ANKARA: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hopes Turkish forces will have completely encircled Afrin by Wednesday evening, a presidential source said, clarifying his earlier comments in a speech indicating the Kurdish-held Syrian city would fall by then. "In the president's speech the sentence 'I hop

Finland is the world’s happiest country, according to an annual survey issued on Wednesday that found Americans were getting less happy even as their country became richer. India was ranked at 133 in the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network’s (SDSN) 2018 World Happiness Report which ranke

NEW DELHI: Iran created ripples in India’s diplomatic circles with its foreign minister Javad Zarif declaring on Tuesday that Tehran had offered Pakistan and China participation in its strategic Chabahar port, which India is developing. As Indian officials have repeatedly said the port is crucial fo

LONDON:  Stephen Hawking has died at the age of 76, his family spokesperson said today. The renowned British scientist died peacefully at his home in Cambridge in England in the early hours of this morning, his family says. Stephen Hawking's children, Lucy, Robert and Tim said in a statement: "We

India-Pakistan diplomatic ties head south: Between two countries, some laws are followed assiduously even in the times of war. One of them include diplomatic norms. The bilateral relations between India and Pakistan hit rock bottom with the two sides accusing each other of harassing one another’s di

DHAKA: Bangladesh's former prime minister Khaleda Zia was today granted bail in a corruption case but her plans to walk free were thwarted as a fresh warrant was issued against her in another case. Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP chief Zia, 72, was sentenced to five years in jail on February

At least 50 people were killed and 22 injured when a passenger plane of the US-Bangla Airlines crash-landed and exploded into a ball of flame at the Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) here on Monday, authorities said. "fifty people were killed in the incident. Now we are carrying out rescue op

LAHORE: A shoe was hurled at Pakistan's ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif by a religious extremist today during a function at an Islamic seminary in Lahore. The incident took place a day after religious extremist blackened the face of Pakistan's Foreign Minister Khwaja Asif with ink when he was

Fresh violence erupted in Sri Lanka on Sunday after a Muslim-owned restaurant was attacked in an alleged hate crime in a northern city, a day after President Maithripala Sirisena appointed a commission to probe a spate of anti-Muslim riots in the violence-hit Kandy district. The restaurant locate

As the National People’s Congress in China cleared a constitutional amendment on Sunday allowing President Xi Jinping to remain president for life, here is a look at Xi’s closest confidante and politburo member Wang Huning, who is also known to be the brain behind President Xi. Wang has been spee

BEIJING: Chinese Muslims need to guard against creeping Islamisation, including mosques that copy foreign styles, and strive to practice their faith in a more Chinese way, a senior Chinese Islamic official said on Saturday. China is home to roughly 20 million Muslims, many living in the western p

A DAY after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi asked New Delhi to shed “mental inhibitions” and “mutual suspicion” to improve bilateral ties, India on Friday said it is willing to work with the Chinese side to develop relations based on commonalities, while “dealing with differences on the basis of mu

London: A leading UK-based think tank has released a research to support its call for a new, more economical visa regime to attract Indian visitors to the country. The Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS) revealed that the UK was losing out as neighbouring France attracted 185,000 more Indian business

Islamabad: In a treason case against former president general (retired) Pervez Musharraf, a special court on Thursday ordered his arrest and the confiscation of his properties. Hearing of the treason case resumed today after nine months. According to Geo TV, Peshawar High Court Chief Justice Y

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to impose "reciprocal tax" on countries like India and China if they do not match America's tariff. Trump has, in recent days, spoken a number of times about the 50 per cent duty that India levies + on high-end motorbikes that Harley-Davi

GENEVA: The UN human rights chief said Friday that Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has launched profanity-laced diatribes against United Nations rapporteurs, needs "psychiatric evaluation". Listing some of Manila's actions against UN envoys, including reportedly filing terrorism charges

Pakistan said today it has approved India’s humanitarian proposals about exchange of prisoners, issuance of medical visas and revival of a judicial commission, amid tensions between the two countries. Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif after consulting with all the stakeholders, has approved the human

WASHINGTON: A US Navy veteran on Wednesday pleaded guilty to the murder of Indian engineer Srinivas Kuchibhotla in a racially motivated hate crime at a bar in Kansas City last year that drew international attention. Adam Purinton, 52, pleaded guilty before a Kansas court. He was charged with fir