Category Archives: South and Central Asia

Tributes paid to ‘kind and loving’ British tourist who died in Laos

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Simone White was one of six people to die in suspected methanol poisoning incident in Vang Vieng

Tributes have been paid to the “beautiful, kind and loving” British tourist Simone White, one of six people to die in a suspected mass methanol poisoning in Laos.

The six died after allegedly being served drinks laced with methanol in Vang Vieng, a town popular with backpackers. These include the Australian teenagers Bianca Jones and Holly Bowles, both 19, an American man and two Danish women aged 19 and 20.

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Canada denies it has evidence linking Modi to killing of Sikh separatists

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Trudeau adviser shuts down foreign ministry’s allegations that Indian government was behind intimidation plot

Canada, which expelled six Indian diplomats over allegations they were involved in a plot against Sikh separatists, has denied it has evidence Narendra Modi was linked to violence on Canadian soil.

The Canadian foreign ministry last month alleged Amit Shah, considered the number two in Modi’s government, was behind a campaign of intimidation in Canada. Ottawa says it has evidence linking Indian government agents to the 2023 murder of the Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.

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More than 40 killed in north-west Pakistan in gun attack on Shia convoy

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Violence in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa follows killing of dozens of people in clashes between Sunnis and minority Shias

At least 42 people have been killed and 20 wounded after gunmen opened fire on vehicles carrying Shia Muslims in Pakistan’s restive north-west, in one of the region’s deadliest such attacks in recent years, police said.

The attack happened in Kurram, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where sectarian clashes between majority Sunni Muslims and minority Shias have killed dozens of people in recent months.

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Billionaire Gautam Adani charged in US over alleged $250m bribery plot

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Indian chair of Adani Group, worth about $85bn, accused of agreeing to pay bribes to obtain solar energy contracts

Gautam Adani, one of the world’s richest men, has been indicted in New York over an alleged multibillion-dollar scheme to pay $250m in bribes and conceal it from US investors.

Prosecutors charged the chair of the Indian conglomerate Adani Group and two other executives of a renewable energy company with securities fraud and conspiring to commit securities and wire fraud.

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World’s conflict zones increased by two-thirds in past three years, report reveals

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Wars have spread and intensified, with far-reaching impacts on global economic growth and food security, according to latest Conflict Intensity Index

The proportion of the world engulfed by conflict has grown 65% – equivalent to nearly double the size of India – over the past three years, according to a new report.

Ukraine, Myanmar, the Middle East and a “conflict corridor” around Africa’s Sahel region have seen wars and unrest spread and intensify since 2021, according to the latest Conflict Intensity Index (CII), published by risk analysts Verisk Maplecroft.

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Family of woman found dead in car in London accuses police of failing to protect her

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Exclusive: Sister says Harshita Brella reported abuse but ‘police processes made her feel more scared and alone’

The family of a woman found dead in a car boot in east London have accused police of not doing enough to protect her, saying she had filed a complaint alleging domestic abuse by her husband weeks before.

The body of Harshita Brella, a 24-year-old Indian citizen who was living in Northamptonshire, was discovered last Thursday in a car in Ilford. Police have named her husband, Pankaj Lamba, as the main suspect for the killing. Officers believe he has fled the country.

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Keir Starmer to restart UK-India talks after previous negotiations stalled

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Whisky and migration thwarted earlier deal but UK PM hopeful of reaching agreement with Narendra Modi

Keir Starmer is to restart the aborted UK-India trade talks in the new year after an agreement stalled amid disagreements over whisky tariffs and migration.

No progress has been made on the deal since early this year after the last round of talks concluded. As prime minister, Boris Johnson promised a swift deal, but Rishi Sunak was said to be deeply uneasy with some of the provisions that had been negotiated by his predecessor. Talks were put on hold in March while both countries prepared for general elections.

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Cop29: ‘We’re here for life and death reasons,’ says ex-climate minister of Pakistan

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Sherry Rehman says rich nations should pay ‘internationally determined contributions’ to help poorer and worst-affected countries

Amid the endless politicking and inscrutable arguments at the UN climate negotiations in Baku, Azerbaijan, this month, it can be hard to remember what is at stake. That’s why Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s former climate change minister, is calling on global leaders to “keep an eye on the big picture”.

“We’re here for life and death reasons,” Rehman said.

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Pollution in Delhi hits record high, cloaking city in smog

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Indian capital imposes emergency measures including closing schools and offices and barring heavy vehicles

Pollution levels in India’s capital, Delhi, have soared to their highest levels this year, forcing schools and offices to close and cloaking the city in thick brown smog.

In some parts of the city, a live air quality ranking by IQAir put pollution levels at more than 30 times the maximum level deemed healthy.

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Bangladesh to seek extradition of ousted leader Sheikh Hasina from India

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Interim leader Muhammad Yunus confirms plans to put former PM on trial accused of crimes against humanity

Bangladesh will seek the extradition of the former prime minister Sheikh Hasina to face trial on charges including crimes against humanity, the country’s interim leader, Muhammad Yunus, has said in a speech.

Hasina, whose autocratic regime governed Bangladesh for 15 years, was toppled in a student-led revolution in August. Since then she has been living in exile in India after fleeing the country in a helicopter as thousands of protesters overran the presidential palace.

