Author: EchoAsiaNews

MUZAFFARABAD: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) government on Sunday accused the proscribed Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) of continuing to fuel instability in the region despite what officials said was the full implementation of a previous agreement with the group. Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry said the government had fulfilled key commitments made under a negotiated settlement with JAAC and had established a monitoring mechanism to ensure compliance. He said the authorities had implemented “all clauses” of the agreement, including subsidised wheat and electricity, withdrawal of around 170 protest-related cases, and steps related to development…

MEXICO CITY: Thousands of people gathered on one of Mexico City’s main boulevards on Saturday in an attempt to set a Guinness World Record for the largest “Mexican wave,” ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026. The event took place along Paseo de la Reforma, a major avenue through the capital, where participants—many wearing Mexico’s national football jersey—coordinated a synchronized wave of raised arms in an effort to break the record. The gathering marked the 40th anniversary of the Mexican wave’s popularisation during the 1986 World Cup hosted in Mexico, although its origins remain disputed, with claims also linked to…

TEHRAN: Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Saturday that he is in Tehran to deliver special messages from Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to Iranian leadership, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Islamabad intensifies diplomatic efforts to help revive US-Iran negotiations. Naqvi’s visit comes amid renewed tensions between Washington and Tehran, where recent exchanges of strikes have raised concerns over the stability of a fragile ceasefire reportedly in place since April 8. Upon arrival in Tehran, Naqvi was received by Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni. The two sides later held…

BAGHDAD: Iraqi World Cup striker Aymen Hussein was detained and questioned for nearly seven hours at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport upon arrival with the national squad early Saturday, an Iraqi sporting official said. Hussein was later permitted entry into the United States, but the team’s photographer was denied access, according to the official, who works with the Iraqi Olympic Committee and maintains close contact with the squad. The official said Hussein’s phone was also inspected during the questioning. The Iraqi team photographer, identified as Talal Salah, was reportedly held for more than 10 hours, subjected to similar device checks, and…

GILGIT: Polling began across Gilgit-Baltistan on Sunday for elections to 24 seats of the regional assembly, with more than 400 candidates contesting and extensive security measures in place to ensure a peaceful voting process. According to the Election Commission, voting started at 8:00am and will continue until 5:00pm without interruption. A total of 958,480 registered voters are eligible to cast their ballots. Election authorities established 1,391 polling stations across the region, including 488 classified as normal, 349 as sensitive and 551 as highly sensitive. Chief Election Commissioner Raja Shahbaz visited several polling stations to monitor the voting process and review…

SEOUL: North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme is “absolutely non-negotiable,” senior official Kim Yo Jong said on Sunday, rejecting renewed calls for denuclearisation ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s scheduled visit to Pyongyang. Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, made the remarks in a statement published by the state-run Rodong Sinmun newspaper. She reiterated Pyongyang’s long-standing position that its status as a nuclear power cannot be challenged and warned that North Korea would not tolerate external threats. “Our status as a nuclear power is absolutely non-negotiable,” Kim said, adding that the country’s nuclear deterrent…

Tehran: Iranian national football team players have been granted visas to enter the United States for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, according to a US official, easing uncertainty over the team’s participation less than two weeks before its opening match. The approval comes after weeks of concerns surrounding visa processing amid ongoing tensions between Iran and the United States. Iranian players are scheduled to compete in Group G matches in the US, with their first fixture set to take place in Los Angeles on June 15. However, several members of Iran’s administrative delegation have not yet received visas. Iranian media…

Washington: A U.S. federal judge has invalidated Trump-era immigration policies that had blocked or delayed immigration benefit decisions for applicants from 39 countries, ruling that the measures were unlawful and exceeded government authority. According to court findings, Chief U.S. District Judge John McConnell Jr. ruled that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) acted outside its legal mandate by freezing or delaying asylum decisions, work permits, green card applications, and citizenship processes for affected nationals. The policies had effectively placed thousands of immigrants from countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East into prolonged legal uncertainty, prompting a…

New Delhi: The founder of India’s viral Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), Abhijeet Dipke, arrived in the capital on Saturday to lead a protest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, marking the movement’s first major shift from online activism to street demonstrations. According to reports, Dipke, 30, who has been based in the United States for the past two years, reached New Delhi ahead of a planned protest at Jantar Mantar, where supporters gathered demanding accountability over alleged irregularities in national examinations and broader education-related grievances. Heavy police deployment was seen around the protest site, with barricades erected and security tightened…

Bishkek: Pakistan and several Central Asian states, along with Russia, have agreed to deepen cooperation on counterterrorism, illegal immigration, and narcotics control during a series of high-level meetings held on the sidelines of a regional conference of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) interior and public security ministers. According to Pakistan’s Interior Ministry, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, focusing on regional security challenges and law enforcement coordination, particularly in relation to Afghanistan. During talks with Russian Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev, both sides signed agreements to enhance cooperation in curbing illegal…