Digest year-ender for international stories for month of July, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of July, 2018

Press Trust of India

Jul 1: Islamabad: Pakistan hands over a list of 471 Indian prisoners lodged in Pakistani jails to the Indian High Commission here.

Jul 2: Kabul: Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani mourns the deaths of 19 Afghans, including 17 Sikhs, in a targeted suicide attack by an Islamic State bomber in the eastern city of Jalalabad that also killed the only candidate of the Afghan parliament election from the minority community.

Jul 3: Kathmandu: Nearly 150 Indian pilgrims were evacuated safely as rescue work intensified to bring back over 1,500 Indians who have been stranded in Nepal's mountainous region due to heavy rain while returning from the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage in Tibet.

Jul 4: Islamabad: A top US official has met with Pakistan's powerful Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa and reminded him about Islamabad's commitment to eliminate all terrorist groups present within its borders.

Jul 5: London: A UK High Court judge issues an enforcement order in favour of a consortium of 13 Indian banks, seeking to recover funds owed to them by beleaguered liquor baron Vijay Mallya who is fighting extradition to India on fraud and money laundering charges worth nearly Rs 9,000 crore.

Jul 6: Islamabad: Pakistan's deposed premier Nawaz Sharif was today sentenced in absentia to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment by an anti-graft court in one of the three corruption cases against him in the Panama Papers scandal, dealing a huge blow to his party ahead of the elections on July 25.

Jul 7: London: British Prime Minister Theresa May today hailed a "breakthrough" after hours of being locked in with Cabinet ministers at her official country retreat of Chequers to chair what was dubbed as a "make-or-break" Brexit meeting.

Jul 8: Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has met Zakir Naik, wanted in India for alleged terror activities and money laundering, and a ruling party strategist has stoutly defended the government's decision not to deport the controversial Muslim preacher, Malaysian media reported today.

Jul 9: London: Sri Lanka-born Canadian literary icon Michael Ondaatje's 'The English Patient' has won the special one-off Golden Man Booker Prize to mark the 50th anniversary of the prestigious literary award here.

Jul 10: Mae Sai (Thailand): A daring rescue mission in the treacherous confines of a flooded cave in northern Thailand has saved all 12 boys and their soccer coach who were trapped deep within the labyrinth, ending a grueling 18-day ordeal that claimed the life of an experienced volunteer diver and riveted people around the world.

Jul 11: Brussels: US President Donald Trump shocked allies at a fraught NATO summit today by suddenly demanding that members double their defence spending commitments.

Jul 12: Lahore: Over 300 PML-N workers and leaders have been detained in Pakistan in a massive crackdown on the party activists in Lahore ahead of the arrival of its supreme leader Nawaz Sharif, who would be arrested along with his daughter and transported to jail via a helicopter.

Jul 13: Peshawar/Karachi: At least 133 people, including a top nationalist leader, were killed and over 200 others injured today in a powerful suicide blast and a targeted attack on separate election rallies in Pakistan, the deadliest in a series of assaults on candidates ahead of the July 25 polls.

Jul 14: Peshawar: The death toll in the Balochistan suicide blast targeting an election rally rose to 130 today as two persons succumbed to their injuries, prompting the Pakistan government to announce tomorrow as a day of national mourning over a string of terror attacks that have raised security concerns ahead of the July 25 polls.

Jul 15: London: Embattled British Prime Minister Theresa May today revealed that Donald Trump had suggested that she "sue" the European Union instead of negotiating with the 28-member economic bloc on Brexit.

Jul 16: Helsinki: Presidents Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin vowed a fresh start to troubled relations between the world's greatest nuclear powers at their first summit today, as the American leader rejected a chance to condemn Moscow's alleged manipulation of US elections.

Jul 17: Islamabad: Pakistan today filed its second written reply to India's arguments in the ICJ on the conviction of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav who was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism.

Jul 18: Washington: The United States is open to holding direct talks with the Taliban to encourage negotiations between the militant group and the Afghan government to end 17 years of war, US officials said.

Jul 19: Washington: President Donald Trump "disagrees" with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin's offer to allow Russian investigators to come to the US to question American citizens in exchange for assistance in the ongoing US probe into election interference, the White House said today.

Jul 20: United Nations: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo today urged UN member-states to keep tough economic sanctions fully in place on North Korea and maintain pressure on Kim Jong Un to dismantle Pyongyang's nuclear program.

Jul 21: New York: Over 20 Indian-origin persons have been sentenced up to 20 years in prison in the US for their involvement in a multimillion-dollar India-based call center scam which defrauded thousands of American citizens of hundreds of millions of dollars.

Jul 22: Peshawar: A former provincial minister and senior leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf was today killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up near his car in the troubled Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, police said.

Jul 23: Kigali: India today extended USD 200 million lines of credit to Rwanda as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with President Paul Kagame and discussed measures to boost the bilateral strategic ties by strengthening cooperation in defence, trade and agriculture sectors.

