International

SEOUL: North Korea fired what appeared to be a ballistic missile into the sea on Wednesday, South Korea and Japan said, in the first such launch by Pyongyang this year. In the decade since Kim Jong Un took power North Korea has made rapid progress in its military technology, at the risk of international sanctions. The nuclear-armed nation’s first apparent …

PARIS: President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday faced anger from opponents and chaos in parliament after warning French people not yet vaccinated against Covid-19 that they would be squeezed out of key aspects of life. Macron, who has not yet formally declared his candidacy for re-election in April, came under fire from challengers already in the race, accusing him of overstepping …

MOSCOW: Protesters in Kazakhstan’s largest city stormed the presidential residence and the mayor’s office on Wednesday and set both buildings on fire, according to new reports, as demonstrations sparked by a rise in fuel prices in the Central Asian nation escalated sharply. Police fired on some protesters at the presidential palace before fleeing. They have clashed repeatedly with demonstrators in …

INDIAN Prime Minister Narendra Modi was trapped on a flyover for 20 minutes by protesters in East Punjab on Wednesday in what was being described as a security lapse, according to BBC. Mr Modi was on his way to a memorial in the northern state when the route was blocked by protesting farmers. They were demanding the resignation of a minister …

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) on Wednesday finalised the Joint Action Plan for Strategic Dialogue (2022-26). The plan, in line with a memorandum of understanding on strategic dialogue, provides for an institutional approach to deepen cooperation in various fields, including political, security, trade and investment, agricultural and food security, transportation, energy, environment, health, culture and education. The …

A BRITISH court convicted Lord Nazir Ahmed, a former British parliamentarian of Pak­istan descent, on Wednesday of sexual offences against two children in the 1970s. According to the BBC, the court found Lord Ahmed guilty of a serious sexual assault against a boy and the attempted rape of a girl. The Sheffield Crown Court heard the repea­ted sexual abuse happened in …

ROME: Police were called to Afghanistan’s embassy in Rome this week after a sacked Afghan diplomat claiming ties to the Taliban attacked the ambassador, the mission said. Many of Afghanistan’s embassies are in diplomatic limbo, with staff still loyal to the Western-backed government toppled by the Taliban last August. The Taliban have not appointed new representatives to most missions, however, …

UNITED NATIONS: Pakistan urged the international community on Thursday to persuade India to immediately end its blatant oppression of the Kashmiri people, reverse all unilateral and illegal measures instituted since August 5, 2019, and halt the genocidal settler project in the occupied territory. In a message on the Right to Self-Determination Day, Pakistan’s UN Ambassador Munir Akram also urged international …

The Taliban government in Afghanistan said on Tuesday that issues related to the fencing of Pak-Afghan border would be addressed through diplomatic channels, echoing an earlier statement by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. Qureshi, during a press conference in Islamabad on Monday, had acknowledged that there were “some complications” pertaining to the fencing of Pak-Afghan border but added that the matter was …

PHI LEH: Thailand has reopened Maya Bay, a white sand beach made famous by the 2000 film “The Beach” starring Leonardo DiCaprio, more than three years after closing it to allow its ecosystem to recover from the impact of thousands of visitors each day. The beach, surrounded by 100-metre (328-ft) high cliffs, lies on the island of Phi Phi Leh …