International

03 October, 2019 By SJA Jafri + BBC LONDON/ MELBOURNE: A London court has ruled that £35m ($42m) held in a UK bank account must go to the descendants of an Indian royal, and not to Pakistan. The dispute began in 1948 when the last Nizam (king) of Hyderabad Deccan …

01 October, 2019 By SJA Jafri RABAT/ MELBOURNE: A Moroccan journalist has been sentenced to a year in prison for premarital sex and having an abortion, in a case activists say is part of a crackdown on critical reporters. Hajar Raissouni was arrested with her fiancé as they left a …

28 September, 2019 By SJA Jafri + Agencies NEW YORK/ MELBOURNE: While Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi avoided any mention of Kashmir in his speech at the United Nations General Assembly, Pakistan’s Imran Khan launched an extraordinary attack on his Indian counterpart, warning of a “bloodbath” in the disputed region. Khan on Friday said …

UN commits to fighting ‘fake news’ 27 September, 2019 By SJA Jafri + AJ NEW YORK/ MELBOURNE: World leaders have gathered in New York City for the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). The meeting comes amid simmering tension in the Middle East over recent attacks on Saudi Arabian …

25 September, 2019 By SJA Jafri + AJ NEW YORK/ BEIJING/ MELBOURNE: A senior counsel with an independent tribunal has urged the top United Nations human rights body to investigate evidence that China is murdering members of the Falun Gong spiritual group and harvesting their organs for transplant. Hamid Sabi on …

25 September, 2019 By SJA Jafri NEW YORK/ RIYADH/ TEHRAN/ MELBOURNE: Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said today that US President Donald Trump had asked him to mediate with Iran to defuse tensions. PM Imran met Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on the sidelines of this week’s United Nations …

25 September, 2019 By SJA Jafri + Agencies WASHINGTON/ MELBOURNE: Speaking before a United States congressional panel on Tuesday, Ismail Alghazali, a Yemeni American, described how President Donald Trump’s travel ban has prevented his Yemeni wife and two small children from joining him in the US. “I have never even met my …

Trump slams impeachment inquiry as “Witch Hunt” 25 September, 2019 By SJA Jafri + Agencies WASHINGTON/ MELBOURNE: Representative Al Green of Texas, who has been calling for impeachment for more than two years, says he feels “vindicated” by House speaker Nancy Pelosi’s announcement today. The democratic congressman from Texas first called for …

24 September, 2019 BAGHDAD: Several rockets have been fired towards Baghdad’s fortified Green Zone, landing near the embassy of the United States in Iraq, according to security sources cited by news agencies. Residents of the Iraqi capital reportedly heard the explosions followed by alert sirens that sounded briefly across the Tigris River …

24 September, 2019 By SJA Jafri + Agencies TEHRAN/ NEW YORK/ MELBOURNE: Iran has rejected a joint statement by the leaders of France, Germany and the UK who blamed it for attacks earlier this month on Saudi oil installations. Iran’s foreign minister accused them of “parroting absurd US claims”. The …