International

NEW DELHI: Russia’s Rosneft is holding back on signing new crude oil deals with two Indian state refiners, three sources with knowledge of the matter said, as it has committed sales to other customers. Indian refiners have been snapping up cheap Russian oil, shunned by western companies and countries since sanctions were imposed against Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine …

GANDERBAL: The spectre of recent violence in India-occupied Kashmir overshadowed celebrations for a Hindu festival on Wednesday, with crowds a fraction of their usual size despite heavy security to mollify fears of an attack. The annual gathering takes place at the Kheer Bhawani temple, a short drive from Srinagar, and is usually a major religious milestone for the local Pandit …

UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan on Wednesday called for re-channeling at least $250 billion to developing countries in need of liquidity as the UN food agency warned of looming global hunger. Underlining the need for emergency measures to address debt distress in many developing countries, Pakistan’s acting ambassador to the United Nations Aamir Khan called for “re-channeling at least $250bn of unutilised …

LUCKNOW: India tightened security on Wednesday after the circulation of a letter warning of militant attacks to avenge derogatory remarks about the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) by an official for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Several Indian media groups shared the June 6 letter attributed to Al Qaeda’s branch in the Indian Sub-continent (AQIS) in which threats …

US biotech company Moderna on Wednesday announced positive results for a new vaccine that targets both the original Covid strain and Omicron, and sees the shot as its “lead candidate” for a booster this fall. The so-called “bivalent” vaccine was tested in a trial of 814 adults and shown to produce 1.75 times more Omicron-specific neutralizing antibodies, which have the …

TEHRAN: Iran disconnected some of the United Nations nuclear watchdog’s monitoring cameras on Wednesday, the country’s Atomic Energy Organisation said in a statement after Western nations accused Tehran of non-cooperation. The move was announced after a resolution submitted by Britain, France, Germany and the United States to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to censure Iran, the first since June …

VIENNA: The United States, Britain, France and Germany have submitted a motion to the UN atomic energy watchdog to censure Iran over its lack of cooperation with the agency, two diplomats said on Tuesday. “The text was submitted overnight” from Monday to Tuesday, a European diplomat said. A second diplomat confirmed the news. The resolution urging Iran to cooperate fully …

JAIPUR: Before the three sisters and their children were found dead in a well, they left a message blaming the family they had married into. Kalu, Kamlesh and Mamta Meena were victims of a dispute over dowries, the often hefty sums Indian parents pay to marry off their daughters. The sisters had wed brothers from the same household and lived …

ANKARA: Turkish Defe­nce Minister Hulusi Akar told Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu in a call on Tuesday that his country would respond to moves aimed at disrupting stability in northern Syria, his office said, as Ankara gears for talks with Moscow ahead of an expected offensive in the region. President Tayyip Erdogan announced two weeks ago that Turkiye would soon be …

ROME: Italy’s anti-terrorism police and Europol on Tuesday arrested Pakistanis suspected of links to the man who attacked France’s Charlie Hebdo magazine in 2020. The sting led to “arrests in Italy and abroad of Pakis­tani citizens with direct ties” to Zaheer Hassan Mahmood, a Pakistani man accused of attacking two people with a meat cleaver weeks after the magazine republished …