International

02-07-2020 ADDIS ABABA: The military was deployed in the Ethiopian capital on Wednesday as armed gangs roamed neighbourhoods in a second day of unrest that claimed more than 80 lives. Popular musician Haacaaluu Hundeessaa was shot dead on Monday in what police said was a targeted killing. Protests following the …

02-07-2020 RAMALLAH/ JERUSALEM/ OCCUPIED WEST BANK: Despite a delay in the long-anticipated declaration of an Israeli plan to annex one-third of the already illegally occupied West Bank, including parts of the strategic Jordan Valley, Palestinians decried the plan with some holding protests in Ramallah and Gaza City. Israel’s Foreign Minister …

01-07-2020 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies CANBERRA: Australia says it will significantly increase military spending and focus on the Indo-Pacific region amid rising tensions between the US and China. PM Scott Morrison pledged A$270bn (£150bn; $186bn) to Australia’s arms budget over 10 years – a 40% boost. …

01-07-2020 UNITED NATIONS/ JERUSALEM: Israel’s aim to annex parts of the occupied West Bank is clearly “illegal”, the United Nations’ human rights chief said on Monday, warning that the consequences could be “disastrous”. Just days before Israel intends to kick-start plans to annex its West Bank settlements and parts of …

01-07-2020 ISTANBUL: A boat that sank on Lake Van in eastern Turkey is believed to have been carrying up to 60 refugees and migrants when it went down in stormy weather, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said. Speaking to reporters in Van province on Wednesday, Soylu said authorities detained 11 people …

01-07-2020 WASHINGTON: In its first big abortion ruling of the Trump era, the United States Supreme Court on Monday struck down a Louisiana law regulating abortion clinics, reasserting a commitment to abortion rights over fierce opposition from dissenting conservative justices. Chief Justice John Roberts joined with his four more liberal …

29-06-2020 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies TEHRAN/ WASHINGTON/ LYON (FRANCE): Iran has issued an arrest warrant and asked Interpol for help in detaining President Donald Trump and dozens of others it believes carried out the drone strike that killed a top Iranian general in Baghdad. Tehran prosecutor Ali …

29-06-2020 By SJA Jafri KARACHI: At least seven people have been killed after gunmen stormed the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) in the southern city of Karachi, firing indiscriminately as they entered the building complex, rescue officials say. Four attackers stormed the building at 10am (05:00 GMT) Monday morning as trading began, carrying …

29-06-2020 By SJA Jafri (Bureau Chief Australia) SYDNEY/ MELBOURNE/ CANBERRA: An Australian clean-energy lobby group outlined a road map to the sector creating one million jobs, in response to calls from the country’s powerful fossil fuel industry for a gas-powered economic revival from coronavirus. The plan by Beyond Zero Emissions …

29-06-2020 NEW YORK/ NEW DELHI/ LONDON: More than 500,000 people worldwide have now lost their lives as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, according to Johns Hopkins University in the US. Since the virus emerged in China late last year, there have been more than 10 million cases, Johns Hopkins …