WORLD

Ahmedabad, Dec 22 (IANS) US President-elect Donald Trump has reignited the national debate on illegal immigration, pledging that, on his first day of taking charge of the office, he would oversee the largest deportation operation in American history. This announcement comes as the Biden-Harris administration faces criticism over immigration policies, with over 11 million undocumented immigrants currently residing in the US, 80 per cent of whom have been in the country for a decade or longer.While the focus often centres on migrants from Latin America, a growing number of illegal immigrants are arriving from India -- specifically, the state of Gujarat. Despite heightened border security, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recorded 90,415 Indian nationals attempting to cross into the...

Berlin, Dec 22 (IANS) Seven Indian nationals were among those injured in a horrifying attack at a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, that left five dead, including a 9-year-old child, and nearly 200 injured, according to official sources. Three of the injured Indians have been discharged from the hospital, the sources said. The Indian Embassy is in contact with the affected individuals and their families and is offering assistance.Earlier, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) condemned the incident, describing it as a "horrific and senseless attack."In a statement, the MEA said, "Several precious lives have been lost, and many have been injured. Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims."The Ministry confirmed that the Indian mission in Germany is coordinating with the injured ...

Moscow, Dec 22 (IANS) Russia's Tatarstan Republic declared a state of emergency for government bodies and emergency response units to manage the aftermath of Ukrainian drone attacks."The head of Tatarstan has signed an order imposing a special emergency mode for government agencies and the Ministry of Emergency Situations. This status is necessary to swiftly handle the consequences of the attacks in accordance with the law," the press service of Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov said on Saturday. "The order applies exclusively to those involved in the response efforts and does not affect the general population."On Saturday, eight drone strikes were reported in Tatarstan's capital city of Kazan, six of which targeted residential buildings. Preliminary reports indicated there were no in...

Gaza, Dec 22 (IANS) A ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip is imminent, with most of its terms already agreed upon, a senior official from the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement said.The official, who required anonymity, said the proposed agreement outlines a gradual cessation of hostilities and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, with the final deal also including a comprehensive prisoner-for-hostage exchange and a permanent end to the war between Hamas and Israel, Xinhua news agency reported.Although some contentious points are still being negotiated, they are not expected to be a major obstacle to reaching a final agreement, added the official.The source also expressed optimism that the agreement would be finalised before the end of the year, as long as Israel does no...

Helsinki, Dec 22 (IANS) Iceland's new government, headed by Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir of the Social Democratic Alliance (SDA), officially took office.According to a government press release, the Social Democrats and the LRP each hold four ministerial portfolios, while the PP has taken three.Besides the SDA, the three-party coalition also includes the Liberal Reform Party (LRP), and the People's Party (PP), Xinhua news agency reported.Frostadottir, born in 1988, is the country's youngest prime minister. She was elected to parliament in 2021 and became the SDA leader the following year.She served as the main economist for the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce in 2017, and in 2018, she became the main economist for the Kvika Bank. She served until 2021, when she applied to be on the So...

Abuja, Dec 22 (IANS) At least 10 people, including four children, were killed in a stampede during a relief item distribution at a local church in the Maitama district of Abuja, the Nigerian capital.Josephine Adeh, spokesperson for the police in the Federal Capital Territory, said in a statement that eight others sustained varying degrees of injuries when the distribution of relief items, including food and clothing ahead of Christmas celebrations, turned chaotic Saturday at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Maitama."Four of the injured had been treated and discharged, while the remaining victims are currently receiving medical care," Adeh said, noting the police successfully evacuated "a crowd, numbering over a thousand."Padre Mike Nsikak Umoh, spokesperson for the Catholic Secretariat ...

Baghdad, Dec 22 (IANS) Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani stressed the importance of concerted efforts to assist Syria in managing its affairs without interference that compromises its sovereignty and territorial integrity.According to a statement from al-Sudani's media office, Al-Sudani made the remarks on Saturday when meeting with Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto in Baghdad, where they discussed ways to enhance bilateral relations in various fields, particularly in security cooperation, Xinhua news agency reported.Al-Sudani praised Italy's role in supporting Iraq through the international coalition's mission and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization mission and expressed Iraq's readiness to cooperate with friendly countries to stabilise the region, said the statement....

Gaza, Dec 22 (IANS) At least nine people were killed in Israeli shelling on the Gaza Strip, according to Palestinian sources.Israeli warplanes targeted in the morning a gathering of Palestinians west of the al-Shati refugee camp on Saturday, said Mahmoud Basal, spokesman for Civil Defence in Gaza.Basal told Xinhua that seven people were killed and some others injured in the strike, all of whom were taken to the Baptist Hospital in Gaza City.Medical workers also recovered a body and a number of wounded persons after an Israeli airstrike on a house in the vicinity of al-Ta'min school in central Gaza, according to Basal.Meanwhile, in southern Gaza's Rafah, medics said that a Palestinian was killed by an Israeli drone in the Khirbet al-Adas area, north of the city, Xinhua news agency reported....

Damascus, Dec 22 (IANS) Qatar officially reopened its embassy in the Syrian capital Damascus, raising its national flag over the building for the first time in 13 years.In the upscale Abu Rummaneh neighbourhood of Damascus, workers were seen cleaning the embassy compound and removing graffiti from its walls on Saturday.The embassy's reopening comes amid a wave of regional and Western representatives visiting Syria to meet the country's new de-facto leadership following the fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government on December 8.It also comes almost a week after a Qatari delegation visited Damascus to prepare for the resumption of the Qatari diplomatic mission, which was closed in 2011 following the outbreak of the Syrian civil war.The delegation met with representatives ...

Dhaka, Dec 22 (IANS) The World Bank approved three operations totaling 1.16 billion USD to help Bangladesh improve health services, water and sanitation services and achieve greener and climate-resilient development."These new financing will bring to the people of Bangladesh essential services such as health and water and sanitation while laying the foundation for clean, climate resilient and sustainable development," Abdoulaye Seck, World Bank country director for Bangladesh and Bhutan, said in a statement received here Friday, as Bangladesh is among the most vulnerable countries to climate change and faces the greatest pollution challenges.According to the Washington-based lender, the 500-million-dollar Second Bangladesh Green and Climate Resilient Development Credit will support reforms...