Year: 2026

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ‌told G7 foreign ministers on Tuesday that the US would keep imposing “devastating” economic costs on Iran, saying it had options beyond war or agreeing to unacceptable Iranian demands, four G7 diplomats said. Rubio’s comments came during a meeting in Paris of foreign ministers from the Group of ​Seven, which comprises Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, as well ​as the European Union. The diplomats said Rubio had used strong language to describe the ⁠Iranian authorities. Two said he had…

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Overseas Pakistanis sent home $3.89 billion in October 2026, up 13.8% from $3.42 billion a year earlier, the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said on Tuesday. Remittances were also 8.5% higher than September’s $3.6 billion. Cumulative inflows for July-October of FY27 rose 14% to $14.8 billion, from $13 billion in the same period last year. “These sustained inflows are strengthening Pakistan’s foreign exchange position, supporting households and reinforcing external-account stability,” Khurram Schehzad, advisor to the finance minister, said on X. Remittances support the external account and boost the incomes of…

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Israel’s new parliament is prepared to be sworn in Tuesday with a mission to take aim immediately at caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as rival Gadi Eisenkot vowed quickly to cobble together a new government. President Isaac Herzog will deliver a speech at 4:00 pm (1400 GMT) for the swearing-in of the 120-seat parliament, in which neither Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition nor Eisenkot’s broad left-to-right anti-Netanyahu bloc will hold a majority. “I am committed in this complex situation to form a national-emergency government as quickly as possible,” Eisenkot, a 66-year-old former…

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Debutant pace bowler Saqib Khan grabbed two wickets as Sri Lanka struggled to 114-3 by the end of day two of the opening Test after Pakistan declared at 434-9 in Rawalpindi on Tuesday. Saqib dismissed Dinesh Chandimal for one in his second over and then removed a well-set Lahiru Udara for 42 to leave Sri Lanka on 65-3. His experienced pace partner Mohammad Abbas took the first wicket, having opener Pasindu Sooriyabandara caught behind for a duck in the third over. Kamindu Mendis (40) and Dhananjaya de Silva (22) were…

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Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to restore the confidence of coalition partners instead of opening a new front against the opposition, saying his party will support the government in addressing the economic crisis. “Until all Pakistanis stand united, we will not be able to protect the people from this difficult situation,” Bilawal said while addressing a ceremony in Karachi on Tuesday to mark the completion of one million homes for flood victims under the Sindh Peoples Housing Scheme. Bilawal described the…

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Russian and Ukrainian officials met in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday for their first US-brokered talks since February, after President Donald Trump suggested last week that a ​broad deal was possible on ending the war in Ukraine and guaranteeing security in Europe. US envoy Jared Kushner told delegates that recent contacts with both sides had “really ‌identified, narrowed the gaps”, and the US side had “some good ideas” on how to bridge their differences. Trump, he said, was committed to achieving peace. “He really has asked us to put extra effort…

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Iran on Tuesday urged the United States to meet its demands for reopening the Strait of Hormuz after President Donald Trump spoke of “positive momentum” towards ending their eight-month war. Qatar and Pakistan are leading diplomatic efforts to resolve the Middle East war, which broke out with US-Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in late February. Tehran has said it could reopen Hormuz, the vital global energy conduit that it has blockaded since the start of the conflict, within two days if Washington meets a raft…

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Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday that two oil tankers were on fire in the Strait of Hormuz, where the country regularly targets ships that transit without its authorisation. Since the outbreak of the Middle East war in late February, Tehran has heavily restricted traffic through the strategic waterway, insisting vessels use routes authorised by the Islamic Republic. The United States has, in response, imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports and helped tankers travel the strait, which normally carries about one-fifth of global oil. “Two violating oil tankers, travelling…

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