Bangladesh returns ‘lost’ Myanmar soldier

DHAKA, March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Bangladesh forces handed back on Sunday a Myanmar soldier more than two months after he strayed across the border into a jungle in the Muslim-majority nation, a senior official said. Aung Bo Bo Thein, 30, was detained by Bangladeshi security forces on Jan 24 near the…

Malaysia ready to back firms in finding missing flight MH370

KUALA LUMPUR, March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Malaysia will consider resuming the search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 if companies interested in the hunt come forward with viable proposals or credible leads, its transport minister said. Flight MH370, carrying 239 people, became the world’s greatest aviation mystery when it vanished…

Bangladesh crackdown after deadly Dhaka inferno

DHAKA, March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Bangladesh is cracking down on chemical warehouses in an historic Dhaka district a week after a fire killed 70 people in buildings used for deodorant and plastics storage, an official said. Five task forces led by military officers, police and officials have raided Old Dhaka buildings and cut…

Indonesia, Australia sign long-awaited free trade deal

JAKARTA, March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Indonesia and Australia inked a long-awaited trade deal on Monday after months of diplomatic tension over Canberra’s contentious plan to move its embassy to Jerusalem. Indonesian trade minister Enggartiasto Lukita and his Australian counterpart Simon Birmingham wrapped up the multi-billion-dollar agreement in Jakarta, some nine years…

Saudi cabinet approves tourism visa for foreign travellers: Report

RIYADH, March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Saudi Arabia’s cabinet has approved electronic visas for foreign visitors to attend sporting events and concerts, local media reported. The conservative Muslim country has previously restricted visas to resident workers, business travellers, and Muslim pilgrims who are given special visas to travel to holy sites.…

US-backed Syria force pounds holdout Daesh village

BAGHOUZ (Syria), March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Kurdish-led forces backed by US warplanes rained artillery fire and air strikes Sunday on besieged and outgunned extremists making a desperate last stand in a remote Syrian village. Daesh group fighters holed up in Baghouz, the last dreg of the once-sprawling “caliphate” that their leader…

Car rams into Israeli soldiers in West Bank, attackers shot: Military

JERUSALEM, March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Three Palestinians drove a car into Israeli soldiers in the occupied West Bank on Monday, critically injuring an officer, and were shot by troops, the military said. Israeli media said two of the Palestinians were killed. In a statement describing the incident as a Palestinian…

Opposition leader Guaido calls for mass protests ahead of return to Venezuela

CARACAS, March 1 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Venezuela’s opposition leader Juan Guaido called for mass protests across the country against President Nicolas Maduro on Monday as he announced his return after a week touring Latin American allies. “I’m announcing my return to the country. I am calling on the Venezuelan people to…

Emmanuel Macron calls for reconciliation with Italy

ROME, March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — French President Emmanuel Macron has launched a call for reconciliation with Italy following a diplomatic spat between the neighbours that saw Paris briefly recall its ambassador. Relations between the two countries have fractured due to repeated clashes between centrist Macron and Italy’s populist coalition government.…

US Palestinian mission to merge with Israel embassy on Monday

WASHINGTON, March 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US consulate in Jerusalem, which serves Palestinians, will be absorbed into the new US Embassy to Israel on Monday, the State Department said, a planned merger that has angered Palestinian leadership. The decision to create a single diplomatic mission in Jerusalem was announced last October by Secretary…