Hong Kong, April 8 (AP): The British government said Thursday it is setting up a 43 million pound (USD 59 million) fund to help migrants from Hong Kong settle in the country as they escape increasing political repression in the former colony. The offer extends to holders of British National (Overseas) passports who have been offered special visas, opening a path to work, residency and eventual citizenship to up to 5 million of Hong Kong's 7.4 million people. The integration p

London, April 8 (PTI): The UK government on Thursday condemned the bullying actions of the Myanmar military junta after the country's ambassador, Kyaw Zwar Minn, was refused entry to his own embassy in London and had to spend the night in his car. Zwar Minn has been critical of the junta's coup in Myanmar, which have sparked widespread protests and clashes in the region since February, and called for Myanmar's ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi to be released. He was forc

Melbourne/Wellington, April 8 (PTI): New Zealand has for the first time imposed a temporary ban on travellers coming from India, including its citizens, from April 11 to 28 due to a surge in COVID-19 cases among visitors to this country, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Thursday. The travel restriction comes after New Zealand recorded 23 new positive coronavirus cases in managed isolation on Thursday, of which 17 came from India, Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield was

Dhaka, April 8 (PTI): A 27-year-old Bangaladeshi Islamic preacher has again been apprehended by the police, this time under the Digital Security Act (DSA) for allegedly making an "anti-state speech" and inciting disorder, according to media reports on Thursday. Rafiqul Islam Madani, Director of Sawtul Hera Madrasa, was picked up from his ancestral home in northern Bangladesh's Netrokona district on Wednesday, Director of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Legal and Media, C

Jerusalem, April 7 (AP): Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday urged the world not to revive the troubled international nuclear deal with Iran as he opened Israel's annual memorial day for the 6 million Jews who perished in the Holocaust. Speaking as world powers are launching a new effort to bring the United States back into the foundering 2015 deal, Netanyahu also said that Israel was not obligated to respect it. History has taught us that deals like this, with ext

Washington, April 8 (PTI): Democracies around the world, including the US and India, are facing challenges, Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi has said. "Today, one cannot escape the feeling that America's democratic institutions are facing unprecedented threats," he said on Wednesday commemorating the 'International Day of Conscience', which was on April 5. He was referring to the January 6 attack on the US Capitol. "In response to the Jan

Washington, April 8 (AP): Without coming right out and saying it, President Joe Biden seems ready to let lapse a May 1 deadline for completing a withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. Orderly withdrawals take time, and Biden is running out of it. Biden has inched so close to the deadline that his indecision amounts almost to a decision to put off, at least for a number of months, a pullout of the remaining 2,500 troops and continue supporting the Afghan military at the risk of

London, April 8 (AP): Myanmar's ambassador to the United Kingdom, who has criticized the military coup in the country, says he has been locked out of his London office by colleagues. Kyaw Zwar Minn said he was barred from entering the embassy on Wednesday evening by diplomats loyal to the military regime. Last month, the ambassador called for the release of Myanmar's democratic leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, who was detained when the military seized power on Feb 1. They are

CANBERRA, APRIL 7 (IANS): Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd briefly stepped into a new role as an Uber driver in Queensland state, giving a lift to a group of "tipsy" diners who mistakenly piled into his car. "Guilty as charged," Rudd tweeted in response to a media report on the incident on Wednesday. "Four young Melburnians getting drenched in a Queensland subtropical downpour at Noosa last night with no Uber in sight... So what's a man to

Ankara, April 7 (AP): A Turkish court sentenced dozens of people, including former soldiers attached to the presidential guard regiment, to life imprisonment on Wednesday over their involvement in the 2016 failed coup attempt against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. A total of 497 defendants had been on trial since 2017 for attempting to seize the military headquarters in Ankara, occupying the headquarters of the state broadcast

