DHAKA: Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe met with Indonesian president Joko Widodo Monday to forge tighter economic and defense ties, as Tokyo works to court friends in the face of a rising China.The two nations agreed to tighter cooperation on coastal security, regular talks between

DHAKA: Pakistan held its first Republic Day parade in seven years on Monday, full of flag-waving pomp and aerial military expertise, a symbolic show of strength in the war against the Taliban months after a militant attack on a school killed 132 children.The Pakistan Day parade, complete

DHAKA: In a fresh rebuke to Benjamin Netanyahu, US president Barack Obama said the Israeli leader’s pre-election disavowal of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict makes it ‘hard to find a path’ toward serious negotiations to resolve the issue.In an interview with

DHAKA: A bus has fallen into a ravine in central Venezuela killing at least 11 people.Thirty-six others were injured in the accident in Aragua state, south-west of the capital Caracas.The driver lost control and the vehicle plunged into a lake, eyewitnesses say, the BBC reports on

DHAKA: Sri Lanka’s new government on Sunday conferred the country’s highest military rank of field marshal to former army Chief Sarath Fonseka.Sarath was jailed on alleged treason charges by the previous regime of Mahinda Rajapaksa, for ‘achieving the victory over

DHAKA: The timeline for the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan is expected to be high on the agenda during Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s first visit to Washington this week.Ghani, who arrived in the US on Sunday, is due to meet US President Barack Obama on Tuesday and will also

DHAKA: A 12-year-old girl allegedly attempted to poison her mother with bleach because her iPhone was confiscated has been detained by police.The girl from Boulder, Colorado, who has not been named, tried to kill her mother on two separate occasions, police said.Initially, the mother

DHAKA: Syrian rebels have captured several government airmen after their helicopter crashed in a rebel-held area of the country’s northwest.The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Sunday that four crew members had been taken prisoner near Jabal al-Zawiya, about

DHAKA: Lee Kuan Yew, the statesman who transformed Singapore from a small port city into a wealthy global hub, has died at the age of 91.The city-state's prime minister for 31 years, he was widely respected as the architect of Singapore's prosperity, reports BBC.But he was criticised for

DHAKA: A Chinese envoy will hold talks in India from Sunday aimed at fixing a dispute about the Himalayan border that divides Asia’s largest nations, part of a push to make progress on the festering row before Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits China.China's special representative Yang

DHAKA: A church in Mumbai was attacked by masked men Saturday, local media reported, the latest in a series of attacks on churches in Hindu-majority India.Closed-circuit camera footage captured three masked men hurling stones at a church early Saturday in the state capital of Mumbai,

DHAKA: United States Senator and Tea Party favorite Ted Cruz is expected Monday to confirm plans to run for president in 2016.The Houston Chronicle reported on Saturday, The Straits Times publishes this report on Sunday.The Texas Republican will announce his presidential bid, as opposed

DHAKA: Seven children were killed early in a Brooklyn house fire in New York that was apparently sparked by a hot plate meant to keep food warm over the Sabbath on Saturday.New York’s fire commissioner Daniel Nigro said this which reports the CNN.The four boys and three girls --

DHAKA: At least 80 militants were eliminated in a clash between security forces and militants in parts of Khyber Agency’s Tirah Valley on Saturday resulted.According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) seven soldiers also lost their lives during the operation, reports the Dawn

DHAKA: A US federal judge has ruled that Washington must release photographs showing abuse of detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan.This is a longstanding court case on letting the world see potentially disturbing images of how the military treated prisoners.US District Judge Alvin

DHAKA: With 10 days to a nuclear deal deadline, top US and Iranian officials spoke Saturday of substantial headway.Iran’s president proclaimed that agreement was within reach. But America’s top diplomat said it was up to Tehran to make the decisions needed to get there, reports the

DHAKA: The US defense department says it is investigating an online threat allegedly made by Islamic State (IS) to about 100 of its military personnel.A list of names and addresses was posted on a website linked to the group alongside a call for them to be killed.The group said it

DHAKA: Al-Qaeda fighters captured the capital of a province in southern Yemen, killing about 20 soldiers, before they were driven out by the army late on Friday.Local officials and residents said, The Straits Times publishes this report on Saturday.The fighting came hours after suicide

DHAKA: US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Saturday that world powers were ‘united’ in their nuclear talks with Iran, amid speculation of splits with France, and stressed that he would not rush into a bad deal.‘I emphasise: We are united in our goal, our approach, our resolve

DHAKA: Jailed Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan on Saturday called for Kurds to hold a congress to bring an end to the 40-year armed struggle in Turkey waged by the separatist Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).‘A congress should be organised to bring an end to the 40-year struggle