Jul 24: London: Prime Minister Theresa May announced today she will take personal control of Brexit negotiations with the EU, as time runs out to get a deal before Britain leaves the bloc in March.

Jul 25: Islamabad: Pakistan's flamboyant cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was leading in 105 seats while its main rival Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) was way behind with 71 seats with trends indicating a possible hung parliament.

Jul 26: Islamabad: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan today claimed victory in the general elections after his party emerged as the single largest in the National Assembly with its candidates winning 104 seats and leading in 14 others, amid rival political parties' claim of "blatant" rigging.

Jul 27: Johannesburg: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said the digital revolution has offered new opportunities to the members of the BRICS grouping and other emerging economies and it is essential to invest in artificial intelligence and big data analytics to reap the benefits. Jul 28: Islamabad: Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf today emerged as the single largest party, winning 116 of the 270 contested seats, as Pakistan's election commission released final results of the general elections marred by a tediously slow vote count and resulting in allegations of rigging.

Jul 29: Beijing: Tibet has been an "inalienable part" of China since ancient times, Premier Li Keqiang has asserted as he hoped that religious groups in the sensitive region will continue to safeguard national unity and promote social harmony, the state media reported today.

Jul 30: Washington: In a major boost to India, the US today eased export controls for high-technology product sales to it by designating it as a Strategic Trade Authorization-1 (STA-1) country, the only South Asian nation to be on the list.

Jul 31: Jalalabad (Afghanistan): A suicide bomb and gun attack by militants on an Afghan government building in Jalalabad today killed at least 15 people, some burned "beyond recognition", officials said, the latest in a series of assaults on the eastern city.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of August, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of August, 2018

Press Trust of India

Aug 1: New York: Akshay Venkatesh, a renowned Indian-Australian mathematician, is one of four winners of mathematics' prestigious Fields medal, known as the Nobel prize for math.

Aug 2: San Francisco: Apple has become the world's first publicly traded company to be valued at USD 1 trillion.

Aug 3: Beijing: China today said it will slap additional tariffs on about USD 60 billion worth of American products in retaliation to President Donald Trump's plan to raise duty on USD 200 billion Chinese imports, escalating the trade war between the top two economies of the world.

Aug 4: Sao Paulo/Brasilia: Brazil's leftist Workers' Party nominated its charismatic founder Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva for the upcoming presidential contest today despite him being imprisoned for corruption.

Aug 5: Mataram (Indonesia): A major earthquake on the Indonesian holiday island of Lombok killed at least 37 people and injured dozens, officials said today, damaging homes and triggering panic among tourists and locals.

Aug 6: Riyadh: Saudi Arabia said today it was expelling the Canadian ambassador and recalling its envoy while freezing all new trade, in retaliation for Ottawa's vigorous calls for the release of jailed activists.

Aug 7: New York: A US Navy veteran was today awarded three consecutive life sentences on federal hate crime charges for killing Indian engineer Srinivas Kuchibhotla and wounding two others at a suburban Kansas City bar last year.

Aug 8: Islamabad: In a major relief to Imran Khan, the Supreme Court today suspended a recount in a National Assembly constituency in Lahore where the cricketer-turned-politician had narrowly defeated his rival in the July 25 general elections.

Aug 9: Yangon: Myanmar said today that a request at the International Criminal Court to probe the mass deportation of Rohingya Muslims from the country was "meritless" and should be rejected.

Aug 10: Islamabad: Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria today called on Pakistan's prime minister-in-waiting Imran Khan and discussed bilateral relations even as he voiced the Indian leadership's concerns over terrorism and cross-border infiltration.

Aug 11: Mataram (Indonesia): An earthquake on the Indonesian island of Lombok has killed 387 people, authorities say, adding hundreds of thousands of displaced people were still short of clean water, food and medicine nearly a week on.

Aug 12: London: V S Naipaul, the Trinidad-born Indian-origin author known for his critical commentary on colonialism, religion and politics, has died at the age of 85, his family says.

Aug 13: Dhaka: Bangladesh's High Court today granted six-month bail to imprisoned former prime minister Khaleda Zia in a defamation case over her "derogatory remarks" about the 1971 Liberation War and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the country's first post-independence president and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's father, media reports said.

Aug 14: Istanbul: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Turkey would boycott US electronic goods in retaliation for punitive sanctions by Washington against Ankara over the detention of an American pastor.

Aug 15: Islamabad: Pakistan's newly-elected Parliament today voted an ally of Prime Minister-in-waiting Imran Khan as the Speaker of its lower house, kicking off the process of transition and handing over powers to the new government.

Aug 16: Islamabad: Pakistan will hold presidential elections on September 4 to elect President Mamnoon Hussain's successor at the end of his five-year-tenure, the election commission announced today.

