Japan Awaits Hostages’ Fate After Islamic State Deadline Passes
Japan’s government and public await the fate of two Japanese captives threatened with execution, 24 hours after the passing of a deadline on Islamic State’s demand for a $200 million ransom. The government considered the cutoff point to have been 2:50 p.m. Tokyo time on Friday. Islamic State... read more »
In Gujarat, all schools asked to perform ‘compulsory’ Saraswati...
Ahmedabad: The Ahmedabad School Board has whipped up a controversy with its circular asking all schools to hold ‘Saraswati Vandana’ on Vasant Panchami on Saturday, drawing accusations of promoting ruling BJP’s Hindutva agenda and warnings of legal action and protest by... read more »
Death of ‘reformer’ King Abdullah: Why Saudis will remain frene...
The death yesterday (23 January) of Saudi King Abdullah – widely acclaimed as a “reformer”, albeit a one only in the context of the glacial pace of change in this semi-mediaeval kingdom – changes nothing for anybody anywhere. While the optics of geopolitical political correctness... read more »
US and India Appear Ready to Try to Hash Out Differences
Differences that the United States and India have been grappling with for years are expected to dominate talks between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi when they meet in New Delhi next week. Climate Change India is the world’s third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases,... read more »
Iran accuses Israel of benefiting from strife in Egypt, after attacks in jihadist-ridden S...
Iran has condemned violence in the Sinai Peninsula that left dozens of Egyptian security personnel dead on Friday, accusing Israel of benefiting from insecurity in the volatile region that... read more »
Furious Cameron refuses to pay EU bill
British prime minister David Cameron’s troubled relationship with the EU plumbed new depths yesterday as he said Britain would not be paying more than €2.1bn in ‘top-up’ EU budget... read more »
UK told to pay £1.7bn extra to EU
The UK has been told it must pay an extra £1.7bn (2.1bn euros) towards the European Union’s budget because the economy has performed better than expected in recent years. The payment... read more »
Ebola in New York: Doctor tests positive for deadly disease after returning from west Afri...
Authorities in New York confirmed on Thursday night that a doctor who had recently returned to his home in Harlem after working for Doctors Without Borders in Guinea helping treat patients... read more »
Boko Haram Said to Abduct More Women in Nigeria
DAKAR, Senegal — Scores of young women have been kidnapped in new abductions by Islamist militants in Nigeria, according to local journalists, a Roman Catholic bishop and news reports, indicating... read more »
