International

KYIV: Russian President Vladimir Putin said the situation in four areas of Ukraine that Moscow has unilaterally declared part of Russia was proving “extremely difficult”, one of his clearest public admissions yet that his invasion is not going to plan. He also called for an increase in surveillance in his comments to mark Security Services Day in Russia on Tuesday. …

The Afghan Taliban authorities on Tuesday ordered an indefinite ban on university education for girls, the ministry of higher education said in a letter issued to all government and private universities. “You all are informed to implement the mentioned order of suspending the education of females until further notice,” said the letter signed by Minister for Higher Education Neda Mohammad …

PRACHUAP KHAN: Six bodies have been found and one survivor was rescued on Tuesday, after the sinking of a naval vessel two days ago in the Gulf of Thailand, the Thai navy said. Seventy-six sailors from the HTMS Sukhothai have been hauled from the sea after the vessel went down late on Sunday roughly 37 kilometres off the country’s southeastern …

DAKAR: A parliamentary committee in Gambia said on Tuesday that India-based drug maker Maiden Phar­maceuticals was responsible for the deaths of at least 70 children from acute kidney injury and called on the government to pursue legal action. The World Health Organisation said in October four medicinal syrups made by Maiden and imported by a local wholesaler were likely linked …

SAN FRANCISCO: A strong 6.4-magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of northern California on Tuesday injured two people, damaged a bridge and several roads and left thousands of homes and businesses without power. The earthquake struck at 2:34am local time and was about 10 miles (16.1 km) deep, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said. It struck about 7.4 miles …

LONDON: Salwa Gaspard gazes fondly at the hundreds of Arabic-language books displayed on dark wooden shelves, putting some back in place while exchanging a few words with customers. In just a few days’ time, her London bookshop, known to literary enthusiasts throughout the Middle East, will close for good. Al Saqi Books is another victim of the pandemic, and the …

WASHINGTON: The Taliban have freed two Americans in detention in Afghanistan, the State Department said on Tuesday, on the same day that the regime faced condemnation for banning women at universities. “This, we understand, to have been a goodwill gesture on the part of the Taliban. This was not part of any swap of prisoners or detainees. There was no …

Cloe Fields and her boyfriend, Christian Zelada, on Tuesday were taking a scenic drive through the Angeles National Forest, as they often did, when things took a turn for the worst— their car went over the edge of the mountain and tumbled 300 feet before landing, upside down, in the canyon below. “Angeles Crest is our backyard,” Fields, 23, told …

QUETTA: As part of efforts to find a solution and restore peace at Pak-Afghan border at Chaman, a delegation comprising religious scholars and tribal elders from Chaman left for Kandahar on Monday, with the mandate to hold negotiations with Afghan Taliban leadership over the border clashes issue. “It is a 16-member delegation, headed by a prominent religious scholar Qari Aslam …

WASHINGTON: Indicating it is closely following reports that militants have seized control of a counterterrorism centre in Bannu, the United States on Monday offered unconditional support to Pakistan in its battle against the TTP and similar groups, saying that defeating terrorism was a shared goal of both countries. At the same time, it also offered to assist India and Pakistan in resolving …