After a gap of more than five years, direct flights between India and mainland China are set to resume by the end of October 2025, marking a significant milestone in the gradual thawing of relations between the two Asian giants. The Ministry of External Affairs confirmed on October 2 that both countries had agreed to restart air services between designated points, beginning with the winter season schedule on October 26. The resumption will depend on the decisions of airlines and the completio

President Donald Trump reportedly informed Congress through a confidential Pentagon memo that the United States is now engaged in what is described as a “non-international armed conflict” against Latin American drug cartels. Among the groups named are Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, and Venezuelan organizations like Tren de Aragua and the Cartel de los Soles. The memo designates these cartels as terrorists and their members as unlawful combatants,

Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued a strong warning at the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s (RSS) centenary celebrations in New Delhi, stating that India’s greatest threat today is not infiltration by external forces but demographic changes that could destabilize social equality and national unity. Stressing that “unity in diversity” has always been the soul of India, he said that internal divisions caused by caste, language, regionalism,

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was forced into a rare public apology this week, after US President Donald Trump pushed him to directly address Qatar over a deadly airstrike in Doha. The strike, which took place on September 9, killed five people, including the son of senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya, and rattled Washington as well as key mediators in the ongoing Gaza ceasefire talks. The White House r

Washington is on the edge of crisis as the US government faces its first shutdown in six years. With funding set to expire at midnight, Senate lawmakers rejected a last-ditch attempt to keep government operations running. The rejection followed a heated standoff between Democrats, Republicans, and President Donald Trump, whose return to the Oval Office has intensified political battles in Congress. Despite frantic ne

Mahatma Gandhi’s iconic statue at Tavistock Square in London was vandalised on Monday, just days before Gandhi Jayanti on October 2. The incident has sparked outrage in India and abroad, with the Indian High Commission in the UK strongly condemning the act as shameful and an attack on the legacy of nonviolence. The plinth of the bronze statue, which depicts Gandhi in a meditative seated posture, was defac

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has welcomed US President Donald Trump’s new initiative aimed at ending the Gaza conflict, describing it as a comprehensive pathway toward long-term and sustainable peace. Modi’s support comes after Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed on Washington’s 20-point proposal during talks at the White House. In a statement posted on X, Modi said, We welcom

Former Union Home Minister P Chidambaram has stirred a major political storm with his admission that India refrained from retaliating against Pakistan after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks due to intense foreign pressure, particularly from the United States. Chidambaram revealed in an interview that then US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice flew to India just days after the attacks to urge the government not to react militarily.

The Karur rally tragedy has taken a new turn with the arrest of TVK’s Karur West district secretary Mathiazhagan. Authorities confirmed that he has been named as the prime accused in the First Information Report following the deadly stampede during actor-politician Vijay’s public rally. The event, which drew nearly two lakh attendees despite permission for only 10,000, ended in chaos that left dozens dead and many injured. Police have cited overcro

The recent controversy between Tollywood stalwarts Chiranjeevi and Nandamuri Balakrishna has become a major talking point across Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and social media platforms. Hindupur MLA Balakrishna made objectionable remarks in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly while mentioning Chiranjeevi, triggering anger among Mega fans and drawing widespread media attention. The uproar quickly spread online, leading to heated fan wars between the Mega and Nandamuri gr

President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday announced a comprehensive peace initiative aimed at ending the ongoing Gaza war, expanding the Abraham Accords, and setting the stage for long-term stability in the Middle East. The announcement came after an extended meeting at the White House, where both leaders addressed the press in the State Dining Room and described the day as historic. Trump declared that the plan was designed to end not just the fighting in

The New York City mayoral race has taken a dramatic turn after US President Donald Trump threatened to withhold federal funds if candidate Zohran Mamdani emerges victorious. On Monday, September 29, Trump used his social media account to sharply criticize Mamdani, describing him as a “self-proclaimed New York City Communist” and claiming that his policies would bring unprecedented difficulties for the city in its relationship with Washington. In his post, Trump declared

Russia has signaled close monitoring of the possibility that the United States may supply Ukraine with Tomahawk long-range missiles, weapons capable of striking Moscow. The Kremlin on Monday, September 29, downplayed the potential battlefield impact of such a move but underscored concerns about who would provide targeting data if the missiles were deployed. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed that while the weapons themselves may not drastically alter the military balance, the question o

A public rally by actor-turned-politician Thalapathy Vijay in Karur, Tamil Nadu, ended in tragedy as a massive stampede claimed 36 lives, including women and children, and left many others injured. Officials revealed that the venue had permission for only 10,000 attendees, but nearly two lakh people gathered, causing chaos and the deadly incident. Initially, Vijay refrained from immediate comments when questioned by Ta

The Brics nations on Saturday issued a strong joint statement condemning the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, calling all acts of terrorism criminal and unjustifiable. The ministers of the grouping reiterated their unified stance against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations while underlining the urgent need for concerted international action. In their statement, the leaders said they condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22,

Former United States President Barack Obama has sharply criticized ageing leaders and took a direct swipe at his successor Donald Trump during a public conversation in London. Speaking with historian David Olusoga, Obama argued that a large part of the world’s problems stem from older men who refuse to step aside from power, holding on due to fear of irrelevance. He went on to say that many such leaders seek permanence by etching their names on grand projects, comparing them to pyramid

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, has announced the launch of India’s first hydrogen highways at the inaugural World Hydrogen India event organized by S&P Global Commodity Insights. The initiative marks a significant step toward clean mobility and reducing India’s heavy dependence on crude oil imports. Backed by a budget of ₹500 crore, large-scale hydrogen truck trials have

Russia has issued a sharp response to Ukrainian President Zelensky’s recent warning that Moscow’s top officials should know the locations of their bomb shelters if the invasion continues. Speaking in an interview, Zelensky made it clear that Ukraine would not target civilians, stressing that “we are not terrorists,” but hinted at the possibility of using advanced long-range weapons if supplied by the United States.

In the recent Andhra Pradesh Assembly session, actor and MLA Nandamuri Balakrishna raised concerns about the treatment of the Telugu film industry under the previous government. He questioned narratives suggesting that Chiranjeevi alone represented Tollywood in meetings with former Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy. His remarks sparked strong reactions both within the Assembly and among fans. Responding to the comm

Washington: US President Donald Trump has announced sweeping new tariffs on imported pharmaceutical products, a move that could trigger widespread consequences for the global drug trade and India’s pharmaceutical sector in particular. Effective October 1, 2025, Washington will impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on branded and patented pharmaceutical drugs unless the manufacturing companies are building their production facilities within the United States. The president emphasized that