Aug 17: Islamabad: Imran Khan was voted as Pakistan's new prime minister today in a one-sided election in the National Assembly, nearly 22 years after the former cricket hero entered politics, promising to act against those who "looted" the country.

Aug 18: Islamabad: Pakistan's new Prime Minister Imran Khan today announced a 21-member Cabinet, including foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi who held the portfolio during the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

Aug 19: Lahore: Prime Minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's candidate Usman Ahmed Khan Buzdar was elected as chief minister of Punjab today, ending the 10-year rule of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party in the country's politically powerful and the most populous province.

Aug 20: Islamabad: Pakistan's new Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi today extended the hand of friendship to India by offering "uninterrupted" dialogue to resolve all the outstanding issues, saying it is the "only wise course" as the two countries cannot afford any "adventurism".

Aug 21: Beijing: El Salvador, one of the 18 countries which has recognised Taiwan as a separate nation, today broke off ties with it and established diplomatic relations with China as Beijing continues to chip away Taiwan's dwindling allies, alluring them with its economic clout.

Aug 22: London: Indians have emerged as the third-largest group affected by the UK's 'Windrush' immigration scandal involving Commonwealth nationals being wrongly denied their citizenship rights in Britain.

Aug 23: Islamabad: Pakistan has "solid evidence" against Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav and is hopeful of winning the case against him at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the country's new Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said today.

Aug 24: Washington/Islamabad: A fresh row has erupted between the US and Pakistan with Islamabad taking exception to a State Department' statement that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo discussed the issue of terrorism with newly-elected Prime Minister Imran Khan while Washington stands by its version.

Aug 25: Islamabad:Pakistan's new government has banned the discretionary use of state funds and first-class air travel by officials and leaders, including the president and the prime minister, as part of its austerity drive. Aug 26: New York: Influential US Senator John McCain, a Vietnam war hero and a towering figure in the American political scene, who turned out to be a prominent critic of President Donald Trump has died following a battle with an aggressive form of brain cancer.

Aug 27: The Hague: Iran today demanded that the UN's top court order the United States to suspend nuclear-linked sanctions against Tehran, but Washington vowed to "vigorously" fend off the legal challenge.

Aug 28: Hanoi: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj holds wide-ranging talks with her Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh and discussed steps to boost bilateral trade, investment, maritime and defence cooperation.

Aug 29: Islamabad: Pakistan's election commission today accepted the nomination papers of the three presidential candidates after the Opposition parties failed to field a joint nominee for the top post, which is now expected to go to Prime Minister Imran Khan's party candidate.

Aug 30: Washington: The Pentagon has ruled out an automatic waiver for India from the punitive US sanctions over its weapons purchase from Russia, saying Washington has concerns over the nearly USD 5 billion missile defence system deal, ahead of the first 2+2 dialogue in New Delhi next week. Aug 31: Manila: Two Indians - one a psychiatrist who works for the mentally-ill street persons and another whose initiative to harness science and culture creatively for economic progress improved the lives of Ladakhi youth - today received this year's Ramon Magsaysay Award.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of September, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of September, 2018

Press Trust of India

Sept 1: New York: Six Indian nationals are among over 300 people arrested by American authorities for criminal activities and violating the country's immigration laws during a month-long crackdown across six states.

Sept 2: Washington: The US will cancel USD 300 million in military aid to Pakistan over its failure to take "decisive actions" to support President Donald Trump's new South Asia policy and act against terror groups like the Haqqani network and Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Pentagon has announced, a fresh blow to the deteriorating ties between the two nations.

Sept 3: Beijing: Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday announced a whopping USD 60 billion in new development financing for the African nations as he sought to refute criticism that the massive funding under Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) drawing the countries into a debt trap.

Sept 4: Islamabad: Dr Arif Alvi, a close ally of Prime Minister Imran Khan and one of the founding members of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, was elected as the new President of Pakistan Tuesday, as the cricketer-turned-politician consolidated his grip on power.

Sept 5: Dhaka: Expressing her dissatisfaction, Bangladesh's imprisoned ex-prime minister Khaleda Zia Wednesday asked a court to "punish" her "as much as you want" as authorities turned an infamous Dhaka jail into a courtroom to try the opposition BNP chief in a graft case.

Sept 6: Islamabad: Pakistan will never fight any other country's war in future, Prime Minister Imran Khan said Thursday, asserting that he was against the war from the very beginning and his government's foreign policy will be in the best interest of the nation.

Sept 7: Islamabad: In an unusual move, Pakistan Army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa has batted for democracy and the need for strengthening of institutions in the coup-prone country, as he shared the dias with Prime Minister Imran Khan. Sept 8: Chicago: As many as 15 people, including seven Indians, and five India-based call centres have been indicted in a multimillion-dollar scam which defrauded over 2,000 US citizens, resulting in over USD 5.5 million in losses, the Department of Justice said on Friday.

