Trump’s $4.4 trillion budget moves deficit sharply higherWASHINGTON: President Donald Trump unveiled a $4.4 trillion budget for next year that heralds an era of $1 trillion-plus federal deficits and — unlike the plan he released last year — never comes clos...
Israeli military court to try Palestinian teen protest iconNABI SALEH: Palestinian protest icon Ahed Tamimi is to go on trial before an Israeli military court on Tuesday for slapping and punching two Israeli soldiers — an act Palestinians say embodies their D...
Palestinian leader seeks Russia’s backing over JerusalemPalestinian president Mahmud Abbas visits Russia on Monday in a bid to secure Russian President Vladimir Putin's support following Washington's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The Palest...
Giving up control of Brussels mosque, Saudi Arabia sends a signalBRUSSELS/RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has agreed to give up control of Belgium's largest mosque in a sign that it is trying to shed its reputation as a global exporter of an ultra-conservative brand of Islam....
Valentine’s Day a rosy opportunity for jobless ColombiansValentine's Day is a crazy rush for Colombia, one of the biggest flower exporters in the world, resulting in huge demand for labor in greenhouses near Bogota. That's how Rubiela Mendez and William Per...
Investigators brave snow in hunt for clues over Russian plane crashInvestigators scoured the scene Monday after a passenger plane crashed near Moscow minutes after take-off, killing all 71 people on board, in one of Russia's worst-ever plane crashes. The site of the...
Ahead of Lunar New Year, China’s Xi says will banish ‘ghost’ of povertyBEIJING: China will banish the "ghosts" of poverty, Chinese President Xi Jinping told villagers in a poor southwestern part of the country during a traditional visit to outlying regions before the Lun...
Sri Lanka’s former strongman calls for snap electionsCOLOMBO: Sri Lanka's former strongman called Monday for snap parliamentary elections after the party he fielded as a proxy swept local elections in a major blow to the reformist government elected jus...
Myanmar minister orders Rohingya to leave no man’s land A Myanmar government minister has told Rohingya refugees living in a makeshift camp on the Bangladesh border they should take up a government offer to return, warning they will face "consequenc...
Australia still struggling to improve Aboriginal lives, report saysAustralia is making some progress in improving health and education among its indigenous population, an annual report said Monday, but it is still missing most targets to reduce Aboriginal disadvantag...
Iraq seeks $88.2 bln for reconstruction: ministerIraq needs $88.2 billion to rebuild after years of war against the Islamic State group, Planning Minister Salman al-Jumaili said Monday, as an international conference on the country's reconstruction...
Gunbattles, airstrikes in Sinai as Egyptian forces hit militantsCAIRO: Egyptian security forces killed 12 Islamist militants in gun battles and arrested 92 suspects, while airstrikes destroyed dozens of militant targets in Sinai, the army said in a statement carri...
China’s millennium-old fireworks hub grapples with bans and shifting traditionsLIUYANG: From the concrete bunkers carved into the hillside, where workers gingerly handle piles of explosive black powder, to the shopfronts selling colourful boxes of pyrotechnics, time may be catch...
Thousands protest jailing of Bangladesh opposition leaderThousands of Bangladeshi opposition supporters staged rallies across the country on Monday demanding the release of their jailed leader Khaleda Zia and free and fair elections. Zia, twice president in...
Taliban infiltrator kills 16 Afghan government militiamenLASHKAR GAH: A Taliban infiltrator killed 16 members of a pro-government militia force in the insurgency ridden southern province of Helmand when he turned his gun on men who he had worked with for mo...