Police in India have forcibly taken an activist to hospital after a 20-day hunger strike protesting the country's examination system. The case has drawn widespread attention and renewed debate over education reforms and the handling of public protests. France 24 correspondent Navodita Kumari report»»»

NEW DELHI: Authorities in India’s capital Delhi moved social activist Sonam Wangchuk to hospital against his wish on Saturday, after his condition worsened on the 21st day of a hunger strike launched to demand the resignation of the federal education minister. Wangchuk, 59, had been fasting since J»»»

NEW YORK: For some fans following this World Cup, the calculation has been ‌simple: support whoever is playing against Argentina. Across the tournament, that has meant wearing the green of Algeria, the blue of Cape Verde, or the red of Switzerland. Even the often maligned England got a boost in glo»»»

NEW DELHI: India’s space startup Skyroot Aerospace completed its first orbital flight on Saturday, making India the third country in the world with a private company capable of such a feat. The Vikram-1 rocket lifted off at 12.05 p.m. from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, an island of»»»

MAKKAH: Saudi Arabia has launched the pilot phase of its new Tourism Package Visa, allowing visitors to obtain an electronic visa as part of a single package that includes flights, accommodation and insurance booked through authorized travel providers. The initiative, introduced by the Ministry of »»»

The winners of the 72nd National Film Awards were announced in New Delhi on Saturday, honouring the best of Indian cinema from 2024. Films certified by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) between January 1 and December 31, 2024, were eligible for this year’s awards. An 11-member jury hea»»»

Sriharikota, India: India's first privately built orbital rocket took its maiden flight on Saturday, its builder said, marking a significant step for the South Asian giant as it eyes a bigger slice of the global space economy. "Hello space, we have arrived!" Skyroot Aerospace said in a post on X. "»»»

New Delhi: India scripted a historic chapter in its space journey on Saturday as Hyderabad-based Skyroot Aerospace successfully launched Vikram-1, the country's first privately developed orbital rocket, under Mission Aagaman, making India only the third nation after the United States and China to h»»»

New Delhi, India: New Delhi police moved activist Sonam Wangchuk to a hospital on Saturday over health concerns after a 20-day hunger strike in protest against India's examination system. Wangchuk, 59, has been fasting since June 28 to demand the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan»»»

Paris: The United Nations looks set to list a Biblical site, Lebanese castles, an antelope migration path and the world's deepest lake as world treasures under threat, including from war or climate change. The 196 members states of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisatio»»»

Delhi police forcibly moved activist Sonam Wangchuk to a hospital on Saturday over health concerns after 20 days of his hunger strike to protest against India's examination system. Wangchuk, 59, has been fasting since June 28 to demand the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over a»»»

JEDDAH: A rare 19th-century Quranic calligraphy panel is on display at the Red Sea Museum in Historic Jeddah. Created around 1859–1860 CE by Ghouth Mahboob Ghalib in Mysore, India, the single-page artwork features the entire text of the Holy Quran arranged within a detailed illustration of the Gran»»»

Former Italian Prime Minister Aldo Moro is shown in 1978 after he was kidnapped by far-left Brigade Rosse (Red Brigades) movement. ANSA files/EPA July 17 (UPI) -- Nicaragua has severed diplomatic relations with Italy after Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani renewed calls for the extradition of»»»

MOSCOW: Kazakhstan exported its ​first gasoline cargo to Russia in July, supplying about 1,000 ‌metric tons ‌to ​one ‌of ⁠the ​regions in ⁠Central Russia, industry sources said. Russia is facing gasoline ⁠shortages after ‌increased Ukrainian ‌drone ​attacks ‌on oil ‌refineries across the country, p»»»

A father's refusal to accept a marriage proposal for his daughter allegedly led to a brutal attack in Kerala, where he and his son were kidnapped, held captive and tortured by a group of men. According to media reports, the incident took place at Nagaroor near Varkala in Thiruvananthapuram district»»»

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani security forces raided multiple militant hideouts in the country’s northwest region, killing Pakistani Taliban and seizing a cache of weapons, the military and local officials said. The military said Friday it used intelligence sources to target militants in operations carried »»»

