The US blockade on Iranian ports is aimed to curb Iranian energy exports, thereby crippling its economy to force Iran back to the negotiating table, points out Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
'Samrat Chaudhury's limited independent standing within the party, his reliance on the central leadership for his elevation, and his lack of a personal mass base all point toward this outcome.'
Delegations from the US and Iran have arrived in Islamabad for talks aimed at resolving the conflict between the two nations, following a ceasefire brokered by Pakistan. The negotiations are being closely watched due to their potential impact on regional security and global diplomacy.
For India, much is at stake: Crucial energy supplies traversing the Strait of Hormuz, the fate of its 10 million citizens living and working in West Asia -- who send generous remittances home -- and its major trade links with the region.
A dispute over music at a club in Faridabad escalated into a violent scuffle, with allegations of assault and theft.
Pakistan's Foreign Office has refuted media reports suggesting that its efforts to facilitate peace talks between the US and Iran have stalled, calling the reports baseless and speculative.
Officials from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and China are meeting in Urumqi to discuss regional security concerns and potential confidence-building measures.
US President Donald Trump on Monday confirmed that his administration has received a proposal from Iran aimed at ending the ongoing conflict in West Asia, but described the offer as insufficient.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor discusses India's role in the US-Iran peace talks taking place in Islamabad, emphasising the importance of peace over competition with Pakistan and highlighting India's regional interests.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said that the country has held no "direct" talks with the United States as of now and added that it has received messages through some mediators regarding the US' desire for negotiations.
The Supreme Court of India has stated that husbands must equally participate in household chores, such as cooking, cleaning, and washing, as marriage is a partnership, not an employer-employee relationship. The observation was made during a hearing regarding a divorce petition.
As the negotiations continued, the Iranian government said on social media that "talks between Iran and the US in Islamabad entered the expert-level stage as economic, military, legal, and nuclear committees joined in".
A Russian intelligence agency has claimed that the UK and France are covertly planning to transfer nuclear weapons to Ukraine, alleging a violation of international law.
Pakistan is set to host face-to-face talks between the United States and Iran, aiming to solidify a fragile ceasefire and prevent further conflict in West Asia. The discussions will focus on a long-term peace arrangement, including sanctions relief, regional security, and Iran's nuclear program.
Each time a deadline almost runs out, President Trump hands out a new one.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor is urging the Indian government to take a more proactive role in mediating the escalating conflict between the US-Israel alliance and Iran, emphasising the impact on India's energy security and regional stability.
The Supreme Court has granted bail to filmmaker Vikram Bhatt and regularized the interim bail of his wife in a multi-crore rupees cheating case lodged in Rajasthan, involving allegations of misappropriated funds for a biopic project.
'India's ties with Israel have to do with defence and general technology.' 'The war changes nothing in what India and Israel hope to get from the relationship.' 'It's not as though India will get significantly more benefits from Iran if India abandons Israel at this time.'
Regular money talks, setting up joint goals, and regular reviews can help couples stay aligned.
Regular money talks, setting up joint goals, and regular reviews can help couples stay aligned.
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.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov discussed tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan with his Afghan counterpart, Amir Khan Mottaqi, following US-Israeli strikes on Iran, emphasising the need for political and diplomatic solutions.
The Delhi High Court has ruled that a homemaker's labor is essential for the earning spouse's success and that disregarding these contributions when determining maintenance is unjust. The court emphasized that a wife's non-employment should not be equated with idleness and that the economic value of her contributions must be recognized.
BJP state chief Rajeev Chandrasekhar dismisses Rahul Gandhi's charge of a BJP-CPI(M) understanding in Kerala as baseless, asserting the NDA is competitive and criticising Congress's performance.
This weekend, Donald Trump has begun to say the quiet part out loud -- that he wants to take control of Iran's oil, a formulation more in line with his robber-baron style of international relations.
Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Mohsin Naqvi on Sunday met his Bangladesh counterpart Aminul Islam and ICC deputy chair Imran Khwaja in Lahore, even as efforts to resolve the standoff over Pakistan's proposed boycott of the high stakes T20 World Cup match against India gather pace.
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.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has offered to mediate between the US and Iran to de-escalate the ongoing conflict in West Asia, following a joint US-Israel attack on Iran. Sharif has been in contact with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and other nations to promote dialogue and diplomacy.
The core issues to be settled -- access to Hormuz, Israel's aggression in Lebanon, the question of Iran's nuclear programme, sanctions relief and compensation -- are thorny enough to require weeks of patient negotiation. The most likely outcome of the opening sessions is that both sides take the measure of each other, establish what is and is not negotiable, and return home without having broken anything. That would count as progress.
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.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE are actively pushing Trump to take the war to its bitter finish and 'erase' Iran's presence in the geopolitics of the region. Simply put, the two most powerful Sunni Arab oligarchies are on the same page as Israel. Such interference increases the risk of a breakdown in dialogue between the US and Iran, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Delhi should keep all its options open in what is essentially a transitional period in the geopolitics of energy rather than remain a gatekeeper serving Trump's 'America First', suggests Ambasssador M K Bhadrakumar.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has engaged in extensive diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the conflict in West Asia, offering to host talks between the US and Iran and engaging with leaders from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Malaysia, the UK, China, and the European Union.
Trump may strike. He may announce productive talks and extend again. He may do both at the same time. Iran will not open the Strait on someone else's terms, so no matter what happens, that problem will remain unsolved. And the IRGC will still be collecting its $2 million toll from every ship bold enough to ask permission to pass.
'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.
The United States, which entered this war in expectation of a short, sharp win along the Venezuela model, is now preparing for deeper involvement in a conflict it does not fully control, without the allies it typically relies on, against an adversary that is not behaving as expected, in a global environment that is already absorbing economic shock. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Delhi Police have arrested three men and bound down a woman in connection with a cyber fraud operation that allegedly cheated a grocery shop owner of Rs 17 lakh through fake stock market investments.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is actively working to de-escalate the escalating crisis in the Gulf, engaging with regional leaders following Iran's retaliatory strikes on US facilities after joint US-Israeli strikes against Iran.
The 'rescue' operation occurred within kilometres of Iran's underground tunnel complex at Isfahan, assessed by the IAEA and US intelligence as holding a substantial portion of the country's 60 per cent enriched uranium stockpile. Retired senior US military officers have highlighted that the mission's footprint -- hundreds of special operators, multiple heavy-lift aircraft deep inside Iran -- appears outsized for recovering a single airman. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
When missiles fly in this region, they are never just aimed at military targets.
