International

04 Sep

Google locks Afghan government accounts as Taliban seek emails: Source

editor0 CommentsInternationalAfghanistan, Google

Google has temporarily locked down an unspecified number of Afghan government email accounts, according to a person familiar with the matter, as fears grow over the digital paper trail left by former officials and their international partners. In the weeks since the Taliban's swift takeover of Afghanistan from a U.S.-backed government, reports have highlighted how biometric and Afghan payroll databases might be exploited by the new rulers to hunt their enemies. In a statement on Friday, Alphabet Inc's Google stopped short of confirming that Afghan government accounts were being locked down, saying that the company was monitoring the situation in…

Read More

01 Sep

Sri Lanka declares food emergency as forex crisis worsens

editor0 CommentsInternationalECONOMY

Sri Lanka on Tuesday declared a state of emergency over food shortages as private banks ran out of foreign exchange to finance imports. With the country suffering a hard-hitting economic crisis, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said he ordered emergency regulations to counter the hoarding of sugar, rice and other essential foods. Rajapaksa has named a top army officer as "Commissioner General of Essential Services to coordinate the supply of paddy, rice, sugar and other consumer goods". The move followed sharp price rises for sugar, rice, onions and potatoes, while long queues have formed outside stores because of shortages of milk powder,…

Read More

01 Sep

UNSC resolution addresses ‘key concerns’ on Afghanistan: India

editor0 CommentsIndia, InternationalAfghanistan, Taliban

Despite the abstention of two “P-5” countries, Russia and China, from the India-led United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2593, the Government of India said it was a “matter of satisfaction” that the resolution, addressed India's “key concerns” on Afghanistan. According official sources, the resolution, which called on the Taliban to keep its commitments on preventing terror groups in Afghanistan and urged them to assist the safe evacuations of all Afghan nationals wishing to leave the country, was the result of careful coordination and “high-level official contacts with UNSC members, including a call to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken,…

Read More

30 Aug

Taliban Want to Continue Political, Trade Ties With India, Leader Stanekzai Says

editor0 CommentsIndia, InternationalTaliban

Taliban leader Sher Mohammed Abbas Stanekzai has said the group wants to continue Afghanistan’s political, economic and cultural ties with India, the first time a member of the Taliban’s top hierarchy has spoken on the issue since the takeover of Kabul. In a nearly 46-minute video posted on the Taliban’s social media platforms on Saturday, Stanekzai spoke extensively in Pashto on the end of the war in Afghanistan and the Taliban’s plans for forming an Islamic administration based on Shariah. He also spoke about the Taliban’s views on relations with key countries in the region, including India, Pakistan, China and…

Read More

29 Aug

COVID-19: India extends ban on scheduled international flights till September 30

editor0 CommentsIndia, Internationalflight

The Centre on Sunday extended the suspension on international scheduled commercial flights till September 30 owing to the coronavirus diseases (Covid-19) pandemic. The latest circular issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) continued to keep international cargo flights and those approved by the regulator to operate. The DGCA also said that scheduled international flights might be allowed on selected routes on a case to case basis. Scheduled international passenger services have been suspended in India since March 23, 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. But special international flights have been operating under the Vande Bharat Mission since May…

Read More

25 Aug

E-visa must for Afghan nationals travelling to India: Home Ministry

editor0 CommentsInternationalAfghanistan, INDIA

All Afghan nationals must travel to India only on e-visa, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) announced on Wednesday. “Owing to the prevailing security situation in Afghanistan and streamlining of the visa process by introducing the e-Emergency X-Misc visa, it has been decided that all Afghan nationals henceforth must travel to India only on e-visa”, the MHA said in a statement. Earlier, the Centre had announced that it would “facilitate repatriation to India of those who wish to leave Afghanistan” and said Hindus and Sikhs from the country will be given priority. Keeping in view some reports that certain…

Read More

25 Aug

Possible case of ‘Havana syndrome’ in Vietnam delays Vice President Harris’ visit

editor0 CommentsInternational

Vice President Kamala Harris’ flight from Singapore to Vietnam had to be pushed back several hours Tuesday over possible “Havana Syndrome” cases among US personnel in Hanoi. The US Embassy in Hanoi issued a statement blaming “a recent possible anomalous health incident” there for the three-hour delay of Harris’ flight. An “anomalous health incident” is a term the US government has used to describe so-called “Havana Syndrome” — a mysterious condition that includes dizziness, nausea, migraines and memory lapses and is sometimes preceded by a piercing sound. The condition got its name from a rash of health incidents first reported…

Read More

24 Aug

CIA Chief Held Secret Meeting Yesterday With Taliban In Kabul: Report

editor0 CommentsInternationalAfghanistan, Taliban

America's top spy held a secret meeting with the Taliban's de facto leader Abdul Ghani Baradar in Kabul on Monday in the highest-level face-to-face encounter between the two sides since the militant group seized the Afghan capital, a media report said on Tuesday. The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan on August 15, two weeks before the US was set to complete its troop withdrawal after a costly two-decade war. This forced Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to flee the country to the UAE. CIA Director William J. Burns held a secret meeting in Kabul on Monday with Baradar in the highest-level…

Read More

23 Aug

1 Afghan guard killed, 3 injured in new ‘gunfight’ at Kabul Airport

editor0 CommentsInternationalAfghanistan, Taliban

A firefight broke out between unidentified gunmen, Western security forces and Afghan guards at the North Gate of Kabul airport on Monday, Germany’s armed forces said, as thousands of Afghans and foreigners thronged the airport, seeking to flee Taliban rule. One Afghan guard was killed and three others were injured in the battle, which also involved US and German forces, the German military said on Twitter, without specifying whether the dead Afghan was one of the Taliban fighters deployed to guard the airport. The airport has been a scene of chaos since the Taliban seized the Afghan capital on Aug.…

Read More

21 Aug

Two children killed, Chinese national injured in blast targeting convoy in Pakistan’s Punjab

editor0 CommentsInternationalChina, PAKISTAN

A suicide bomb attack in Pakistan on a motorcade carrying Chinese personnel injured one Chinese national and killed two local children, the Chinese embassy in Islamabad said on Saturday."The Chinese embassy in Pakistan strongly condemns this act of terrorism, extends its sincere sympathies to the injured of both countries, and expresses its deep condolences to the innocent victims in Pakistan," it said in a statement. The attack took place on Friday at the Gwadar East Bay Expressway project in Balochistan, the embassy said. Several wounded people were treated at a local hospital, it said. The embassy called on Pakistan's authorities…

Read More