Travel

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 5 LONDON (AP) — Queen Elizabeth II has traveled to Scotland and attended a ceremony Monday as part of a week of events. The 96-year-old monarch, who has curtailed her public appearances in recent months because of ongoing problems in moving around, took part in the Ceremony of the Keys at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh. The tradition sees the monarch handed the keys to the city and welcomed to her “ancient and hereditary kingdom of Scotland." A smiling Elizabeth stood in the forecourt at the palace, with a member of her entourage holding an umbrella over her head. The visit comes three weeks after the Platinum Jubilee, which marked the monarch's 70 years on the throne. She only made a few appearances during the four-day holiday weekend, with officials saying she experienced some “discomfort” during those events. Prince Charles, her son and heir to the … [Read more...] about Queen Elizbeth II travels to Scotland for week of events

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 3 SLOVIANSK, Ukraine (AP) — Russia was mounting an all-out assault on the last Ukrainian stronghold in the eastern Luhansk region, “pouring fire" on the city of Lysychansk from the ground and air, the local governor said Monday, as Western leaders met to discuss ways of bolstering support for Kyiv. Luhansk Gov. Serhiy Haidai said Russian forces were pummeling Lysychansk after capturing the neighboring city of Sievierodonetsk in recent days. It's part of a stepped-up Russian offensive to wrest the broader Donbas region from Ukrainian government control in what Western experts say has become the new main goal of President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine, now in its fifth month. “They’re pouring fire on the city both from the air and from the ground. After the takeover of Sievierodonetsk, the enemy army has concentrated all its forces on capturing (our) last stronghold in the Luhansk … [Read more...] about Russia ‘pouring fire’ on Ukrainian city as offensive mounts

Thousands of air passengers are set for misery and logistical headaches with almost 670 flights in the U.S. canceled today. According to the airline tracker website Flight Aware, there are a total of 669 "cancelations within, into, or out of the United States today" so far. The problems for travelers do not end there, as thousands more Americans have been hit by snags in their journeys, with the website adding there are 432 "total delays within, into, or out of the United States today." Delta Air Lines canceled 192 flights according to the website's stats, which equates to 6 percent of its flights, while a further 80 are listed as delayed. United Airlines is listed as canceling 113 flights, with 43 delayed. American Airlines canceled 51 and delayed 72. Newsweek has reached out to all three airlines for comment on the cancelations and delays. The aviation industry has had a difficult start to the summer, with the sector hit by a number of problems globally. Resultantly, … [Read more...] about Hundreds of flights canceled across U.S. today

Preparations for the annual Amarnath yatra , being held after a gap of three years, have seen a massive scaling up, with officials comparing the arrangements to that of the Kumbh Mela. Compared to 2.85 lakh pilgrims who visited in 2018, the Jammu & Kashmir administration is expecting eight lakh footfalls this year. The annual pilgrimage, conducted via the twin routes of the famous tourist destinations of Pahalgam and Sonamarg in south and central Kashmir, respectively, was cut short in 2019, ahead of the Centre’s move to abrogate the erstwhile State’s special constitutional position. The highest ever number of pilgrims 6.35 lakh pilgrims visited the cave shrine in 2011. “We are expecting a high number of devotees for the annual pilgrimage this year,” Manoj Sinha, Lieutenant-Governor of the Union Territory of J&K, who is also Chairman of the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB), said. To meet the demand, the capacity of tents set up en route to the holy cave has been … [Read more...] about Amarnath

A growing interest in Dhrupad along with the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA) propagating the art, has led to a special collaboration where renowned vocalists Umakant and Ramakant Gundecha held training sessions in the oldest surviving classical form of Indian music. Speaking about the training sessions, the Gundecha brothers said, “The newly growing interest in Dhrupad and our personal vision to propagate the knowledge and its culture are in line with the goals of the NCPA. We feel that the training workshops will make Dhrupad learning, as well as the knowledge of the existence and quality of this music, available to a larger audience.” The two sessions on Saturday were attended by a total 50 music enthusiasts and students. Dhrupad is the oldest form of Indian classical music and the Gundechas believe that in the last few years, Dhrupad has re-emerged among music lovers. “We are performing in almost all major events in India and abroad. Dhrupad provides grammar to our … [Read more...] about Gundecha brothers hold a masterclass in Dhrupad

