Author: Taha Sarbani

Rustam Emomali is increasingly the face of his country on the international stage On January 29, China signed off on an agreement to hand Tajikistan the gift of $2 million to fund the construction of a conference room in a government building. As grants go, it is not a lot, but the real significance of the development lies elsewhere. As an official press release asserts, that the money was disbursed at all was the result of a visit paid to Beijing by the 36-year-old chair of the Senate, Rustam Emomali, better known to the public for being the son of President Emomali Rahmon. Common…

UN experts released a statement on Tuesday raising concerns about the escalating human rights situation in Bangladesh. The statement, issued as the UN Human Rights Council concludes its periodic review of Bangladesh’s human rights record, points to a severe crackdown on human rights across multiple fronts. The experts highlighted a disturbing surge in political violence, the arrest of senior opposition figures, and the widespread arbitrary detention of political activists in the lead-up to the national elections slated for 2024. The weaponisation of the judicial system against journalists, human rights defenders, and civil society leaders was underscored explicitly in the statement, with notable figures like Nobel laureate Muhammad…

Around the world, high temperatures typically increase demand for freshwater, particularly in the agricultural sector. Warming conditions are often associated with heat stress and more evapotranspiration in crops, thereby increasing the amount of water they need to develop and produce sustainable yields. “Climate warming will lead to increased irrigation demands, which can lead to more groundwater pumping.” In India, crop irrigation is already the primary driver of declining groundwater levels, and a new study published in Science Advances reports that rates of groundwater depletion could triple by midcentury. In short, “climate warming will lead to increased irrigation demands, which can lead to more groundwater pumping,” explained Vimal…

The bodies of four Nepali students killed in a Hamas attack in Israel have been brought back to Kathmandu, authorities said on Sunday. Ten Nepali students were killed when the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a barrage of rocket attacks in Southern Israel on October 7. The unprecedented assault left over 1,300 dead and triggered retaliatory strikes from the Israel Defense Forces. The bodies of the four students were recently handed over to Nepal’s embassy in Tel Aviv by the Israeli government after their identification and completion of legal processes. Among the bodies brought back on Sunday morning were those…

The Taliban interim government in Afghanistan has slammed Pakistan’s decsion to expel refugees as “inhumane, unfair and barbaric”. Interim Defence Minister, Mullah Yaqub Mujahid, also said that Islamabad’s decision will adversly impact bilateral relations, make the bilateral relations difficult and bad, he added. Earlier the Taliban interim government had urged Islamabad to “tolerate” refugees unless they leave voluntarily. Pakistan has set November 1 deadline for refugees to leave on their own volition or face instant deportation. Islamabad’s stern stance is also being seen as a pressure tactic to push the Afghan Taliban to restrict activities of Pakistani Taliban who have mounted attacks…

Sri Lanka’s Computer Emergency Readiness Team (CERT) is currently investigating a ransomware attack on the government’s cloud infrastructure that affected around 5,000 email accounts, it revealed on Tuesday. While a LinkedIn post from CERT cited cloud infrastructure, an alert uploaded to the organization’s website on Monday specified that an attack was made on the government email system. On Sunday, local media reported that the country’s Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) had confirmed a severe data loss incident for all government offices using the gov.lk email domain – including the Cabinet Office, presidential officials, the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health. The breach is…

In the 10th India-Nepal Line of Credit (LOC) Review Meeting held in Kathmandu, both sides appreciated the strong cooperation in the India-Nepal Developmental Partnership. The progress of projects which are at various stages of implementation were reviewed. From the Indian side, the meeting was led by A. Ajay Kumar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, and from Nepal side, the meeting was led by Mr. Shreekrishna Nepal, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Government of Nepal (GoN). Site visits to ongoing road projects being built with GOI’s LOCs were also carried out by the visiting Indian delegation on 9 and 11 August…

Nepal’s government has refused to make amendments to a proposed law that aims to investigate rights violations during the nation’s decade-long civil war that left thousands killed despite serious concerns from United Nations special rapporteurs. Aruna Joshi, chief of the Human Rights and International Treaty Agreement division at the Nepal prime minister’s office stated that no changes could be made to the Truth and Reconciliation (Amendment) Act at this point, the Kathmandu Post reported on Aug. 10. “We have said the bill is now the property of the federal Parliament. The executive cannot interfere in the business of the legislative. It is…

Fear, anxiety and resignation stalk Nepal’s domestic airports. Norwegian tourist Waldemar Wergeland is relieved to have landed safely at Kathmandu’s domestic terminal. He admits he was worried about flying in Nepal. “We did a lot of research before we made up our minds to travel by air,” he says. At the airport in the southern city of Siddharthanagar (also known as Bhairahawa), Nepali folk singer Alif Khan says he stopped taking flights to his performances after a recent deadly air accident. “I started travelling by bus, but I got frustrated by the long traffic jams and landslides on the way. So…

Nepalese Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal is in the middle of a raging controversy after he claimed that an Indian businessman “once made efforts” to install him as the premier of the Himalayan country.  According to Nepalese media reports, PM Dahal made his off-the-cuff remark on Monday during a function to launch a book titled ‘Roads to the Valley: The Legacy of Sardar Pritam Singh in Nepal’. The book focuses on Sardar Pritam Singh’s life, often regarded as the pioneer trucking entrepreneur in Nepal. However, during the function, Dahal said Singh lobbied for his appointment as prime minister in Delhi and Kathmandu almost eight years…