International

03-03-2021 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report PERTH/ CANBERRA/ MELBOURNE: Australia’s Attorney General Christian Porter has identified himself as the cabinet minister at the centre of a rape accusation, an allegation he strongly denies. A letter sent to Prime Minister Scott Morrison last week alleged Porter had raped a 16-year-old …

03-03-2021 BAGHDAD/ WASHINGTON: At least 10 rockets have landed at Ain al-Asad airbase in the western Iraqi province of Anbar, according to the Iraqi military and the US-led coalition forces. The rockets struck the airbase, which hosts US, coalition and Iraqi forces, at 7:20am local time (04:20 GMT), Colonel Wayne …

03-03-2021 By SJA Jafri + Agencies SANA’A/ DUBAI NEW YORK: Famine could become part of war-torn Yemen’s “reality” in 2021, the UN warned Tuesday; after a donor conference raising funds to keep millions from starvation fell short by over half. The United Nations had sought Monday to raise $3.85 billion …

02-03-2021 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report JALALABAD/ KABUL/ ISLAMABAD: Three female media workers lost their lives after unknown assailants shot at them in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad on Tuesday, their TV network said, in what appeared to be the latest targeted killing to rock the war-torn country. …

02-03-2021 PARIS/ RIYADH/ WASHINGTON/ ISTANBUL: Media watchdog ‘Reporters Without Borders’ (RSF) has filed a criminal case in a German court against Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and four other high-ranking officials for “crimes against humanity” in connection with the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The media watchdog’s lawsuit announcement …

02-03-2021 ABUJA: Kidnappers have released all the girls abducted from a boarding school in the northwestern Nigerian state of Zamfara on Friday, the governor told media, as President Muhammadu Buhari expressed “overwhelming joy” over the news. Bello Matawalle said on Tuesday the nearly 300 students were safe with authorities and …

01-03-2021 JERUSALEM/ TEHRAN: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused Iran of being behind last week’s blast on an Israeli-owned ship in the Gulf of Oman days after Israeli officials, including the defence minister, pointed fingers of blame at Tehran. Netanyahu made the accusation in an interview that aired Monday with …

01-03-2021 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report CANBERRA/ MELBOURNE: Chinese investment in Australia collapsed by more than 61 per cent in 2020, according to new figures from the Australian National University (ANU). This followed a 47 per cent fall in 2019 and is the lowest number recorded over the past …

01-03-2021 TEHRAN/ WASHINGTON/ UNITED NATIONS: Iran has ruled out holding an informal meeting with the United States and European countries to discuss ways to revive its 2015 nuclear deal with major powers, insisting that Washington must first lift all its unilateral sanctions. “Considering the recent actions and statements by the …

28-02-2021 ANKARA/ TEHRAN/ BAGHDAD: Turkey summoned the Iranian ambassador to the country on Sunday over remarks alleging Ankara has violated Iraq’s sovereignty, state media reported. Ambassador Mohammad Farazmand was called in to Turkey’s foreign ministry after Iran’s ambassador to Iraq made the comments about Ankara’s cross-border military offensive against Kurdistan …