Blast rocks Kabul govt compound in ongoing attack: officials
Kabul, Dec 24 : Militants detonated a car bomb before storming a Kabul government compound in an ongoing attack Monday, officials and witnesses said, in the latest violence to rock the Afghan capital. A number of gunmen have entered the compound where an office of the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs, Martyrs and Disabled is located, […]
US government shutdown enters 2nd day, set to last through Christmas
Washington, Dec 23 : A partial US government shutdown that entered its second day on Sunday was set to stretch through Christmas, after Congress adjourned for the weekend with no deal in sight to end an impasse over funding for President Donald Trump’s wall on the US-Mexico border. Due to the shutdown — in which […]
222 dead as volcano-triggered tsunami hits Indonesia
Carita, Dec 23 : A volcano-triggered tsunami has left at least 222 people dead and hundreds more injured after slamming without warning into beaches around Indonesia’s Sunda Strait, officials said Sunday, voicing fears that the toll would rise further. Hundreds of buildings were destroyed by the wave, which hit the coast of southern Sumatra and the […]
US denounces wealthy-nation discounts for UN peacekeeping
United Nations, Dec 23 : The United States on Saturday denounced at the United Nations a system of discounts for the peacekeeping assessments of wealthy nations, and confirmed Washington will pay no more than 25 percent. The comments came a day after UN member states failed to reach a deal to make up for a […]
Ghosn detention extended over Christmas and New Year
Tokyo, Dec 23 : Former Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn will be spending Christmas and the beginning of 2019 behind bars after a Tokyo court on Sunday extended his detention through to January 1. The court’s decision is the latest twist in a rollercoaster saga that has gripped Japan and the business world since the auto […]
US govt bound for shutdown as Congress, Trump fail to reach deal
Washington, Dec 22 : The US government will begin a Christmastime shutdown at midnight, as Congress adjourned Friday without passing a federal spending bill or addressing President Donald Trump’s demand for money to build a border wall. Operations for several key agencies will cease at 12:01 am Saturday, despite last-ditch talks that continued on Capitol Hill […]
Decision made for ‘significant’ troop withdrawal from Afghanistan: US official
Washington, Dec 21: President Donald Trump has decided to pull a significant number of troops from Afghanistan, a US official has told AFP, a day after he announced a withdrawal from Syria. “That decision has been made. There will be a significant withdrawal,” the official told AFP on Thursday on condition of anonymity. Currently, the United […]
Trump signals retreat on wall funding, but shutdown threat remains
Washington, Dec 19: President Donald Trump backed off his demand for USD 5 billion in border wall funding but his subsequent offer was rejected by congressional Democrats, leaving the opposing sides struggling to avert a partial US government shutdown. Trump had stood firm for days, declaring he needed the funds to build the controversial wall, […]
‘Thousands’ of EU diplomatic cables hacked: Report
Brussels, Dec 19: Hackers apparently connected to China accessed thousands of sensitive EU diplomatic cables, the New York Times reported Wednesday, in the latest embarrassing data breach to hit a major international organisation. The cables from the EU’s diplomatic missions around the world reveal anxiety about how to handle US President Donald Trump as well […]
Third Canadian detained in China: report
Beijing, Dec 19: A third Canadian citizen has been detained in China, a Canadian newspaper reported Wednesday, amid a diplomatic spat between Beijing and Ottawa over the arrest of a Chinese telecom executive. Canada’s foreign ministry said it was “aware of a Canadian citizen” having been detained, according to the National Post, which cited a […]
