International

ROME: Giorgia Meloni looks set to become Italy’s first woman prime minister at the head of its most right-wing government since World War Two after leading a conservative alliance to triumph at Sunday’s election. Near final results showed the rightist bloc should have a solid majority in both houses of parliament, potentially giving Italy a rare chance of political stability …

NEW DELHI: India’s main opposition Congress party is likely to elect a new party president from outside the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty for the first time in nearly 25 years, as it looks for a reset ahead of the next election to compete with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Formed 137 years ago during India’s struggle for independence from Britain, Congress was thumped …

PARIS: The Iranian authorities’ crackdown on protests following the death of Mahsa Amini has left at least 76 people dead, the Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) NGO said on Monday. “We call on the international community to decisively and unitedly take practical steps to stop the killing and torture of protesters,” said IHR director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, adding that video footage …

With flowers, prayers and a 19-gun salute, Japan honoured slain former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday at the first state funeral for a former premier in 55 years — a ceremony that has become as divisive as he was in life. Abe’s ashes, carried by his widow Akie, arrived at the storied Budokan venue in Tokyo, where a 19-gun …

Hurricane Ian strengthened into a Category 3 storm on Tuesday, the United States National Hurricane Centre said, as Cuba and Florida — both in the storm’s likely path — ramped up preparations to deal with high winds and potential flooding. About 50,000 people in Cuba’s western Pinar del Rio province moved to safer locations, 6,000 of them to state-run shelters …

WASHINGTON: Pakistan and the United States will hold ministerial-level talks in Washington on Monday (today), indicating willingness on part of both sides to resume institutionalised engagement after a long absence. Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari reached Washington on Sunday on a three-day visit during which he will hold in person talks with Secretary of State Antony Blinken. He will also have …

ABU DHABI: The United Arab Emirates agreed on Sunday to supply natural gas and diesel to Germany as part of an “energy security” deal to replace Russian supplies. Emirati industry minister Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber called it a “landmark new agreement” that “reinforces the rapidly growing energy partnership between the UAE and Germany”, at a signing attended by German Chancellor …

BEIJING: Prominent Chinese commentator Hu Xijin said on Sunday that as China ponders its Covid-19 policies, epidemic experts need to speak out and China ought to conduct comprehensive research and make any studies transparent to the public. Hu’s unusual call on Chinese social media for candour and transparency earned him 34,000 likes on the popular Twitter-like microblog Weibo, as well …

ROME: Italians voted on Sunday on whether to usher in the country’s first government led by the far-right since World War II, bringing eurosceptic populists to the heart of Europe. The Brothers of Italy party, headed by one-time Mussolini supporter Giorgia Meloni, has led opinion polls and looks set to take office in a coalition with the far-right League and …

MANILA: Super Typhoon Noru slammed into the Philippines on Sunday, battering the heavily populated main island of Luzon with strong winds and heavy rain that have forced thousands of people to flee their homes. The storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 195 kilometres an hour as it charged towards the archipelago nation after an unprecedented “explosive intensification”, the state …