Sept 9: Moscow: Russia on Sunday accused the United States of carrying out bombing using white phosphorous in eastern Syria against military targets in civilian areas, which is banned under international law.

Sept 10: Beijing: Jack Ma, the pioneer of China's internet industry, announced on his 54th birthday Monday that he would step down as Alibaba's executive chairman in one year to make way for the next generation of leaders at the USD 420 billion e-commerce giant.

Sept 11: London/Islamabad: Begum Kulsoom Nawaz, the wife of Pakistan's jailed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, died Tuesday in London after a protracted battle with throat cancer.

Sept 12: Beijing: China said on Wednesday that it would resolutely oppose any US move to impose sanctions against its officials and companies to punish Beijing for the alleged human rights violations against Uygur Muslims in the volatile Xinjiang province.

Sept 13: Beijing: A driver of a SUV vehicle deliberately crashed into crowds at a busy public square in central China's Hunan province, killing 11 people and injuring 44 others, state-media reported Thursday.

Sept 14: Moscow: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov Friday reviewed the progress made in the bilateral cooperation in the fields of trade and investment, science and technology, culture and other issues of mutual interests.

Sept 15: Washington: National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on Friday held "broad-based" talks with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Defence Secretary James Mattis and his American counterpart John Bolton during which they discussed the "future direction" of the strategic Indo-US ties.

Sept 16: Islamabad: Pakistan's new President Arif Alvi on Monday raked up the Kashmir issue in his first address to the joint session of Parliament, saying Kashmiris have a right to "self-determination" as he sought the international community's help.

Sept 17: Beijing: Pakistan Army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa has held talks with his Chinese counterpart Gen. Han Weiguo on the security of the multi-billion CPEC, defence cooperation as well as regional and bilateral issues.

Sept 18: Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia's toppled leader Najib Razak was arrested Wednesday and will be charged over allegations that USD 628 million linked to state investment fund 1MDB ended up in his personal bank accounts, officials said.

Sept 19: Lahore: Nawaz Sharif, who was released from jail after a court suspended his sentence in a corruption case, will "expose" the Imran Khan government and launch a drive against rigging in the general elections, the ousted Pakistan prime minister's party said on Thursday.

Sept 20: Islamabad: Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi Friday expressed disappointment at India calling off a meeting between him and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in New York and alleged that "internal pressure" forced New Delhi to make the "unfortunate" move.

Sept 22: Islamabad: The Pakistan Army on Saturday said it is "ready for war" but chooses to walk the path of peace in the interest of its people, comments which came in response to Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat's remark that "stern action" is needed to "avenge" the brutal killing of Indian soldiers.

Sept 23: Beirut: More than 3,000 civilians have been killed in US-led coalition air strikes against the Islamic State group in Syria since they began four years ago, a monitor said on Sunday.

Sept 24: United Nations: Confronting the dangers of North Korea's nuclear threat, President Donald Trump arrived at the United Nations on Monday striking a far less ominous tone than a year ago, announcing he likely will hold a second summit with Kim Jong Un "quite soon." Sept 25: Norristown: Disgraced television icon Bill Cosby was sentenced to at least three years in prison on Tuesday and branded a "sexually violent predator" for assaulting a woman at his Philadelphia mansion 14 years ago.

Sept 26: United Nations: As the political slugfest in India over the Rafale deal escalated, French President Emmanuel Macron has distanced himself from the controversy, saying he was not in power when the multi-billion dollar agreement for the 36 fighter jets was signed between New Delhi and Paris.

Sept 27: United Nations:Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron have been jointly awarded the UN's highest environmental honour for their pioneering work in championing the International Solar Alliance and promoting new areas of cooperation on environmental action.

Sept 28: San Francisco: Facebook announced Friday that up to 50 million accounts were breached in a security flaw exploited by hackers.

Sept 29: United Nations: North Korea's foreign minister on Saturday told the United Nations there was "no way" that his country would disarm first as long as the United States continued to push for tough enforcement of sanctions against Pyongyang.

Sept 30: United Nations: India is an "important partner" of the United Nations in countering terrorism and preventing violent extremism, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has said, and there are plans to step up cooperation between the two on strengthening capacity in combating terror financing.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of October, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of October, 2018

Press Trust of India

Oct 1: Stockholm: Two immunologists, James Allison of the US and Tasuku Honjo of Japan, won the 2018 Nobel Medicine Prize for research into how the body's natural defences can fight cancer, the jury said on Monday.

Oct 2: Moscow: Russian President Vladimir Putin will oversee the signing of a USD 5 billion deal this week to supply Delhi with S-400 air defence systems, a top Kremlin aide said on Tuesday ahead of Putin's trip to India.

Oct 3: Washington: The Saudi Kingdom will collapse in two weeks in absence of American protection, US President Donald Trump has said, pressuring one of its closest allies over rising oil prices that are putting huge drain on economies like India.

