A judge in Russia convicted American basketball star Brittney Griner of drug possession and smuggling. She was sentenced to nine years in prison in a politically charged case that could lead to a high-stakes prisoner exchange between Washington and Moscow. Griner showed little emotion to the sentence but her lawyers said later she was "very upset, very stressed. U.S. President Joe Biden denounced as ``unacceptable'' the verdict and sentence, which came amid soaring tensions between the U.S. and Russia over Ukraine. Griner had told the court she had no intention to break the law by bringing va

The U.S. will declare a public health emergency to bolster the federal response to the outbreak of monkeypox that already has infected more than 6,600 Americans, two people familiar with the matter said. The announcement will free up federal funding and resources to fight the virus, which may cause fever, body aches, chills, fatigue and pimple-like bumps on many parts of the body. The people spoke on the condition of anonymity ahead of the announcement. The declaration comes as the the Biden administration has faced criticism over the pace of vaccine availability for monkeypox. Clinics in maj

As the tensions escalated in the Taiwan strait in the wake of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, the Taiwanese Defence Ministry said that 22 Chinese military aircraft entered the island's air defence zone on Thursday. This is the third such incident since Pelosi's trip to Taipei. "22 PLA aircraft (J-11*8, SU-30*12 and J-16*2) entered the surrounding area of R.O.C. on August 4, 2022," Taiwan Defence Ministry said in a statement. Taiwan today strongly condemned China's "North Korea" style missile firing into waters near the self-governed island after China's People's Liberation Ar

The Taliban on Thursday said that they had no information about slain Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri's arrival and stay in Kabul. On August 1, the US announced the killing of the Al-Qaeda chief in a safe house in the heart of the country's capital. Though the Islamic outfit confirmed the US drone strike in Kabul but denied the presence of the Al-Qaeda chief. The Taliban said that they have instructed their investigative and intelligence agencies to probe into the various aspects of the incident. "...an air strike was carried out on a residential house in Kabul city, two days later, US Pres

China sent 27 aircraft to Taiwan's air defence identification zone (ADIZ), the island's Defence Ministry said on Wednesday hours after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi left Taipei following a high-stakes visit that has spiked tensions in the Taiwan Strait. As many as six J-11 fighter jets, five J-16 multirole fighters and 16 SU-30 multirole fighters entered the air defence zone today. "27 PLA aircraft (J-11*6, J-16*5 and SU-30*16) entered the surrounding area of R.O.C. on August 3, 2022," Taiwan Defense Ministry tweeted. This incursion after 21 Chinese military aircraft flew into the southwestern

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi departed Taiwan on Wednesday after meeting with the president and other officials in a visit that heightened tensions with China. Pelosi and five other members of Congress were headed to South Korea, the next stop on an Asia tour that also includes Singapore, Malaysia and Japan. In Taiwan, she said her delegation was showing their commitment to the self-governing island that China claims and says must come under its control. China staged military drills after her arrival and called her visit a provocation that infringes on its sovereignty.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's plane landed in Taiwan amid a heightened security threat from China, media reports said on Tuesday. China had warned the US that it will "pay the price" if Pelosi visits Taiwan, which is the highest level of US visits in more than two decades. "What I can tell you is, the US will definitely have to bear responsibility and pay the price for harming China's sovereignty and security interests," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a press briefing in Beijing adding that China will take "firm and powerful" measures in response. On Monday, US Natio

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday visited the Odesa region to observe the loading of grain as exports resume for the first time since the start of the Russian invasion. Zelenskyy observed a Turkish ship loaded with grain. “The first vessel, the first ship is being loaded since the beginning of the war,” Zelenskyy said. He said the export of grain will begin with the departure of several ships that were already loaded but could not depart the Ukrainian ports.

NEW YORK : For more than a decade, US Bank pressured its employees to open fake accounts in their customers' names in order to meet unrealistic sales goals, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Thursday, in a case that is deeply similar to the sales practices scandal uncovered at Wells Fargo last decade. The CFPB alleged that US Bank accessed consumers credit reports to open checking and savings accounts, credit cards and lines of credit without their permission. Employees were encouraged to do so, in order to meet the bank's goals of selling multiple products to each customer with t