• Seeks faster work on targeted gas subsidies, Rs3.6tr circular debt• Acknowledges power sector’s improvement in recoveries, loss reduction• Govt, lender to discuss direct cash support for deserving power consumers next week ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has appreciated Pakistan’s handling of the oil crisis without supply disruptions or an additional budgetary burden despite…

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• Rebels accuse Riyadh of deadly strikes as thousands flee• 154 people reportedly killed in fighting over past two days• G7 calls on Yemeni group to halt military actions, attacks on shipping• UK commits air-to-air refuelling support for Saudis SANAA: The king of Saudi Arabia denounced Yemen’s Houthis as a “terrorist militia” in a rare…

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• Trump speaks with Yemen’s president, doesn’t pledge military support• NYT says US president reversed decision on air strikes on Houthis DUBAI: Houthi fighters were pushing to seize strategic heights in Yemen on Monday to cut off the Red Sea coast from remaining areas held by Saudi-backed forces, after a report that President Donald Trump…

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ADDIS ABABA: Tigrayan rebels in northern Ethiopia seized control of airports and battled federal troops in neighbouring regions, multiple sources said on Wednesday, as long-standing tensions spilled into open conflict. The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) fought a devastating civil war with the federal government in 2020-2022 that killed some 600,000 people, according to African…

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NEW DELHI: India’s political opposition dema­nded the removal of the top election official on Wednesday after a newspaper investigation alle­g­ed that decisions behind a contentious voter-roll revision may have been taken illegally. The Election Commis­sion of India (ECI) has been under scrutiny in rec­ent months over the nationwide revision that has struck millions of names…

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UNITED NATIONS/JERUSA­LEM: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa insisted at the United Nations on Wednesday that the Golan Heights is Syrian land, dismissing Colombia’s recognition of Israeli sovereignty over the strategic plateau. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in the Six Day War of 1967 and annexed the territory in 1981. The United States had been…

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NEW YORK: Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, who was at the centre of abuse allegations that spurred the #MeToo movement, was resentenced on Wednesday to 15 years in prison for sexually assaulting a former production assistant. Weinstein, 74, forcibly performed oral sex in 2006 on Miriam Haley, one of dozens of women who have made…

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JERUSALEM: Israel’s electoral committee voted on Wednesday to disqualify a party representing Palestinians in Israel that could play a kingmaking role after next month’s elections, as well as two candidates and their electoral alliance. The decisions are not final and will have to be approved by the Supreme Court, which in the past has overturned…

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• 66 projects target housing and economic recovery over six months• Israeli fire kills two people in Gaza, officials say• UN chief warns time running out for two-state solution NEW YORK: US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace announced a $2.45 billion Gaza recovery plan on Wednesday at a meeting of its members and stakeholders,…

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US President Donald Trump welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping to the White House on Thursday for a lavish state summit expected to be heavy on symbolism but light on substance, with both leaders keen to showcase stable ties despite a deep underlying rivalry. It will be the year’s second meeting of the leaders of the…

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