Polls in Nepal’s general election closed on Thursday evening as the Himalayan nation gets ready to elect a new parliament nearly six months after the deaths of 77 people in a crackdown on youth-led protests forced its then prime minister to quit. Counting at most booths was likely to begin s
Rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah's party gained leads in early counting in Nepal's general election, far outpacing his other rivals, including the country's former prime minister who was forced to resign after a historic youth-led uprising last year. Shah, 35, former mayor of the capital cit
The southern Indian state of Karnataka, home to the tech hub of Bengaluru, has banned the use of social media by those under the age of 16, state Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Friday, becoming the first in India to do so. "With the objective of preventing adverse effects of increasing mobi
Iranian state television reported Friday that a leadership council had started discussing how to convene the country's Assembly of Experts, which will select the new supreme leader. The leadership council includes President Masoud Pezeshkian, judiciary chief Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehi and cleric
China said on Thursday it would build a "childbirth-friendly society" in the next five years, pledging to address concerns over employment, education, medical care, health and income, according to an official government report. Authorities will improve population services and respond proactively o
Iranians will bid farewell to late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at a ceremony in Tehran late on Wednesday, a senior Iranian official told state media. Hojjatoleslam Mahmoudi, head of Iran’s Islamic Propagation Council, said the farewell ceremony would continue for three days and the
Indonesia will increase crude oil imports from the United States to replace some supply from the Middle East amid an escalating war in the region, its energy minister said on Tuesday. The ongoing US and Israeli air war against Iran has killed scores of civilians in Iran, Israel and Lebanon
Explosions tore through Tehran and Beirut on Tuesday and financial markets around the world tumbled at the prospect of a prolonged disruption to global energy supplies from the US-Israeli air war against Iran. Iranian drones slammed into the US embassy in Saudi Arabia, causing minor damage and sta
The United States has cancelled visa appointments at its embassy in Islamabad and consulates in Lahore and Karachi amid escalating unrest in Pakistan. In a post on X on Tuesday, the US Embassy said that due to the current security situation, all visa appointments at the embassy and the consulates
Qatar's Ministry of Interior has announced a one-month extension of all types of entry visas that have expired or are nearing expiry, effective February 28, 2026, with the possibility of further extension depending on developments of the ongoing situation. In a statement issued in D
Violent clashes between protesters and security forces in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi and in the country’s north left at least 22 people dead and more than 120 others injured as the demonstrators attempted to storm a US Consulate on Sunday, authorities said. In the north o
Afghanistan said Sunday it had thwarted attempted airstrikes on Bagram Air Base, the former US military base north of Kabul, while cross-border fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan stretched into a fourth day. The fighting has been the most severe between the neighbors for years, with Pakista
The United States and Israel launched their most ambitious attacks on Iran in decades on Saturday in an operation that killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The biggest foreign-policy gamble of US President Donald Trump’s presidency comes after he campaigned for reelection as a &ldqu
