International

A Taiwan express train with almost 500 aboard derailed in a tunnel on Friday, killing at least 48 passengers and injuring 66 in the island’s worst rail disaster in almost four decades. Images from the scene showed carriages in the tunnel ripped apart by the impact, with others crumpled, hindering rescuers in their efforts to reach passengers, although by mid-afternoon …

Dozens of people are feared dead after a packed train derailed inside a tunnel in eastern Taiwan on Friday at the start of a long holiday weekend, with rescuers still scrambling to reach others trapped inside. Police said at least 36 people were classified as showing no signs of life when rescuers reached them in what looks set to be …

An armed man shouting slogans in support of terrorist outfits was arrested from Makkah’s Grand Mosque on March 30 by the Grand Mosque Security Force, according to the Saudi Press Agency. A spokesperson for the Makkah police told the SPA that the man had been spotted at the mosque’s first floor, brandishing a knife and sloganeering after Asr (evening) prayer and was immediately …

YANGON: Myanmar’s deposed leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, has been charged with breaking a colonial-era official secrets law, her lawyer said on Thursday, the most serious charge against the veteran opponent of military rule. Myanmar has been rocked by protests since the army overthrew Suu Kyi’s elected government on Feb 1 citing unsubstantiated claims of fraud in a November election …

COPENHAGEN: The WHO on Thursday slammed Europe’s “unacceptably slow” vaccine rollout, warning of a worrying surge in cases as France became the latest country to impose new restrictions to combat mounting infections. As European nations scrambled to contain third waves across the continent, Brazil marked a grim milestone with more than 66,000 deaths in March — by far the highest …

DHAKA: A teenager has been detained under Bangladesh’s harsh internet laws for making a music video mocking Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, police said on Thursday. Rabiul Islam, 19, was arrested on Wednesday in a northern town after a pro-government youth leader filed a complaint under the law, local police chief Abdullah Al-Mamun said. “He …

WASHINGTON: The US State Department said on Thursday that Washington looked forward to working with Islamabad on the climate crisis at different levels. The department announced earlier in the day that Special Presidential Envoy for climate John Kerry would travel to Abu Dhabi, New Delhi, and Dhaka from April 1 to 9 for consultations on the matter. The schedule, however, …

PITTSBURGH: President Joe Biden outlined a huge $2.3 trillion plan on Wednesday to re-engineer the United States infrastructure in what he billed as a once-in-a-generation investment that would undo his predecessor’s signature legislative achievement — giant tax cuts for corporations — in the process. Speaking at a carpenters union training centre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Biden drew comparisons between his proposed …

Indian actor turned politician Kirron Kher has unfortunately been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the blood cells. The Main Hoon Na actor, who is also a member of parliament from the city of Chandigarh, had been missing from duties for quite a while, with people questioning her absence. Following this, BJP leader Arun Sood announced on Wednesday that Kher was …

The archbishop of Canterbury has confirmed that he legally married Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at Windsor Castle in May 2018, despite the couple’s claim that they had another, private, ceremony three days earlier. During an interview with Oprah Winfrey earlier this month, Meghan said that “three days before our wedding we got married.” “We called the archbishop and we …