine …

21-03-2022 BEIJING: A China Eastern passenger jet carrying 132 people crashed in southern China on Monday, aviation authorities said, with state media reporting it led to a fire on a mountain and the number of casualties unknown. The Boeing 737 flight from Kunming city to the southern hub of Guangzhou …

21-03-2022 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report KABUL/ ISLAMABAD/ KABUL: The Taliban will allow girls around Afghanistan to return to class when high schools open next week, an education official said on Thursday, after months of uncertainty over whether the group would allow full access to education for girls and …

21-03-2022 Bureau Report NEW DELHI: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has urged his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, to take a tougher line on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but a joint statement after talks in New Delhi fell short of condemning Moscow’s actions. Unlike fellow members of the Quad alliance Japan, …

21-03-2022 RIYADH: Energy giant Saudi Aramco says its 2021 net profit soared by more than 120 percent due to higher crude oil prices, as global economic growth recovered from a pandemic induced downturn. The announcement came on Sunday hours after Yemen’s Houthi rebels, against whom Saudi Arabia leads a military …

21-03-2022 SAN ANDRES: A 50-year-old tourist swimming in the waters of the Colombian Island of San Andres was bitten to death by an eight-foot-long tiger shark, reported The Sun. As per the report, the man, who was touring the city, was a good swimmer and had been in the water …

21-03-2022 BEIJING: China on Sunday imposed stay-at-home orders on millions more people in Country’s northeast as it battles its biggest COVID-19 outbreak in two years. The country has largely kept the virus at bay since it brought to heel its initial outbreak in 2020 using targeted lockdowns, mass testing and …

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the evacuation of Bangladeshi nationals from Ukraine’s besieged city of Sumy. In a letter dated March 15, PM Sheikh Hasina said, “I write to express my sincere thanks to you and your government for extending support and assistance in …