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KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban have blown up the statue of a Shiite militia leader who fought against them during Afghanistan’s civil war in the 1990s, according to photos circulating on Wednesday, sowing further doubt about their claims to have become more moderate.

17 Aug 2021; MEMO: Turkey will begin to administer a fourth dose of a COVID-19 vaccine for those who received two doses of China's Sinovac inoculation in order to meet European standards which do not recognise the drug.

The fourth dose will be made available for those who have already received two doses of the Sinovac and one dose of the Pzifer/BioNTech jabs, the Health Ministry said yesterday.

13 Aug 2021; MEMO: The Spanish Ministry of Defence has ruled out modifying its defence strategy with regard to the cities of Ceuta and Melilla, after learning that Morocco has agreed to purchase military equipment from Turkey.

Recently, press reports stated that Rabat is negotiating with Turkey to buy 22 reconnaissance and attack helicopter T-129 at a cost of approximately $1.4 billion, in addition to 12 Turkish drones to monitor the borders of Ceuta and Melilla.

11 Aug 2021; MEMO: The real estate firm Sky Abu Dhabi Developments is in the final stages of negotiations to invest $15 billion in Egypt over the next two years.

The figure includes more than $4 billion by the end of this year, Reuters reports. One of the projects will be on the North Coast of Egypt and the other in New Cairo.

Sky Developments launched its first project in March in the New Administrative Capital, Egypt's multi-billion-dollar new capital city that has been under construction since 2015.

11 Aug 2021; MEMO: The Israeli army yesterday received the third Sa'ar 6-class warship from Germany, Arab48 reported.

This handover came amidst escalating tensions in the Gulf that could see a confrontation with Iran.

The warship is anchored in Haifa military base, where it will be fitted with developed technologies, including sensors, weapons and communication systems, a statement issued by Israeli army said, noting that it will be operational in the coming months.

New Delhi, Aug 11 (PTI) Over Rs 49,000 crore in foreign funds were received by more than 18,000 NGOs in the country in the last three years, Rajya Sabha was informed on Wednesday.

Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai said Rs 16,940.58 crore were received by the NGOs in 2017-18, Rs 16,525.73 crore were received in 2018-19 and Rs 15,853.94 crore in 2019-20.

10 Aug 2021; MEMO: Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi yesterday discussed with his French counterpart reviving the nuclear deal with the US and other world powers, AP and other news agencies reported.

According to IRNA news agency, Raisi told Emmanuel Macron that the US and European Union must implement their commitments under the landmark 2015 deal.

"In any negotiation, the rights of the Iranian nation should be secured and guaranteed," Raisi stressed.

Jaipur, Aug 10 (PTI) The Rajasthan government has introduced a scheme to provide interest-free loan up to Rs 50,000 to street vendors, people in the age group of 18-40 years working in the service sector and unemployed of urban areas hit by Covid-19-induced financial crisis.

In compliance with the budget announcement made by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, the finance department issued a circular regarding the Indira Gandhi Urban Credit Card Scheme- 2021 last week.

Tehran, IRNA – The head of Iran Mine House said that Iran and Brazil have great capacities to expand cooperation in mining field, especially in investment and equipment.

Mohammad Reza Bahraman told IRNA’s economic correspondent that a Brazilian delegation has recently visited Iran and discussed cooperation capacities with Iranian officials.

Tehran, IRNA – Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Monday that the United States won’t have an achievement unless they put aside former US President Donald Trump's mentality and considers facts on the ground.

In his weekly press conference, Khatibzadeh said that Foreign Ministry of Iran summoned UK’s chargé d'affaires and Romania’s Ambassador in Iran on the allegations made against Iran over the maritime incident off the coast of Oman leading to the death a British and a Romanian citizen.