International

28-01-2025 Bureau Report + Agencies NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is pouring billions into ailing state-run firms after slowing ambitious divestment plans that were intended to reduce the role of the state in business, according to government sources and a document reviewed by Reuters. Less than a month …

28-01-2025 UNITED NATIONS: United Nations human rights experts and activists have condemned the arrest of a prominent Palestinian journalist in the Swiss city of Zurich, saying it raised concerns about freedom of speech. Ali Abunimah, the executive director of online publication Electronic Intifada which calls itself “Palestine’s weapon of mass …

28-01-2025 WELLINGTON: New Zealand has relaxed its visa requirements to allow tourists to work remotely while visiting the country in an effort to boost its tourism sector. Under the new rules, visitors can now carry out remote working for a foreign employer while holidaying in the country for up to …

28-01-2025 GAZA STRIP: Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are streaming into devastated northern Gaza many for the first time since the early weeks of the 15-month war allowing them to reunite with loved ones and see what has become of their homes. A column of people, some holding infants in …

28-01-2025 KINSHASA: Rebels from the Congolese M23 movement say they have taken control of the eastern city of Goma, following a lightning advance against the army. At least 13 foreign peacekeepers have been killed in clashes with the rebels. Fighting between the M23 and DR Congo’s army has intensified since …

28-01-2025 BOGOTA/ WASHINGTON: A looming trade war between the US and Colombia appears to have been averted after the Colombian government agreed to allow US military flights carrying deported migrants to land in the Andean country. The spat erupted on Sunday when President Gustavo Petro barred two military planes carrying …

28-01-2025 WARSAW: Poland’s president has said that gas flows from Russia to Western Europe should never be restored, even if Russia and Ukraine reach a peace deal. Andrzej Duda told media that the Nord Stream gas pipelines, which have not been used since 2022, “should be dismantled”. This, he said, …

27-01-2025 GAZA CITY: An agreement to release Israeli hostage Arbel Yehud has been reached that would allow people to return to north Gaza, a senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad official has told media, after a dispute over her release caused a delay. The source said she would be freed on Friday …

27-01-2025 BERLIN: “Seeing a concentration camp with my own eyes and listening to a survivor who went through it all, that’s really brought it home. It’s important for young people like me. We’ll soon be able to vote. The far right is gaining more and more support in Germany and …

27-01-2025 WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s foreign aid pause has forced a suspension of flights for more than 40,000 Afghans approved for special US visas and at risk of Taliban retribution, a leading advocate and a US official said on Saturday. Most of those stranded are in Afghanistan and the rest …