Syrian forces have begun entering the Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli, Syria's state news agency is reporting, as part of a ceasefire deal with Kurdish-led forces. Citing the Syrian Interior Ministry, the SANA news agency reported on Tuesday that units began entering the city in northeastern Hasakah province, to implement the terms of the agreement and commence their security duties. The move comes just days after the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Friday agreed to a deal with Damascus to integrate into Syrian state institutions,
After months of pressure over India's purchases of discounted Russian and sanctioned Iranian crude, New Delhi appears to have bowed to US President Donald Trump's demand by agreeing to phase out Russian oil imports and shift toward buying more barrels from the United States and potentially Venezuela. Trump said Monday on his Truth Social platform that Prime Minister Narendra Modi planned to "stop buying Russian oil," which the US president said would help end the war in Ukraine.
Its historic architecture is known for its courtyards, domes, and blue ceramics, typical of its Timurid heritage. The capital of Uzbekistan today, it was absorbed into the Russian Empire in the 19th century, before becoming a Soviet republic. While part of the Soviet Union, the city became an example of modernization, celebrating socialist achievements in Asia. A devastating earthquake in 1966 accelerated this modernization as the city was reconstructed, leading to many of the modernist monuments for which Tashkent is known today.
It's official: Josh D'Amaro is Disney's new top dog - or, in this case, mouse. D'Amaro, who oversees Disney's parks as its experiences chairman, was just chosen to succeed Bob Iger as CEO. Iger is set to step down on March 18, paving the way for D'Amaro to take over. D'Amaro is an "exceptional leader and the right person to become our next CEO," Iger said in a statement. Disney's board voted unanimously for his promotion on Monday, the company said in a statement.
The ground war began in Iraq last night as British and American marines stormed beaches on the Gulf coast in an assault on the south-eastern city of Basra, while explosions lit up Baghdad under a heavy bombardment by cruise missiles. The first British fatalities came shortly afterwards when a US helicopter crashed in Kuwait, killing all on board. Suzanne Goldenberg's front-page report from Baghdad revealed that only two hours after the decapitation effort, Saddam Hussein himself had made a defiant appearance on television.
This comes after two years in which Israel and its supporters took every opportunity to disparage and dismiss the health ministry's figures, arguing that they were overblown or fabricated by Hamas. That prestigious list of repudiators, to name just a few, includes spokespeople for Israel's government and military, then-US president Joe Biden, US Congress, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) chief Jonathan Greenblatt, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) and any number of talking heads at influential thinktanks and policy centres.
Sending remittances to India is more than a financial transaction-it is a lifeline that keeps families connected. According to the World Bank, India remained the world's largest recipient of remittances in 2024, receiving an estimated US$129 billion. These inflows help families in India pay for daily expenses, education, healthcare and emergencies. The United Kingdom and the Netherlands host large Indian‑origin communities that regularly send money home.
USDJPY is currently trading around the 155.5 level. While this remains a relatively high price, the pair has already undergone a correction from its previous peak near 159.5. At one point, USDJPY slid back toward the 152 area before rebounding to its current level. The sharp and rapid movements seen in USDJPY recently indicate that the market is no longer reflecting only the economic divergence between the United States and Japan,
Iran's top diplomat has said the government is ready for negotiations with the US as the two countries reportedly prepared to send top envoys to Istanbul for high-stakes talks on the Iranian nuclear programme later this week. As US warships and airpower have amassed in the region for a potential strike on Iran, the country's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, suggested that talks could take place imminently, adding that Iran's enemies have now turned to diplomacy.
The advisories are broken into four tiers: Level 1, which indicates travelers should "exercise normal precautions;" Level 2, which indicates travelers should "exercise increased caution;" Level 3, which indicates travelers should "reconsider travel" to that destination; and the highest Level 4, which warns Americans "do not travel" to that destination. In the case of its highest warning, the department advises any U.S. citizens who are already in that country to "leave as soon as it is safe to do so."
The group had established industrial parks in Myanmar's Kokang region bordering China, from where they allegedly ran gambling and telecom scam operations involving abductions, extortion, forced prostitution, and drug manufacturing and trafficking. They defrauded victims of more than 29 billion yuan ($4.2bn) and caused the deaths of six Chinese citizens and injuries to others, the court said. The defendants appealed the verdict, but the Guangdong Provincial High People's Court dismissed their applications, it added.
Before Israel's war on Lebanon, Ali (full name withheld for safety reasons) lived in Haddatha, a village in the Bint Jbeil district in the south, about 12km (7.5 miles) from the border with Israel, surrounded by nature where agriculture was intrinsic to life. Then came Israel's hellfire. list of 3 itemsend of list At least nine people were killed and some 3,000 injured, including the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon, when thousands of pagers exploded, nearly simultaneously, overwhelming hospitals on September 17, 2024.
The number of people moving through the crossing is expected to be very limited, with the restriction that only those traveling on foot can move across the border. In the first days of the reopening, just fifty people are expected to cross the border between Gaza and Egypt in each direction, Egyptian state-linked media reported on Monday. Share Earlier, an Israeli defence official said the crossing could hold between 150 and 200 people altogether in both directions.
Laura Fernandez, 39, is set to become the next president of Costa Rica after winning a decisive firstround victory in Sunday's general election. With more than 80% of ballots counted, the Electoral Tribunal reported that the Sovereign People's Party (PPS) the political organization of outgoing President Rodrigo Chaves and Fernandez secured about 50% of the vote. The election also marked a symbolic turning point in Costa Rica's chronic problem of low voter turnout.
Japan and Britain agreed Saturday to accelerate cooperation on cybersecurity and the supply of critical minerals, as China's influence grows in the region. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his visit to Japan comes at a time "when geopolitical, economic and technological shocks are literally shaking the world." Starmer's overnight Tokyo visit comes on the heels of his trip to Beijing, where he and Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to seek a long-term, stable "strategic partnership."
The state-imposed blackout has disconnected Iranians from the world and choked off businesses. Tehran, Iran Iran's economic outlook appears increasingly grim more than three weeks after the start of what became one of the most comprehensive and prolonged state-imposed internet blackouts in history, impacting a population of more than 90 million people. Iranian authorities abruptly cut off all communications across the country on the night of January 8,