Oct 4: Islamabad: The opening of the Kartarpur border crossing for Sikh pilgrims was linked with the start of dialogue between India and Pakistan, the Foreign Office said Thursday, asserting that dialogue is the only way forward to resolve issues and disputes between the two countries.

Oct 5: Lahore: Pakistan's opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif was arrested by the country's anti-graft body on Friday for his alleged involvement in a Rs 1,400 crore housing scam, the latest setback to the embattled Sharif family.

Oct 6: Ankara: Turkey has opened a probe into the disappearance of a Saudi journalist who has not been seen since he went inside the Saudi mission in Istanbul four days ago, the state-run Anadolu news agency said Saturday.

Oct 7: Seoul: Kim Jong Un has agreed to hold a second summit with US President Donald Trump as soon as possible, Seoul said Sunday, after Washington's top diplomat held "productive" talks on denuclearisation with the North Korean leader in Pyongyang.

Oct 8: Stockholm: US economists William Nordhaus and Paul Romer on Monday shared the 2018 Nobel Economics Prize for constructing "green growth" models that show how innovation and climate policies can be integrated with economic growth.

Oct 9: Washington: In a surprise move, Indian-American Nikki Haley Tuesday resigned as the US Ambassador to the United Nations, becoming the latest casualty in the dysfunctional Trump administration just weeks before the crucial mid-term elections.

Oct 10: Islamabad: Lt Gen Asim Munir, who previously served as the head of the Military Intelligence (MI), will be the new chief of Pakistan's powerful spy agency ISI, the Pakistan Army announced Wednesday.

Oct 11: Islamabad: The cancellation of the Indo-Pak foreign ministers' meeting in New York by India on "flimsy pretexts" was "disappointing", Pakistan said Thursday, asserting that it wants peaceful and good-neighbourly relations with New Delhi on the basis of sovereign equality, mutual respect and mutual benefit.

Oct 12: United Nations: India was elected to the United Nations' top human rights body on Friday for a period of three years beginning January 1, 2019, getting 188 votes in the Asia-Pacific category, the highest number of votes among all candidates.

Oct 13: Washington: US President Donald Trump has warned Saudi Arabia of "severe punishment" if it is responsible for the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who is feared killed, that has resulted in global outrage against the kingdom.

Oct 14: Washington: President Donald Trump has said that he wants people with merit to enter the United States, a move that can help technology professionals from countries such as India.

Oct 15: London: British Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday insisted a Brexit deal was "still achievable" despite differences with the EU, but warned against any attempt to "trap" the UK in a permanent Customs Unions, ahead of a crucial Brexit summit in Brussels later this week.

Oct 16: Riyadh: Top US diplomat Mike Pompeo said Tuesday that Saudi leaders supported a "thorough" probe into the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi on an outwardly friendly visit to the kingdom whose reputation has taken a beating.

Oct 17: London: Anna Burns has become the first Northern Irish author to win the prestigious Man Booker Prize for her novel 'Milkman', an "incredibly original" story of a young woman's affair with a married man set in the political troubles of Northern Ireland. By Aditi Khanna Oct 18: Islamabad: Pakistan may not have to approach the IMF for loans as it has received "positive" responses from some "friendly countries", Prime Minister Imran Khan has said, days after Islamabad formally approached the global lender for a bailout to tide over the economic crisis Oct 19: Islamabad: Pakistan said on Friday that India's decision to buy S-400 missile defence system from Russia will further destabilise stability in the region and renewed the arms race.By Sajjad Hussain Oct 20: Kabul: Nearly 170 Afghans were killed or wounded in poll-related violence on Saturday, officials said, as the legislative election turned chaotic with many polling centres opening hours late -- or not at all -- due to technical glitches and lack of staff. Oct 21: Washington: Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said Sunday the kingdom did not know where the body of slain journalist Jamal Khashoggi was, despite admitting to the killing and calling it a "tremendous mistake." Oct 22: Washington: President Donald Trump said Monday that his administration will cut off aid to three Central American nations for their failure to stop a migrant caravan of thousands of people from moving towards the US with the aim to enter America illegally.

Oct 23: Washington: The powerful group of G-7 countries Tuesday called for a "thorough, credible, transparent, and prompt" investigation by Saudi Arabia, in full collaboration with Turkey, in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Oct 24: Jerusalem: A leading state-run Israeli defence company said Wednesday it has signed a USD 777 million contract with India for the supply of Barak 8 long-range surface-to-air defence missiles and missile defence systems for the Indian Navy, media reports here said.

Oct 25: Beijing: China and India would hold joint military drills later this year and officials from the two sides will soon meet in Chinese city Chengdu to finalise the plans to resume the exercises, the Defence Ministry said here.

Oct 26: Colombo: Controversial Sri Lankan strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa staged a dramatic political comeback on Friday, becoming the new Prime Minister after President Maithripala Sirisena sacked premier Ranil Wickremesinghe who termed the move as "unconstitutional" and vowed to prove his majority in Parliament.

