South Korea and the United States have launched their largest joint military drills in years, officials said, as the allies seek to tighten readiness over North Korea’s potential weapons tests. The annual summertime exercises in Korea, renamed Ulchi Freedom Shield, began on

Pakistan's police have charged the country's former Prime Minister, Imran Khan, under anti-terror laws. Their investigation comes after he accused the police and judiciary of detaining and torturing his close aide. Tensions are high in the country, with the former

The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah is preparing to open registration of domestic pilgrims for the next Hajj on the first of day of the Hijri month Safar (September). This will be the first time the ministry starts Hajj registration so early. The ministry held a meeting with the

At least 32 people have been killed in separate incidents in southeastern Turkey when vehicles crashed into first responders who were attending earlier accidents, authorities said. Sixteen people died when a bus crashed into an earlier accident site, regional governor Davut Gul from

Darya Dugina, the daughter of influential Russian philosopher Alexander Dugin, was reportedly killed on Saturday when the car she was traveling in exploded in the Moscow region, the Russian state news agency TASS has reported. Andrei Krasnov, head of the Russky Gorizont (Russian

Somali forces claim to have defeated the militants who stormed a hotel in the capital after a bloody siege. At least 12 people were killed in the deadly 30-hour ordeal, although local media reports the death toll could be even higher. The assailants used explosives to gain entry to

Myanmar's junta chief has said he will consider allowing deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi to be moved to house arrest from prison but only after verdicts in a litany of cases against her have been reached. Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing's written remarks, read out on state

Six people were killed and over 20 injured in a road accident in Rajasthan's Pali district on Friday night, police said. Sumerpur police station incharge Rameshwar Bhati said a tractor-trailer carrying pilgrims and a truck collided in the district. The pilgrims were returning

Security officials say 10 people have been killed after al-Shabab militants stormed a hotel in the Somali capital, Mogadishu. Police said attackers detonated two explosives outside the hotel before entering the building and opening fire. They were reported to be holed up on the top

Russian leader Vladimir Putin has said UN officials will be granted permission to visit and inspect the Zaporizhzhia nuclear complex. The Kremlin made the announcement after a call between Mr Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron. It came as claims of fighting near the plant

China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin both plan to attend the Group of 20 summit in Bali in November, Indonesian president Joko Widodo says. "Xi Jinping will come. President Putin has also told me he will come," Mr Widodo, also known as Jokowi, told Bloomberg

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says dialogue and diplomacy with the Syrian government cannot be ruled out, the latest sign that Ankara may be willing to mend ties with its southern neighbour. “There is a need to take further steps with Syria,” Erdogan told

Chinese and Russian presidents Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin have both confirmed they will attend the G20 summit on the resort island of Bali this November, according to President Joko Widodo. “Xi Jinping will come. President Putin has also told me he will come,” Widodo

Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin is facing a political backlash after video footage of her partying with fellow politicians and celebrities was leaked online. The footage, published on social media on Wednesday, shows Marin and five other people dancing and singing in what appears to

The United States and Taiwan have started formal negotiations on a bilateral trade initiative to deepen economic ties, in a move likely to inflame already high tensions with China. The first round of trade talks is set to take place early this autumn, the Office of the US Trade

Algerian firefighters on Thursday battled a string of fires, fueled by drought and a scorching heat wave that has killed at least 38 people and left devastation in its wake. Deadly wildfires have become an annual scourge in the North African country, where climate change is turning

Chinese troops will travel to Russia to take part in joint military exercises led by the host and including India, Belarus, Mongolia, Tajikistan and other countries, China’s defense ministry said Wednesday. China’s participation in the joint exercises was “unrelated

A huge explosion struck a mosque in Kabul during evening prayers on Wednesday (Aug 17), witnesses and police said, with many feared dead or injured. Police said there were multiple casualties but did not say how many. One Taliban intelligence official told Reuters that as many as 35

North Korea has fired two cruise missiles into the sea, according to South Korean officials, in Pyongyang’s first weapons test in weeks. “Early this morning, we detected that North Korea fired two cruise missiles into the West Sea from Onchon, South Pyongan province,”

US President Joe Biden has signed a $700bn (£579bn) bill that aims to fight climate change and healthcare costs while raising taxes mainly on the rich. The act includes measures to make good on decades of congressional promises to curb the price of prescription drugs. The