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Brides sit during a mass marriage ceremony in Mumbai. Photo: AFP
India

Here comes the ‘Mounjaro bride’: Indian pre-wedding prep includes obesity drug

Many Indian marriages are arranged by families, often bringing expectations around physical appearance and financial status.

Pakistan

Pakistan offers free public transport for 30 days following 40% petrol hike

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Sri Lanka

152 arrested in Sri Lanka in alleged Chinese-run cyberscam

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Pakistan

‘Why are we paying?’ Pakistanis face up to 54% rise in fuel prices

As the ripple effects of the Middle East war continue, the government says Islamabad will give people free public transport for 30 days.

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A petrol station worker fills the tank of a vehicle in Peshawar, Pakistan, on Friday. Photo: EPA
A petrol station worker fills the tank of a vehicle in Peshawar, Pakistan, on Friday. Photo: EPA
Pakistan

What Pakistan gains by playing peacemaker in Iran war

If Islamabad can successfully carry off the talks, it stands a chance of bringing in much-needed investments and weapon sales, analysts say.

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China-Middle East relations

China-Pakistan five-point plan to end Iran war

China and Pakistan launched an initiative to restore stability in the Middle East.

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Nepal

Untouchable no more: Nepal to apologise to Dalits for first time

Nepal has banned caste discrimination, yet many Dalits still live in poverty. Can a formal state apology inspire change?

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A Dalit woman sits with a child in Humla district, in Nepal’s remote northwest. Photo: AFP
A Dalit woman sits with a child in Humla district, in Nepal’s remote northwest. Photo: AFP
US, Israel war on Iran

War on Iran is about to make clothes more expensive. Here’s why

Rising freight and energy costs, plus a near-blockade on synthetic fibres, are pushing prices higher.

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Pakistan

Regional diplomats gather in Pakistan for talks to end Iran war

Foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt were taking part in the talks as the US kept up strikes on Iran.

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Nepal

Nepal’s ex-PM Oli arrested over alleged role in crackdown on protesters

Oli says he will fight the ‘vindictive’ arrest, as former home minister Ramesh Lekhak is also detained.

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Nepal’s former prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli earlier in March. Photo: Reuters
Nepal

Balendra Shah sworn in as Nepal’s prime minister

Balendra Shah, the 35-year-old ex-rapper widely known as Balen, is Nepal’s youngest PM in decades.

Rastriya Swatantra Party leader Balendra Shah (left) arriving to take his oath. Photo: Nepal’s Photojournalist Club via AFP
Rastriya Swatantra Party leader Balendra Shah (left) arriving to take his oath. Photo: Nepal’s Photojournalist Club via AFP
Nepal

Nepal’s probe into deadly uprising finds ex-prime minister, officials ‘reckless’

The report is proposing prison sentences of up to 10 years for K.P. Sharma Oli and other top government officials.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh recovers 24 bodies after bus plunges into river

The bus had around 50 passengers, many of whom managed to escape.

India

Pakistan steps in as Iran mediator while India watches from the wings

India’s ‘surprising’ silence on Iranian attacks amid uneasy ties with Tehran could affect its strategic relevance in the Gulf, analysts warn.

Rocket trails are seen in the sky above the Israeli coastal city of Netanya amid a fresh barrage of Iranian missile attacks on Wednesday. Photo: AFP
India

As India and US seek to reset defence ties, Iran war threatens to be wild card

An Iranian vessel’s sinking in the Indian Ocean has triggered anger in India, while New Delhi is worried about the Strait of Hormuz blockade.

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Plumes of smoke rise following reported explosions close to Sepah Square in Tehran on March 1 amid the ongoing US-Israeli attacks on Iran. Photo: TNS
Plumes of smoke rise following reported explosions close to Sepah Square in Tehran on March 1 amid the ongoing US-Israeli attacks on Iran. Photo: TNS
Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka’s refusal to host US warplanes before Iran war risks trade backlash

Trying to keep conflict at arm’s length by distancing itself from the US could bring Sri Lanka’s economy ‘to its knees’, analysts say.

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Singapore

Singapore coroner rules Indian singer Zubeen Garg’s death accidental drowning

State Coroner Adam Nakhoda said no one had forced, coerced or pushed Garg into the waters off Lazarus Island last year.

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Pakistan

Pakistan PM says Islamabad ‘ready’ to host talks to end Iran war

Iran is a long-standing ally of Pakistan and Islamabad has condemned the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

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An Iranian man watches the news in Tehran. Photo: AFP
An Iranian man watches the news in Tehran. Photo: AFP
India

Why India faces dilemma over Iran war while seeking ‘diplomatic flexibility’

India has to carefully navigate the fallout from the war, given its huge stakes in the Middle East, analysts say.

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Climate change

Himalayan glacial loss threatens 2 billion as Asia’s ‘water tower’ shrinks

Conflicts, such as the Iran war, are diverting global attention away from the ecological crisis, scientists warn.

China energy security

China’s Russian oil imports spike in early 2026, but Iran war changes outlook

China’s need to bolster crude stockpiles amid rising geopolitical risks likely to have been a factor behind pre-war import surge, analyst says.

An attendant holds a petrol nozzle after refuelling a car at a petrol station in Beijing last week. China imported 159.79 million barrels of Russian crude in the first two months of the year. Photo: Reuters
India

India steps up regional energy diplomacy, supplies Bangladesh with diesel

Being a ‘first responder’ in the current energy crisis is in line with India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy.

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Fuel nozzles at a Bharat Petroleum gas station in New Delhi. Photo: AFP
Fuel nozzles at a Bharat Petroleum gas station in New Delhi. Photo: AFP
Pakistan

Is Pakistan building ICBMs? Non-proliferation experts dispute US warning

US fears of Pakistani ICBMs targeting America are overstated as Islamabad’s missile programme remains regional, observers say.

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India

India’s weight-loss drug price war begins as key patent expires

Generic slimming drugs are expected to flood a market where one in four adults are currently either overweight or obese.

Pakistan

Pakistan announces 5-day pause on Afghan strikes for Eid

The temporary ceasefire comes after Monday’s hospital strike, the deadliest in an escalating conflict between the two neighbours.

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An Afghan man walks next to the site where a drug rehabilitation centre was destroyed in an air strike in Kabul on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters
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