Daily Post

According to the Foreign Office of Pakistan (FO), a massive fire at a hotel in the Saudi city of Mecca killed 8 Pakistanis and wounded 6 others on Saturday. The FO said in a statement today, "We have information of eight Pakistanis who were killed and six others injured in the incident."  The fire, according to numerous sources, erupted on the third floor of the hotel on Ibrahim Khalil Road in Mecca City. "Our Jeddah mission is in contact with local authorities to provide assistance to the victims and their families," he said. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and FM Bilawal Bhutto Zardari expressed their sincere sadness and grief over the loss of precious lives of Pakistani pilgrims, according to state-run Pakistan Radio.  The Prime Minister of Pakistan has instructed the Ministry of Religion to look after the health of the injured pilgrims and assist the affected families as much as possible. It was also reported that the Prime Minister had sent his thoughts...

A convoy of US embassy officials was attacked in Nigeria, killing 2 officials and 2 policemen.  The assailants also kidnapped three persons in Tuesday's attack outside the town of Atani in the Nigerian state of Anambra two police officers and a driver.  "The outlaws executed 2 mobile police officers and 2 consular officers and burned their bodies and vehicles," authorities said, adding that the area is known for separatist violence.  It is unknown why the US Embassy personnel traveled to Anambra, as well as how many vehicles were in the convoy.  According to a police report, rescue and salvage attempts are still in progress.  During a White House news briefing on Tuesday, John Kirby, speaking on behalf of the US National Security Council, claimed that "no US citizen was in convoy, therefore no US citizen was injured."  The US State Department later issued a statement saying US diplomats are  "working with Nigerian security to investigate the deadly att...

 At least 16 people were killed and more than 10 injured in a clash between two tribes in KPK over coal mining rights.  Authorities said the incident that occurred on Monday night was part of a decades-long intertribal feud over the  coal  mine in the Darra Adam Khel district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, near the Afghan border.  District police said 16 people were killed in the shootout between the Sunny Khel and Akhorwal tribes.  Police said, "A jirga tribal council meeting was held to resolve the issue and the involved tribes have agreed on a ceasefire."  Local government and law enforcement officials are facilitating the tribal negotiations, and he expressed optimism that a solution would be found soon.  A Jirga is a gathering of tribal elders who have the authority to settle disputes and intra-tribal rivalries.  “This is not the first incident of violence between the two and there have been many jirgas in the past to sort things out, b...

 According to US President Biden, the US government is ready to complete its chemical weapons elimination process by 2023. "I  urge every nation to stand up for the truth and join us in promoting accountability for violations of this treaty," US President Joe Biden said.  Biden issued the statement ahead of the Chemical Weapons Convention's fifth review conference, which is scheduled to be held in The Hague from May 15-19. "As we work together to achieve our common goals, America sets a good example. " We have a plan to destroy our chemical weapons stockpile this autumn, a disarmament milestone that upholds the greatest levels of willingness and safety for everyone.  We remain committed to the new OPCW Chemical and Technology Center, which will help organizations better fulfill their verification, inspection, and attribution tasks and expand the capacity of others to combat chemical weapons by working with our allies, we will continue to enhance the organization...

  Riyadh, Saudi Arabia  - The Saudi economy minister consults with his Iranian counterpart in the Saudi port city of Jeddah.  Ehsan Khanduzi and Mohammed Aljadan met outside of the annual meeting of the Islamic Development Bank (ISDB) group on Friday.  "The two ministers, who met for the first time in many years, discussed ways to develop and strengthen ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran," said the English-language daily Saudi Gazette.  Speaking at the sidelines of the global event in Jeddah, Khandoozi lauded reconciliation and called growing commercial links between Tehran and Riyadh a "win-win" development for the region.  "The agreement reached between Iran and Saudi Arabia through the mediation of friendly countries will increase trade and investment opportunities between countries," said.  The Saudi minister said in January that the country might consider participating in international trade in currencies other than the US dollar. "We have no pro...

Israeli military claims that the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement was the target of airstrikes on the Gaza Strip that brought about the fatalities of 12 Jihads.  According to media sources, the Israeli airstrikes claimed the lives of 12 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and injured at least 20 others.  As per the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, three of its senior commanders were martyred along with their spouses and several children.  According to Arab media reports, at around 02:00 local time on Tuesday (23:00 GMT Monday), houses were bombed in several areas of the Gaza Strip.  No other piece of information about the deceased was immediately released by the authorities.

