Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's anti-tobacco crusade has a new target: Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Politico reported.
Nobody takes Pakistan seriously and therefore Pakistan's sudden mediating with almost immediate results of a ceasefire seems more contrived than real, points out Vice Admiral Biswajit Dasgupta (retd).
'TTP has vowed to take revenge for the attacks that Pakistan is carrying out against Afghanistan.' 'To diminish this threat, Pakistan is hitting Afghanistan hard.'
As days turn into weeks and America loses more planes, as the destruction of trillions of dollars worth military assets piles up, and dead bodies of soldiers return in ever greater numbers in coffins, Trump will have to answer some very difficult questions to save his presidency, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'As result, Netanyahu 'convinced' Trump to go to war with the help of overoptimistic Israeli intelligence assessments, essentially explaining to him that they only need to bomb Iran for 3-4 days, and the regime would then collapse.' 'Rather unsurprisingly, Netanyahu is ever since blaming his own intel service for the entire operation failing.'
Karex, the Malaysian company that makes roughly one in five of the world's condoms -- about five billion a year, supplying Durex and Trojan among others -- announced this week that it is raising prices by up to 30 percent. The reason is the Strait of Hormuz.
The Sri Lanka Navy rescued 32 Iranian sailors from a sinking naval ship off the southern coast, while also recovering several bodies. The incident occurred outside Sri Lankan waters but within its search and rescue zone.
At least 101 people are missing and 78 are injured after a suspected submarine attack on an Iranian naval ship off Sri Lanka's southern coast on Wednesday, Reuters quoted sources in Sri Lanka's Navy and defence ministry as saying.
Two people were killed and five others injured after a mob stormed a CRPF camp in Manipur's Bishnupur district following a protest against a bomb attack that killed two children.
Violence erupted in Manipur's Bishnupur district following a bomb attack that killed two children and subsequent protest deaths at a CRPF camp. The incident has sparked widespread outrage and prompted a government investigation.
Former Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed advocates for building democratic institutions over military intervention in resolving international conflicts, particularly in the context of the escalating West Asia crisis. He also discusses the impact of the conflict on the Maldives' tourism-dependent economy and calls for a stronger, more understanding India in the Indian Ocean Region.
India's handling of the Iran crisis reflects a growing strain between strategic autonomy and geopolitical alignment, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The ceasefire is still technically holding, to the extent that no overt hostilities have been reported yet, but the rhetoric has hardened dangerously. The week ahead will also clarify whether the Islamabad failure was a negotiating tactic or whether Washington has genuinely locked itself into a position from which the only exits are climb-down, escalation, or the slow bleed of a new status quo that nobody chose and nobody controls. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been killed in a US-Israeli attack, sparking celebrations in Iran and raising questions about the future of the regime.
Every UN secretary-general has flagged the financial situation, but Antonio Guterres has issued the direst warning yet, calling it a 'race to bankruptcy and of imminent financial collapse, points out Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
United States President Donald Trump on Monday praised India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi without naming him, saying 'India is a great country with a good friend of mine at the top'.
'Mojtaba Khamenei supervised the most recent repression in December 2025 and January 2026 which remains ongoing.'
India and France have elevated their relationship to a 'special global strategic partnership,' with increased cooperation in defense, trade, and technology. The leaders also inaugurated a helicopter assembly line in Karnataka.
US President Donald Trump has claimed he played a key role in defusing tensions between India and Pakistan by threatening to impose massive tariffs, saying the move "stopped the fighting" between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
The threat of wars hovers over the negotiations in Oman, but the good part is that Trump called the talks to be 'very good' and Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian responded that they 'constitute a step forward', points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Despite the large number of missiles and drones we have already launched, we still possess reserves and missile cities whose doors have not yet been opened,' says Iran's Consul-General Saeid Reza Mosayeb Motlagh.
'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.
Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, detained under the National Security Act, denied allegations in the Supreme Court that he incited sedition. His lawyer argued that the police selectively used video evidence to mislead authorities.
He said both sides agreed to hold a meeting of senior advisers next week, led on the US side by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, before a proposed leaders' meeting in Budapest, Hungary.
The peace plan included that Gaza will be a deradicalised, terror-free zone that does not pose a threat to its neighbours and will be redeveloped for the benefit of the people of Gaza. The peace plan stated that if both sides agree to this proposal, the war will immediately end. Israeli forces will withdraw to the agreed upon line to prepare for hostage release.
'To suddenly give the impression of taking a position that is hostile to Iran, or, at least, not friendly to Iran, is not a good thing.'
Taking Kharg would give the US control over virtually all of Iran's oil exports and thus provide significant leverage, notes Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War. It would also put American troops within range of Iran's remaining missiles, drones, and artillery on a piece of real estate that is just eight square miles in size, and just 15 miles from the Iranian mainland.
A day after Israel claimed that Hamas had violated the ceasefire agreement in Gaza, United States President Donald Trump on Monday (local time) issued a stark warning to the militant group, saying it would face 'eradication' if it violated a truce in the region.
The resolution, introduced by France, was adopted with an overwhelming 142 nations voting in favour, 10 against and 12 abstentions. Those voting against included Argentina, Hungary, Israel and the US.
Over the weekend, one senior US official told CNN, the Israelis had an opportunity to kill Iran's supreme leader.
Applauding United States President Donald Trump's 'bold decision' to hit Iran's nuclear facilities, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said that it demonstrated 'peace through strength' and will lead to a future of peace and prosperity in the region and beyond.
After Donald Trump became president of the United States, he unleashed economic weaponisation, upsetting the old world order, leading to much unrest. If that wasn't all, the threat of an imminent nuclear war was issued by the US, Russia, China, North Korea and Pakistan. In today's fractious times, Dr Paulos Mar Gregorios would have made a dent, notes His Holiness Baselios Marthoma Mathews III.
The post further read that "at a moment of heightened regional turbulence", President Trump "demonstrated great strategic foresight and stellar statesmanship through robust diplomatic engagement with both Islamabad and New Delhi," Dawn reported.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the UK will recognise the state of Palestine at the UN General Assembly in September unless Israel moves towards a ceasefire in Gaza. He also called on Hamas to release hostages and disarm.
Trump described the his Israel visit as "a very special time," calling it a moment filled with excitement and unity.
Canada will recognise the Palestinian state, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters on Wednesday and reiterated its commitment to a two-state solution.
Developing relations with the Taliban is needed, but plunging headlong into Afghanistan without due thought will be akin to the rooster entering a KFC outlet, warns Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (Retd).
He then went on to say that, however, he won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for any of his efforts.
The daily said that the plan which it has acquired was also authenticated by two sources familiar with the matter and sees the US establishing a dialogue with Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a "political horizon" for "peaceful coexistence."
"Intermittent pauses in hostilities are not enough to address the scale of humanitarian challenges confronting the people, who grapple daily with acute shortages of food and fuel, inadequate medical services and lack of access to education," Harish said at the open debate on the 'Situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question'.
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