International News from Monday, November 11th, 2024

Bhutan, the Himalayan kingdom that brought the world the concept of gross national happiness, is set to build a "mindfulness city" and began raising funds on Monday to help start the ambitious project.

A court in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal began the trial on Monday of a police volunteer accused of raping and murdering a doctor at a government hospital in August.

The chief of staff of Saudi Arabia's armed forces, Fayyad al-Ruwaili, visited Tehran on Sunday to meet with his Iranian counterpart and discuss defence ties, state media reported the Iranian Armed Forces General Staff as saying.

Hezbollah has not received any proposals on a truce for Lebanon, a spokesperson said Monday, as Israel's foreign minister said diplomatic efforts had made "progress" and amid Israeli media reports that the cabinet had approved a ceasefire proposal.

Russia is attempting to push Ukrainian forces from its western Kursk region with tens of thousands of troops, Ukraine's top commander said on Monday, aiming to retake territory it lost in the summer, while its offensive in eastern Ukraine grinds on. 

US President-elect Donald Trump said on Sunday that Tom Homan, the former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), will be in charge of the country's borders in his new administration.

Typhoon Nika made landfall in the Philippines' northeastern Aurora province on Monday after thousands were ordered to evacuate ahead of the fourth typhoon to hit the country in a month. 

Haiti will name entrepreneur and former senate candidate Alix Didier Fils-Aime to replace Prime Minister Garry Conille in the latest blow to political stability as the country battles worsening violence by gangs.

The world convened in Azerbaijan's capital Baku on Monday for COP29, the annual climate conference aimed at measuring progress made to advance the Paris Agreement and limit global warming.

An Israeli strike on a residential building in the Sayeda Zainab district south of the Syrian capital Damascus killed seven civilians on Sunday, the Syrian defence ministry said, in the second such attack in less than a week.

The Israeli Army’s Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi approved plans to expand its ground offensive in Lebanon, Israeli broadcaster KAN reported on Sunday.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Sunday that he authorised the deadly attack on Hezbollah communications devices in Lebanon in September.