DHAKA: Islamist militant group Isis has said it is establishing a caliphate, or Islamic state, on the territories it controls in Iraq and Syria.  It also proclaimed the group's leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, as caliph and leader for Muslims everywhere.  Setting up a caliphate ruled by

DHAKA: Bulgaria's president has said he will dissolve parliament and appoint an interim government, amid concerns over the country's banking system.   Rosen Plevneliev's comments came after crisis talks with leaders of the main political parties, says BBC.  Earlier, five people were

DHAKA: North Korea says it will put two detained US tourists on trial, accusing them of "committing hostile acts".     Miller Todd and Jeffrey Fowle have been investigated and will be brought before a court, BBC reported.                                          

DHAKA: An independent Kurdish state was a reason for war in the past, however the situation has changed, according to Hüseyin Çelik, spokesperson for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). ‘In Turkey, even the word ‘Kurdistan’ makes people nervous, but their name is

DHAKA: Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi landed in Islamist neighbor Sudan for a lightning visit, which an analyst said would attempt to shore up a regional alliance against Islamic ‘terrorism’. An AFP photographer at Khartoum airport confirmed the Egyptian leader’s plane had

DHAKA: A solar panel producer in western Turkey has said recent international media coverage of their ‘plug-and-play donkey’ project proved that they are on the right track. BBC News reported on June 24 that sheepherders in western Turkey have now equipped their donkeys to cart

DHAKA: Suspected Boko Haram Islamists armed with explosives attacked a series of churches on Sunday near Chibok, the north-eastern town where more than 200 teenage girls were kidnapped in April. Witnesses said, reports The Straits Times. Residents said dozens of people may have been

DHAKA: Egypt will restrict Ramadan sermons to the topics of faith and morality, in the latest move aimed at limiting political speech in the deeply polarized country. Religious Endowments Minister Mohammad Mokhtar Jomaa said Sunday the decision should ensure that sermons during the month

DHAKA: A jihadist group in Syria has publicly executed and crucified eight rebels fighting both president Bashar al-Assad’s regime and the jihadists. A monitor said on Sunday, reports The Straits Times. The report comes amid fierce clashes on the outskirts of Damascus between the

DHAKA: Thailand’s military court has issued an arrest warrant for the spokesman of an anti-coup group over alleged arms offences, an accusation firmly rejected by the former minister. The warrant against Jakrapob Penkair, a prominent member of the ‘red-shirt’ movement affiliated to

DHAKA: Western governments are rushing to visit India’s PM Narendra Modi, drawn by the prospect of multi-billion-dollar deals as the Indian government prepares to open the nascent defence industry to foreign investment. Senior politicians from France, the United States and Britain

DHAKA: Iraqi government forces trying to retake the city of Tikrit from Sunni insurgents have pulled back to a nearby town amid fierce clashes. Reports say, according to the BBC. Government troops launched an assault on the city on Saturday with tanks, armored vehicles and air support.

DHAKA: A Japanese man set himself on fire in central Tokyo on Sunday after giving a speech opposing prime minister Shinzo Abe’s plan to reform the country’s pacifist constitution. Police and reports said, according to The Straits Times. The middle-aged man doused himself in what

DHAKA: A powerful 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck in the far south Atlantic ocean in the inhospitable South Sandwich Islands region. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) said on Sunday, reports The Straits Times. The USGS, which monitors quakes worldwide initially said the quake

DHAKA: A 69-year-old Brazilian fan died of heart failure while watching his country's World Cup penalty shootout win over Chile, media reported on Saturday.The man was watching the tense encounter, which Brazil won on spot-kicks after the sides were locked 1-1 after extra-time, in a

DHAKA: Iran is ready to help Iraq fight an armed revolt using the same methods it deployed against opposition forces in Syria, an Iranian general said, suggesting Tehran is offering to take a larger role in battling Sunni militias threatening Baghdad. Iranian leaders to date have said

DHAKA: The death toll in a massive explosion on a state-owned gas pipeline running through southern India has risen to 19, officials said on Sunday, while police confirmed a case of negligence was filed against the company. A senior official from the East Godavari district of Andhra

DHAKA: Saudi King Abdullah on Sunday sharply criticised religious extremists, vowing not to let ‘a handful of terrorists...terrify Muslims’ in a speech marking the start of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. Islam is ‘religion of unity, fraternity and mutual support’ but

DHAKA: US space agency Nasa sent a saucer-like vehicle high into the sky on Saturday to test technology for a future Mars landing, but its parachute tangled when deployed and the spacecraft splashed into the Pacific Ocean. The test began when the space agency attached its ‘Low-Density

DHAKA: A magnitude 6.2 earthquake hit 167 km east-southeast of Iwo Jima in the Volcano Islands of Japan on Sunday. The US Geological Survey (USGS) said, reports The Straits Times. Japanese radio NHK said there was no threat of a tsunami. USGS earlier reported the quake was of 6.4