International

25-08-2021 WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden told G7 leaders Tuesday the United States was “on pace” to complete its pullout from Afghanistan by August 31 but contingency plans were being drawn up in case the self-imposed deadline could not be met. The White House said Biden also told Group of Seven …

24-08-2021 Bureau Report GUJRAT/ NEW DELHI: An on-ground investigation revealed that beggars are being used as test subjects by the drug mafia to assess narcotic pills and powders in Ahmedabad, Gujrat, Times of India reported Monday. The investigation revealed that the drug mafia picks up homeless people and beggars from the …

24-08-2021 TEHRAN: A top Iranian prisons official has confirmed the veracity of footage leaked by hackers that shows the harsh conditions inmates of Tehran’s Evin Prison suffer. The surveillance camera footage, leaked on Monday, has no sound but shows clearly the pain some prisoners go through at Evin. Mohammad Mehdi …

24-08-2021 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies KABUL/ BEIJING/ ISLAMABAD/ WASHINGTON: The Chinese Special Envoy for Afghan Affairs Yue Xiaoyong has said that the US is responsible for the current uncertainty in Afghanistan. In an interview with Geo News, aired on Sunday, the special envoy said that the US left …

24-08-2021 BERLIN/ LONDON: The heavy rainfall behind deadly flooding in Europe in July was made more likely by climate change, scientists say. The floods in Germany, Belgium and other parts killed at least 220 people as towns and villages were swamped. Researchers say global heating made rainfall events like this …

24-08-2021 GAZA/ JERUSALEM: Israeli warplanes bombed Hamas sites in Gaza in response to incendiary balloons launched from the Palestinian enclave that caused brush fires in southern Israel, its military said. There were no immediate reports of casualties in the air attacks that targeted what, the military said early on Tuesday, …

23-08-2021 BAGHDAD/ DAMASCUS: More than 12 million people in Syria and Iraq are losing access to water, food and electricity, 13 aid groups warned in a report as they called for urgent action to combat the severe water crisis. Rising temperatures, record low levels of rainfall, and drought are depriving …

23-08-2021 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies KABUL/ ISLAMABAD: The Taliban has said “hundreds” of its fighters were heading to the Panjshir Valley, one of the few parts of Afghanistan not yet controlled by the group. Since the Taliban overran Afghanistan, flickers of resistance have begun to emerge …

23-08-2021 NEW YORK: Hurricane Henri was on course to make landfall on the US east coast on Sunday, with millions in New England and New York’s Long Island preparing for flash flooding, violent winds and power outages. A swath of the northeastern coastline, including New York City, was under alert …

22-08-2021 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies MELBOURNE: The Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police said yesterday’s anti-lockdown protests in Melbourne’s CBD were among the most violent he has seen in two decades. Chief Commissioner Shane Patton described the rally, which attracted thousands of people, as “disgraceful”. “What we saw …