Washington, Aug 19 (IANS) US law enforcement agencies recorded as many as 189 anti-Sikh and 32 anti-Hindu hate crime offences in 2025, according to newly released FBI data that provide no separate count for crimes targeting Indian Americans. The figures were calculated from the FBI’s Reported Crimes in the Nation statistics. The annual report breaks down hate crimes motivated by religious, racial, ethnic and other forms of bias.Law enforcement agencies reported 2,703 single-bias religious hate…

Washington, Aug 19 (IANS) The Pentagon is evaluating whether to reduce the US military presence in the Persian Gulf after the Iran war, as extensive damage to American bases forces officials to reconsider how troops and equipment are positioned across the Middle East, US media reported. The assessment is at an early stage and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has not ordered a formal review, according to a report by The Washington Post, which cited eight officials and other people familiar with the…

Los Angeles, Aug 19 (IANS) Hollywood actress Phyllida Law, the mother of actress Emma Thompson, has died at the age of 94. The veteran actress passed away at the end of last month, but the news was only announced on August 18, 2026. The news was shared by her personal manager, Jacky Leggo, who said she had “died supremely peacefully at home, surrounded by all her family”, reports ‘Female First UK’.Jacky told the BBC, “It is with great sadness we have to announce that Phyllida Law died su…

Mumbai, Aug 19 (IANS) Music composer Akhil Sachdeva, who has composed the song ‘Piya Ghar Aaya – Homecoming’ from the recently released Emraan Hashmi-starrer ‘Awarapan 2’, has said that he hasn’t been used as a singer to his true potential in the industry. The composer spoke with IANS after the film’s release in the BKC area of Mumbai. Market forces are something that impact an artist to a large extent. Sometimes producers or show organizers arm-twist an artiste. When asked what’s th…

Mumbai, Aug 19 (IANS) Karan Singh, who is a magician, and was recently eliminated from the reality show ‘The Traitors’, feels that the space of reality shows will get even better with time. Karan spoke with IANS after he left the show along with Soundous Mouafakir, Harman Singha and Munawar Faruqui.As the world becomes closer with technology,social media, and people having access to all the artistes on their phones, is the space of reality TV or reality programming becoming increasingly more…

Budapest, Aug 18 (IANS) Artistic swimming is set for further rule changes as the sport moves toward the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, with adjustments to free routines and their length to be announced soon, World Aquatics Artistic Swimming Technical Committee chair Lisa Schott told Xinhua.”In the new rule changes coming out very, very shortly, you will see some changes in the free routines and their length,” Schott said during the Aug. 12-16 World Aquatics Junior Artistic Swimming Championship…

Lucknow, Aug 19 (IANS) Defending champions Kashi Rudras registered back-to-back victories in Season 4 of the UP T20 League, securing a 15-run win against the Gaur Gorakhpur Lions in Match 7 at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Tuesday.Skipper Karan Sharma delivered a masterclass, overcoming a middle-order collapse to blast an unbeaten 92 off 48 deliveries, effectively batting the opposition out of the contest.The match was officially inaugurated by th…

Mumbai, Aug 18 (IANS) The makers of the upcoming Prabhas-starrer ‘Spirit’ have confirmed that the film is not undergoing any change of release, and is set to be released on its scheduled date. After the reports about the delay in the film’s release emerged, a spokesperson from the production house confirmed that the film is pretty much on track, and is set to arrive in cinemas on March 5, 2027.T-Series spokesperson confirmed, “We are very much on track with the release of Spirit. The fil…

Los Angeles, Aug 19 (IANS) The Queen of Pop, Madonna has shared pictures from her 68th birthday celebrations, and she appears to be in good spirits surrounded by her loved ones. On Tuesday, the singer-songwriter took to her Instagram, and shared a series of pictures from the celebrations. The pictures feature her in a floral dress, as she soaked in the celebrations. One of the pictures also shows a cake adorned with the icing of a big human eye.She wrote in the caption, “ It’s My Birthday! E…

Guwahati, Aug 18 (IANS) Rajveer Singh struck a fine half-century as Jorhat Stallions edged past Tezpur Titans by three wickets in a closely fought encounter in the Assam Premier League (APL) 2026 at the Assam Cricket Association Stadium in Guwahati on Tuesday.Put into bat after Jorhat Stallions won the toss and opted to field, Tezpur Titans posted 156/8 in their 20 overs. Opener Wasim Akram Haque top-scored with a steady 37 off 33 balls, while Nihar Deka provided impetus with a brisk 32 off 20 d…