Jerusalem, May 26 (IANS) Citing Hezbollah’s violation of the ceasefire agreement as a reason, the Israel Defence Force (IDF) on Tuesday warned residents in the Lebanese city of Nabatiyeh to evacuate to safer areas. Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee wrote on X that all residents of Nabatieh must move north of the Zahrani River.“In light of the terrorist Hezbollah’s violation of the ceasefire agreement, the Defence Army is forced to act against it forcefully. The Defence Army does not…
Latest US State Department News & Updates
United Nations, May 17 (IANS) UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the announcement of a 45-day extension of the cessation of hostilities between Lebanon and Israel, said his press office.Guterres reaffirmed the support of the world body to all efforts to end hostilities and alleviate the suffering of communities on both sides of the Blue Line, a border demarcation line between Lebanon and Israel established by the United Nations in 2000, said the press office in a note to corresponden…
Washington, May 16 (IANS) Israel and Lebanon have agreed to a 45-day extension of their ceasefire that took effect last month, a spokesperson for the US State Department has said. “The April 16 cessation of hostilities will be extended by 45 days to enable further progress,” State Department spokesman Tommy Piggott said on X on Friday (local time).Israel and Lebanon will resume political negotiations at the US State Department on June 2-3, while their military delegates are set to launch paralle…
Beirut, May 16 (IANS) Three paramedics were killed and another seriously wounded in an airstrike in southern Lebanon, as Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam urged stronger Arab and international backing for Lebanon’s diplomatic efforts, warning the country faces its gravest crisis since its founding. Lebanon’s Health Ministry said the strike hit a civil defence centre operated by the Islamic Health Authority in the town of Harouf and completely destroyed the facility.The ministry accused Israel …
Jerusalem, May 14 (IANS) Israeli and Lebanese officials began a third round of peace talks in Washington on Thursday, an Israeli government official told a news agency.The talks are expected to continue on Friday, though it was unclear whether the sides were close enough to make progress, Xinhua news agency reported.The negotiations are being held at the US State Department, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Israel is represented by its ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leit…
New York, May 12 (IANS) Citing the shared commitment with India to fight drug trafficking, the United States has banned visas for 13 people associated with an Indian business that was already sanctioned for allegedly trafficking in the deadly drug fentanyl, State Department Spokesperson Tommy Pigott announced on Tuesday. They “are close business associates of KS International Traders and its owner”, and the company “generated revenue through the trafficking of illicit fentanyl, which Pr…
Washington, May 10 (IANS) The US State Department in its recent two reports exposed the severity of China’s repression in Tibet while also stressing the need for greater efforts to deal with this repression and calling for a peaceful resolution to the ongoing Tibet-China conflict, a report has stated. The 2026 Report to Congress on Access to Tibetan Areas, which covers the 2025 calendar year and continues to be mandated by the 2018 Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act, states that China restricts jo…
Washington, May 9 (IANS) American passengers aboard the cruise ship at the centre of a hantavirus outbreak will be quarantined in Nebraska upon arrival in the United States, local media reported, citing an official from the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The passengers will be received at the National Quarantine Unit, a secured facility on the University of Nebraska Medical Centre campus in Omaha, said Michael Wadman, the unit’s medical director, reports Xinhua, quoting NBC…
Mexico City, May 9 (IANS) Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has denied claims that Mexican consulates in the United States are interfering in local politics and should come under scrutiny. “This idea that Mexican consulates are engaging in politics in the United States is completely false,” Sheinbaum said at a daily press conference on Friday (local time), stressing that just like the US consulate in Mexico or those of other countries, the Mexican consulate’s role is solely to “protect their c…
Washington, May 7 (IANS) A federal judge in Virginia has dismissed without prejudice an Espionage Act case against Indian-American strategic affairs scholar Ashley J. Tellis, ruling in favour of a defence argument that prosecutors used the wrong statutory provision in charging him with unlawful retention of classified documents. US District Judge Michael S. Nachmanoff granted Tellis’ motion to dismiss on April 16 after hearing arguments from both sides in Alexandria, Virginia. The brief court …