23-02-2025 JERUSALEM/ CAIRO/ GAZA: Six Israeli captives are scheduled to be released in Gaza today in exchange for 602 Palestinians held in Israeli jails. Israeli forces have killed two Palestinian children, both 13 years old, in the occupied West Bank’s Jenin and Hebron. Gaza’s Health Ministry has confirmed 48,319 Palestinian …
Read More »Planes diverted as China conducts military drill near Australia
22-02-2025 CANBERRA/ WELLINGTON: Planes flying between Australia and New Zealand have been diverted as China conducts a closely-scrutinized military exercise in nearby waters that may involve live fire. Wellington The rare presence of three Chinese naval ships in the Tasman Sea has put both antipodean countries on alert in recent …
Read More »‘Dark Indonesia’ protests against budget cuts
22-02-2025 JAKARTA/ YOGYAKARTA: Thousands of students staged ‘Dark Indonesia’ protests in cities across the country on Thursday against budget cuts and other policies of President Prabowo Subianto, fearing they will undermine social support systems and their futures. Clad in black, about a thousand placard-carrying students in the major city of …
Read More »China backs Trump’s Ukraine peace bid at G20
22-02-2025 BEIJING: China came out in support of US President Donald Trump’s bid to strike a deal with Russia to end the war in Ukraine, at a G20 meeting in South Africa on Thursday, while US allies rallied around Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Less than a month into his presidency, …
Read More »Indian refiners cancel palm oil orders due to price surge
22-02-2025 Bureau Report + Agencies NEW DELHI/ MUMBAI: Indian refiners have cancelled orders for 70,000 metric tons of crude palm oil (CPO) scheduled for delivery between March and June, because of a surge in benchmark Malaysian prices and negative refining margins in India, four trade sources said. Refiners in the …
Read More »US Senate confirms Kash Patel as FBI Head
22-02-2025 WASHINGTON: The United States Senate has voted to confirm former federal prosecutor Kash Patel as the next director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), continuing a streak of success for President Donald Trump’s government nominees but Thursday’s confirmation came by slim margins. Only 51 senators, all Republican, voted …
Read More »‘Trump very frustrated & Zelensky must strike minerals deal’
22-02-2025 KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky needs to return to the negotiating table and strike a deal on US access to Ukraine’s critical minerals, White House national security adviser Mike Waltz has said. On Wednesday, Zelensky rejected US demands for a share of its rare earth minerals, a “deal” Trump …
Read More »Passengers on crashed Toronto plane offered US$30,000 each
22-02-2025 OTTAWA: Delta Air Lines is offering US$30,000 (£23,792) to each person on board a plane that crash-landed in Toronto on Monday, all of whom survived. As it landed in the Canadian city, the plane skidded along the runway in flames before flipping over and coming to a halt upside …
Read More »3 buses explode in Israel in suspected terror attack
22-02-2025 JERUSALEM/ TEL AVIV: Three buses have exploded in Bat Yam, south of Tel Aviv, in what Israeli police say is a suspected terror attack. Devices in two other buses failed to explode, they said, adding that “large police forces are at the scenes, searching for suspects”. Transport Minister Miri …
Read More »North Korea criticizes US over AUKUS nuclear deal
21-02-2025 SEOUL: North Korean state media on Thursday criticized the United States for a nuclear submarine deal with Australia under the AUKUS partnership signed in 2021, calling it a “threat to regional peace.” A commentary carried by KCNA said Washington should be wary of consequences for what it said were …
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