International

By SJA Jafri + Washington Post WASHINGTON/ TEHRAN: The Trump administration targeted Iran’s supreme leader with new sanctions on Monday, using one of the few tools available to punish Iran for downing a U.S. drone after President Trump took military strikes off the table last week. Trump warned that his …

By SJA Jafri + Times of Israel UNITED NATIONS:  The UN Security Council on Monday called for dialogue and measures to end tensions in the Gulf, but Iran rejected talks with the United States after President Donald Trump imposed fresh sanctions. In a unanimous press statement drafted by Kuwait, the …

(Courtesy Times of India) NEW DELHI: The Indian Army has punished a Lieutenant General after allegations of corruption were levelled against him for misusing government funds. “The Lt Gen was awarded a censure after a Court of Inquiry probed allegations of misuse of government funds for buying equipment worth Rupees …

(Courtesy India Today) Father slaps me for friendship with Muslim guy: Sunaina MUBMAI: Last week, Hrithik Roshan’s sister Sunaina made headlines when she said that her family was not accepting her boyfriend Ruhail Amin, because he was a Muslim. In an interview to News 18, Ruhail said, “This incident has …

By SJA Jafri + Monitoring Desk MADRID/ PARIS: Intense heat is forecast across much of Continental Europe over the coming days. Temperatures are expected to peak at close to 40°C today in Paris and it is unclear how long this heatwave will last. June is typically a month of gentle …

By SJA Jafri + ABC News MELBOURNE/ JAKARTA/ DARWIN: An earthquake of magnitude 7.2 struck in a remote area of Indonesia in the Banda Sea on Monday, but there were no initial tsunami warnings. The quake hit at a depth of 220 km (136 miles), the USGS said. There were …

By SJA Jafri + Agencies MELBOURNE/ RIYADH: A Yemeni rebel attack on a civilian airport in southern Saudi Arabia killed a Syrian national and wounded seven civilians Sunday, a Riyadh-led coalition said, the latest in a series of strikes on the site. “A terrorist attack by the Iranian-backed Huthi militia …

By SJA Jafri (Courtesy Messenger) MELBOURNE/ DARWIN: Secret planning has begun for a new port facility just outside Darwin which could eventually help US Marines operate more readily in the Indo-Pacific. Precise details remain tightly guarded but senior defence and federal government figures concede the proposal may risk angering China …

By SJA Jafri + BBC MELBOURNE/ ADDIS ABABA: Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed says the country’s Defence Chief of Staff has been shot following unrest in the northern Amhara region. Appearing on TV dressed in military fatigues, Abiy also said several officials had been killed in an attack in the …

By SJA Jafri with PTI inputs MELBOURNE/ WASHINGTON/ NEW DELHI: Mob attacks by violent extremist Hindu groups against minority communities, particularly Muslims, continued in India in 2018, amid rumors that victims had traded or killed cows for beef, an official US report said on Saturday. The State Department, in its annual 2019 …