Kiev, Dec 25 (IANS) The Ukrainian parliament Thursday approved a bill granting more powers to the country’s top security body, the National Security and Defence Council (NSDC), the legislature’s press service said. The bill, which gives the NSDC the right to make decisions independently in emergencies without approval from the head of state or government, […]
Mogadishu, Dec 25 (IANS) Somalia’s new Prime Minister, Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke, took over office from his predecessor Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed in a ceremony held Thursday. Ahmed congratulated Sharmarke and requested that the parliament and the president work with Sharmarke in order to achieve his constitutional duties, Xinhua reported. “I am very pleased that I am […]
Washington, Dec 24 (IANS/EFE) Former US president George W.H. Bush has been transferred, as a precautionary measure, to a hospital in Houston after suffering respiratory problems, according to a statement from his office. The former president, 90, was admitted Tuesday to the Houston Methodist Hospital where he would remain under observation as a precautionary measure, […]
Brussels, Dec 24 (IANS/EFE) Belgian Defence Minister Steven Vandeput personally authorised the use of a military aircraft for flying Belgium’s King Philip and his family to Asia for their Christmas vacation, sparking controversy about the use of public resources for private purposes, a media report said Wednesday. Vandeput granted permission for the royal family to […]
Lisbon, Dec 24 (IANS/EFE) Three days after its inauguration, a statue of Real Madrid’s Portuguese star striker Cristiano Ronaldo erected in his honour in his hometown in the Madeira Islands has generated a great deal of buzz for what looks like as a bulge in the statue’s pants. On Wednesday, several Portuguese newspapers collected dozens […]
Berlin, Dec 23 (IANS/EFE) German security forces are on high alert as fears grow that terror attacks by radical Islamists might be carried out in any part of the country, according to a leaked report published Tuesday by the Bild newspaper. According to the confidential report seen by the paper, Germany’s participation in the fight […]
Islamabad, Dec 22 (IANS) Two Pakistani courts Monday suspended the execution of seven convicted terrorists citing various grounds even as Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif directed the country’s attorney general to take legal steps to get such suspension orders revoked. The Lahore High Court’s (LHC) Rawalpindi bench Monday suspended the convictions of five prisoners who were […]
Kochi, Dec 22 (IANS) The Kochi Muziris Biennale (KMB) has made India an important centre for contemporary art with its assembly of beautifully installed exhibits that are well-chosen in their narration and materiality, said curator critic Okwui Enwezor. The KMB 2014 “feels incredibly familiar in a powerful way”, the 51-year-old Nigerian said Monday, adding that […]
Seoul, Dec 22 (IANS/EFE) Kim Kyung-ho, the head of South Korean capital Seoul’s traffic division, Monday filed a lawsuit against the Uber mobile application which connects riders to private car owners, promising to punish drivers cooperating with the taxi-hailing service. In statements to the local Yonhap news agency, the capital’s head of traffic claimed that […]
Srinagar, Dec 22 (IANS) Amid the uncertainty of what will be the election result Tuesday in Jammu and Kashmir, two things are certain: there will be no alliance between the BJP and the Congress and none between the National Conference and the PDP. A few other things can be said with some certainty. The Peoples […]