Saturday, 21 Dec, 2024

International

Bomb kills NATO soldier in Afghanistan

KABUL: A Taliban-style bomb has killed another NATO soldier in Afghanistan, the military NATO said Friday.The soldier, whose identity was not revealed, died after an attack with an improvised explosive device, or IED, in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, NATO`s International Security

Iran says will not stone woman to death after outcry: report

LONDON: Iran has announced that a woman will not be stoned to death after being convicted of adultery following an international outcry, a paper reported Friday. The Islamic republic`s London embassy issued a statement, saying "according to information from the relevant judicial

Ahmadinejad says sanctions will not alter nuclear drive

ABUJA: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said that new sanctions slapped on his country will not alter Tehran`s nuclear drive, remaining defiant in the face of growing Western pressure.Speaking on Thursday after meeting fellow Muslim leaders at a summit in Nigeria, the Iranian

Mattis named overall US commander of Iraq, Afghan wars

WASHINGTON: General James Mattis was named Thursday as the new head of US Central Command, or CENTCOM, which has overall control of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Mattis, whose appointment must be confirmed by the Senate, replaces General David Petraeus, who took over direct command

US deports Kremlin agents to Russia in spy swap drama

NEW YORK: Ten Russian spies headed for home Friday after being released by the United States in a sensational Cold War-style exchange for four Western agents. The 10 pleaded guilty in a New York federal court to acting as illegal agents for Moscow and were ordered expelled from the

US, Indonesian scientists journey to bottom of sea

JAKARTA: US and Indonesian scientists on Thursday launched a joint expedition to map some of the deepest oceanic trenches in the world for clues on biodiversity and volcanic vents, officials said.The US embassy in Jakarta said the first joint expedition by Indonesia and the United States

Catholic priest, nun murdered in China

BEIJING: A Catholic priest and a nun were murdered in northern China this week, but the motive was not immediately clear, police said Thursday.AsiaNews, a Vatican-based news service, said Joseph Shulai Zhang and Sister Mary Wei Yanhui were apparently stabbed to death at the nursing home

China mine explosion leaves at least six dead

BEIJING: An explosion at a mine in central China on Thursday killed at least six people and left 34 others injured, many of them residents living near the pit, local authorities said.The blast took place in Henan province`s Pingdingshan city, according to a report on the city`s official

One dead in Indian train bomb attack: officials

GUWAHATI: A bomb planted on railway tracks in India`s restive northeast ripped through the engine and coach of a passenger train on Thursday, killing one and injuring seven, officials said.Police blamed the outlawed National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB) for the blast in the early

Japan PM points at suicides, vows to `minimise unhappiness`

TOKYO: More than 100 people showed up and thousands more listened via the Internet to a recent suicide prevention workshop in Japan, a country where over 30,000 people kill themselves every year."Please, wait a minute before you hang yourself or start mixing chemicals and pills," Koji

In the wilds of South Africa, a hospital for big game

SHAMWARI GAME RESERVE: Darting an African elephant is no easy task: its herd will try to revive it. A drugged lion will be killed by its pride. And a furious rhino can simply storm through sedation.Such situations are all in a day`s work in the South African bush for veterinarian Johan

US accuses top Al-Qaeda leaders in NY bomb plot

NEW YORK: US prosecutors named top Al-Qaeda leaders Wednesday in an alleged attempt to bomb New York`s subway, saying their failed plot was part of a Pakistan-based campaign against US and British cities.The indictment dramatically broadened the case in which Afghan immigrant and Colorado

Greece faces general strike after MPs adopt pension reforms

ATHENS: Greece faced a general strike Thursday after deputies approved a bill on the reform of the private-sector pension system, voting to raise the retirement age from 60 to 65.Socialist deputies and two independents late Wednesday backed the measure, considered a key plank of the

Communist Cuba set to free 52 political prisoners

HAVANA: Cuba agreed to release 52 political prisoners Wednesday, in a breakthrough church-state deal set to yield the biggest prisoner release since President Raul Castro formally took the reins of power in 2008.The release, to include five dissidents, exceeds a bold demand by a

Netanyahu says America has no greater ally than Israel

NEW YORK: Fresh from upbeat talks with US President Barack Obama in Washington, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu flew Wednesday to New York, where he spoke emotionally of the bond between Israel and the United States.Addressing American Jewish leaders, Netanyahu recalled the

Floods force tens of thousands out of homes in north Mexico

MONTERREY: Torrential rain pounded northern Mexico on Wednesday, triggering floods that closed a US-Mexico border bridge and forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate their homes.The heaviest rain for several decades has topped off reservoirs in the border states of Coahuila, Nuevo

Baghdad suicide attack and bombs kill 39: officials

BAGHDAD: A suicide bomber wearing an explosives-filled belt targeted Shiite pilgrims and murdered 28 people in Baghdad on Wednesday while 11 more were killed in bomb attacks, security officials told AFP.The suicide attack occurred in Adhamiyah, a Sunni district across the Tigris river

Britain to hand over violent Afghan area to US troops

LONDON: British troops will hand over control of the violence-wracked Sangin area of southern Afghanistan to US forces by the end of the year, Defence Secretary Liam Fox announced on Wednesday.British forces have suffered their heaviest losses in Sangin with almost 100 deaths in the

Solar plane sets out on historic flight

banglanews24.com.bd/AFPPAYERNE: An experimental solar-powered aircraft took off from a Swiss airbase here in the early hours of Wednesday in a bid to make history by flying round the clock and through the night. Solar Impulse whirred along the runway at Payerne in western Switzerland,

Indonesia detains 66 Australia-bound migrants: police

banglanews24.com.bd/AFP KUPANG: Indonesia has detained 66 asylum-seekers from Afghanistan and Iran who were on their way to Australia when their boat ran aground, police said Wednesday.The migrants, including women and children, were found Tuesday on a beach off East Nusa Tenggara