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Narendra Modi to make ‘historic’ Guyana visit for energy talks

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Indian PM’s trip expected to focus on trade and investment as oil-rich Caribbean country’s economic boom continues

India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, will make a “historic” state visit to the oil-rich Caribbean nation of Guyana this week when the two countries are expected to sign energy and defence agreements.

Modi’s visit to the country, from Tuesday to Thursday, will be the first from an Indian prime minister since Indira Gandhi’s in 1968, two years after Guyana gained independence from Britain.

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Ten newborn babies die after fire breaks out at Indian hospital

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Another 16 infants were in critical condition after the blaze at a neonatal unit in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh

Ten newborn babies have died after a fire broke out at the neonatal unit of a hospital in northern India, with another 16 clinging to life.

The fire broke out late on Friday at the Maharani Lakshmibai Medical College in Jhansi, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, 450km (280 miles) south of Delhi.

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Smog crisis envelops Indian capital as Pakistan province declares emergency

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Schools ordered to close in Delhi and Punjab province as neighbouring countries battle dangerous air pollution

India’s capital, Delhi, has ordered all primary schools to cease in-person classes until further notice because of an air pollution crisis that has also prompted Pakistan’s Punjab province to declare a health emergency and ban construction, shut schools for another week and move universities online.

Delhi and the surrounding metropolitan area, home to more than 30 million people, consistently tops world rankings for air pollution in winter. It is estimated to reduce life expectancy for the capital’s residents by up to seven years.

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Pakistan military has no intention of cutting deal with jailed former prime minister Imran Khan – sources

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Speaking from his jail cell, the former superstar cricketer had told the Guardian he would be willing to engage with army leadership

Pakistan’s military has no intention of entering into negotiations or cutting a deal with incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan, senior military sources told the Guardian, after Khan said he would be willing to engage with the army leadership from his jail cell.

Khan, who is being held in Pakistan’s Adiala jail, is banned from meeting journalists but the Guardian was able to submit questions through his legal team.

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Bomb blast at Pakistan train station kills at least 24

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Police say army personnel targeted in possible suicide bombing in country’s south-west and many of more than 40 injured in critical condition

At least 24 people have been killed and more than 40 injured in a bomb blast at a railway station in Quetta in south-western Pakistan, police and other officials have said.

The target was “army personnel from the Infantry School”, said the inspector general of police for Balochistan, Mouzzam Jah Ansari.

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2 million at risk of starvation in Myanmar state amid ‘total economic collapse’

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Exclusive: a UN report will accuse the military of imposing ‘collective punishment’ on Rakhine state, more than three years after seizing power in a coup

Two million people in Myanmar’s Rakhine state could face starvation within months because fierce conflict and trade blockades have led to a “total economic collapse” and the imminent risk of famine, a senior UN official has warned.

Rakhine state, which borders Bangladesh in the west, is on the brink of disaster, as people’s incomes crater, rice cultivation plummets, and military-imposed trade restrictions lead to severe food shortages and hyperinflation, according to forthcoming research from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which accuses the military of inflicting “collective punishment” on civilians.

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World watches with bated breath as US votes for Harris or Trump

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Election watchers in Europe, Asia and elsewhere will be tuning in – and some have a particular interest in the result

From Brazil to Ireland and Germany to the Caribbean, this year’s knife-edge – and more than usually momentous – US presidential vote will be watched at a multitude of election-night events, some with a particular interest in the outcome.

In St Ann Parish, Jamaica – and most particularly in Browns Town, where Harris’s father Donald was born and the Democratic candidate spent many happy childhood holidays – her supporters plan watch parties, drink-ups and other social gatherings.

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Tamils stranded on Diego Garcia for three years allowed to enter UK

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Government drops opposition to case of 64 people, including 16 children, who fled persecution in Sri Lanka

Dozens of Tamils stranded on the remote Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia for more than three years are to be airlifted to the UK after the government dropped its opposition to their case, the high court has heard.

The 64 people, including 16 children, have been stranded on the island since October 2021, when a fishing boat they were using to flee persecution in Sri Lanka got into difficulties.

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‘More toxic than ever’: Lahore and Delhi choked by smog as ‘pollution season’ begins

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As air pollution hits toxic levels, one proposal is to introduce a ‘smog diplomacy’ initiative between Pakistan and India

As the smog descended over Lahore, people began to feel the familiar symptoms. First came the scratchy throat and burning eyes, then the dizziness, tightness in the chest and the dry racking cough.

“It’s become a physical ordeal just to go outdoors,” said Jawaria, 28, a master’s student living in the Pakistani city.

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Canada alleges Indian minister behind plot to target Sikh separatists

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Parliamentary committee told of Narendra Modi ally’s alleged role in campaign of violence and threats

The Canadian government has publicly alleged that India’s home affairs minister, Amit Shah, the prime minister, Narendra Modi’s, closest political ally, was behind a recent series of plots to murder and intimidate Sikh separatists on Canadian soil.

Testifying before a parliamentary committee, the Canadian deputy foreign affairs minister, David Morrison, acknowledged he had leaked information to the Washington Post about Shah’s alleged role in a campaign of violence and threats against the Sikh diaspora over the last few years.

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