• 

  5 Indians Kidnapped In Mali Amid Rising Unrest By Al Qaeda, ISIS-Linked Groups

  Gunmen have kidnapped five Indian nationals in Mali, their company and a security source said Friday, as the west African country reels from mounting unrest and jihadist violence.

• 

  US Grants Hungary Exemption On Russian Oil Sanctions

  US President Donald Trump handed Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban an exemption from sanctions to keep buying Russian oil on Friday, as the right-wing allies held a chummy White House meeting.

• 

  Trump Blames Foreign-Owned Meat Packers For Rising Beef Prices In US

  President Donald Trump on Friday accused foreign-owned meat packers of driving up the price of beef in the US and asked the Department of Justice to open an investigation.

• 

  Over 1,200 Flights Cut Across US Amid Shutdown Standoff

  More than 1,200 flights were canceled across the United States on Friday after the Trump administration ordered reductions to ease strain on air traffic controllers working without pay amid a federal government shutdown.

• 

  US To Boycott G20 Summit In South Africa Over Alleged Treatment Of White Farmers

  President Donald Trump said Friday that no US government officials would be attending the Group of 20 summit this year in South Africa, citing the country's treatment of white farmers.

• 

  US Government Says Trump's Hush Money Conviction Should Be Thrown Out

  The US government said President Donald Trump's hush money criminal conviction in New York should be thrown out, because it was based on improper evidence and a legal theory preempted by federal law.

• 

  Turkey Issues "Genocide" Arrest Warrant Against Israel's Netanyahu

  Turkey announced Friday that it had issued arrest warrants for genocide against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and senior officials within his government.

• 

  Brazil Supreme Court Panel Rejects Bolsonaro's Appeal Against Jail Term

  The majority of justices on Brazil's Supreme Court panel reviewing former President Jair Bolsonaro's appeal rejected his request on Friday.

• 

  "Will Remember This": Jamaica, Cuba Praise India For Support After Hurricane

  Cuba and Jamaica have publicly thanked India for standing with them after Hurricane Melissa tore through the Caribbean, leaving widespread destruction and a rising death toll.

• 

  James Watson, Co-Discoverer Of DNA Double-Helix, Dies At 97

  James D. Watson, whose co-discovery of the twisted-ladder structure of DNA in 1953 helped light the long fuse on a revolution in medicine, crimefighting, genealogy and ethics, has died, according to his former research lab. He was 97.

• 

  Over 50 Injured In Blasts At School Mosque In Indonesia

  Two blasts at a school mosque in the Indonesian capital Jakarta injured at least 50 people on Friday, authorities said, with a student accused of being responsible for the incident.

• 

  US Fails To Appear For Its Mandatory UN Human Rights Review

  The United States failed to appear Friday for the so-called Universal Periodic Review of its human rights record, becoming only the second country to ever boycott the regular UN process.

• 

  US Adds New Grounds To Deny Visas: Obesity, Diabetes, Heart Disease

  Foreign nationals applying for a visa to live in the US might be rejected if they have health conditions such as diabetes or obesity, according to a government directive issued by the Trump administration on Thursday.

• 

  Over 1,400 Africans From Dozens Of Countries Fighting For Russia: Ukraine

  More than 1,400 citizens from three dozen African countries are fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine, Kyiv's foreign minister said on Friday.

• 

  Mexico President's Rivals Accuse Her Of Using Groping Row As Diversion Tactic

  The groping of Mexico President on a street shone a bright light on the gender violence women face every day, but the country's political polarisation has tarnished what under other circumstances would seem a natural moment for national solidarity.

• 

  US Sold Sniper Rifles To Brazil Police Unit Linked To Deadly Rio Raids

  The US government approved a sale of sniper rifles to a deadly police unit in Brazil last year, overriding concerns from the US ambassador and other diplomats that the arms could be used in extrajudicial killings.

• 

  Pakistan Developed Nuclear Weapons To Counter India: Ex CIA Officer

  Pakistan's primary motive for developing nuclear weapons was to counter India, said former CIA officer Richard Barlow.

• 

  US Ignored Pakistan's Nuclear Program Despite Warnings: Ex-CIA Officer

  According to ex-CIA intelligence officer Richard Barlow, the then-US President Ronald Reagan administration prioritised its Afghan strategy over non-proliferation efforts.

• 

  Ex-CIA Officer's Claim On Secret India-Israel Plan To Strike Pak Nuke Site

  Former CIA officer Richard Barlow revealed that the proposed joint covert operation by India and Israel to bomb Pakistan's Kahuta nuclear facility in the early 1980s to halt Islamabad's atomic ambition could have "solved a lot of problems."

• 

  55 Injured In Explosion At Indonesian School Mosque During Friday Prayers

  Explosions at a mosque in Indonesia's capital Jakarta that injured dozens of people during Friday prayers could have been an attack, officials indicated, with a 17-year-old identified as the suspected perpetrator.