MIDDLE EAST

Hamas, Israel fighting escalates even amid truce efforts

8:00 pm May 13, 2021

Gazacity: Hamas sent a heavy barrage of rockets deep into Israel in a matter of minutes on Thursday and Israel pounded Gaza with more airstrikes. The relentless escalation of hostilities came even as Egyptian negotiators held in-person talks with the two sides, intensifying efforts at mediation. Previous fighting between Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers, including a devastating 2014 war, was largely confined to the impoverished and blockaded Palestinian territory […]

Religious festival stampede in Israel kills 44, hurts dozens

2:25 pm April 30, 2021

JERUSALEM: A stampede at a religious festival attended by tens of thousands of ultra-Orthodox Jews in northern Israel killed at least 44 people and injured about 150 early Friday, medical officials said. It was one of the country’s deadliest civilian disasters. The stampede began when large numbers of people thronged a narrow tunnel-like passage during […]

UN chief warns against criminal exploitation of COVID-19 recovery resources

UN-led informal Cyprus talks stall, new round planned

7:28 pm April 29, 2021

Geneva: U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Thursday that Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots failed to make headway in informal talks on the future of their ethnically divided island, but talks will continue and “I do not give up.” The United Nations chief invested his political capital in overseeing three days of talks in Geneva aimed […]

COVID surge, vaccine shortages spread beyond India’s borders

World leaders pledge climate cooperation despite other rifts

11:40 pm April 22, 2021

WASHINGTON: President Joe Biden convened leaders of the world’s most powerful countries on Thursday to try to spur global efforts against climate change, drawing commitments from Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin to cooperate on cutting emissions despite their own sharp rivalries with the United States. “Meeting this moment is about more […]

US security assistance to Pakistan remains suspended: Pentagon

Pentagon chief declares ‘ironclad’ US commitment to Israel

10:43 pm April 11, 2021

TEL AVIV: U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Sunday declared an “enduring and ironclad” American commitment to Israel, reinforcing support at a tense time in Israeli politics and amid questions about the Biden administration’s efforts to revive nuclear negotiations with Israel’s archenemy, Iran. Austin’s first talks in Israel since he became Pentagon chief in January […]