International

China’s foreign minister told his Israeli and Palestinian counterparts his country is ready to help facilitate peace talks, state media Xinhua reported Tuesday. The separate phone calls between Foreign Minister Qin Gang and the Israeli and Palestinian top diplomats come amid recent moves by Beijing to position itself as a regional mediator. Qin encouraged “steps to resume peace talks,” and …

Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are in the process of restoring diplomatic ties and reopening embassies, two officials said, more than two years after Arab states ended a boycott of Doha that had shattered the Western-allied Gulf Arab bloc. “At present, the activation of diplomatic ties, which will include the reopening of embassies, is under process between both …

WARSAW: Unilateral action on trade by European Union member states is unacceptable, a European Commis­sion spokesperson said on Sunday, after Poland and Hungary announced bans on grain and other food imports from Ukraine to protect the local agricultural sector. After Russia’s invasion blocked some Black Sea ports, large quantities of Ukrainian grain, which is cheaper than that produced in the …

TAIPEI: China said on Sunday it had launched a satellite into orbit, with authorities in Taiwan saying rocket debris had fallen into the sea where Beijing announced a no-sail zone this week. Maritime authorities in China’s eastern Fujian province this week banned ships from an area north of Taiwan from 9am to 3pm on Sunday due to “possible falling rocket …

Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin met Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu in Moscow on Sunday and hailed military cooperation between the two nations, which have declared a “no limits” partnership. Footage of the meeting posted by the Kremlin showed Putin shaking hands with Li and then sitting down at a table. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was also present. “Development …

NEW DELHI: Ahead of his appearance before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday alleged that the BJP might have ordered the probe agency to arrest him and said they are “very powerful and can send anyone to jail”. In a five-minute video message on Twitter, Mr Kejriwal said, he would truthfully and honestly …

WASHINGTON: A senior US lawmaker, Brad Sherman, has said that former prime minister Imran Khan has assured him that he was not against America. Mr Sherman, a Democrat Congressman from California, and the chief negotiator of the US-Taliban deal have both rejected the suggestion that they support former Mr Khan’s campaign for regaining power. Mr Sherman, however, confirmed that he …

At least eleven people died on Sunday after suffering from sunstroke at an event attended by India’s home minister on the outskirts of Mumbai, the chief minister of Maharashtra state said. Hundreds of thousands of people attended an award function on Sunday afternoon where federal home minister Amit Shah presented an award to a well-known social activist, on the outskirts …

Explosions rocked the Sudanese capital Khartoum Monday as fighting between the regular army and paramilitaries raged for a third day with the death toll rising to nearly 100. The violence erupted Saturday after weeks of power struggles between Sudan’s army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the powerful paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The raging battles …

Police in India’s northern border state of Punjab have arrested a soldier in connection with last week’s killing of four others at a military base, they said on Monday. The four were shot dead in their sleep in barracks at the Bathinda military base early on Wednesday. The killings were suspected to have been motivated by “personal enmity”, district police chief Gulneet …