Canadian allegations against India ‘serious’, need to be fully investigated: US

Washington, Oct 4 (PTI) The Canadian allegations regarding India’s involvement in the killing of a pro-Khalistan separatist are "serious" and need to be investigated fully, the White House has said.

Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the chief of the banned Khalistan Tiger Force (KTF), was killed in Surrey, British Columbia on June 18. India had designated Nijjar as a terrorist in 2020.

USA: Pence calls Trump’s attacks on Milley ‘utterly inexcusable’ at AP-Georgetown foreign policy forum

WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Vice President Mike Pence on Tuesday criticized his former boss-turned-rival, Donald Trump, for calling retired Gen. Mark Milley, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a traitor over phone calls he made to China in the final stormy months of their administration.

“Frankly what Donald Trump said about him in that tweet, about treason and death, was utterly inexcusable,” the GOP presidential candidate said at a national security and foreign policy event at Washington’s Georgetown University co-hosted by The Associated Press.

India: Flash flood in Sikkim; 23 army personnel missing

Gangtok, Oct 4 (PTI) A sudden cloud burst over Lhonak Lake in North Sikkim has resulted in a flash flood in the Teesta River in Lachen valley on Wednesday, which was compounded by the release of water from a dam, leading to 23 army personnel being washed away, camps and vehicles being submerged, officials said.

The floods started around 1.30 am, they said.

Defence officials said establishments along the valley have been affected and efforts are on to confirm details.

USA: Trump lawyers go after accountant and appeal major pretrial ruling in New York fraud case

NEW YORK (AP) — Warned to mind his out-of-court comments, former President Donald Trump returned to his New York civil fraud trial Wednesday as lawyers on both sides closely questioned an accountant who prepared financial statements at the heart of the case.

Outside the courtroom, Trump’s lawyers appealed a key pretrial ruling.

The civil case, filed by New York Attorney General Letitia James, accuses Trump and his business of exaggerating his wealth in financial statements that went to banks, insurers and others.

Thousands of US health care workers go on strike in multiple states over wages and staff shortages

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Some 75,000 Kaiser Permanente workers walked off the job Wednesday in multiple states, kicking off a major health care strike amid an extraordinary year for U.S. labor organizing and work stoppages.

Kaiser Permanente is one of the country’s larger insurers and health care system operators, with 39 hospitals nationwide. The nonprofit company, based in Oakland, California, provides health coverage for nearly 13 million people, sending customers to clinics and hospitals it runs or contracts with to provide care.

National currencies drive 90% of Iran-Russia trade transactions: Russian senator

Moscow, IRNA – The share of national currencies in commercial transactions between Russia and Iran has increased to 90 percent, according to the head of Russia’s Federation Council Committee on the Budget and Financial Markets.

Speaking at a meeting with the head members of the Iranian Parliament’s Planning, Budget and Research Committee in Moscow on Tuesday, Anatoly Artamonov said the two countries settle their mutual payments using national currencies.

USA: Biden tries to reassure allies of continued US support for Ukraine after Congress drops aid request

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden gathered other world powers Tuesday to coordinate on Ukraine as it battles Russia in a war now almost 20 months long — a deliberate show of U.S. support at a time when the future of its aid is entangled with a volatile faction of House Republicans who want to cut off money to Kyiv.

India: ED raids on Sanjay Singh show BJP resorting to desperate measures: CM Kejriwal

New Delhi, Oct 4 (PTI) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said the ED raids on AAP leader Sanjay Singh's residence showed that the BJP was resorting to desperate measures as it stares at a defeat in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Many such raids will take place but there is nothing to be scared of, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener said.

USA: Prosecutor opens trial for FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried saying he stole at least $10 billion

NEW YORK (AP) — A prosecutor opened a criminal fraud trial Wednesday by telling jurors that FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was on top of the world a year ago, hobnobbing with people like football star Tom Brady and ex-President Bill Clinton, before his historic fraud was exposed, leaving customers and investors without at least $10 billion they thought was secure.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan Rehn pointed at Bankman-Fried, sitting with his lawyers in a suit, and accused him of “committing a massive fraud.”

Turkiye supplied Ukraine with heavy machine guns against Russia - report

03 October 2023; MEMO: Turkiye has supplied Ukraine with heavy machine guns in its ongoing war against Russia, in a revelation which sheds further light on Ankara’s quiet support for Kyiv.

According to the London-based news outlet, Middle East Eye, which cited two anonymous sources familiar with the sale, Turkiye recently began supplying Canik M2 heavy machine gun models – from the private Turkish arms manufacturer, Canik – for apparent use by ground troops along with armoured vehicles.

Israel: Netanyahu excludes Ben-Gvir from security discussions

02 October 2023; MEMO: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu excluded National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir from security discussions attended by most senior Israeli security officials on Sunday, it has been reported. Ben-Gvir’s position includes authority over the police, but this was not a reason for Netanyahu to invite him to the meeting.

"Ben-Gvir has a habit of making problematic proposals"

The US warns of a Chinese global disinformation campaign that could undermine peace and stability

WASHINGTON (AP) — For much of the world, China’s Xinjiang region is notorious, a place where ethnic Uyghurs face forced labor and arbitrary detention. But a group of visiting foreign journalists was left with a decidedly different impression.

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