Day: February 9, 2026

KUALA LAMPUR: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Malaysian counterpart, Anwar Ibrahim, renewed pledges on Sunday to bolster trade and explore potential collaborations in semiconductors, defence and other fields. Modi is on a two-day visit to the Southeast Asian nation, his first since the two countries elevated ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership in August 2024. Anwar said the partnership included deep collaborations in multiple fields, including trade and investments, food security, defence, healthcare and tourism. Read: US, India unveil interim trade framework, move closer to broad pact “It’s really…

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KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday that he was imposing sanctions on some foreign manufacturers of components for Russian drones and missiles used against Ukraine. “Producing this weaponry would be impossible without critical foreign components, which the Russians continue to obtain by circumventing sanctions,” Zelenskiy said on X. “We are introducing new sanctions precisely against such companies – component suppliers, as well as missile and drone manufacturers. I have signed the relevant decisions”. According to two decrees published by the Ukrainian presidency, targets of the sanctions include several…

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A white supremacist who killed 51 Muslim worshippers and injured dozens at two mosques in New Zealand will begin an appeal hearing against his sentence on Monday. Brenton Tarrant, 35, opened fire on two mosques in Christchurch in March 2019, in the worst mass shooting in the country’s history. He was convicted of 51 charges of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and one charge of committing a terrorist act and is serving a life sentence in prison without parole. Read: UNICEF condemns Islamabad imambargah attack that killed six children It…

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LONDON: Embattled British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s chief of staff resigned on Sunday over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to Washington despite his links to US convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. “After careful reflection, I have decided to resign from the government,” Morgan McSweeney, Downing Street’s chief of staff, said in a statement. “The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself,” he added. “I advised the Prime Minister to make that appointment and I take full…

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HONG KONG: Hong Kong’s most prominent media tycoon Jimmy Lai was sentenced on Monday to 20 years in jail on national security charges, including two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and one of publishing seditious materials. The sentence ends Hong Kong’s highest-profile national security trial and a legal saga that has spanned nearly five years. Lai, founder of the feisty shuttered Apple Daily newspaper, was first arrested in August 2020 and was convicted last year. Lai’s sentence of 20 years was within the harshest penalty “band” of 10 years to life imprisonment for offences of…

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Recognition of Iran’s right to enrich uranium is key for nuclear talks with the US to succeed, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Sunday. American and Iranian diplomats held indirect talks in Oman on Friday, aimed at reviving diplomacy amid a US naval buildup near Iran and Tehran’s vows of a harsh response if attacked. “Zero enrichment can never be accepted by us. Hence, we need to focus on discussions that accept enrichment inside Iran while building trust that enrichment is and will stay for peaceful purposes,” Araqchi said. Iran and the…

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