AUCKLAND: New Zealand's newly-elected government has ignited controversy by announcing its intention to overturn the nation's pioneering smoking ban, citing plans to use the funds for tax cuts. The legislation, initially introduced under the previous Jacinda Ardern-led government, aimed to prohibit cigarette sales to individuals born
SILKYARA, India: Indian rescuers led by “rat miners” drilled through rocks and debris on Tuesday to reach 41 construction workers trapped in a collapsed tunnel in the Himalayas for 17 days. The process of pulling out the 41 low-wage workers from India’s poorest states, one at
GAZA: The conflict that began on October 7 following Hamas' unprecedented surprise attack on Israel, finally came to a "temporary halt" after the four-day truce agreed between Israel and Hamas came into effect on Friday. The conflict has led to nearly 15,000 Palestinians — including more
DHAKA: Bangladesh has launched a sweeping and violent crackdown on opposition parties to "eliminate competition" ahead of general elections, including arresting almost 10,000 activists, Human Rights Watch said Monday. As well as the thousands arrested, many from the key Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), a staggering number
LHOKSEUMAWE, Indonesia: Holding his son's hand in a temporary shelter in Indonesia, Rohingya Mohamed Ridoi says he made the dangerous 12-day sea journey from massive refugee camps in Bangladesh to escape the pervasive threats of kidnapping, extortion and murder. The 27-year-old said he was starting a
BEIJING: A Beijing court on Monday began hearing compensation cases filed by the families of dozens of Chinese people who died on board a Malaysia Airlines flight that disappeared almost 10 years ago. The MH370 jet vanished on March 8, 2014, carrying 239 people – mostly
NEW YORK: The Indian envoy in the US had to flee a Gurdwara in New York after pro-Khalistan activists confronted him over his role in the failed Indian plot to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, general counsel to Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) and spokesperson for the
LONDON: The US authorities thwarted an Indian conspiracy to assassinate the pro-Khalistan leader of Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on American soil and issued a warning to India’s government over concerns it was involved in the plot, according to multiple people familiar with
GENEVA: United Nations (UN) agencies voiced hope that a shaky truce that got underway between Israel and Hamas on Friday would allow aid to flow to northern Gaza for the first time in weeks, while the World Health Organization said it is working on further
LONDON: Halal Expo London is set to take center stage once again in the UK capital, promising to be “bigger, better, and more compelling than ever before,” organizers have announced. They said in a statement: “Building on the successes of Halal Expo London 2022 and Halal