DHAKA: The much-awaited Lokpal Bill on Wednesday got the assent from Indian president Pranab Mukherjee, providing for creation of an anti-graft watchdog which will bring under its purview even the prime minister with certain safeguards.The Bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha on December 17

DHAKA: Taiwanese authorities are monitoring hundreds of people who may have had contact with a mainland Chinese tourist infected with the H7N9 strain of bird flu.Taiwan officials said on Wednesday, reports The Straits Times.The 86-year-old man from the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu

DHAKA: French president Francois Hollande said he would be ‘intransigent’ on racism after a provocative gesture popularised by a French comedian sparked global controversy.French striker Nicolas Anelka triggered a media outcry when he used the ‘quenelle’ gesture, performed by

DHAKA: The Palestinian ambassador to the Czech Republic was injured in an explosion at his residence in Prague on Wednesday.Czech media outlets CTK news agency and website idnes.cz reported, says The Jerusalem Post.The blast occurred before midday, the reports said.BDST: 1933 HRS, JAN 01,

DHAKA: Ringing out a year that ended with an unqualified diplomatic disaster in what used to be an almost enviable bilateral relationship, US ambassador to India Nancy Powell used a New Year message to express regrets for ‘the circumstances’ of the arrest of Indian diplomat Devyani

DHAKA: Crisis-hit Greece on January 1 took over the six-month rotating EU presidency from Lithuania with a crucial European Parliament ballot looming and the bloc divided over delicate efforts to create a banking union.In the European Parliament elections in May, euroskeptics and

DHAKA: Israel and the Palestinians sharpened their rhetoric as US state secretary John Kerry headed to the region on Wednesday hoping to nudge the two sides towards a peace framework.The latest United States quest for a long-elusive peace deal has shown little sign of progress since Kerry

DHAKA: India has cancelled the Rs. 3,600 crore VVIP chopper deal with British manufacturer AgustaWestland over allegations that it was riddled with kickbacks.Sources in India’s defence ministry have told NDTV.The cancellation came after a meeting between defence minister AK Antony with

DHAKA: Violence in Iraq surged in 2013 to its worst level in five years, fuelled by widespread discontent among the Sunni Arab minority and Syria’s civil war.Figures released Wednesday showed, reports The Straits Times.Bombs tore through markets, cafes, football fields and mosques,

DHAKA: Embattled Thai prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra returned to the capital, Bangkok, on Wednesday for traditional New Year celebrations in a display of unity alongside military chiefs before a looming showdown with anti-government protesters.Demonstrators, who accuse Yingluck of

DHAKA: The US is still reviewing the application for the transfer of senior Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade to UN and issue the necessary documents for full diplomatic immunity.A top official said in Washington, giving no timeline for its decision, reports The Times of India.‘It is

DHAKA: India and Pakistan have exchanged lists of their nuclear facilities as part of a 1988 pact that bars them from attacking each other’s nuclear installations.An external affairs ministry statement says the exchange, both in New Delhi and Islamabad, is done each New Year’s Day

DHAKA: India’s Uttar Pradesh government-constituted special investigation team has charged at least 225 people so far in connection with the September riots in Muzaffarnagar and neighbouring areas.Police said on Wednesday, reports The Times of India.The SIT has charged 225 people in 28

DHAKA: Iran has boosted its team in charge of nuclear negotiations with world powers, adding new members to a high council that directs strategies in the talks.Wednesday’s development comes a day after Iran and Western negotiators reported they were nearing an understanding on the

DHAKA: Dubai shattered the world record for the largest ever pyrotechnic display on New Year’s Eve with a show involving more than half a million fireworks.Guinness World Records said January 1, reports daily Hurriyet.‘Ten months in planning, over 500,000 fireworks were used during

DHAKA: South Sudanese rebels loyal to former vice president Riek Machar have seized control of Bor, the capital of restive Jonglei state.The town’s mayor said on Wednesday, reports The Jerusalem Post.Nhial Majak Nhial told media government troops loyal to president Salva Kiir had made a

DHAKA: The Lebanese authorities are reported to have arrested the head of a jihadist group that claimed the suicide bomb attack on Iran`s embassy in November.Lebanon defence minister Fayez Ghosn told media that Majid al-Majid, the Saudi ‘emir’ of the al-Qaeda-affiliated Abdullah Azzam

DHAKA: Russian president Vladimir Putin has described the recent suicide attacks in Volgograd as ‘indefensible’, during a visit to the city.‘No matter how the criminals may justify their actions, there is no justification for crimes committed against civilians,’ he said, reports

DHAKA: Pakistan’s former military ruler Pervez Musharraf failed to show up for a hearing in the treason case against him on Wednesday, with his lawyers citing security threats.The 70-year-old stands accused over his imposition of emergency rule in November 2007, but he and his legal

DHAKA: Australian foreign minister Julie Bishop has condemned as ‘reckless’ and ‘counterproductive’ a WikiLeaks Party delegation which met with Syrian president Bashar al-Assad in Damascus.The delegation, which reportedly included WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange’s father John