International

Muslim pilgrims prayed atop Mount Arafat on Thursday during the high point of the annual hajj pilgrimage, as Saudi officials called on participants to refrain from being outside during the hottest hours of the day. Thousands of pilgrims were beginning to gather before dawn around the hill and the surrounding plain where the Prophet Mohammed is believed to have given ...

US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Wednesday banning the nationals of 12 countries from entering the United States, saying the move was needed to protect against “foreign terrorists” and other security threats. The countries affected are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The entry of people from seven other countries: ...

The Japanese government says the number of Japanese births last year dropped below 700,000 for the first time since statistics were first compiled in 1899. The health ministry said 686,061 babies were born to Japanese nationals in 2024, down 41,227 from the previous year. The number has fallen for nine years in a row. National Institute of Population and Social ...

A 50-year-old Turkish-born man, Hamit Coskun, was found guilty on Monday of a religiously aggravated public order offence after burning a copy of the Koran outside the Turkish consulate in London earlier this year. During the February incident, Coskun shouted “Islam is religion of terrorism” and “Koran is burning” as he set fire to the Islamic holy book. District Judge ...

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum hit back Monday at criticism of her country’s unprecedented election of judges, after most voters skipped a ballot that her opponents branded a farce. Sunday’s election followed highly contentious reforms making Mexico the only country in the world to let voters select all of their judges, including Supreme Court justices. As officials tallied votes, Sheinbaum hailed ...

Gunmen killed at least 25 people in two separate attacks in north-central Nigeria’s Benue state over the weekend, local officials confirmed Monday. The incidents mark another wave of violence in a region long plagued by deadly land disputes and retaliatory attacks. Adam Ochega, chairman of the Apa local government council, said 14 people were killed in the Ankpali community. In ...

A bus crash on a Nigerian highway on Saturday killed 21 athletes returning from a national sports tournament, with authorities saying the accident might have been the result of driver fatigue or excessive speed, reports AFP. The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) said the afternoon crash, which did not involve other vehicles, “might have occurred as a result of fatigue ...

Hamas on Saturday said it had responded to a ceasefire proposal from US envoy Steve Witkoff, saying 10 living hostages would be freed from Gaza as part of the deal, reports AFP. The Palestinian militant group did not explicitly say it had accepted the version of the proposal it received on Thursday, which reportedly included a provision for the release ...

The number of casualties of landslides at a quarry in Indonesia’s West Java province on Friday rose to at least 13, with several others missing, a rescuer said. Meanwhile, five people are seriously injured and several others sustained minor wounds, according to Ade Dian Permana, head of the search and rescue office in West Java Province, reports Xinhua. “So far, ...

Tens of thousands of protesters demanding the abolished monarchy be restored and the former king be made the head of state of the Himalayan nation demonstrated in Nepal Thursday, reports AP. The protesters, waving flags and chanting slogans, demanded the return of the king and the restoration of Hinduism as a state religion as they marched through the main circle ...