Pakistan, Turkey to 'swiftly deploy' forces to Saudi Arabia amid Houthi attacks in key move under Mecca pact

RIYADH: Pakistan and Turkey agreed on Monday to deploy troops to Saudi Arabia under the Mecca Defence Alliance. This comes amid ongoing attacks by Houthi rebel groups from Yemen targeting the Kingdom.The decision was taken at an emergency meeting of the Strategic Political and Defense Committee of the Mecca Defence Alliance held in Riyadh....more

Trump claims Iran is responsible for flydubai incident

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said Monday he "personally" believes Iran was responsible for the September 30 flydubai incident where Indian pilot Smit Machchar was stabbed by Omani co-pilot, Hamam al-Hammami. Trump's comments came even as US Vice President JD Vance told reporters on his way to Alaska Monday that there is "nothing conclusive" linking the incident to Iran....more

UN says Security Council reforms in hands of Member States as Jaishankar renews call for better UN

By Deepak Arora

UNITED NATIONS: UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said Monday that reform of the Security Council is ultimately in the hands of Member States, after India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar renewed his criticism of an increasingly ineffective UN and called for a "better UN.” Haq was responding to questions at the Secretary-General’s daily briefing about Jaishankar’s remarks that the UN has failed to keep pace with a rapidly changing world....more

‘No amount of whataboutery can justify mass disenfranchisement’: SC Justice Ujjal Bhuyan amid SIR row

NEW DELHI: Any exercise that leads to the disenfranchisement of millions of Indian citizens, making them “second class citizens in their own country” by denying them the right to vote, is “intrinsically arbitrary”, Supreme Court judge Ujjal Bhuyan said on Sunday, delivering a scathing constitutional critique of mass voter exclusion amid the controversy over the Election Commission’s special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls....more

UNGA High-Level Week: 194 Delegations Take the Floor as Assembly President Pushes for Security Council Reform

UNITED NATIONS: The 81st session of the UN General Assembly’s high-level week brought 194 delegations to the podium, including 113 heads of state and government, as the world body confronted a packed agenda ranging from wars and climate change to artificial intelligence and reform of the international system....more

Jaishankar at UNGA: India backs peace, warns against weaponisation of trade, technology and finance

UNITED NATIONS: India on Saturday called for a stronger and more predictable international order, warning that conflicts, terrorism and the growing weaponisation of finance, technology, trade and supply chains are deepening instability across the world. Addressing the high-level debate of the 81st UN General Assembly, India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said the United Nations was entering its ninth decade at a time when conflicts and confrontations had become the world's primary concern. He said the consequences were being felt far beyond the countries directly involved in wars....more

Guterres Backs Permanent African Seat on UN Security Council

UNITED NATIONS: UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Tuesday made a direct call for permanent African representation on the Security Council, saying the body must be reformed to reflect the realities of the 21st century. Addressing the opening of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, Guterres said the Security Council was created in the aftermath of World War II, but the world has changed fundamentally since then....more

3rd Aircraft Carrier, 10,000 Troops Head To Middle East After Trump's Warning

WASHINGTON: The United States is sending a third aircraft carrier to the Middle East along with another 9,000 to 10,000 more troops after US President Donald Trump warned Iran of possible new strikes after the midterm elections on November 3. The USS Theodore Roosevelt and its strike group carrying the service members would arrive in the Middle East by the end of November. Currently two other aircraft carriers are stationed in the region -- the USS George HW Bush and the USS George Washington....more

British Airways flight drops 28,000 ft; lands back in London after 'technical issue'

LONDON: Nearly four hours after flight BA295 rapidly descended 28,000 feet while declaring a general emergency, British Airways on Monday said the aircraft had landed safely at London's Heathrow airport....more

Elon Musk to co-lead US effort to study future of warfare, War Secretary Pete Hegseth announces

WASHINGTON: United States Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on Thursday announced that SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk will co-lead a new War Department effort to study the future of warfare, Fox News reported. Making the announcement during his 'State of the Force' address, Hegseth unveiled the initiative, titled "Project Meridian."...more

GST revenue crosses ₹2 lakh crore in September

NEW DELHI: The gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue in September crossed ₹2 lakh crore, registering a 14.7% year-on-year increase, government data released on Thursday showed. Gross GST collections stood at ₹2,03,521 crore in September 2026, compared with ₹1,77,365 crore in September 2025....more

Iran denies diplomats were ‘kicked out’ of US, says all left as scheduled

TEHRAN: Iran's foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, has rejected reports that two Iranian diplomats were “kicked out” of the United States after the UN General Assembly, saying that members of Tehran’s delegation left the country as scheduled. Araghchi hit out at the reports in a post on X on Sunday, calling the reported “expulsion” fake and accusing those celebrating it of showing “desperation and defeat”....more

US Wants New Round Of Talks With Russia, Ukraine This Month: Zelensky

KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday that the United States wants to broker a new round of talks with Ukraine and Russia on ending the four-and-a-half-year war and hold it by the end of October. The US-led peace efforts have been largely stalled with Washington's attention shifted to its war with Iran and as Ukraine says Russia has ramped up its aerial attacks across the war-torn country....more

Shubman Gill Scripts History With 117-Ball Double Century In Second ODI vs West Indies

GUWAHATI: India captain Shubman Gill scripted history on Wednesday with a sensational achievement. The right-handed batter raced to his second double hundred in ODI cricket in just 117 balls. With this, Gill became the fastest batter in the history of the format to score a double century....more