The India government on Friday approached the Supreme Court against the Delhi High Court's decision to cancel the technical evaluation process for outsourcing Consular, Passport and Visa (CPV) services at Indian missions in UAE, Kuwait, Singapore and Canberra. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta mention»»»

NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the country’s first hydrogen-powered train on Friday, making the country one of just a handful which have adopted the zero-emissions, clean fuel technology. Developed by state-owned Indian Railways, the blue trainset uses hydrogen fuel cells t»»»

ISLAMABAD/KABUL: Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has rejected allegations of Islamabad opposing Afghanistan’s bid for full membership on the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, following reports that Kabul’s participation was stalled by a member of the region’s most powerful bloc. Founded in »»»

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated on Friday in a launching ceremony of the country's first hydrogen-powered train, Indian media reported. The train took off from the Jind station in the state of Haryana, the state-run All India Radio News reported. The train is the first in India to »»»

An IndiGo flight bound for Ahmedabad was delayed by more than five hours after a hoax bomb threat was discovered on board the aircraft at Bengaluru airport on Thursday evening. Flight 6E 6423 had been scheduled to depart Bengaluru for Ahmedabad at 8pm but was immediately grounded after a threatenin»»»

The US and Iran exchanged fresh strikes on Friday, with attacks reported across the Gulf region, including Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and Jordan. UAE residents are advised to follow official updates, check travel notices and avoid sharing unverified information. Get updated faster and for FREE: Downloa»»»

Jind, India: India launched its first hydrogen-powered train Friday, joining a small group of nations testing the technology as part of efforts to decarbonise rail transport and cut dependence on fossil fuels. The project is part of a broader push to modernise one of the world's largest rail networ»»»

BusinessGlobal issuesHow AI and satellites help fight wildfiresInsa WredeWildfires are currently raging in Europe, Canada, and elsewhere. To successfully fight these fires, speed is essential. Early detection from space and AI-powered data analysis can help. https://p.dw.com/p/5H8eLMunich-based sta»»»

POLITICS In an op-ed entitled "What is Bulgaria's place, Mr Radev?" and published by Capital, Alexander Detev comments on Prime Minister Rumen Radev's statement that Bulgaria will not join the Coalition of the Willing supporting Ukraine. Radev argued that lasting peace should be achieved through di»»»

The United States expanded its airstrike campaign against Iran early Friday by hitting more bridges, electrical equipment and collapsing a tower at a key Iranian port, part of U.S. President Donald Trump's threats to start striking infrastructure to pressure Tehran to ease its chokehold on the Stra»»»

India launched its first hydrogen-powered train Friday, joining a small group of nations testing the technology as part of efforts to decarbonise rail transport and cut dependence on fossil fuels. The project is part of a broader push to modernise one of the world's largest rail networks while redu»»»

Australia denounced Laos' response to a 2024 tainted alcohol poisoning that killed six tourists, saying Friday it is "bitterly disappointed" the country is not pressing stronger charges. Canberra summoned the Laos ambassador and dispatched an envoy to Laos to convey the government's objections and »»»

Dubai: Travellers flying between the UAE and southern Saudi Arabia are facing ongoing disruption, with flights to and from Abha International Airport suspended for a fourth consecutive day on Friday, despite much of the airport's domestic schedule still operating. Passengers travelling on routes be»»»

The US expanded its airstrike campaign against Iran on Friday, targeting infrastructure including bridges and a key port facility as tensions over the Strait of Hormuz continued to escalate. A surveillance tower at Iran’s Chabahar port on the Gulf of Oman appeared to collapse after repeated US stri»»»

Türkiye first recognised Israel in 1949, shortly after Zionist leaders like David Ben-Gurion proclaimed a Jewish state in Palestine. In so doing, it became the first Muslim-majority nation to do so (Iran was the second, its recognition coming in 1950). Six decades later, trade was booming and relat»»»

New Delhi: Amid continuing attacks on merchant vessels and the heightened security situation in the Gulf, India's Directorate General of Maritime Administration (DGMA) has advised ship owners, ship managers and Recruitment and Placement Service Licence (RPSL) companies to avoid deploying Indian sea»»»

For Aryan Gupta, securing the top rank in NEET UG 2026 is not just an academic achievement — it is the first step towards fulfilling a deeply personal mission. The 17-year-old from Ludhiana secured All India Rank (AIR) 1 after scoring 715 marks out of 720, sharing the highest score nationally with »»»

