GILGIT: In order to help mitigate the difficulties created by the electricity shortage in the region, Prince Rahim Aga Khan launched two solar power plants in Hunza on Sunday. Prince Rahim, who is on a visit to Pakistan these days, launched the development of Duiker Solar Power Plant Phase II and Nasirabad Solar Power Plant, which have a combined capacity of 3.6 …

MARSEILLE: A prisoner escaped from detention in southern France after casting his ballot in European elections on Sunday, a prison source and prosecutors said. The prisoner, who was held in a jail in the southern city of Arles, “was on supervised leave” to exercise his right to vote, the source said. He was accompanied by a probation officer and a …

ZURICH: Swiss voters backed legislation to promote renewable energy in a referendum on Sunday, while rejecting separate proposals intended to contain rising healthcare insurance costs. Seeking to enhance energy independence, the federal law passed in autumn 2023 comprises measures to boost the transport, storage and production of electricity, including facilitating the installation of solar panels on buildings. It also includes …

RIYADH: Oil giant Saudi Aramco said on Sunday that international investors had snatched up the bulk of shares sold in its latest offering, which was set to raise $11.2 billion. The secondary offering was expected to provide a short-term boost to Saudi Arabia’s finances as the Gulf kingdom builds large-scale projects including resorts and stadiums, part of a reform drive …

JERUSALEM: A ban on Al Jazeera‘s operations in Israel was extended for another 45 days by Israel’s telecoms regulator on Sunday after the cabinet agreed its broadcasts posed a threat to security. A Tel Aviv court last week upheld an initial 35-day ban on Al Jazeera operations in Israel, imposed by the government on national security grounds, which ended on Saturday. In a separate ruling …

PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday announced he was dissolving parliament and called snap legislative elections after the far-right trounced his centrist alliance in EU polls. The first round of elections for the lower house National Assembly will take place on June 30, with the second round on July 7, Macron announced in an address to the nation. The …

SRINAGAR: At least nine people were killed and 33 injured when a bus carrying Hindu pilgrims plunged into a deep gorge after a suspected attack in the held territory of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday, police said. News of the attack came as Narendra Modi took oath as prime minister for a record-equalling third term and drew criticism from the main opposition …

SEOUL: South Korea resumed loudspeaker broadcasts directed at North Korea on Sunday, its military said, following through on a warning demanding Pyongyang stop sending balloons carrying trash into the South. The decision to resume the broadcasts, as a form of psychological warfare, was made after North Korea began launching on Satu­rday about 330 balloons with trash attached, with about 80 of them …

WASHINGTON: The Biden administration is close to finalising a treaty with Saudi Arabia that would commit the US to help defend the Gulf nation as part of a deal aimed at encouraging diplomatic ties between Riyadh and Israel, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing US and Saudi officials. The possible deal, widely telegraphed by US and other officials for weeks, is part of …

NEW DELHI: India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi was sworn in on Sunday for a third term after worse-than-expected election results left him reliant on coalition partners to govern. His office said he would appoint a 71-member cabinet, including 11 National Democratic Alliance (NDA) ally ministers. Modi’s Hindu-natio­nalist BJP ruled outright for the past decade but failed to repeat its previous two landslide …