Moscow, April 7 (AP): They're not leaders for life not technically, at least. But in political reality, the powerful tenures of China's Xi Jinping and, as of this week, Russia's Vladimir Putin are looking as if they will extend much deeper into the 21st century even as the two superpowers whose destinies they steer gather more clout with each passing year. What's more, as they consolidate political control at home, sometimes with harsh measures, they're working t

Hong Kong, April 7 (AP): Three veteran Hong Kong pro-democracy activists, including well-known publisher Jimmy Lai, have pleaded guilty to taking party in an unauthorised rally that resulted in violence between police and participants, media reported Wednesday. Lai is already being held in custody on other charges related to his outspoken opposition to China's crackdown on civil liberties in the former British colony. Last Thursday, seven of Hong Kong's leading pro-democr

Taipei, April 7 (AP): Taiwan's foreign minister on Wednesday said the island will defend itself to the very last day if attacked by China. Joseph Wu said China's attempts at conciliation while engaging in military intimidation are sending mixed signals to the island's residents. China claims Taiwan as its own territory to be won over peacefully or by force. Wu noted China flew 10 warplanes into Taiwan's air defense identification zone on Monday and deployed an

Yangon, April 7 (AP): Security forces on Wednesday stormed a town in northwestern Myanmar where some residents had used homemade hunting rifles to resist the military's February seizure of power, killing at least seven civilians and injuring many others, local news reports said. The online news site Khonumthung Burmese said the attack on Kalay began before dawn. Videos on the site included what appeared to be sounds of rifle fire, high-caliber weapons and grenade explosions. Pos

Lembata (Indonesia), April 7 (AP): The death toll from mudslides in eastern Indonesia has risen to 126 with scores still missing, officials said Wednesday, as rain continued to pound the region and hamper the search. East Flores district on Adonara island suffered the highest losses with 67 bodies recovered so far and six missing. Mud tumbled down from surrounding hills early on Sunday, catching people at sleep. Some were swept away by flash floods after overnight rains caused river

Seoul, April 7 (AP): North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has acknowledged his country was facing the worst-ever situation as he addressed thousands of grassroots members of his ruling party during a major political conference in Pyongyang. Experts say Kim is facing perhaps his toughest moment as he approaches a decade in rule, with North Korea's coronavirus lockdown unleashing further shock on an economy devastated by decades of mismanagement and crippling U.S.-led sanctions over hi

Jerusalem, April 6 (AP): A new audio recording that surfaced Tuesday indicates that Jordanian authorities tried to silence a former crown prince for meeting with internal critics but contains no mention of a foreign plot to destabilise the Western-allied monarchy that officials alleged he was involved in. Jordan slapped a sweeping gag order on all coverage of the dispute involving the king's half brother, Prince Hamzah, hours after the recording circulated online, indicating aut

Pristina (Kosovo), April 6 (AP): Kosovo's new president took office on Tuesday, becoming the country's youngest head of state and one of the youngest in the world. Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, 38, was elected to a five-year term on Sunday by Kosovo's Assembly, or Parliament, making her the Balkan nation's second female leader in the post-war period. Osmani-Sadriu took office Tuesday in a ceremony with a guard of honour. Acting President Glauk Konjufca handed over the c

Yangon, April 6 (AP): Authorities in Myanmar arrested the country's best-known comedian on Tuesday as they continue to crack down on people they accuse of helping incite nationwide protests against February's military coup. The comedian Zarganar was taken from his home in Yangon by police and soldiers who arrived in two army vehicles, fellow comedian Ngepyawkyaw said on his own Facebook page. Zarganar, 60, is a sharp-tongued satirist who has been in and out of prison sinc

MOSCOW, APRIL 6 (IANS): Russia on Tuesday warned against imposing sanctions on Myanmar, as the military junta continues its bloody crackdown on protests in the country since the February 1 coup. Threats, pressure and using sanctions against the acting authorities in Myanmar are futile and extremely dangerous, dpa news agency quoted the Foreign Ministry as saying to Interfax media outlet. Such policies "only contribute to setting the parties against each other", the Mini