International News

China wins $2.9 bn Kenya airport project, 50% more than dropped Adani bid

Kenya has awarded a USD 2.9 billion contract to China Communications Construction Co (CCCC) to expand and modernise Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), marking a return to large-scale Chinese-backed infrastructure development nearly two years after the collapse of a proposed deal with India's Adani Group. The contract value is roughly 50 per cent higher than Adani Group's proposed airport concession, which was estimated at about USD 2 billion before being scrapped by President William Ruto's government in November 2024 amid political opposition, legal challenges and public scrutiny, sources said. Kenya had initially engaged with Adani for a few months on the project. However, the deal was cancelled in November 2024, following mounting pressure on President William Ruto amid global allegations raised by the US Department of Justice against the group (which Adani denied). Recently, the US Department of Justice closed the matter, citing a lack of conclusive evidence,

India urges global community to hold Pak accountable for violence in PoK

India on Tuesday came down hard on Islamabad for its "brutality" against people in Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir (PoK) and called on the international community to hold that country accountable for its "abuses". India's reaction came as over 20 people were reportedly killed in police action on protesters in several parts of PoK. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, slamming Pakistan said, there have been "desperate" attempts by Islamabad to cover-up its "failings" and deflect attention away from its alleged human rights abuses. "We continue to see in this context, a pattern of fake news and videos emanating from Pakistan. It is a desperate attempt by Pakistan to cover-up its own failings and deflect attention away from its human rights abuses," he said. "There are reports of severe police brutality in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir in which several protestors have been killed and many injured. We hope the international community will hold Pakistan accountable for its ...

Kerala-born Nithya Raman in 2nd spot in primary for Los Angeles mayor poll

Kerala-born Nithya Raman has surged ahead to second place in the primary election for Los Angeles Mayor, edging past reality TV star Spencer Pratt. He appears set to take on incumbent Karen Bass in November. Bass, 72, a former Democratic Congresswoman who has already advanced to the November runoff, remained in the lead with 34.7 per cent of the vote, according to the updated tally released by the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk's office. The primary election for the Mayor's post took place on January 2 and 80 per cent of the ballots have been counted so far. Raman, 44, who has steadily gained ground as the count has progressed, had 27.1 per cent, enough to overtake Pratt by a little more than 3,000 votes. Pratt, a Republican, had been running in second place since election night, but slipped to the third position with 26.69 per cent of the votes. Raman has been a Los Angeles councilwoman since 2020, when she defeated incumbent council member David Ryu, a victor

India is Nepal's top partner; govt carries no old baggage: FM Khanal

India and Nepal share a "special" relationship and there is an opportunity to "decisively" shift the engagement to realise its full potential, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Saturday during a meeting with his Nepalese counterpart Shishir Khanal. Jaishankar reiterated Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "sentiment regarding India's commitment to working with Nepal for mutual prosperity, progress and well-being of the two countries". Khanal kicked off a three-day trip to New Delhi on Friday to strengthen bilateral ties, a visit overshadowed by a raging controversy triggered by Nepalese Prime Minister Balendra Shah's recent remarks on the boundary row between the two sides. In his comments at the meeting with Jaishankar, Khanal said Nepal accords "highest priority" to its relationship with India and the Shah-led government is ready to engage "substantively and purposefully" with New Delhi. "We carry no old baggage and have only firm resolve for a genuinely transformative ..

Sanctions threat to India would boomerang under PM Modi's leadership: Putin

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that any attempt to undermine India's sovereignty through "threats of sanctions" would "boomerang immediately" under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership. Putin made these remarks at the annual St Petersburg International Economic Forum on Friday in response to a question about his comments during an interaction with heads of leading global news agencies, including PTI, on Thursday night. "India always acts as a sovereign country, and under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, any potential threats of sanctions would boomerang immediately," Putin said. Putin said that he has been in close talks with Prime Minister Modi for a long period, while recalling the time when the Indian leader was banned from entering the United States. "I know PM Modi will never forget about it," Putin said. "Now that he is (the) prime minister, all the sanctions have been eliminated, and the relationship between the US and India is developing successfully a

India-Venezuela oil marketing companies to explore energy agreements

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Venezuelan Acting President Delcy Rodriguez discussed energy cooperation, critical minerals, pharmaceuticals and trade expansion

Martin Scorsese embraces AI, teams up with company Black Forest Labs

Legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese has become one of Hollywood's most prominent directors to openly embrace AI as a creative tool by joining artificial intelligence company Black Forest Labs as an adviser. The Oscar-winning director, who has made classics such as "Taxi Driver", "Raging Bull", "Goodfellas", "Cape Fear", "The Aviator", "Shutter Island" and many more, said he has been using the company's FLUX generative AI model to create storyboards for an upcoming film. Scorsese, 83, described his experience of using the AI as "creatively freeing." "For 70 years, I've been creating my own storyboards. There's always been this problem of how do you communicate what you see in your head to your cast and crew," Scorsese said in a statement. "I recently tested this out on a scene and the ability to visualize and immediately share the storyboard was creatively freeing. During the pre-production process, time costs money, and this allowed us to move faster without sacrificing quality or

