11-07-2025 BEIRUT: Thousands of Syrian refugees are set to return from Lebanon this week under the first, UN-backed plan providing financial incentives, after Syria’s new rulers said all citizens were welcome home despite deep war damage and security concerns. Returning Syrians will be provided with $100 each in Lebanon and …
Read More »TikTok prepares US app with its own algorithm & user data
11-07-2025 NEW YORK: TikTok is preparing to launch a standalone app for US users that is expected to operate on a separate algorithm and data system from its global app, laying the groundwork for a potential sale orchestrated by US President Donald Trump, according to people familiar with the matter. …
Read More »Supreme Court opens door to large-scale federal layoffs
10-07-2025 WASHINGTON: The US Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the way for Donald Trump’s administration to pursue mass government job cuts and the sweeping downsizing of numerous agencies, a decision that could lead to tens of thousands of layoffs while dramatically reshaping the federal bureaucracy. Tuesday’s ruling stemmed from an …
Read More »10 dead after bridge collapses in India’s Gujarat
10-07-2025 NEW DELHI/ VADODARA, Gujrat: At least 10 people died on Wednesday (July 9) while several are feared injured after a bridge collapsed in Gujarat’s Vadodara district. This comes less than three years after the bridge over Machhu River close to western Gujarat’s Morbi town collapsed in October 2022 just …
Read More »Shoot protesters in the leg, not to kill: Kenyan President
10-07-2025 NAIROBI: Kenya’s President William Ruto has ordered police to shoot protesters targeting businesses in the legs, ensuring they are incapacitated but not killed. The UN and human rights groups have accused the police of using excessive force in the recent wave of anti-government protests, 31 people were killed on …
Read More »Ex-Bangladesh leader authorized deadly crackdown
10-07-2025 DHAKA: A deadly crackdown on student-led protests in Bangladesh last year was authorised by then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, according to audio of one of her phone calls verified by BBC Eye. In the audio, which was leaked online in March, Hasina says she authorized her security forces to …
Read More »X ‘deeply concerns’ over India press censorship
10-07-2025 BASTROP, TEXAS/ NEW DELHI: X says it is “deeply concerned about ongoing press censorship in India” after New Delhi ordered the social media platform to block more than 2,300 accounts, including two Reuters news agency handles. X restored the Reuters News account in India on Sunday, a day after …
Read More »Over half a million Afghans return from Iran after crackdown
10-07-2025 TEHRAN/ KABUL: Nearly 450,000 Afghans have returned from Iran since early June, according to the United Nations refugee agency, after Tehran imposed a July 6 deadline for undocumented migrants and refugees to leave the country. The surge compounds Afghanistan’s existing challenges as the impoverished nation struggles to integrate waves …
Read More »Saudi Crown Prince meets Iranian FM in Jeddah
10-07-2025 JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) has met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Jeddah in the first visit by a top Iranian official to the Gulf kingdom after Israel’s war with Tehran. Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Araghchi’s talks with Prince …
Read More »ICC seeks Taliban leaders arrest over persecution of women
09-07-2025 THE HAGUE: Judges said there were “reasonable grounds” to suspect Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada and chief justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani of committing gender-based persecution. “While the Taliban have imposed certain rules and prohibitions on the population as a whole, they have specifically targeted girls and women by reason …
Read More »