Oct 27: Colombo: Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena on Saturday suspended parliament till November 16 after sacked Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe sought an emergency session to prove his majority, deepening the political crisis in the island nation.

Oct 28: Colombo: Sri Lankan Parliament's speaker on Sunday recognised Ranil Wickremesinghe as the country's prime minister, saying he has "obtained a mandate to secure democracy and good governance”, in a major relief to the embattled UNP leader who was sacked by President Maithripala Sirisena in a dramatic move on Friday night.

Oct 29: Colombo: Former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa Monday assumed charge as Sri Lanka's new Prime Minister after the surprise sacking of his predecessor Ranil Wickremesinghe by President Maithripala Sirisena which plunged the island nation into an unprecedented political crisis.

Oct 30: Dhaka: Bangladesh's ailing former prime minister Khaleda Zia cannot contest the upcoming parliamentary election unless the 17-year jail term awarded to her in two separate graft cases is terminated, Attorney-General Mahbubey Alam said on Tuesday.

Oct 31: Washington: India, which jumped more than 50 spots in the ease of doing business ranking in just two years, has emerged as one of the top reformers, World Bank officials said Wednesday, but cautioned that entering the top 50 bracket is tough as the next set of reforms is difficult.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of November, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of November, 2018

Press Trust of India

Nov 1: London/New Delhi: Hundreds of employees at Google offices around the world, including in India, Thursday staged an unprecedented series of walkouts in protest at the company's treatment of women and lenient treatment of senior executives accused of sexual misconduct.

Nov 2: Washington: A US-based editor of a leading media house has accused former Union minister M J Akbar of raping her in India 23 years ago, saying the "brilliant journalist" used his position as the editor-in-chief of a newspaper to prey on her, an allegation denied by his lawyer. Nov 3: Tehran: Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Saturday that President Donald Trump has "disgraced" US prestige and would be the ultimate loser from renewing sanctions on the Islamic republic.

Nov 4: Beijing: China on Sunday said it supported Pakistan's "quest for peace through dialogue" to settle the outstanding disputes with India and backed Islamabad's engagement with the Nuclear Suppliers group (NSG).

Nov 5: Tehran: Iran greeted the re-imposition of US sanctions on Monday with air defence drills and a statement from President Hassan Rouhani that the nation faces a "war situation," raising Mideast tensions as America's maximalist approach to the Islamic Republic takes hold.

Nov 6: Washington: Tens of thousands of Americans began voting in the midterm elections in the US on Tuesday after a divisive campaign for the crucial polls, whose outcome would determine the next two years of Donald Trump's presidency.

Nov 7: Washington: The United States has exempted India from imposition of certain sanctions for the development of the strategically-located Chabahar Port in Iran, along with the construction of the railway line connecting it with Afghanistan, a State Department spokesperson said.

Nov 8: Dhaka: Bangladesh will hold its general election on December 23 and for the first time will use electronic voting machines on a limited scale, the electoral body announced on Thursday, amid an impasse between the government and the main opposition alliance over the timing of the polls.

Nov 9: Colombo: Sri Lanka's political crisis deepened Friday as President Maithripala Sirisena dissolved Parliament and announced snap polls on January 5 after it became evident that he did not have enough support in the House for Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was appointed by him under controversial circumstances.

Nov 10: Seoul: The North and South Korean militaries completed withdrawing troops and firearms from 22 front-line guard posts on Saturday as they continue to implement a wide-ranging agreement reached in September to reduce tensions across the world's most fortified border, a South Korean Defence Ministry official said.

Nov 11: Paris: World leaders gathered in the driving rain in Paris on Sunday to mark 100 years since the end of World War I, with host Emmanuel Macron warning against nationalism at a time of growing strain between Europe and Donald Trump's America.

Nov 12: Los Angeles: Marvel legend Stan Lee, who revolutionized pop culture as the co-creator of iconic superheroes like Spider-Man and The Hulk who now dominate the world's movie screens, has died. He was 95 years old.

Nov 13: Washington: CNN Tuesday said it has filed a lawsuit against Donald Trump and several of his top aides, seeking the immediate restoration of the network's correspondent Jim Acosta's press pass to the White House which was suspended following a testy exchange with the US president.

Nov 14: Colombo: Sri Lanka's Parliament on Wednesday passed a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa who was installed by President Maithripala Sirisena in a controversial move, a day after the Supreme Court overturned the presidential decree to dissolve the House and hold snap polls on January 5.

Nov 15: London: Embattled British Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday faced a possible "coup" after Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, Indian-origin minister Shailesh Vara and two other ministers resigned from her divided Cabinet over UK's "half-baked" divorce deal with the EU even as she defended the draft despite a barrage of criticism.

Nov 16: London: British Prime Minister Theresa May on Friday soldiered on by appointing replacements for the ministerial posts vacated by some of her rebelling MPs over their Brexit concerns regarding a controversial European Union (EU) withdrawal agreement.

