Canada announces diplomatic boycott of 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics
Dec 10, 2021, at 11:47 pm
Ottawa/IBNS: The Canadian government has launched a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing.
Dec 10, 2021, at 11:35 pm
A large section of Tibetan children in China have been placed in a vast system of government-run boarding schools, where they are cut off from their families, languages and traditional culture, according to an analysis of official data by researchers at the Tibet Action Institute, media reports said on Friday.
Jailed Chinese journalist, disappeared rights lawyer win Lin Zhao Freedom Award
Dec 10, 2021, at 11:19 pm
Washington: Jailed Chinese journalist Zhang Zhan and disappeared rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng have been awarded the Lin Zhao Freedom Award for their contributions in promoting civil society and advancing the rule of law.
Seven UN peacekeepers killed in latest Mali attack
Dec 10, 2021, at 06:40 pm
New York: On Wednesday morning, seven UN peacekeepers from Togo died and three others were seriously injured when their vehicle hit an improvised explosive device in the Bandiagara region in central Mali.
UN hails ‘strong political support’ to boost peacekeepers in the field
Dec 10, 2021, at 06:19 pm
New York: A meeting to boost support for UN Peacekeeping ended on Wednesday with 62 countries making new pledges, and advancing existing commitments, to help enhance the performance and impact of these operations worldwide.
Layoff: China’s Big Tech mount with Kuaishou, iQiyi said to be joining ByteDance in job cuts
Dec 10, 2021, at 06:02 pm
Beijing: Short video giant Kuaishou, rival ByteDance, and Baidu-owned video-streaming platform iQiyi are trimming their payrolls, marking yet another wave of job cuts in China, media reports said.
Hong Kong: Media tycoon Jimmy Lai convicted over banned Tiananmen Massacre vigil
Dec 10, 2021, at 05:55 pm
Hong Kong: Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai and two others have been convicted of charges linked to last year’s banned Tiananmen Massacre vigil, media reports said on Friday.
Africa Free Trade Area, likely spur for growth and development
Dec 10, 2021, at 05:28 pm
New York: With productivity-boosting measures, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement could reduce poverty and inequality while spurring sustainable and inclusive growth, according to a report launched on Wednesday by the UN trade and development body, UNCTAD.
Unilateral sanctions particularly harmful to women, children, other vulnerable groups
Dec 10, 2021, at 05:07 pm
New York: Women, children and other vulnerable groups are more likely to have their human rights impacted by unilateral sanctions, an independent UN human rights expert alerted on Wednesday.
Taiwan: Five Chinese military planes enter ADIZ
Dec 10, 2021, at 04:44 pm
Taipei: As many as five Chinese military planes entered Taiwan’s air defence identification zone (ADIZ) on Thursday, media reports said.
Sharjah cuts working week to 4 days, announces a 3-day weekend
Dec 10, 2021, at 04:56 am
Dubai/IBNS: The southern Gulf emirate of Sharjah on Thursday announced a shift to a three-day weekend for the official sector, media reports said.
Myanmar: Junta troops burn 11 villagers alive in Sagaing
Dec 09, 2021, at 02:54 am
Naypyitaw/UNI: Myanmar junta personnel massacred 11 civilians in northwestern Sagaing region by reportedly burning them alive in retaliation to militia attacks, according to local residents and militia.
Pak Election Commissioner orders PM Imran Khan to cancel scheduled visit to Peshawar
Dec 09, 2021, at 02:50 am
Islamabad: The Election Commission of Pakistan on Wednesday ordered Prime Minister Imran Khan to cancel his scheduled visit to Peshawar ahead of local bodies elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).
Kenya: Three killed in suicide attack
Dec 09, 2021, at 02:43 am
Nairobi/UNI/Xinhua: Three people including a suicide bomber were killed in a blast in Kisumu County in Western Kenya, the police confirmed on Wednesday.
Bangladesh: 20 sentenced to death in sensational student murder
Dec 09, 2021, at 02:40 am
Dhaka/UNI/Xinhua: A court in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka on Wednesday handed down death sentence to 20 people accused in a sensational student murder case.