WASHINGTON: ​If the US and Iran do not increase oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz soon, the world should worry about energy security, International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol said on Thursday. “Oil security is still a critical issue,” Birol told a Council on Foreign Relatio»»»

China and President Xi Jinping are now viewed more favorably than the US and Donald Trump across most of the world, a new Pew Research Center survey spanning six continents has found. Pew says China enjoys a more positive image than the US in 25 of the 36 countries and territories surveyed, includi»»»

Agencies New Delhi India and Britain’s trade pact took effect on Wednesday, cutting tariffs on thousands of goods and expanding market access for services firms and professionals in both countries. The India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement gives Indian exporters duty-free access to mo»»»

Thursday represented a major milestone for millions of students across India. The National Testing Agency (NTA) declared the NEET UG 2026 results, with more than 1.12 million candidates qualifying for the next stage of the country's medical admissions process. More than half of those who qualified »»»

Cardiff: Jofra Archer led a much-improved England bowling display as India were dismissed for 233 in the second one-day international in Cardiff on Thursday. India, the world's top-ranked ODI side, looked set for a score in excess of 300 when Virat Kohli (65) and Shreyas Iyer (66) were at the creas»»»

Dubai: The Consulate General of India in Dubai has announced that its premises will remain closed from Friday, July 17, to Sunday, July 19, 2026, due to road maintenance work being carried out by the relevant authorities within the Consulate complex. As a result, passport, visa and attestation serv»»»

Doha, Qatar: The Amir His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani received a phone call on Thursday from the Prime Minister of the Republic of India, HE Narendra Modi, who expressed his deepest condolences on the passing of HH the Father Amir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani.»»»

CARDIFF: England captain Harry Brook won the toss and elected to field in the second one-day international against India in Cardiff as the hosts bolstered their pace attack in a bid to level the three-match series. Spin-bowling all-rounder Liam Dawson, despite making an ODI best 68 during India’s s»»»

NEW DELHI: India’s maritime regulator has barred ship owners, managers and recruitment agencies from sending Indian nationals to work on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz following a rise in deadly attacks by US and Iranian forces. Ten civilian ships staffed by Indian seafarers — MT Settebell»»»

Dubai: The United States appears to be shifting from trying to degrade Iran’s military capabilities to considering operations that could fundamentally weaken Tehran’s ability to control the Strait of Hormuz, marking what could be a new phase in the conflict. As President Donald Trump weighs broader»»»

Malabar Gold & Diamonds, the 4th largest jewellery retailer globally with over 445 showrooms across 14 countries, had the privilege of being one of the first importers of jewellery under the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which came into force on 15 July 2026. The shipment of the inaugural co»»»

It began with unanswered phone calls. When relatives couldn't reach anaesthesiologist Dr Kiran Honannavar for nearly two days, they kept trying. His wife answered instead, reportedly saying he was sleeping. Later, she said he had gone to work. Neither explanation was true. Get updated faster and fo»»»

Dubai: India is set to join a select group of countries operating hydrogen-powered passenger trains when Prime Minister Narendra Modi flags off the country’s first such service on Friday, marking a major milestone in Indian Railways’ transition to cleaner and more sustainable transportation. The hy»»»

Why is everyone talking about Satluj?Satluj, director Honey Trehan's film based on the life of human rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, has become the subject of intense discussion after it was reportedly removed from streaming platform ZEE5 just days after its release in India. In the UAE, the »»»

The Kremlin is pushing the Far East as a major investment opportunity thanks to a sanctions-driven surge in trade with China and a broader wave of investment from across the continent and the Global South. For most of the past decade, Russia's pivot to Asia has been measured in barrels of oil, cubi»»»

Damascus, July 16 (SANA) Director General of the Syrian Investment Authority Talal al-Hilali met Indian Chargé d’Affaires Renu Yadav on Thursday to discuss expanding economic and investment cooperation between Syria and India. According to the Syrian Investment Authority, the talks focused on oppor»»»

Last week’s column ended with reference to my interviews with members of the Afghan women’s cricket team, which had been touring England. Since then, there have been developments in plans for their future. After the International Cricket Council’s Annual Conference in Edinburgh between July 8 and 1»»»