Bessent indicated that the U.S. is evaluating the status of Iranian oil as the current campaign progresses.
Maharashtra minister Narhari Zirwal is embroiled in controversy after a video featuring him and a transgender person went viral, prompting calls for his removal from office.
By all available indications, the White House drafted a face-saving note and handed it, ready-made, to Islamabad. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was supposed to then post it in the guise of a plea urging Trump to extend the deadline by two weeks 'to allow diplomacy to run its course'. Trump would then graciously accept Pakistan's 'request' and declare a ceasefire. Sharif dutifully posted the message on X. Except that he, or whoever was handling the account, forgot to delete the tell-tale first line visible in the edit history: 'Draft - Pakistan's PM Message on X'. Prem Panicker's must read blog on the Iran War.
Tamil Nadu's AIADMK, leading the NDA in the state, has released its first list of 23 candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections, renominating key leaders and fielding experienced legislators from their traditional strongholds.
'The BJP is keeping its options open and that the final decision is still tightly held.' 'That is consistent with the party's tendency to preserve suspense, avoid premature factional conflict, and use leadership selection as a way of resetting internal hierarchies.'
'Our government is committed to addressing it firmly while protecting the rights of genuine citizens.'
Amid rising tensions in West Asia, China is urging all parties to cease military operations, following Trump's appeal for help in securing the Strait of Hormuz.
Amid escalating tensions with Iran, President Trump is urging nations dependent on Middle Eastern oil to deploy warships to the Strait of Hormuz to safeguard critical global energy supplies.
India has joined the US-led 'Pax Silica' alliance, aimed at building a resilient supply chain for critical minerals and artificial intelligence, marking a significant step in strengthening bilateral ties and fostering economic security.
The purge in Washington does not pause the war. Strikes continue, Hormuz remains closed, and Brent crude is still dancing around $109 a barrel. For India, the command chaos in the Pentagon is another layer of uncertainty piled on five weeks of conflict that was already straining every buffer Delhi has.
Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey met in Islamabad in what analysts say is the formal opening of a new diplomatic formation that could reshape the post-war regional order. Their immediate goal is a ceasefire; their larger ambition is to ensure that neither Iran nor Israel emerges from this war in a dominant position. Pakistan's foreign minister then flew directly to Beijing and mooted a Chinese role as guarantor of any eventual agreement. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Nepal's Rastriya Swatantra Party is surging ahead in the general elections after Gen Z protests ousted the previous government, signaling a potential new era in Nepali politics.
'Nitish Kumar may be marginalised as an office-holder, but that is not the same thing as the disappearance of Nitish Kumar's politics.'
'The next two to three weeks will not be decided in Washington.' 'They will be decided in Tehran, in whatever calculation Iran makes about the costs of continued resistance against the costs of appearing to have yielded.'
'The AIADMK and DMK have 75% of the total votes. 25% of the voters do not support the two majors,' says DMK spokesperson Saravanan Annadurai.
Swift and global banks are launching a new system to make international payments faster and cheaper for small businesses and consumers, starting with major global markets.
Alliances fight wars effectively only when they share an endgame. If Israel acted without US knowledge, then the military alliance is operating without real coordination at the level of strategic targeting. Neither picture is reassuring in a war that is no longer regional in its consequences. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
A bewildered world is at a loss to find bilateral and multilateral measures to stop President Trump from pursuing his vision of a world unabashedly dominated by the United States, points out T P Sreenivasan.
Nepalese citizens are voting in the general election, the first since protests toppled the previous government. Over 18.9 million are eligible to vote for the 275-member House of Representatives.
The military command clarified in a statement published on X that the aircraft were engaged in error during active combat operations on Sunday.
Israel has for more than two decades and several US presidencies worked to draw the United States into a full-scale war with Iran. Having finally achieved that, the last thing it wants is Trump declaring victory and going home, as he is prone to do. Ali Larijani was the figure most capable of handing Trump a negotiated exit with something to show for it. Without Larijani, the road to an exit gets considerably narrower. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
'Was the five-day pause ever meant to hold, or was it simply another instrument of signaling, of positioning, of buying time in a war where even the pauses are tactical?' asks Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Senior NCP (SP) leader Jayant Patil has ruled out the possibility of a merger between the two factions of the Nationalist Congress Party, stating that talks ceased following the death of Ajit Pawar.
For weeks, the war skirted the edge of catastrophe without tipping over. Missiles flew, there was much destruction, commanders were assassinated, cities across the Gulf and even in Israel struggled to absorb the shock. But one line held: Energy infrastructure, the arteries of the global economy, remained largely untouched. That is no longer true. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming visit to Israel is facing political complications as opposition leader Yair Lapid threatens to boycott his parliamentary address unless the Supreme Court chief is invited, adhering to standard protocol.
Rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah's Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) is on track for a significant victory in Nepal's general elections, potentially reshaping the country's political landscape.
The Congress high command has intervened to manage discord within the DMK-Congress alliance in Tamil Nadu, following controversial remarks by state leaders regarding power-sharing demands.
The Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance in Maharashtra is facing internal conflict over the allocation of a winnable Rajya Sabha seat, with the Congress staking its claim against the Shiv Sena (UBT). Discussions are ongoing to reach a consensus before the nomination deadline.
What we are watching is something different: A fog manufactured and maintained by the people who started the war, so that the question of why it was started never has to be answered, observes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the war in the Middle East.
Rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah's Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) is poised to form the next government in Nepal after a decisive victory in the general election, significantly impacting established political parties.
Fight on toward goals that keep receding, or exit with most objectives unmet. Trump is agitated, his poll numbers falling below the Plimsoll line, his base fractured between those who back the war and those who remember that he campaigned on ending them.
The Shiv Sena-UBT is openly questioning the Congress party's leadership within the INDIA bloc.
'Strikes into the Gulf countries are proof that the security guarantees offered by the US are ineffective and that the Gulf countries cannot rely on American security assurances for their safety.'
In a surprising turn of events, BJP corporator Sangeeta Khandekar was elected as the mayor of Chandrapur Municipal Corporation with the support of Shiv Sena (UBT), dealing a blow to the Congress party's aspirations.
Sunetra Pawar, wife of the late Ajit Pawar, has been appointed as the first woman Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, marking a new chapter for the NCP and presenting her with the challenge of leading the party.
Reacting to remarks by the Premier of Greenland expressing a 'preference to remain with Denmark' over the United States, US President Donald Trump on Tuesday dismissed the statement and warned that it could create 'a big problem' for the latter.
India has joined over 100 countries and global organizations in condemning Israel's "unilateral" decisions and measures aimed at expanding its "unlawful presence" in the West Bank.
'Why are IPKF martyrs not being officially recognised and appropriately honoured? And is the government really changing its mind on this now?', asks Aditi Phadnis.
Tarique Rahman is Bangladesh's first male prime minister in more than three decades, ending an era of female leadership that began in 1991.
65 candidates from ten municipal corporations in Maharashtra were declared elected unopposed ahead of elections held on January 15, according to the State Election Commission (SEC). The BJP led with 43 unopposed candidates.