In the summer of 2005, Sajid Mir had been at the Feroze Shah Kotla stadium in New Delhi, packed amidst the hundreds of ecstatic Pakistani cricket fans who cheered their team as it powered its way to a record 159-run victory over India. Mir, though, was in India for a game of his own. The top Lashkar-e-Taiba commander's undercover visit was the first of a series of surveillance missions which culminated in the November, 2008, attacks on Mumbai. The Lashkar intelligence operative whose reconnaissance enabled the attack, Pakistani-American jihadist David Headley, reported to Mir. From a safehouse in Karachi, Mir guided the assault team using a voice-over-internet line, personally ordering the execution of several hostages. Now, western intelligence sources have told The Hindu , Mir is being held in a safehouse run by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, along with the man who travelled with him to New Delhi — a former Pakistani military officer and military trainer … [Read more...] about Sajid Mir’s war against the world

Watching the 2008 Mumbai carnage live on TV from Pakistan, terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) handlers guided the attackers on phone and even asked them to change tactics to challenge the advancing commandos. The strategy followed during the 60-hour siege of Mumbai emerged during the testimony of the 26/11 co-accused David Headley in a Chicago District Court on the third day of the trial of his childhood friend and Pakistani-Canadian Tawahhur Rana. Rana has been slapped with a dozen charges in connection with the November 2008 attack in which 166 persons were killed, while Headley, a Pakistani-American and a star prosecution witness, has pleaded guilty. Headley told the court that his LeT handler Sajid Mir was in Karachi during the Mumbai attack. Sajid Mir told Headley that a couple of people were with him. Sajid Mir was in contact with the attackers via phone and he was watching TV coverage of the siege and seeing what was going on in India, he said. Sajid Mir was praised by … [Read more...] about ‘LeT handlers guided attackers watching Mumbai attack on TV’

The defence for Tahawwur Rana, co-accused with David Headly in the 26/11 attacks, rested its case here after calling two witnesses but the Pakistani Canadian himself did not testify. At the hearing of the terror trial, the defence said employees at Rana’s Immigration offices in New York or Toronto did not remember working with Headley. The employees -- Rehana and Kashif Khan -- among others, take calls at the offices. The defence called in a computer forensic expert and an immigration attorney but Rana waived his right to testify. Closing arguments by the prosecution and defence are scheduled for Tuesday. Computer forensic expert Yaniv Schiff Moshe said he researched Rana’s computers from July 1, 2009 to October 15, 2009 and found that no search was conducted on them except on one computer for Jyllands Posten cultural editor Fleming Rose or Kurt Westergaard the cartoonist who drew the controversial cartoons of Prophet Muhammad. This one computer was used by Headley himself to … [Read more...] about Rana lawyers give brief defence; trial to see closing arguments

In just a few weeks, a court in Chicago will decide the fate of Tahawwur Rana — the first of the men who guided Muhammad Ajmal Kasab and nine other Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists to Mumbai on November 26, 2008. The trial has provided dramatic new insights into just how those men came to kill 164 children, women, and men. Based on the testimony of the Pakistani-American jihadist David Headley, and a mass of evidence, prosecutors have charged that serving officers of Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence Directorate financed and directed the attack on Mumbai. In days to come, we will hear Mr. Rana's version of the story; his lawyers are expected to argue that he acted in good faith to help a childhood friend. The problem, however, is that Mr. Rana was at worst a bit-part actor in the Mumbai conspiracy. The men he is alleged to have answered to — commanders in the Lashkar, and their ISI mentors — are not in court, and there are no signs so far that Pakistan intends to bring them to justice. … [Read more...] about Rana trial and beyond

Nur Dayana Azman Wong’s craving for Malaysia’s authentic traditional street food while studying abroad inspired her to produce her own cookbook Penang Makan . Adding another feather to her cap, the 32-year old author made Malaysians proud when her debut cookbook Penang Makan was awarded the best in the world under the street food category at the 27th Gourmand Awards in Sweden early this month. She upstaged other contenders, among them, a culinary institute from China, Future Food Studio through Shanghai Jianbing Street Food, Comida Callejera Guatemala (Guatemala), Bak Fritay (Haiti) and My Street Food Kitchen from the United Kingdom (UK). Sharing her cookbook journey with Bernama recently, Dayana who was born and raised in Penang said she started collecting recipes of her favourite hawker fare after returning home from her studies abroad. Dayana graduated with a Master of Science in International Business at the Hult Business School, London in UK in 2017. "I have long … [Read more...] about Malaysian author’s first cookbook named world’s best in street food category