TOKYO: Japan will inform the US next week that it intends to join the “Golden Dome” missile defense initiative and expects that Washington may seek its help with missile production due to the Middle East war and other conflicts, two sources said. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will announce the latest plan when she meets US President Donald Trump in Washington … Read more

OpenClaw can execute real-life tasks such as sending emails, organising files, or even booking flight tickets Figurines with computers and smartphones are seen in front of the words ‘Artificial Intelligence AI’ in this illustration taken, February 19, 2024. PHOTO: REUTERS BEIJING: Chinese entrepreneur Frank Gao used to spend long hours managing his social media accounts, … Read more

New data questions effectiveness of Australia’s social media age-gating rules for under-16s The NA panel instructed the FBR to carry out an analysis of the existing taxes and their impact on the use of smartphones. It was asked to submit a report by mid-March and incorporate changes in the next budget. Photo: file  SYDNEY: One-fifth … Read more

. BENGALURU: Wall Street’s major indexes fell 1% on Thursday, with financial stocks taking a blow, as a surge in oil prices towards $100 a barrel rekindled inflation fears and investors kept a close watch on mounting jitters in the private credit sector. Crude prices jumped after two tankers were set ablaze in Iraqi waters … Read more

Talks inconclusive as Fund flags budget gaps, outstanding issues on taxes, payouts The government wants to accelerate economic growth to lower rising poverty and unemployment, but the IMF was of the view that Pakistan has not yet reached a stage where it can afford sustainably higher economic growth. PHOTO: Reuters ISLAMABAD: The International Monetary Fund … Read more

. Shabir Ahmed Shah. Photo: X The Supreme Court of India on Thursday granted bail to veteran Kashmiri leader Shabir Ahmed Shah after more than six years of pre-trial detention. Shah — a 74-year-old chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party (JKDFP)  — is a longstanding figure in the region’s separatist movement. The court … Read more

Kashmir’s former chief minister Farooq Abdullah says whether India likes it or not, they will have to talk to Pakistan. PHOTO COURTESY: INDIA TODAY A suspected gunman was arrested after an apparent assassination attempt on senior Kashmiri politician Farooq Abdullah during a wedding ceremony in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), according to Indian … Read more

. LONDON: World War II leader Winston Churchill is to be dropped from the UK £5 banknote in favour of a nature scene, sparking outrage from some lawmakers who said he should not be replaced by an otter or badger. Novelist Jane Austen, artist J. M. W. Turner and mathematician and codebreaker Alan Turing, are … Read more

. The surge in excise duty in February 2023 has led to an exponential increase in smuggled and counterfeit cigarettes. photo: reuTERS ISLAMABAD: A sub-committee of the Senate Standing Committee on Interior on Thursday discussed the theft of 2,828 cartons of cigarettes from a warehouse of the FBR. The meeting, chaired by Senator Saifullah Abro, … Read more

. Police encounter in Lahore. Photo: Express (file) LAHORE: The prime suspect in the murder of a businessman’s son in Lahore was killed in an alleged police encounter near the Punjab-Sindh border in Rahim Yar Khan, police officials said. According to authorities, the suspect, identified as Nauman Qaiser, was wanted in connection with the 2023 … Read more