International

09-08-2021 NEW YORK: Humanity will experience more extreme weather in the coming years and it will suffer the consequences of rising sea levels and melting Arctic ice, scientists working from across the globe said in a crucial UN climate report. The alarming report by a UN scientific panel, released on …

09-08-2021 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies KABUL/ ISLAMABAD: The Taliban has captured three more provincial capitals, as they take their fight to the cities after seizing much of the countryside in recent months. The group has seized five provincial capitals in Afghanistan since Friday in a lightning …

09-08-2021 TOKYO: The Tokyo Olympics, postponed and played out behind closed doors because of the COVID pandemic, concluded with an upbeat ceremony in Japan’s capital. The Games took place without spectators and athletes were barred from venturing outside the Olympic village. Their staging has faced local opposition and around 30 …

09-08-2021 Bureau Report SYDNEY: “If the objective was to frighten the hell out of the community, I can guarantee you they have done that.” Dai Le, a local councilor in Sydney, is speaking angrily about the deployment of 300 military personnel to the city’s streets this week. Her constituency, Fairfield, …

08-08-2021 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies KABUL/ ISLAMABAD: The Taliban has captured the city of Kunduz, the armed group said, the third provincial capital it has taken over in the last three days. A Taliban statement on Sunday said it has captured the police headquarters, the governor’s …

08-08-2021 BARCELONA: Lionel Messi fought back tears as he began a press conference at which he confirmed he is leaving Barcelona, the football club where he has played his entire career. He was emotional before he even made an opening statement. “These recent days, I’ve been giving lots of thought …

08-08-2021 NEW YORK/ WASHINGTON: The United States is now averaging 100,000 new COVID-19 infections per day, returning to a milestone last seen during the winter surge as health officials urge people to get vaccinated to stem a surging spread of the Delta variant. Across the country, 70.6 percent of adults …

08-08-2021 Beirut BEIRUT/ DAMASCUS/ JERUSALEM:  The head of Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement, Hassan Nasrallah, has promised a “suitable and proportionate” response to any Israeli air strikes on Lebanon after a flare-up at the border this week. Israel carried out its first air raids on Lebanese soil in years on Thursday, prompting …

08-08-2021 RIYADH: Saudi Arabia says it will begin receiving Umrah pilgrimage requests from vaccinated foreign worshippers starting on August 9. The announcement on state media early on Sunday came about 18 months after the kingdom closed its borders to foreign pilgrims due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Saudi Press Agency said …

07-08-2021 KABUL: The Taliban say they have taken control of the city of Sheberghan in the northern Afghan province of Jawzjan. It is the second regional capital to fall to the militants, after Zaranj in the south-western province of Nimroz fell on Friday. It is a major blow to security …