19-04-2026 HOUSTON: Oil prices plunged by about 13% on Friday after Iran’s foreign minister said passage for all commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz was open for the remaining ceasefire period and US President Donald Trump said Iran has agreed to never close the strait again. Brent crude futures …
Read More »India fails to pass bill linked to quotas for women
19-04-2026 Bureau Report NEW DELHI: An Indian government bill to expand assemblies that would have brought forward plans to reserve a third of the seats for women did not get enough votes to get through parliament on Friday, in a rare defeat for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Opposition groups said …
Read More »Strait of Hormuz opening is no ‘free for all’: Iran
19-04-2026 TEHRAN/ WASHINGTON: Iran declared the Strait of Hormuz “completely open” for the 10-day period of the Lebanon ceasefire, but said ships would have to use a “coordinated route.” Military and diplomatic analyst Alexandru Hudisteanu told media that this route would take ships into Iran’s territorial waters, giving Tehran a …
Read More »US panel approves Trump’s design for massive arch
19-04-2026 WASHINGTON: United States President Donald Trump’s goal of erecting a colossal arch in Washington, DC, has taken another step forward, with a key agency approving his proposed design for the monument. The US Commission of Fine Arts, whose members were appointed by Trump, gave its go-ahead to the president’s …
Read More »Iranians wonder if US deal can be done
18-04-2026 TEHRAN: On the plains of northwestern Iran, edged by snow-ribboned ridges, spring nudges almond trees into frothy bloom and a fragile ceasefire brings more traffic onto highways, and more Iranians back to their homeland. “I stayed with my son in Turkey for a month,” a grey-haired banker says as …
Read More »Australia’s richest person must share part of her mining fortunes
18-04-2026 CANBERRA: Australia’s wealthiest person Gina Rinehart must part with some of her riches, a court has ruled in a high-profile dispute over her mining empire. Worth an estimated AU$38bn (£20bn; $27bn), Rinehart inherited the iron ore ventures of her father in 1992, before going on to develop mines in …
Read More »Pope Leo attacked again by Trump
18-04-2026 ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT: Pope Leo set off for Cameroon, where he is expected to appeal for peace in the simmering conflict in the country’s English-speaking regions on the second leg of an ambitious 10-day tour of four African countries. Leo, who was attacked again, opens new tab overnight …
Read More »India’s trade deficit shrinks in March
18-04-2026 Bureau Report NEW DELHI: India’s merchandise trade deficit unexpectedly narrowed in March as a surge in exports to the US helped cushion the impact of the ongoing Iran war that has disrupted shipping routes and inflated energy costs. The deficit fell to a nine-month low of $20.67 billion, with …
Read More »Iran war could end soon after blockades of Iranian ports: Trump
18-04-2026 WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said the war with Iran could end soon, telling the world to watch out for an “amazing two days”, while US forces imposing a blockade turned back vessels leaving Iranian ports. With the prospect of US and Iranian officials returning to Pakistan for more …
Read More »$270bn war loss must be compensated: Iran
18-04-2026 TEHRAN: Iran has demanded that it receive compensation for the destruction caused by the United States and Israel’s attacks, as the country remains defiant and regional powers continue their attempts to mediate an end to the conflict. Tehran’s envoy to the United Nations said on Tuesday that five regional …
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