March 16, 2016. Russian President Vladimir Putin holds a meeting with Government members in the Kremlin MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin held Russia’s Ministry of Sport liable for the latest doping scandal linked to the use of Meldonium by some Russian athletes and sharply criticized it for failing to react in a timely manner to the ban of some drugs. ...

For the first time in the history of Pakistan, the country will get public holidays on Holi, Diwali and Easter after its parliament on Tuesday adopted a resolution to this effect. The resolution, which was moved by lawmaker Dr.Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, was adopted by the National Assembly to take steps to declare the festivals as holidays for minorities. According to ...

WASHINGTON: Afghanistan on Tuesday told the UN Security Council in the last three months, Pakistan had violated its territorial integrity and sovereignty at least 56 times by crossing the Durand Line. The violations would further jeopardise the relationship between the neighbours, Afghanistan’s top diplomat at the United Nations told members of the Security Council. “We want an immediate end to ...

CLEVELAND: Hillary Clinton took a monumental step toward clinching the Democratic party’s White House nomination Tuesday, while Donald Trump’s seemingly unstoppable rush to victory hit a bump in Ohio. Trump won key Republican primaries in Illinois, North Carolina and Florida ─ where he thumped home state Senator Marco Rubio, who immediately announced he was suspending his presidential campaign. “This was ...

PESHAWAR: A powerful bomb, detonated by a timing mechanism, ripped through a bus carrying government employees in Peshawar on Wednesday, killing at least 15 people and causing injuries to 25. The blast that took place near Peshawar’s Sunehri Masjid targeted a Civil Secretariat bus which was carrying government employees from Mardan to the provincial capital. Fear and panic spread among residents ...

KABUL: President Ashraf Ghani on Tuesday said the peace process had become complicated because of the regional and global aspects of the war in Afghanistan. He said Afghanistan, Pakistan, the US and China had prepared a roadmap for reviving peace talks between his administration and the Taliban. He hailed the plan as a breakthrough in itself. Speaking at a joint ...

ISLAMABAD: The Indian government barred five Pakistani diplomats and two of their family members from travelling to Kolkata to watch the upcoming World T20 match between the two neighbouring countries. “Yes, I can confirm that two counsellors, one first secretary, two protocol officers and two family members have been denied permission to travel to Kolkata,” said a senior Pakistani diplomat ...

Peace talks with Taliban failed; HPC a symbolic body; Afghan officials lack consensus over peace with militants; women’s status will become worse after peace deal; Taliban fight for Pakistan’s interest AT-KABUL: Pakistan, regional countries, the United State and the West see their interests in war and insecurity in Afghanistan, a survey said. According to the survey launched by the Afghanistan ...

AFGHANISTAN: The provincial police chief of southern Kandahar province Gen. Abdul Raziq has said the United States should force Pakistan to halt support to the anti-government armed militants in Afghanistan in a bid to help secure stability in the country. Insisting on coordinated military operations amid ongoing efforts to revive peace talks, Gen. Raziq said “The United States has enough ...

Saudi Arabia has long been a major ally of the United States but the relationship has deteriorated under Obama. —AP/File RIYADH: A senior Saudi royal has criticised President Barack Obama for comments accusing the longtime US ally of feeding Middle East conflicts. Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, has long been a major ally of the United States but ...