Indian Sub-continent

NEW DELHI (AP) — An explosive device blew up at a convention center in southern India killing at least one person and wounding 36 others Sunday, authorities said.

Hundreds of Jehovah’s Witness faithful were gathered for a prayer session at the Zamra International Convention Center in the town of Kalamassery in Kerala state when the explosion took place.

The state’s top police officer, Sheik Darvesh Saheb, said an initial investigation has revealed an improvised explosive device was used.

NEW DELHI, Oct 26 (Reuters) - A Qatar court has announced the death penalty for eight Indians arrested in the country last year, the Indian government said on Thursday, adding it was "deeply shocked" by the verdict.

New Delhi said in a statement that it attaches "high importance to this case" and will "take up the verdict with Qatari authorities".

Local media has reported that the eight men, who worked with a private company in Qatar, were arrested for spying in August 2022, but Reuters could not independently confirm the charges.

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban have freed an Afghan activist who campaigned for the education of girls, a local nonprofit organization said Thursday. Matiullah Wesa was arrested seven months ago and spent 215 days in prison, according to the group, Pen Path.

Wesa has been outspoken in his demands for girls to have the right to go to school and repeatedly called on the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan to reverse its bans on female education.

KABUL, Oct 25 (NNN-ANA) – More than 50,000 Afghan refugees have returned from Iran to their homeland, Afghanistan, in the past month, reported the state-run news agency Bakhtar, today.

In the past month, a total of 57,382 Afghan refugees have returned, after years of stay in neighbouring Iran, the report said.

A few days ago, more than 5,100 Afghan refugees returned from neighbouring Pakistan.

Oct 25 (Reuters) - India will resume some visa services in Canada with effect from Oct. 26, its High Commission said on Wednesday, in a move that could reduce tensions caused by the murder of a Sikh separatist leader in Canada.

India last month suspended new visas for Canadians and asked Canada to reduce its diplomatic presence after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cited what he said was credible evidence of a potential link between Indian agents and the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen, in a Vancouver suburb in June. Canada subsequently withdrew 41 diplomats.

DHAKA, Oct 24 (NNN-BSS) – At least 15 people were killed after two trains collided, in Bangladesh’s Kishoreganj district, some 117 km north-east of Dhaka, yesterday, the district’s Additional Superintendent of Police, Md Mostak Sarker, said.

The official said, a container train, heading towards seaport city Chattogram, collided with Dhaka-bound Egarosindhur Express, at around 3:30 p.m. local time yesterday.

KATHMANDU, Oct 23 (NNN-XINHUA) – At least six people were killed and three others injured, after a jeep plunged into a river in south-central Nepal’s Palpa district.

The jeep was heading towards Rani Mahal, a famous tourist destination in the district, when it skidded off the road, and landed in a narrow gorge.

The driver was injured after jumping off the jeep before it plunged into the river, said Raj Kumar Chapagain, a district police officer.

NEW DELHI, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said India would resume issuing visas to Canadians if it saw progress in the safety of its diplomats.

"Our diplomats (in Canada) are not safe. So, if we see progress there, I would like very much to resume the issue of visas. My hope would be that it is something which should happen very, very soon," Jaishankar said on Sunday.

KATHMANDU, Oct 22 (NNN-XINHUA) – Three earthquakes above magnitude 4, jolted Dhading district this morning, sending tremors to Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital city.

One temblor of magnitude 6.1 struck at 7:39 a.m. local time, said Lok Bijay Adhikari, from Nepal’s National Earthquake Monitoring and Research Centre (NEMRC).

The quakes have left a few houses damaged in Dhading, but no casualties have been reported yet, Assistant Chief District Officer, Hum Nath Parajuli told Xinhua.

NEW DELHI, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- The air quality in the Indian capital territory continued to be very poor on Sunday, officials said.

According to the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR), an institute monitoring air pollution, the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) of Delhi was recorded at 302 on Sunday.

The air quality is very poor and prominent pollutants are PM 2.5 and PM 10.