17-12-2022 TOKYO: Japan has said it would begin a once-unthinkable $320bn military build-up that would arm it with missiles capable of striking China and ready it for a sustained conflict as regional tensions and Russia’s Ukraine invasion stoke war fears. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government worries that Russia has set …
Read More »6 refugees find freedom after 9 years in Australian detention
17-12-2022 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report AUCKLAND/ MELBOURNE: After a nine-year ordeal in Australia’s immigration detention system, six refugees are preparing for a new life in New Zealand after being granted permanent residency. The six are among more than 4,000 people who travelled to Australia by boat to seek …
Read More »North Korea says it tested ‘high-thrust solid-fuel motor’
17-12-2022 PYONGYANG: North Korea has tested a “high-thrust solid-fuel motor”, state media reported on Friday, as the isolated country continues efforts to develop a new strategic weapon and speeds up its nuclear and missile programs. The test, overseen by leader Kim Jong Un, took place on Thursday at North Korea’s …
Read More »Thousands protest against conviction of Istanbul Mayor
17-12-2022 ISTANBUL: Thousands of people in Istanbul have protested against the conviction and political ban of the city’s Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, voicing criticism of Turkey’s government ahead of elections next year that are set to pose a major test to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s two-decade rule. A Turkish court on …
Read More »MPs ask UK gov’t about Rapid Action Battalion trips
17-12-2022 LONDON: Two British members of Parliament are demanding answers from the country’s government after publication of media reports that members of an infamous Bangladeshi anti-crime unit travelled to the United Kingdom (UK) multiple times this year to receive training. Media reports revealed last week that the UK in late …
Read More »US lawmakers mull restrictions on TikTok
17-12-2022 WASHINGTON: The United States Congress is considering legislation that would restrict the use of TikTok by government employees over security concerns that user data could be passed along to the Chinese government. The US Senate passed a bill earlier this week that would ban federal workers from using TikTok …
Read More »World’s largest cylindrical aquarium bursts in Berlin
16-12-2022 BERLIN: An aquarium in Berlin that was home to around 1,500 exotic fish burst early on Friday, prompting around 100 emergency responders to rush to the scene at an inner-city leisure complex, emergency services said. “In addition to the unbelievable maritime damage… two people were injured by glass splinters,” …
Read More »Fire near French city of Lyon kills 10, including 5 kids
16-12-2022 PARIS: Ten people, including five children aged three to 15, were killed in a fire in the early hours of Friday in a residential building in Vaulx-en-Velin, near the French city of Lyon, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said. Another four people were seriously injured in the fire, which started …
Read More »‘India develops bilateral ties with Afghan Taliban’
16-12-2022 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies KABUL/ NEW DELHI/ ISLAMABAD: Britain’s leading defence think-tank International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) has said in a report it appears that both India and the Taliban in Afghanistan are eager to build trust and develop bilateral relations. The report titled …
Read More »US is ‘all in’ on Africa’s future: Biden
16-12-2022 WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden has announced billions of dollars in new funding for Africa at a summit of dozens of the continent’s heads of state. “The United States is all in on Africa’s future,” President Biden told the 49 African leaders attending the Washington DC summit. It is …
Read More »