Monthly Archives: November 2019

Afghanistan announces Taliban prisoner swap.

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In August 2016, Australian citizen Timothy Weeks and US citizen Kevin King were kidnapped at gunpoint by a military organization called the Taliban. Both men were lecturers at the American University of Afghanistan when they were taken. Last year, Kevin King begged President Donald Trump to help release him captivity but the United States refuses to negotiate with terrorists. On… Read more »

Delhi air quality: Last day of odd-even but no relief yet, AQI hovers around 500-mark

India’s capital, Delhi, has experience a thick coat of smog and unhealthy levels of air pollution for quite some time. Arvid Kejriwal, the current Chief Minister of Delhi proposed a plan in January, 2016 in an attempt to reduce the rising levels of air pollution. Known as the Odd-Even rule, which stated that vehicles were only allowed on the road… Read more »

All Central Asian states oppose UNGA’s human rights resolution against Iran

TEHRAN, Nov. 15 (MNA) – All five Central Asian countries [including Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan] opposed the UN General Assembly’s human rights resolution against the Islamic Republic of Iran and voted against the move unanimously. Other countries such as Afghanistan, Armenia, Belarus, China, Iraq, Pakistan, Russia and Syria also opposed the UNGA’s human rights resolution against Iran. Totally,… Read more »

Cyclone Hudhud: India ups aid effort as death toll rises

Authorities in India’s Andhra Pradesh and Orissa states are intensifying efforts to provide aid to some 400,000 people affected by a cyclone now known to have killed 24 people. Cyclone Hudhud wrecked homes, uprooted trees and power lines, blocked roads and damaged crops in the two states. PM Narendra Modi is to fly over the affected areas, including the port… Read more »

Afghanistan announces Taliban prisoner swap to free hostages

American Kevin King and Australian Timothy Weeks were lecturers at the American University of Afghanistan when they were kidnapped in 2016. Anas Haqqani, a leading figure in the Haqqani militant group, and two other senior commanders are part of the deal. It is unclear how or when the exchange of prisoners will take place. “In order to pave the way… Read more »

Nepal protesters burn Xi Jinping’s effigy in protest against Chinese encroachment

Chinese President Xi Jinping’s effigy was burnt on Monday during a protest against Bejing for encroaching upon a chunk of Nepal’s land. The protestors hit the streets of Saptari, Bardiya, Kapilvastu district on Monday and chanted slogans against China. The protestors held play-cards, banners and chanted slogans such as “Go back China and Return Nepali land” during the protests. The… Read more »

Kashmiris reach out to loved ones as mobile phone connections partially restored

‘Are we still together?’ one man asks his girlfriend Sameer Yasir Tuesday 15 October 2019 11:31  When the mobile phone started to ring, after 71 days of silence, the crowd erupted into a loud cheer. After imposing a complete communications blackout two months ago, the Indian government partially restored mobile phone connections on Monday in the Kashmir Valley, home to about 8 million people. The… Read more »

Delhi air quality: Last day of odd-even but no relief yet, AQI hovers around 500-mark

New DelhiNovember 15, 2019UPDATED: November 15, 2019 09:12 IST While Delhi-NCR continues to struggle for fresh for the third consecutive day of increasing air pollution, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party remains undecided on extending the Odd-Even rule in the city, even after the current situation in the capital being declared as a public health emergency. Delhi-NCR battled severe pollution for… Read more »

Bangladeshi women no longer required to say whether they are virgins on marriage certificate

Bangladesh’s high court has ruled that women will no longer be required to declare if they are virgins on marriage certificates in a victory for equal rights campaigners. In the Muslim-majority country, a bride had to state if they were divorced, a widow or “kumari”, a Bengali word meaning “virgin”, on their marriage deed, or “Kabinnama”.  Activists said the form was “humiliating”… Read more »

Bhutanese textiles to hit the European market soon

A third generation weaver, Wangchuk Lhamo has never been this happy to be part of the family’s handiwork tradition. The 30-year-old had inherited the trade from her mother like her maternal ancestors before her. Besides weaving, Wangchuk Lhamo grows her own natural fabric dyes. She will be travelling to Paris for an exhibition with six other handicraft entrepreneurs in January… Read more »