29-02-2024 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies ISLAMABAD: Authorities in Pakistan detained a journalist Monday, the second within a week, while domestic access to social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, remained disrupted for a 10th consecutive day. The crackdown comes amid widespread electoral fraud allegations following …
Read More »Israel holds local elections under cloud of war
28-02-2024 SDEROT: Israel held local elections under the shadow of war on Tuesday, with tens of thousands of voters who have been evacuated from areas near Gaza and the northern border with Lebanon forced to wait until later in the year to cast a ballot. While 242 municipalities will be …
Read More »Hope for Gaza ceasefire by next week: Biden
28-02-2024 WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden says he hopes to have a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza by Monday. His comments come amid reports of some progress in indirect negotiations involving Israeli and Hamas officials. It would involve aid deliveries to Gaza and the release …
Read More »India names astronauts for maiden space flight
28-02-2024 Bureau Report + Agencies NEW DELHI: India has unveiled four Air Force pilots who have been shortlisted to travel on the country’s maiden space flight scheduled for next year. The Gaganyaan mission aims to send three astronauts to an orbit of 400km and bring them back after three days. …
Read More »Oil spill spreads across Caribbean to Bonaire
28-02-2024 CARACAS: Oil leaking from a capsized barge off the coast of Tobago has spread hundreds of miles to reach the Caribbean island of Bonaire. Officials on Bonaire, which is located 50 miles (80km) north of the Venezuelan coast, said the oil posed a “serious threat to both humans and …
Read More »NY College to offer free medical degrees after $1bn gift
28-02-2024 NEW YORK: A New York City medical school will offer students free tuition following a $1bn donation from the 93-year-old widow of a major Wall Street investor. The gift to Albert Einstein College of Medicine came from Dr Ruth Gottesman, a former professor at the Bronx school. It is …
Read More »Walled site grows at Egypt border near Gaza
28-02-2024 CAIRO/ JERUSALEM: Egypt has built more than 3km of wall in the past week in addition to further clearance of a large area next to its border with Gaza, media has found. It comes after Israel warned it is preparing for a ground offensive in Gaza’s southern city of …
Read More »23 jailed over 68 children deaths linked to cough syrup
28-02-2024 TASHKENT: An Uzbekistan court has sentenced 23 people to prison over the deaths of 68 children linked to contaminated cough syrup. The defendants were found guilty of tax evasion, sale of substandard or counterfeit medicines, abuse of office, negligence, forgery, and bribery. The sentences range from two to 20 …
Read More »Trump appeals against fraud case as interest accrues
28-02-2024 NEW YORK: Donald Trump is appealing against a New York judge’s ruling that he must pay $454m (£360m) in penalties and interest in a civil fraud case. This month’s judgement was $355m, but the amount has soared with interest, which will keep accruing by at least $112,000 per day. …
Read More »Palestinian PM Shtayyeh resigns amid calls for reform
27-02-2024 RAMALLAH: Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh announced his resignation on Monday, as the Palestinian Authority looks to build support for an expanded role following Israel’s war against the Islamist group Hamas in Gaza. The move comes amid growing US pressure on President Mahmoud Abbas to shake up the Authority …
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