Saturday, 01 Feb, 2025

International

Obama, Modi vow to boost strategic ties

DHAKA: US president Barack Obama and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi vowed on Monday to expand and deepen their countries' strategic partnership and make it a model for the rest of the world. In a joint ‘vision statement’ issued after their first meeting at a White House dinner,

‘Unrest will not change China’s stance’

DHAKA: Hong Kong’s civil disobedience protests will not change China’s position on political reform and are instead affecting the city’s emergency services, economy and international reputation. Hong Kong chief executive Leung Chun-Ying said in his first comments since the start of

Japan volcano eruption intensifies

DHAKA: Efforts to recover the bodies of at least 24 climbers have been suspended again after the eruption on Japan's Mount Ontake intensified.  The volcano was shooting out even more ash, smoke and rocks than before, BBC reports.  At least 36 people are thought to have died in

New images from flight MH370 hunt

DHAKA: The team looking for missing flight MH370 has released detailed images of the seabed - revealing features such as extinct volcanoes and 1,400-metre depressions for the first time, BBC reports.  The collection of data from one of the most secret parts of the world is a by-product

Afghanistan to sign US troop deal Tuesday

DHAKA: A senior adviser to US President Barack Obama said that Afghanistan will sign a deal on Tuesday to allow American soldiers to remain in the country past the end of the year. John Podesta, speaking to a news conference at the US embassy in Kabul, said he didn’t know if newly

HK protests: Resignation call amid stand-off

DHAKA: Pro-democracy protesters have again urged Hong Kong’s leader to step down saying he will be condemned by history, as huge crowds continue to bring parts of the territory to a standstill. On Monday night, tens of thousands blocked streets, singing and chanting, reports the BBC.

Jayalatitha appeals over corruption sentence

DHAKA: The imprisoned former chief minister of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, Jayaram Jayalalitha appealed against her sentence, BBC reports.  One of India's most colourful and controversial politicians, Jayalalitha was jailed for four years on corruption charges at the weekend. In a

ISIL closes in on border town with Turkey

DHAKA: Fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) have closed in on a key Kurdish town in Syria, right next to the border with Turkey. They prompting the government in Ankara to deploy tanks to protect its territory, reports Aljazeera. The news comes as activists

South Sudan bus crash kills 32

DHAKA: At least 32 people were killed and 10 seriously injured when a bus collided with a cargo truck in southern South Sudan.Hospital officials said on Monday, reports dailymail.co.uk.Officials said it was still not clear what caused the accident early on Monday morning on a road that

Taiwan president backs HK demonstrators

DHAKA: Taiwan’s president threw his weight behind Hong Kong’s democracy protesters on Monday, saying he was ‘very concerned’ by events in the city and urging China to proceed with ‘peaceful and cautious measures’.Chaotic protests saw Hong Kong police fire tear gas on

Modi orders govt officials to clean loos

DHAKA: India prime minister Narendra Modi has ordered government officers to work on father of nation Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday, a national holiday, to clean ministries, including toilets, in a nationwide cleanliness drive.Modi plans to honour the independence hero by launching on

Tens of thousands on HK streets

DHAKA: The ranks of Hong Kong democracy protesters who have paralysed parts of the city swelled into their tens of thousands on Monday, digging in for another night of confrontation with the police in their campaign for free elections.In the worst unrest since the former British

Indian Finance Minister hospitalized

DHAKA: India’s finance minister Arun Jaitley may have to cancel a trip to the United States in October after he was moved to an isolation ward of a government-run hospital to help him recover from an infection that followed a stomach operation to treat diabetes.Jaitley is due to

HK govt withdraws riot police

Hong Kong’s government said it has withdrawn riot police from main streets where thousands of protesters were camped out in a massive civil disobedience campaign, and urged the crowds to disperse peacefully.This comes after a violent weekend when police used pepper spray, tear gas

Search resumes on Japan volcano

DHAKA: Firefighters, police and troops resumed search operations on a volcano in central Japan on Monday, after four confirmed fatalities with at least 27 other people feared dead.More than 500 rescuers returned to Mount Ontake after the search had been called off on Sunday afternoon

Ghani sworn in as Afghan president

DHAKA: Ashraf Ghani has been sworn in as Afghanistan's president in a ceremony at the presidential palace in Kabul.It comes after six months of deadlock amid a bitter dispute over electoral fraud and a recount of votes.Under a US-brokered unity deal Ghani takes over the presidency and

Taliban attack kills 10 in Afghanistan

DHAKA: A group of Taliban suicide bombers has attacked a local government headquarters in Afghanistan's eastern Paktia province, killing 10 people, as the country's new president was preparing to be sworn in.A fighter detonated an explosives laden vehicle at the entrance of a

New Afghan president to be sworn in

DHAKA: Afghan President-elect Ashraf Ghani is set to be inaugurated in a ceremony at the presidential palace in Kabul.It comes after six months of deadlock amid a bitter dispute over electoral fraud and a recount of votes.Under a US-brokered unity deal Ghani takes over the presidency and

US underestimated rise of IS: Obama

DHAKA: President Barack Obama has acknowledged that US agencies underestimated the threat posed by the Islamist insurgency in Syria.In a frank TV interview, he said that al-Qaeda had been beaten in Iraq by US forces working with Sunni tribes.But they took advantage of the power vacuum

Roads blocked as HK protests spread

DHAKA: Thousands of people have remained on the streets of Hong Kong for another day of pro-democracy protests, defying tear gas and ignoring appeals to leave.Overnight, riot police advanced on crowds who ignored official warnings that the demonstrations were illegal.Protesters are