Nov 17: Paradise (US): President Donald Trump arrived in Northern California on Saturday to see firsthand the grief and devastation from the deadliest U.S. wildfire in a century amid confusion over how many people remain unaccounted for.

Nov 18: Washington: President Donald Trump on Sunday defended his administration's decision to stop hundreds of millions of dollars in military aid to Pakistan, saying the country does not do "a damn thing" for the US and its government had helped Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden hide near its garrison city.

Nov 19: Yokohama: Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn is under arrest in Japan over allegations of financial misconduct and faces being fired this week, the firm said Monday, in a stunning fall from grace for one of the world's best-known businessmen.

Nov 20: Washington: President Donald Trump Tuesday signalled that the US will not take strong action against Saudi Arabia or its Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the brutal murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi and intends to remain steadfast partner of Riyadh in the interests of his country, Israel and all other partners in the region.

Nov 21: Hanoi: India and Vietnam have decided to step up defence cooperation and oil exploration to boost their bilateral ties as they reaffirmed the importance of freedom of navigation, over-flight and unimpeded economic activities in the South China Sea, amid China flexing its muscles in the Indo-Pacific region.

Nov 22: London: British Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday said that a "good" post-Brexit deal with the EU was "within grasp" and she was determined to deliver it, as the European Commission confirmed an in-principle agreement over trade, security and other issues after Britain leaves the economic bloc.

Nov 23: Islamabad: Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa has confirmed the death sentences of 11 hardcore terrorists, who were involved in heinous offences, the army announced on a day when the country witnessed two major terror attacks that killed nearly 40 people.

Nov 24: Beijing: In a significant step, India and China on Saturday resolved to "intensify" their efforts to achieve a "fair, reasonable and mutually acceptable" solution to the vexed boundary question at an early date as the special representatives of the two countries held "constructive and forward-looking" talks over the issue.

Nov 25: Islamabad: Pakistan on Sunday welcomed India's decision to send its two Union ministers to attend the groundbreaking ceremony of the Kartarpur corridor next week, terming it a "positive response".

Nov 26: London: British Prime Minister Theresa May faced parliamentary fury on Monday as she set off on the tricky task of convincing mutinous lawmakers to back her divorce deal with the EU.

Nov 27: Beijing: Jack Ma, founder of Chinese tech giant Alibaba, is among the world's richest people but he has now emerged as a member of another club: China's 89-million-strong Communist Party.

Nov 28: Kartarpur: Pitching for the normalisation of Indo-Pak ties, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan Wednesday said his government, the army and all political parties in the country are on the same page to improve ties with India and asserted that all issues, including Kashmir, can be resolved with "strength and will" of leadership of the two countries.

Nov 29: Washington: US President Donald Trump on Thursday scrapped a planned meeting at the G-20 summit with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin over Moscow's detention of a group of Ukrainian sailors.

Nov 30: Buenos Aires: G20 leaders opened annual talks on Friday stalked by the deepest divisions since their first summit 10 years ago, with US President Donald Trump under fire for destroying the group's past consensus on trade and climate change.

(Source PTI)

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of December, 2018

Digest year-ender for international stories for month of December, 2018

Press Trust of India

Dec 1: Houston: George H W Bush, the 41st president of the US who led America during the dramatic collapse of the Soviet Union and engineered the defeat of an audacious Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, died here on Friday. He was 94.

Dec 2: Dhaka: Quashing the political ambitions of jailed ex-Bangladesh prime minister Khaleda Zia, the election authority on Sunday rejected her nomination papers from three constituencies, citing her convictions in two corruption cases.

Dec 3: Islamabad/Washington: US President Donald Trump has written to Prime Minister Imran Khan, seeking Pakistan's help with stuttering Afghan peace talks and support in bringing the Taliban to the negotiating table to end the 17-year brutal war in the neighbouring country, Pakistani officials said on Monday.

Dec 4: Abu Dhabi: India and the UAE Tuesday signed two agreements, including one on currency swap, as External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj held exhaustive discussions with her counterpart Abdullah bin Zayed to step up bilateral cooperation in areas like security, defence, counter-terrorism, trade and energy.

Dec 5: London: Fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya on Wednesday took to social media with an offer to pay back 100 per cent of "public money" to various Indian banks and urged the government to accept his offer, days ahead of a UK court's decision on his plea not to extradite him to India.

Dec 6: London: World markets slumped Thursday as the arrest of a top executive at Chinese telecoms giant Huawei raised doubts over the recent trade truce agreed by US President Donald Trump and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

Dec 7: Vienna: OPEC members and 10 other oil producing nations agreed Friday to cut output by 1.2 million barrels a day in a bid to boost prices.

