Rouhani meets Putin
QINGDAO: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says he would like to discuss the situation following the US withdrawal from the Iranian deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Speaking at the start of his meeting with Putin yesterday on the sidelines of the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) in Qingdao, China, Rouhani hailed close ties between Russia and Iran. Iran has an observer status in the SCO, and Putin said that Moscow would support the full-fledged Iranian membership.
Rouhani said the US exit from the nuclear agreement with Iran warrants an “important and serious discussion between our two countries.
Taliban’s Eid ceasefire
KABUL: The Afghan Taliban announced a three-day ceasefire over the Eid-ul-fitr holiday at the end of the holy month of Ramadaan, a first for the group, following an earlier ceasefire announcement by the government.
In a statement yesterday, the Taliban said they would defend themselves in case of any attack. They say foreign forces are excluded from the ceasefire and operations would continue against them. The statement added that the leadership may release prisoners of war, if they promise not to return to the battlefield.
Rainbow ‘hologram’
WARSAW: Poland’s LBGT community celebrated a rainbow made of water and light in a Warsaw square as members geared up for the pride parade.
Light projected on to water created a “water hologram” rainbow for four hours starting late Friday, getting people in the spirit for the yearly “Equality Parade” in the Polish capital today.
The pride celebrations come as LGBT activists say a conservative turn in Poland is forcing them to fight harder for their rights, even though their hope of seeing samesex marriage legalised has no real chance in the country now.
Musharraf to run
ISLAMABAD: The party of Pakistan’s former military dictator Pervez Musharraf announced yesterday that he would run for a seat in parliament in July 25 national elections.
The move comes after the Supreme Court conditionally allowed Musharraf to return from Dubai, where he has been living in self-exile to avoid arrest on criminal charges.
Also yesterday, the party of popular long-time opposition politician Imran Khan said he would run for a seat in the National Assembly.
Facebook shared info
SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook shared personal information culled from its users’ profiles with other companies after the date when executives have said the social network prevented third-party developers from gaining access to the data, it said on Friday.
The records included information about the friends of Facebook users, including phone numbers and breakdowns analysing the degrees of separation between people on the social networks, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
UN upsets Rohingya
KUTUPALONG, Bangladesh: Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled attacks in Myanmar said they were disappointed that a UN agreement signed earlier this week did not address one of their key demands: citizenship.
Most refugees say they are desperate to go home, but fear going back unless they are given protection and citizenship.
On Wednesday, Myanmar and UN agencies signed an agreement that could – eventually – lead to the return of some of the 700 000 Rohingya who fled persecution.
Arise, Sir Kenny
LONDON: Former Liverpool player and manager Kenny Dalglish was knighted on Friday.
The Anfield icon was honoured by Queen Elizabeth II for services to football, charity and the city of Liverpool.
Dalglish, 67, was the only sportsperson knighted in the Queen’s Birthday List, while Bournemouth striker Jermain Defoe and boxer Anthony Joshua also received honours.
“I am hugely proud to have accepted the accolade,” Dalglish said.
Sources:ap/dpa//reuters/african News Agency/ana