JD Vance, the Republican vice-presidential nominee, defended his controversial comments about Haitian immigrants allegedly eating pets in Springfield, Ohio, during a rally in Wisconsin on Tuesday. Vance, addressing the crowd in Eau Claire, insisted that it was the media’s responsibility to fact-check such claims, not his. “The media has a responsibility to fact-check,” Vance said, doubling down on his remarks. His comments came two days after telling CNN host Dana Bash that it was acceptable “to create stories” to draw attention to important issues. Vance’s earlier claims, which suggested Haitian immigrants had eaten pets in Springfield, were widely criticised for…
Author: Hasnain Abid Khanzada
BEIRUT: At least eight people were killed and 2,750 others including Hezbollah fighters, medics and Iran’s envoy to Beirut were wounded on Tuesday when the pagers they use to communicate exploded across Lebanon, security sources and the Lebanese health minister said. Lebanese Information Minister Ziad Makary condemned the detonation of the pagers – used by Hezbollah and others in Lebanon to communicate – as an “Israeli aggression”. Hezbollah said Israel would receive “its fair punishment” for the blasts. A Hezbollah official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the detonation of the pagers was the “biggest security breach” the group had…
Bangladesh’s interim government has granted magisterial powers to the army for a period of two months, as part of a broader effort to restore law and order following recent political unrest. The decision, which took effect immediately on Tuesday, aims to counter “subversive acts” and improve stability, particularly in industrial areas, according to a notification from the Ministry of Public Administration. Commissioned officers of the Bangladesh Army will now have judicial authority under Section 17 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). This temporary power places army officers as special executive magistrates, subordinate to district magistrates or deputy commissioners. The…
Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, Mojtaba Amani, lost one eye and suffered severe injuries to the other when a pager he was carrying exploded in a coordinated attack on Hezbollah members across Lebanon. The explosion, believed to be part of a larger operation attributed to Israel, took place on Tuesday, according to The New York Times. The incident has heightened tensions in the region, already on edge after recent escalations. At least nine people were killed and around 3,000 others including Hezbollah fighters and medics were wounded Initial reports from Qatari state media claimed Amani’s injuries were superficial, but Iranian outlets and sources…
Amazon.com named Samir Kumar as its new India head on Wednesday, handing the reins to a 25-year company veteran as the e-commerce giant faces intense competition and regulatory pressures in the country. Kumar was part of a team that launched Amazon India in 2013 and will take over from Manish Tiwary on Oct. 1. He currently heads Amazon’s consumer businesses in the Middle East, South Africa, and Turkey. Amazon had said without elaborating further that Tiwary resigned last month after an eight-year stint to pursue an opportunity outside the company. The change in leadership comes as the U.S. e-commerce giant…
BRUSSELS: Alphabet unit Google won its challenge on Wednesday against a 1.49 billion euro ($1.66 billion) antitrust fine imposed five years ago for hindering rivals in online search advertising, a week after it lost a much bigger case. The European Commission in its 2019 decision said Google had abused its dominance to prevent websites from using brokers other than its AdSense platform that provided search adverts. The practices it said were illegal took place from 2006 to 2016. The Luxembourg-based General Court mostly agreed with the European Union competition enforcer’s assessments of the case, but annulled the fine. “The court…
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed several groundbreaking laws aimed at regulating the artificial intelligence (AI) sector, positioning the state as a leader in AI oversight. Among the new legislation announced Tuesday, are three laws focused on curbing AI deepfakes that could influence elections in the US, and two others protecting actors from unauthorized AI clones of their likeness or voice. The law AB 2655 requires major platforms like Facebook and X to remove or label AI-generated election-related deepfakes. Additionally, AB 2355 mandates the disclosure of AI-generated political advertisements. These measures are part of a broader national conversation, as the FCC…
Lebanon’s ambassador Hadi Hachem has condemned the recent explosion of pager devices across the country, labeling the incident a “war crime” and accusing Israel of escalating the region’s already fragile state At least nine people, including a 10-year-old child, were killed, and thousands were wounded in a series of pager explosions across Lebanon and Syria on Tuesday. The blastshave sparked outrage in Beirut. The blasts, which targeted members of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, represent a significant security breach amidst escalating tensions in the Middle East. Lebanese Health Minister Firass Abiad reported approximately 2,750 injuries, with around 200 individuals in…
The head of Russia’s nuclear testing site said on Tuesday his secretive facility was ready to resume nuclear tests “at any moment” if Moscow gave the order, in rare comments likely to fuel concerns that the risk of such a step is rising. Moscow has not conducted a nuclear weapons test since 1990, the year before the fall of the Soviet Union, but some Western and Russian analysts say President Vladimir Putin could order one to try to send a message of deterrence to the West if it lets Ukraine use its long-range missiles to strike Russia, something that is…
QUETTA: An election tribunal on Monday declared the victory of Balochistan Minister for Agriculture Mir Ali Madad Jattak null and void and ordered re-polling at 15 polling stations in the PB-45 Quetta constituency. The tribunal, headed by Justice Abdullah Baloch of the Balochistan High Court, had reserved its judgement after concluding the hearing of the election petition submitted by Mir Usman Pirkani, a JUI-F candidate from PB-45 Quetta, who contested the victory of Ali Madad Jattak, a PPP lawmaker and minister for agriculture. The election tribunal, after examining all witness statements and records, upheld the petition and declared Mr Jattak’s…