Dec 8: Paris: French "yellow vest" demonstrators clashed with riot police in Paris on Saturday in the latest round of protests against President Emmanuel Macron, but the city appeared to be escaping the large-scale destruction of a week earlier due to heavy security.

Dec 9: London: Ahead of a crucial vote on Britain's divorce deal with the European Union (EU), thousands of protesters marched through London in support of Brexit on Sunday amid tight security measures in place by Scotland Yard.

Dec 10: Katowice (Poland): The Trump administration Monday organised an event to promote coal at the venue of UN Climate Conference here in Poland, drawing flak from civil society organisations which dumped the US action as "disruptive".

Dec 11: London: British Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday embarked on a whistle-stop tour of Europe in a desperate bid to rescue her Brexit deal, trying to convince the EU leaders to offer some concessions so that she could persuade Britain's MPs to support it.

Dec 12: Washington: The US Senate has passed a crucial bipartisan legislation that seeks to impose a visa ban on Chinese officials who deny American citizens, government officials and journalists access to Tibet, the remote Himalayan homeland of the exiled Dalai Lama.

Dec 13: London: British Prime Minister Theresa May won a crucial vote of confidence in her leadership of the ruling Conservative Party over the controversial Brexit deal, after she placated rebel lawmakers by agreeing that she would step down before the 2022 general election.

Dec 14: Kathmandu: The Nepal government has banned the use of Indian currency notes of Rs 2,000, Rs 500 and Rs 200 denominations, a move that could affect Indian tourists visiting the Himalayan nation where Indian currency is widely used.

Dec 15: Washington: A federal judge in Texas Friday struck down the entire Affordable Care Act, popular as Obamacare, ruling that the health-care law's individual coverage mandate was "unconstitutional", handing a major political victory to US President Donald Trump who has long been seeking its end.

Dec 16: Islamabad: Pakistan Army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa Sunday confirmed the death sentence of 15 "hardcore terrorists", who were involved in killing civilians and abetting the 2016 Christian Colony suicide attacks in Peshawar.

Dec 17: United Nations: The UN General Assembly on Monday adopted by a wide majority a Global Compact on Refugees aimed at improving efforts to manage large refugee movements -- but without the support of the United States and Hungary.

Dec 18: Washington: President Donald Trump's former national security chief on Tuesday received a delay in sentencing for lying over Russian contacts, after a judge threatened him with stiff jail time and said: "You sold your country out." Dec 19: Washington: The US has started to withdraw its troops from Syria, the White House said Wednesday, asserting that it has defeated the Islamic State terror group in the strife-torn country.

Dec 20: Washington: The US acceded to Pakistan's demand, supported by China, to "set aside" its concerns over Islamabad's secretive nuclear weapons programme in the immediate aftermath of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, according to the latest documents declassified from the era.

Dec 21: Dubai/Islamabad: The UAE Friday said it will soon give USD 3 billion to cash-strapped Pakistan to bolster its foreign exchange reserves and the government's fiscal policies.

Dec 22: Beijing: Indian and Chinese troops on Saturday concluded the seventh round of counter terrorism military exercises in China's Chengdu city during which over 100-strong contingents from both nations conducted the drills while living and dining together to build up a sense of camaraderie. Dec 23: Carita (Indonesia): A volcano-triggered tsunami has left at least 222 people dead and hundreds more injured after slamming without warning into beaches around Indonesia's Sunda Strait, officials said Sunday, voicing fears that the toll would rise further.

Dec 24: Islamabad: An anti-corruption court in Pakistan on Monday sentenced ousted premier Nawaz Sharif to seven years in jail in the Al-Azizia Steel Mills graft case but acquitted him in the Flagship Investments reference, concluding a series of three court cases against the Sharif family in the high-profile Panama Papers scandal.

Dec 25: Dhaka: Bangladesh police have arrested more than 10,500 opposition activists in a crackdown ahead of elections this week, opposition parties said Tuesday. Dec 26: Jerusalem: The Israeli Knesset has voted to dissolve the current parliament and scheduled new elections for April 9.

Dec 27: Antananarivo (Madagascar): Former Madagascan president Andry Rajoelina has beaten his rival and predecessor Marc Ravalomanana in an election beset by allegations of fraud, the electoral commission said Thursday.

Dec 28: Washington: The partial US government shutdown is all set to drag on to the new year as opposition Democrats and Republicans refused to show any sign of compromise Thursday to end the impasse over President Donald Trump's demand for border wall funding. Dec 29: Islamabad: Pakistan has sent recommendations to India for facilitating visa-free travel of Indian Sikh pilgrims through the upcoming Kartarpur corridor, according to a media report here on Saturday. Dec 30: Dhaka: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is cruising towards a landslide victory in Bangladesh's general election on Sunday with her Awami League all set to cross the 'magic number' of 151 in the 300-member House, following a tense vote that saw at least 17 people killed in poll-related violence and demands of a fresh election by the opposition, alleging rigged voting.

(Source PTI)