International

ADDIS ABABA: Ethiopia said on Tuesday it would launch a joint investigation with Saudi Arabia into a Human Rights Watch report accusing the kingdom’s border guards of killing hundreds of Ethiopian migrants. The report sparked global outrage after its publication on Monday, although a Saudi government source dismissed the allegations as “unfounded.” “The Government of Ethiopia will promptly investigate the incident in …

JOHANNESBURG: BRICS leaders meeting in South Africa this week will consider expanding the five-nation bloc at a time of great interest in the group that accounts for a quarter of global wealth. Opinions differ between Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa over accepting new members into the loosely-defined club of major emerging economies that is seeking an alternative to …

An Indian spacecraft landed on the moon on Wednesday, the space agency said, in a mission seen as crucial to lunar exploration and India’s standing as a space power, just days after a similar Russian lander crashed. For India, the successful landing marks its emergence as a space power as the government looks to spur investment in private space launches and …

China’s President Xi Jinping called for unity among his BRICS counterparts at a summit in South Africa on Wednesday as he pushed the case for expanding the grouping to face a global “period of turbulence and transformation”. Leaders of the bloc of leading developing nations Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa are meeting in Johannesburg with discussions around establishing a framework …

At least 18 labourers working on a railway bridge being built across a ravine in India’s northeastern Mizoram state were killed when it collapsed on Wednesday, police said, with several others missing. Video footage posted by Mizoram chief minister Zoramthanga showed a metal frame that had toppled off towering columns into a wooded valley below. “Under construction railway over bridge …

PARIS: Amid record-high temperatures globally, a study on Monday reveals that a few days of searing heat can be enough to prevent billions of people already living hand-to-mouth on daily wages from putting food on the table. A week of extreme temperatures in India, for example, means an additional eight million people will likely experience serious food insecurity, according to …

ANKARA: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday accused United Nations peacekeepers of instigating violence in which several members of the agency’s mission were assaulted on Cyprus. The United Nations said Turkish Cypriot forces on Friday attacked peacekeepers who were attempting to block construction of a road in the buffer zone separating the divided east Mediterranean island. The confrontation occurred …

GAZA: Inspired by her passion for the furry animal, Naeema Mea’bed opened the “MEOW Cat Cafe” in the Gaza Strip this week, hoping to bring cat lovers some joy, while boosting awareness over pet raising, which has become increasingly popular in the region. The cafe, the first of its kind in Gaza, is entirely cat-themed, with mirrors and flower vases, …

ATHENS: Hundreds of firefighters struggled to contain wildfires fanned by gale force winds in several parts of Greece on Monday as authorities warned most regions faced a high risk of new blazes. More than 200 firefighters backed by 17 aircraft were battling a wildfire burning for the third day near the northern port city of Alexandroupolis, where 13 communities were …

BEIJING: China said on Monday it had lodged complaints over a statement released at a first-of-its-kind summit of the leaders of the United States, South Korea and Japan in which they criticised Beijing’s “aggressive behaviour”. US President Joe Biden hosted the summit — described as launching a “new chapter” of close, three-way security cooperation — at the Camp David presidential …