17-12-2023 BEIJING: A cold wave extended its grip over China on Friday with temperatures plummeting to below freezing across most of the country, causing authorities to limit traffic flows on highways in several provinces after vehicles collided on icy patches. Temperatures will drop to below minus 40 degrees Celsius (minus …
Read More »Yazidis sue French cement maker over ISIS support
17-12-2023 NEW YORK: Hundreds of Yazidi-Americans, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Nadia Murad, filed a lawsuit against French cement maker Lafarge on Thursday, accusing it of conspiring to provide material support to a campaign of violence by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Represented by human rights lawyer …
Read More »US stresses safety for Gazans as Israel unrelenting in attacks
17-12-2023 CAIRO/ GAZA: A US security envoy had talks with Israel about shifting its strategy in Gaza toward surgical operations against Hamas and away from a broad ground campaign, as Palestinians reported heavy attacks along the narrow coastal strip on Friday. Israeli tanks and planes intensified their bombardment of the …
Read More »FIFA hails access for women to Iran stadium as sign of progress
17-12-2023 ZURICHBERG: FIFA President Gianni Infantino believes the global governing body’s policy of engagement with Iran over the treatment of women in football is bearing fruit after some were allowed into the Tehran derby on Thursday. Women’s rights campaigners Open Stadiums and another group of former Iranian athletes last year …
Read More »Hungary blocks EU financial aid package for Ukraine
17-12-2023 BRUSSELS: European Union leaders agreed to open membership talks with Ukraine even as it continues to fight Russia’s invasion, but they could not agree on a 50 billion euro package of financial aid for Kyiv due to opposition from Hungary. At a summit in Brussels, other leaders bypassed objections …
Read More »Religious freedom watchdog wants India on US blacklist
16-12-2023 By SJA Jafri + Bureau Report + Agencies WASHINGTON/ NEW DELHI/ ISLAMABAD: The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom reiterated its request to the Biden administration to designate India as a “country of particular concern” under the US Religious Freedom Act, citing its transnational repression against religious minorities. …
Read More »Global coal use at all-time high in 2023: IEA
16-12-2023 PARIS: Global coal use is expected to reach a record high in 2023 as demand in emerging and developing economies remains strong, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in a report on Friday. Demand for coal is seen rising 1.4% in 2023, surpassing 8.5 billion metric tons for the …
Read More »Japan PM purges cabinet in bid to ride out financial scandal
16-12-2023 TOKYO: Embattled Japanese premier Fumio Kishida dropped four cabinet ministers on Thursday, as he tried to limit the fallout from the biggest financial scandal his ruling party has faced in decades. The ousted ministers included chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno and industry minister Yasutoshi Nishimura in Kishida’s third cabinet …
Read More »Indian court allows search of ancient mosque for Hindu relics
16-12-2023 Bureau Report + Agencies NEW DELHI/ LUCKNOW: An Indian court has granted permission to survey a centuries-old mosque to determine if it contains Hindu relics and symbols, a lawyer said on Thursday, in a boost to Hindu groups which claim it was built on a site of a destroyed …
Read More »EU to open membership talks with Ukraine & Moldova
16-12-2023 BRUSSELS: European leaders have decided to open EU membership talks with Ukraine and Moldova and to grant candidate status to Georgia. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the decision, made at a summit in Brussels, as “a victory” for his country and Europe. A spokesperson for Charles Michel, the President …
Read More »