Author: EchoAsiaNews

WASHINGTON: A shooting near the White House on Saturday evening triggered a major security response, with police, Secret Service agents and federal authorities swarming the area while President Donald Trump was inside the presidential complex, officials said. According to a US law enforcement official cited by Reuters, a man approached a security checkpoint near 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue and opened fire on officers. The suspect was shot by Secret Service personnel and taken to George Washington Hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries, according to US media reports. Authorities said the suspect had previously been identified as an…

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday invited Chinese companies and entrepreneurs to relocate industries to Pakistan, form joint ventures with local firms and take advantage of investor-friendly policies, describing the proposal as a “win-win model” for both countries. Addressing the Pakistan-China B2B Investment Conference on IT and Telecom, battery energy storage systems (BESS) and agriculture in Hangzhou, the prime minister said rising labour costs in China and the country’s transition toward higher industrialisation had created opportunities for industrial relocation. He said industries in which China was no longer globally competitive because of expensive labour could shift production to Pakistan…

QUETTA: At least 14 people, including three Frontier Corps (FC) personnel, were martyred and several others injured in a blast near a railway track close to Chaman Phatak in Quetta on Sunday, officials said. According to Balochistan government spokesperson Shahid Rind, the explosion targeted civilians near the railway track, leaving multiple women and children among the injured. The injured were shifted to hospitals in Quetta, where an emergency was declared and additional doctors and medical staff were called in to handle the situation. Rind said security forces cordoned off the area immediately after the blast, while investigators and forensic teams…

WASHINGTON/TEHRAN: The United States and Iran are close to reaching an agreement that would extend a ceasefire for 60 days, reopen the Strait of Hormuz, and allow Tehran to resume oil exports under limited sanctions relief, Axios reported on Saturday, citing a US official. According to the report, the proposed arrangement would include negotiations over Iran’s nuclear programme during the 60-day period. Iran would also clear mines it allegedly deployed in the Strait of Hormuz, allowing commercial shipping to move freely through the strategic waterway without tolls. In return, the United States would ease restrictions on Iranian ports and issue…

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he will not attend the wedding of his eldest son, Donald Trump Jr, citing official government duties and ongoing diplomatic priorities. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he had wanted to attend the wedding of Donald Trump Jr and Palm Beach socialite Bettina Anderson but could not do so due to “government business” and responsibilities at the White House. “While I very much wanted to be with my son, Don Junior, and the newest member of the Trump Family, his soon to be wife, Bettina, circumstances pertaining to Government,…

UNITED NATIONS: Talks at the United Nations aimed at reaffirming global nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament commitments ended without agreement on Friday after four weeks of negotiations, conference officials said. The negotiations focused on reviewing the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the central international framework governing nuclear weapons control. Conference president Do Hung Viet said delegates were unable to reach consensus on a final substantive document. “Despite our best efforts, it is my understanding that the conference is not in a position to achieve agreement on its substantive work,” Viet said. “I do not intend to put the…

WASHINGTON: SpaceX successfully completed a major test flight of its latest-generation Starship spacecraft on Friday, with the vehicle splashing down in the Indian Ocean after a largely successful mission despite several technical glitches. The massive rocket lifted off shortly after 5:30 p.m. local time from SpaceX’s Starbase launch facility in Texas. The company had not planned to recover either the Super Heavy booster or the upper-stage spacecraft during the mission. The final splashdown occurred in a controlled descent, which SpaceX confirmed on social media platform X. The flight marked Starship’s 12th overall test and the first launch in seven months.…

ISLAMABAD: The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency said on Friday it had dismantled an organised network in South Punjab accused of selling sensitive personal data of key individuals, with four suspects arrested so far. Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, NCCIA Director General Syed Khurram Ali said the group had been leaking and selling information linked to important personalities for small amounts of money. According to Ali, investigations revealed that individuals within various institutions were facilitating the illegal access and transfer of data. “We have learnt that individuals in various departments were providing details for data leakage,” he said. Ali…

BEIJING: At least 90 miners were killed after a gas explosion ripped through a coal mine in northern China, state media reported on Saturday, marking the country’s deadliest mining disaster in 17 years. According to state news agency Xinhua, 247 workers were underground when the blast occurred at 7:29 p.m. local time on Friday at the Liushenyu coal mine in Shanxi province. Most of the miners were brought to the surface by Saturday morning, while authorities confirmed that at least 90 people had died. Xinhua reported that 345 emergency personnel were deployed to the site, with rescue teams continuing intensive…

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif departed for China on Saturday for a four-day official visit aimed at strengthening bilateral strategic cooperation and expanding economic engagement between the two countries. According to the Government of Pakistan, the prime minister left for Hangzhou in the first phase of the visit, accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar, IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi. In a statement, Pakistan’s Foreign Office said the visit holds special significance as the two countries mark the 75th anniversary…