India,  (Daily Post)  -  At least 22 people died when an overcrowded tourist boat capsized in the Indian state of Kerala.  As rescue attempts continued on Monday and the boat was dragged out of the muddy waters, the death toll might rise.  Abdul Nazar, Junior Superintendent of the Malappuram District Police, claims that the overloaded condition of the two-deck boat led it to capsize.  The ship was reportedly carrying 50 people, and the number of passengers was exceeding its capacity when it capsized late Sunday.  More passengers were reportedly trapped under the vessel, and rescue efforts were made difficult by the darkness.  Another police  officer said, "We have found 22 bodies, including 15 women and 7 men." A rescue operation is underway. Women and children on vacation were among the victims.  Narendra Modi, the prime minister of India, offered his sympathies and said he was "pained by the loss of lives".

Syria will take part in meetings starting today. According to Iraqi official media, the foreign ministers of Arab League member states have agreed to reinstate Syria's membership after it was suspended more than a decade ago. Representatives of the Syrian Republic will attend a meeting organized by the Arab League and its affiliated organizations beginning today, May 7. At the Arab League headquarters in Cairo on Sunday, the ministers decided to accept Syria back.  The declaration coincides with recent regional efforts to normalize relations with Syria as well as an Arab League gathering scheduled for May 19 in Saudi Arabia. Syria's membership in the Arab League was terminated in March 2011.  According to Jordan's top diplomat, Arab nations have been seeking normalization as al-Assad tightened his grip on Syrian territory and working towards an "Arab-led political path" to resolve the situation.  The vote took place after a meeting in Jordan last week ...

A gunman opened fire at a popular mall north of Dallas on Saturday, killing eight people and wounding at least seven others, authorities said.  The gunman was shot and killed by an officer, in Texas.  During the press conference, Police informed that the shooter operated alone, and his motivations were unclear.  At the same press conference, Allen Fire Station Chief, John Boyd revealed that his department had transported at least nine people with gunshot wounds to nearby hospitals. Two of them died in hospital, according to Boyd, who spoke at a second news conference late Saturday.  Three victims are in serious condition and four others are in stable condition.

TEHRAN, Iran  —  A high-level commercial team from Saudi Arabia will visit Iran in the coming days, according to a senior Iranian offici al, to look into a major economic event. According to Mehdi Safari, head of economic diplomacy at Iran's foreign ministry, a Saudi delegation will visit Iran Expo 2023, which will take place May 7-10. The Saudi trade team, according to Safari, would be led by a senior deputy minister in the kingdom's administration. He added that the trip will take place with Iran and Saudi Arabia's intentions to reopen their embassies and consulates on May 9, as part of a de-escalation agreement made in China earlier in March. Although the official did not say whether deals would be made between Iranian and Saudi companies during the exhibition, he did say that Iran EXPO 2023 could lead to deals worth at least $1 billion between Iranian companies and representatives from 60 different countries. According to Saudi officials, the kingdom is prepar...

Today, 4 May, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari will depart on a two-day trip to India to show an appearance at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Foreign Ministers meeting to be held in Goa on 4-5 May.  FM Bilawal will attend the SCO session at the invitation of Dr. S. Jaishankar, the Indian Minister for External Affairs, according to a statement released by the Foreign Office.  "Our strategic participation in the conference reflects Pakistan's commitment to the SCO charter and process, as well as the importance Pakistan attaches to the region in its foreign policy priorities," the FO spokesman further stated.  According to those aware of the event, PCCA was approached by the Civil Aviation Authority of India after finalizing the special aircraft's route.  Pakistan's foreign minister is visiting India for the first time in 12 years.  The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is an international political, economic, security, and defense organiza...

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - According to local media, security forces killed a senior Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan commander during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in the Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Monday. information reveals that the operation to eliminate the terrorists was carried out on Monday and that it resulted in the death of TTP commander Gandapur Jabbar Shah and the injury of two more militants. As per the army statement, 7 terrorists were captured by security forces as a result of the military operation in  Miran Shah.  Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said well-known terrorist commander Mehtab alias Lala of the Hafiz Gul Bahadur group was also apprehended in the same IBO. The arrested terrorists are involved in various acts of terrorism, including the targeted killing of security forces and innocent people. Security authorities are looking for terrorists for their involvement in terrorist operations.