Author: News Desk

US: The White House has raised concerns with top Israeli officials about allegations that spyware sold by Israeli surveillance company NSO Group has been used by governments around the world to monitor journalists and activists and – potentially – government officials with close ties to the US. Brett McGurk, a top Biden administration adviser on the Middle East, raised questions privately about NSO in a meeting last week with Zohar Palti, a senior Israeli defence ministry official, according to reports by Axios and the Washington Post. Palti reportedly told McGurk that the controversy was being taken very seriously and that Israel was examining…

New Zealand :  New Zealand introduced on Friday legislation that proposes up to five years in prison for practices intended to change a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, known as LGBT conversion therapy. The proposed measures were aimed at ending such practices, which do not work, are widely discredited and cause harm, Justice Minister Kris Faafoi said in a statement. “Conversion practices have no place in modern New Zealand. They are based on the false belief that any person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression is broken and in need of fixing,” Faafoi said. “Health professionals, religious leaders and human rights advocates here and…

Turkey : The death toll from wildfires on Turkey’s southern coast has risen to four and firefighters were battling blazes for a third day on Friday after the evacuation of dozens of villages and some hotels. More than 70 wildfires have broken out this week in provinces on Turkey’s Aegean and Mediterranean coasts as well as inland areas, President Tayyip Erdogan said, adding that 14 were still burning. Planes from Russia and Ukraine helped battle the flames and another from Azerbaijan was joining them. “As of midday, with the arrival of the planes, we are turning in a positive direction,”…

Tokyo : Nigerian athletes protested in Tokyo on Friday after they were disqualified from the Olympics for failing to meet anti-doping testing requirements, reports said. Ten would-be Olympians were banned from competing in the track and field competition after Nigerian sports officials allegedly failed to properly register them for three mandatory out-of-competition tests, The Ministry of Sports and the Athletics Federation of Nigeria said the athletes’ tests did not meet collection and analysis standards and the Athletics Integrity Unit, which handles the anti-doping program for the sport, said the athletes didn’t meet the testing requirements, the outlet reported. “The AFN bears responsibility…

Bahrain :  First Deputy President of the Bahrain Handball Federation, Dr. Khalid bin Abdulrahman Al-Haidan, has extended deepest congratulations to HM the King’s Representative for Humanitarian Work and Youth Affairs and Chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports (SCYS), HH Shaikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, and to the SCYS First Deputy Chairman, General Sports Authority Chairman and Bahrain Olympic Committee President, HH Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, on the victory of the Bahrain National Handball Team in the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. Al-Haidan asserted that the historic win is the fruitful outcome of HH Shaikh Nasser’s…

Bahrain : First Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sports, General Sports Authority Chairman and Bahrain Olympic Committee (BOC) President, HH Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, has directed to disburse bonuses to the Bahrain National Handball Team players following their historic victory over hosts, Japan, in the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. The initiative is in recognition of the heroic performance of the players in the tournament, in general, and in today’s match, in particular, and their keenness to honour the kingdom. BOC Secretary-General Mohammed Hassan Al Nusuf expressed deepest thanks and appreciation to H Shaikh Khalid…

Dusseldorf : The fallout from Tuesday’s fatal blast at an industrial estate in western Germany did not contain any toxic substances, an official from the regional environmental protection agency said on Friday. Analysis of particles that fell on a residential area near the Chempark industrial estate in Leverkusen contained no dioxins or polychlorinated biphenyls, environmental protection official Ulrich Quass told a news briefing. The blast at the Chempark site, which hosts chemicals companies including Bayer (BAYGn.DE) and Lanxess (LXSG.DE), killed five people, injured 31, and set off a fire in a tank containing solvents, Reuters reported Local residents were told…

Bahrain :  Wrestling is one of the most difficult disciplines in combat sports to master, but Mohamed “L’Ambiance” Said Maalem has excelled in the said field at the highest level. In fact, he is one of the most lauded grapplers in mixed martial arts (MMA) today. Said Maalem was a natural at wrestling. He trained every single day at a very young age, dominated the competition, and became a national champion in his home country of Algeria. His caliber and credentials as a wrestler could have made him a regular fixture in the prestigious Summer Olympic Games as a representative…

Bahrain :  The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Pakistan, His Excellency Shah Mahmood Qureshi stated that the Kingdom of Bahrain and Islamic Republic of Pakistan enjoy excellent bilateral ties and will continue to explore avenues to further enhance cooperation in areas of mutual interest between the two brotherly countries. In an interview with Bahrain News Agency (BNA), at the end of his visit to the Kingdom, the Minister reviewed means of bilateral relations between Bahrain  and Pakistan, as well as an overview of his visit to the Kingdom, where the Minister met with His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al…

Tokyo : Bahrain national handball team clinched an historic victory against country, host country, Japan, 32-30 in the fourth round of Group B as part of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. Japan were leading 17-16 in the first half of the match which was played at Yoyogi National arena but the national team bounced Back to clinch the first ever victory in the history of Bahrain’s participation in the Olympic Games. The national team thus total 2 points in the fourth plan while Japan remain in the bottom of the Group B table, with no points so far. In two…