International

Hardline Hindu vigilante groups disrupted Christmas mass in parts of India, including in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s core territory ahead of local elections in the coming months, media reported on Monday. The disruption of Christmas celebrations at the weekend and last week included the vandalising of a life-size statue of Jesus Christ at Ambala in Haryana, a northern state governed …

British police said on Monday they were assessing a video purportedly made by a man who tried to break into a castle where Queen Elizabeth II was spending Christmas in which he said he wanted to kill her. In the video, obtained by The Sun tabloid, a masked figure in a dark hoodie holding a crossbow claims he will “attempt to assassinate …

ANKARA: Turkey’s Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) imposed an 8 million lira ($751,314) fine on the local unit of cryptocurrency exchange Binance over violations found during liability inspections, the Anadolu news agency said on Saturday. The fine imposed on BN Teknoloji was the first of its kind after the authority took on responsibilities to oversee crypto asset service providers in …

WASHINGTON: Three general licences issued by the US Treasury this week allow US government officials and international agencies to conduct “official business” with the Taliban and Haqqani Network. An official statement issued by the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) explains how this “official business” can be conducted. “General Licence 17 authorises all transactions and activities involving the Taliban …

BANGKOK: The charred remains of more than 30 people, including women and children, were found in burnt-out vehicles in Myanmar on Saturday, a rebel group and a monitor said, accusing the junta of the attack. Myanmar has been in chaos since a coup in February, with more than 1,300 people killed in a crackdown by security forces, according to a …

HONG KONG: A haul of ketamine worth over $100 million has been seized by Hong Kong officials, police said on Saturday. The record-breaking 1.3 tonnes of the drug, valued at around HK$840 million ($108 million), is the largest bust of its kind in the city’s history. Travel restrictions related to Covid-19 have forced smugglers to make risker bulk shipments instead …

KABUL: The Taliban have dissolved Afghanistan’s election commission, a panel that supervised polls during the previous Western-backed administration, a spokesman for the Islamist government said on Saturday. “There is no need for these commissions to exist and operate,” Taliban government spokesman Bilal Karimi said, referring to the Independent Election Commission (IEC) and the Independent Electoral Complaints Commission. “If we ever …

LONDON: A man who entered the grounds of Windsor Castle, where Britain’s Queen Elizabeth is spending Christmas, has been arrested and is being held on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon, police said on Saturday. The 19-year-old from Southampton in southern England did not enter any buildings and security processes were triggered within moments, Thames Valley Police said in …

KHARTOUM: Thousands of Sudanese protesters rallied on Saturday two months after a military coup, demanding soldiers “go back to the barracks” and calling for a transition to civilian rule. Waving flags, beating drums, dancing and chanting, crowds marched on the streets of Khartoum despite a heavy deployment of security forces — who later fired tear gas to break them up. …

BEIJING: China on Saturday reported its highest number of new coronavirus cases in four months as officials rushed to contain outbreaks in several regions, including Xi’an city where millions are still under lockdown. China, where the coronavirus was first detected in late 2019, is on high alert for new infections as it prepares to hold the Winter Olympics in February …