International

US President Donald Trump urged the opposition Democrats to visit the White House for talks to end the government shutdown, which is now in its record 22nd day. In a tweet, he said he is waiting for Democrats leaders and they should come back to Washington to end the shutdown. …

Chief Justice Saqib Nisar on Saturday took notice of media reports regarding the scheduled execution of Khizer Hayat, a mentally ill prisoner on death row, and announced to suspend his sentence till further orders. Moreover, the chief justice also fixed the matter for hearing on Monday [January 14]. Earlier in …

on also said Sunday all 2,000 US forces may not be withdrawn. JERUSALEM – US President Donald Trump’s national security adviser said Sunday that conditions such as guarantees on the safety of Kurdish allies must be met before American troops are withdrawn from Syria, NBC News said.John Bolton told journalists …

In Afghanistan, at least 30 people were killed and seven injured today when a gold mine collapsed in Kohistan district of Badakhshan province. The district administration said that the villagers had dug a 200-feet deep shaft along the riverbed to search for gold.  A wall collapsed when the villagers were …

Veteran actor-writer Kader Khan passed away in Canada yesterday. His son Sarfaraz confirmed the sad demise of the 81-year old comedian and character artist. Born in Kabul, Khan made his acting debut in 1973 with Rajesh Khanna’s “Daag” and has featured in over 300 films. He wrote dialogues for over …

At least 68 people have died in a tropical storm in the Philippines.  Storm Usman that resulted in heavy rain and triggered deadly landslides hit the Bicol region in Manila yesterday. According to the disaster management agency, 19 people are missing and the death toll is likely to increase.  The …

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has been in power for less than five months, but its government has been subjected to strict scrutiny. One reason is the ruling party and its chairman, Imran Khan, who put his government on trial by announcing ambitious goals that were to be achieved in 100 …

ISLAMABAD – The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Thursday accepted an application, filed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), seeking disqualification of former president and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari for concealing his assets. Reportedly, the chief election commissioner has directed officials to set a date for …

A meeting between Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi and US President Donald Trump has been cancelled. The Iraqi government today said in a statement that a disagreement on the organisation of the meeting led to it being replaced by a telephone conversation.  The statement added that during the call, …

TEHRAN, Dec. 25 – Peter Jenkins, former UK Ambassador to the IAEA and UN says that “UNSC 2231 “calls upon” Iran to refrain from developing a certain category of missiles. “Call upon” is not a legally-binding formulation.” A former associate fellow of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy also adds …