Brics disaster risk reduction meet begins with focus on Odisha model

Delegates from 11 BRICS member and partner countries are discussing climate resilience, disaster preparedness and sustainable risk reduction under India's Brics Presidency

Russia pounds Ukraine with 600+ drones, missiles; 22 killed, 100 injured

Russia launched hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles against Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities overnight, killing at least 16 civilians and wounding more than 100 others, authorities said Tuesday. The damage trapped some people under the rubble of apartment buildings. Emergency crews digging through the wreckage pulled out the body of a three-year-old child and the bodies of a mother and her eight-year-old son in the central Ukrainian city of Dnipro, officials said. The attack stretched from night into day and the boom of explosions reverberated across cities. Kyiv residents had been on edge for days after Russia warned that a massive aerial attack was coming and warned foreign diplomats to leave the Ukrainian capital. None appeared to heed the call. "A large-scale attack and an explicit statement by Russia: If Ukraine is not protected from ballistic missiles and other missile strikes, those strikes will continue," President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in response to the attack, ..

India, Myanmar firm up ties with China on mind, expand bilateral agenda

Modi and Myanmar President U Min Aung Hlaing discussed trade, security, connectivity and critical minerals as New Delhi stressed continued engagement over isolation

China expands curbs on foreign deals, tech transfer after Meta-Manus block

Beijing views ​AI as a sensitive sector critical to national security and has made efforts to control outbound flows of technology, intellectual property and talent

6 more bodies recovered in Washington mill implosion; death toll at 11

Crews have recovered six of nine workers missing and presumed to be dead after a chemical tank rupture in Washington state, officials said on Thursday. The total death toll is 11, including three who are still missing. It is one of the deadliest US workplace accidents in recent decades. Officials say the paper mill tank ruptured and spilled more than 500,000 gallons (1.9 million litres) of a highly-destructive chemical mixture used in paper manufacturing at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company in Longview, a city along the Columbia River. Crews continued the painstaking search on Thursday for nine workers presumed dead after the chemical tank ruptured, devastating a community where many families have worked in the paper and lumber industries for generations. Authorities have said there was no hope of finding survivors of Tuesday's tank rupture at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company in Longview. Two workers were confirmed dead. Among the 11 victims were a grandfather who was alw

AI could lead European banks to cut up to 20% jobs: Morgan Stanley

Many bank executives have acknowledged that AI will upend some jobs as firms start implementing the technology across different functions

Merchant ships avoid Strait of Hormuz after renewed US airstrikes

President Donald Trump said no single nation would be allowed to control the Strait of Hormuz, underscoring one of the central obstacles to securing a lasting agreement with Iran

US inflation rises to 3.8% in April, erodes Americans' spending power

A key inflation gauge accelerated in April to the highest level in three years, the latest sign that spiking gas prices and higher food costs are squeezing Americans' finances. Inflation jumped to 3.8% in April compared with a year ago, the Commerce Department said Thursday, up from 3.5% in March and the highest since May 2023. On a monthly basis, prices rose 0.4%, down from the 0.7% jump in March. The report showed that prices have risen for many items in addition to gas, indicating that inflation could persist and pose problems for congressional Republicans in this year's midterm elections. Inflation is also notably above the Federal Reserve's target of 2%, which means Fed policymakers may decide to forego any cuts to their key short-term interest rate this year. Some officials have signalled that their next move could be a hike rather than a cut. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core inflation rose to 3.3% in April from 3.2% the previous month. It is the highes

Ukraine to buy 20 new Gripen jets, Sweden to donate older jets sooner

Ukraine's air force is made up of a mixture of ‌Soviet-made and western aircraft. Gripen is seen as a cost-efficient alternative to fighters like the more advanced American F-

Nasa unveils 3-phase plan for permanent moon base; 3 missions this year

At a press conference, Nasa Administrator Jared Isaacman said the Moon Base programme would help the US master the skills needed to live and operate in the moon's harsh environment.

US regulators poised to approve Paramount's takeover of Warner Bros

The Department of Justice staff attorneys seemed swayed by arguments from top Paramount executives that the deal would not hurt other studios and creative talent

1 dead, 9 missing in chemical tank implosion at Washington state mill

The implosion of a chemical tank at a pulp and paper mill in Washington state on Tuesday killed one person and nine others are unaccounted for, authorities said. Emergency responders were still working on recovery efforts at Nippon Dynawave Packaging Company in Longview, the Longview Fire Department said. Cowlitz Fire and Rescue Chief Scott Goldstein later told a news conference that it was unclear how many workers had been killed. Asked how many remained missing, he replied: "We have information on that, but we are not releasing that information." Among those injured was a responding firefighter. Authorities said some victims had suffered burns or inhalation injuries, and that the severity of the injuries ranged from minor to critical. There was no immediate threat to the public, they said. The statement, issued more than four hours after the tank imploded at 7:15 am, said crews were continuing recovery operations and that no identifying information would be released about victims

Sonny Rollins, giant of the jazz saxophone, signs out at 95

Even by the standards of a music that prizes individuality, Rollins stood out, as both a musician and a personality