Islamabad, May 13 (PTI) At least six Pakistani soldiers and as many terrorists were killed in a gun battle between the security forces and militants in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province on Saturday.

The rebels attacked a paramilitary Frontier Corps Compound in the Muslim Bagh area of the province, leading to a hostage situation, according to a statement by the army.

Lucknow, May 14 (PTI) Children of labourers and those orphaned during the COVID-19 pandemic in Uttar Pradesh will soon get access to state-of-the-art educational facilities, with the state government starting the admission process for the maiden session of the Atal Residential Schools.  The residential schools named after BJP stalwart and former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee will provide free education to children from classes 6 to 12. Students will also get full residential facilities.

Mumbai, May 12 (PTI) A special PMLA court here on Friday granted bail to businessman Haroun Yusuf, arrested in 2019 in connection with a money laundering case also involving late gangster and drug smuggler Iqbal Mirchi, holding he had no knowledge regarding the latter's source of money.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED), probing the case, has claimed Yusuf had assisted Mirchi in buying properties in India using money earned through illegal activities.

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan left a high court in Islamabad on Friday after being granted broad protection from arrest in multiple legal cases against him. The ruling struck a blow to the government in a stand-off that has sparked days of rioting by Khan’s followers and raised the specter of widespread unrest in the country.

After the court granted him bail, Khan spent hours more in the building, as he and his legal team were locked in apparent negotiations over his exit from the site.

13 May 2023; MEMO: The US National Security Council (NSC) announced on Friday that Washington will boost its military presence in the Arabian Gulf to face off Iran's seizures of merchant tankers, news agencies reported.

"Today, the Department of Defense will be making a series of moves to bolster our defensive posture in the Arabian Gulf," NSC spokesperson John Kirby told reporters.

12 May 2023; MEMO: The European Union has described Israel's indiscriminate bombardment of the besieged Gaza Strip as "intolerable," calling on Tel Aviv to prevent civilian casualties, Anadolu news agency reported.

"The European Union is deeply concerned by the escalation of violence in recent days in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory," said European Commission spokesperson Peter Stano, at a press conference held in the Belgian capital, Brussels, Thursday.

13 May 2023; MEMO: Israeli occupation fighters have carried out six airstrikes across the besieged Gaza Strip since early Saturday morning as ceasefire talks stall.

Following a security assessment on Friday evening, Israeli security officials recommended the end of the Israeli offensive on Gaza.

The security assessment came after 13 hours of calm, without rocket fire from Gaza nor airstrikes and artillery shelling by Israel.

MOSCOW, May 13. /TASS/: A helicopter has caught on fire and crashed in the Bryansk Region, a source in the emergency services told TASS.

"A helicopter has crashed in the city of Klintsy, according to preliminary data due to an inflamed engine," the source said.

"The wreckage of the helicopter has been found by now. As a result of the crash a fire started that was knocked out swiftly," the source in the taskforce told TASS.

According to a source in the emergency services, two people died as a result of a crash of Mi-8 helicopter in the city of Klintsy.

12 May 2023; MEMO: The national flag carrier, Turkish Airlines, will order nearly 600 aircraft in the next decade, according to the Airline's Board and Executive Committee Chairman, Anadolu News Agency reports.

Speaking at an event to unveil Turkish Airlines' renewed in-flight dining menus on Thursday, Ahmet Bolat disclosed that approximately 400 new orders will be for narrow-body aircraft and 200 for wide-body planes.

13 May 2023; MEMO: Islamabad High Court, on Friday, granted bail to former Pakistani Prime Minister, Imran Khan, in a corruption case, local media reported, Anadolu News Agency reports.

Khan filed a bail petition after the anti-corruption watchdog – National Accountability Bureau (NAB) – had filed a corruption case against the popular opposition leader.

The Court granted bail for two weeks, according to local broadcasters.

ISTANBUL, May 13 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan held his last election rallies in Istanbul on Saturday, accusing the opposition of working with U.S. President Joe Biden to topple him while making a final appeal ahead of the biggest challenge to his 20-year rule.

Polls show Erdogan trailing the main opposition candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu a day ahead of one of the most consequential elections in Turkey's modern history. However, if neither of them win more than 50% of the vote and secure an outright win, the vote will go to a runoff on May 28.

WASHINGTON (AP) — One outcome is clear as Washington reaches for a budget deal to end the debt ceiling standoff: The ambitious COVID era of government spending — to cope with the pandemic and rebuild in its aftermath — is giving way to a new fiscal focus on tailored investments and stemming deficits.