International

North Korea appears to have restarted a nuclear reactor that is widely believed to have produced plutonium for nuclear weapons, the UN atomic watchdog said in an annual report, highlighting the isolated nation’s efforts to expand its arsenal. The signs of operation at the 5-megawatt (MW) reactor, which is seen as capable of producing weapons-grade plutonium, were the first to …

Hurricane Ida ploughed into the US state of Louisiana from the Gulf of Mexico as a fierce Category 4 storm on Sunday, lashing the coast with 150 mile-per-hour winds, torrential downpours and pounding surf that submerged much of the shoreline under several feet of water. Power was knocked out on Sunday night to the entire New Orleans metropolitan area with the …

Envoys of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council (UNSC) will hold an emergency meeting today (Monday) to discuss the rapidly evolving situation in Afghanistan following the US drawdown and Taliban takeover of the war-ravished country, according to Radio Pakistan. The state broadcaster reported that France and Britain are expected to submit a resolution in the meeting, proposing the establishment of a safe zone in …

Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry has warned of potential spillovers from the Afghan crisis, saying the world would have to deal with a “huge mess” if Pakistan’s advice on the war-ravaged country was ignored. In an interview with TRT World today, Chaudhry said the world must listen to Pakistan as “in the recent past, Pakistan’s advice had not been paid heed to, and if …

Israel’s defence minister met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas for a rare high-level meeting, but a source close to Prime Minister Naftali Bennett insisted on Monday his government had no plans to reboot peace talks. Defence Minister Benny Gantz met Abbas in Ramallah for what were reportedly the first direct talks between an Israeli cabinet member and the 86-year-old Palestinian leader …

Rockets struck a neighbourhood near Kabul’s international airport on Monday amid the ongoing US withdrawal from Afghanistan. It wasn’t immediately clear who launched them. The rockets struck on Monday morning in Kabul’s Salim Karwan neighbourhood, witnesses said. Gunfire immediately followed the explosions but it was not immediately clear who was firing. The witnesses, who spoke on condition of anonymity for …

WASHINGTON: Tens of thousands of people were rallying on Saturday in Washington and dozens of other US cities to protest against laws in several Republican-led states that critics say will make it harder for minorities to vote. The date selected for the rallies — in cities from Seattle to Atlanta — was not picked at random: It was on August …

TEHRAN: Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday accused US President Joe Biden’s administration of making the same demands as his predecessor Donald Trump in talks to revive a nuclear accord. The multilateral deal that offers Iran relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear programme was torpedoed by Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from …

TOKYO: Two people died after receiving Moderna Inc Covid-19 vaccine shots that were among lots later suspended following the discovery of contaminants, Japan’s health ministry said on Saturday. The men in their 30s died this month within days of receiving their second Moderna doses, the ministry said in a release. Each had a shot from one of three manufacturing lots …

BERLIN: Thousands turned out in Berlin on Saturday in protest against the government’s coronavirus measures, despite bans against several planned gatherings. Police banned nine planned demonstrations for Saturday, including one from the Stuttgart-based Querdenker movement, the most visible anti-lockdown movement in Germany. A court ruled in favour of allowing one protest, planned for 500 people, on Saturday and Sunday each. …