Singapore’s GDP growth eases in 2015
Singapore, Feb 24 (IANS) The Singapore economy grew 1.8 percent on a year-on-year basis in the fourth quarter of 2015, with the whole year GDP growth eased to two percent last year, the Ministry of…
International
Australia to increase defence spending
Canberra, Feb 24 (IANS) Australia will raise defence spending to two percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) over the next seven years in a formal announcement to be made by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull…
Wikileaks reveals NSA spying on world leaders
Washington, Feb 23 (IANS) Wikileaks has published new documents revealing that the US National Security Agency (NSA) has spied on world leaders such as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi and…
Pakistani man, family in Italy arrested for enslaving wife
Busto Arsizio (Italy), Feb 23 (IANS/AKI) Police in northern Italy on Tuesday arrested a Pakistani Muslim and five members of his family for allegedly enslaving his young wife, starving and keeping her prisoner and preventing…
Pakistan’s parliament first in world to go totally green
Islamabad, Feb 23 (IANS) Pakistan’s parliament on Tuesday became the first in the world to totally switch to green energy with a solar power production project. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif attended a switch-on ceremony at…
Italy summons US envoy over alleged spying on Berlusconi
Rome, Feb 23 (IANS/AKI) Italy’s foreign ministry on Tuesday summoned US Ambassador John Phillips after local media reports cited new Wikileaks files that suggest the US spied on ex-premier Silvio Berlusconi and his closest aides…
Nepal PM’s studies quake rehab in Kutch
By Darshan Desai Bhuj (Gujarat), Feb 23 (IANS) Nepalese Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, on a six-day visit to India, on Tuesday landed at the desert district of Kutch in Gujarat, which 15 years ago…
Zika cases in China rise to five
Beijing, Feb 23 (IANS) China has confirmed another two imported Zika cases, bringing the figure to five, the National Health and Family Planning Commission announced on Tuesday. The new cases involved a 38-year-old man and…
Pakistan makes arrests in Pathankot attack case
Pathankot: Soilders inside the Pathankot Air Force base that was attacked by militants; on Jan 5, 2016. (Photo: IANS) Islamabad, Feb 23 (IANS) Pakistani law-enforcement agencies have conducted raids in various cities of the country’s…
Kenya implanting microchip in rhinos to combat poaching
Nairobi, Feb 23 (IANS) The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) on Tuesday began implanting microchips in every black rhino in the world’s famous Masai Mara Games Reserve, to fight against poaching….
Four-year-old sentenced to life in Egypt for ‘mistaken identity’
Cairo, Feb 23 (IANS) Following a public outcry, Egyptian authorities have admitted that a military court “mistakenly” sentenced a four-year-old child to life in prison for “committing murder” when he was only one-year-old. The little…
‘Arab decision-makers face economic challenges’
Abu Dhabi, Feb 23 (IANS/WAM) Successive economic developments in Arab countries are posing new challenges to the decision-makers, Abdulrahman Al Hamidy, Director-General and Chairman Arab Monetary Fund, said on Tuesday. Arab decision-makers need to focus…
Fire devastates Bangladesh factory
Dhaka, Feb 23 (IANS) A major fire on Tuesday caused widespread destruction in a garment factory in Bangladesh’s Gazipur district. As many as 10 fire tenders were rushed to Gazipur as the factory caught fire…
Beijing to limit construction in air corridors
(151225) — BEIJING, Dec. 25, 2015 (Xinhua) — A cyclist takes photos of the smog-shrouded Palace Museum turret in Beijing, Dec. 25, 2015. An orange alarm has been issued to alert smog and air pollution…
7,000 Hindus wrongly documented as Muslims in Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur, Feb 23 (IANS) A task force of non-governmental organisations in Malaysia has said that some 7,000 Hindus living in the country are wrongly classified as Muslims on their national identity cards, the media…
Civilians have control over Japanese military: Minister
Tokyo, Feb 23 (INAS) Japanese Defence Minister General Nakatani on Tuesday said the country’s civilians still have control over the Self-Defence Force. He downplayed the report that senior officials in the SDF demand a bigger…
Pakistan’s parliament becomes completely solar
Islamabad, Feb 23 (IANS) Pakistan’s parliament on Tuesday earned the unique distinction of becoming the world’s first legislature whose entire electricity needs are met by solar power. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday inaugurated the…
Indonesia sinks 30 boats to fight illegal fishing
Jakarta, Feb 23 (IANS) Indonesia has sunk 30 impounded foreign and local boats in its campaign against illegal fishing in its waters. Among the 30 scuttled empty vessels, 11 were identified from Vietnam, eight from…
Former Shanghai ‘comfort women’ station demolished
Beijing, Feb 23 (IANS) Shanghai has begun demolishing the site of a former Japanese “comfort women” station, triggering widespread criticism, the media reported on Tuesday. Demolition work at the two-storey building in the city’s Hongkou…
Opening China’s gated communities to public criticised
Beijing, Feb 23 (IANS) A recent guideline issued by China’s central government on urban planning has led to criticism over opening up gated residential communities to public road system, the media reported on Tuesday. The…