Countries with regulations against industrially produced trans fats tripled over the past year
Dec 08, 2021, at 11:50 pm
New York: Forty countries now have best-practice trans fat elimination policies in effect, protecting 1.4 billion people from this deadly food compound, according to a report released on Tuesday by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina is the 43rd most influential woman in the world
Dec 08, 2021, at 11:46 pm
Dhaka/UNI: This year, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has been ranked 43rd in the list of 100 most influential women in the world, it was reported on Wednesday.
Bachelet describes ‘disastrous’ human rights situation across Occupied Palestinian Territory
Dec 08, 2021, at 11:15 pm
New Yok: The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, said on Tuesday that the human rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory has become “disastrous”, with severe infringements occurring effecting some four million people.
35.8 million face lean season food crisis in West Africa and Sahel
Dec 08, 2021, at 11:01 pm
New York: Growing food insecurity that is already affecting tens of millions of people across West Africa and the Sahel, must not be ignored by the international community, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
UNICEF launches record emergency appeal as escalating conflicts push millions to the brink
Dec 08, 2021, at 10:56 pm
New York: The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on Tuesday launched an appeal for a record $9.4 billion as attacks against children continue to rise. Close to 24,000 grave violations against youngsters were confirmed last year, or 72 violations a day, according to the agency, in its largest ever appeal for funding.
Clashes displace thousands in Darfur, where 6.2 million will need assistance next year
Dec 08, 2021, at 10:45 pm
New York: With escalating violence displacing thousands of people since November, the humanitarian situation in Sudan’s Darfur is getting worse and around 6.2 million people will need humanitarian assistance next year, UN agencies reported on Tuesday.
Australia now joins US in diplomatic boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics
Dec 08, 2021, at 04:26 pm
Canberra/UNI: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday stated that his diplomats will not attend the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, joining the US in a formal boycott of the event over China's human right abuses.
Finland PM Sanna Marin caught clubbing despite COVID-19 exposure, apologises
Dec 08, 2021, at 03:49 pm
Helsinki/IBNS: Finland Prime Minister Sanna Marin courted a row after she was spotted clubbing despite coming in contact with a coronavirus positive patient.
Afghan refugees in Indonesia sew their lips to protest against UNHCR
Dec 08, 2021, at 04:30 am
Jakarta/UNI: Afghan refugees in Indonesia have sewn their lips shut in an attempt to draw United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)'s attention as the organization has failed to address their problems and process their asylum-seeking cases.
Pakistan: 12 under-trial prisoners escape Lahore district court
Dec 08, 2021, at 02:34 am
Lahore, Pakistan: As many as 12 under-trial prisoners escaped a district court in Pakistan's Lahore on Monday, media reports said.
Microsoft says it disrupts activities of China-based hacking group
Dec 08, 2021, at 02:25 am
Washington, US: The corporate vice president of Microsoft's Customer Security and Trust (CST) team, Tom Burt, said Microsoft Digital Crimes Unit (DCU) has disrupted the activities of a China-based hacking group that has been termed "Nickel" by the American multinational technology company.
Dec 08, 2021, at 01:58 am
Islamabad: Residents of Bangash belt of Pakistan's Kohat region have often complained that local youths need to quit education after matriculation since the area has a lack of colleges for both girls and boys.
Bangabandhu would’ve wanted formal apology for 1971 atrocities: Ex-Pakistani diplomat
Dec 08, 2021, at 12:26 am
Dhaka: Former Pakistani diplomat Husain Haqqani has said if Bangladesh's founding father Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman lived today then he would have supported the idea of formal apology from Pakistan for the tragedy inflicted upon the people of Bangladesh in 1971.
Religious scholars to oversee syllabus taught in educational institutions: Pak official
Dec 08, 2021, at 12:19 am
Islamabad: Special Assistant to the Pakistan Prime Minister on Political Communication, Shahbaz Gill, has said the syllabus of educational institutes in the country should nurture students’ mindset in line with the Islamic code of life and ethics.
Unidentified men abduct Pakistani national who arrives in Karachi airport from Germany
Dec 07, 2021, at 11:46 pm
Karachi, Pakistan: Unidentified men reportedly abducted a Pakistani national, who had arrived at Jinnah International Airport in Karachi from Germany, and his friend, who went to receive him, from the airport area, according to Pak media outlets.