Nepal's president asks visiting Qatari emir to help free student held hostage by Hamas

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Nepal's president asked the emir of Qatar, who is on a two-day visit to the South Asian country, to help release a Nepali student held hostage by Palestinian militant group Hamas, officials said on Wednesday. President Ram Chandra Poudel met with Sheik Tamim...

Qatari emir in Nepal, expected to tackle migrant conditions and Nepali student held hostage by Hamas

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — The emir of Qatar landed in Nepal Tuesday on his first-ever visit to the South Asian country, after visiting Bangladesh and the Philippines, where improving migrant workers' conditions in the Gulf state and a Nepali student still held hostage by Hamas are expected to be on...

Court allows case over forced gynecological exams at Qatar airport to go ahead against operator

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — An Australian court has rejected a case brought by five women seeking compensation from Qatar Airways over invasive gynecological examinations conducted on passengers at Doha’s airport in 2020, but their case against the airport's operator is going ahead. ...

Biden urges Egypt, Qatar leaders to press Hamas to come to agreement for Israeli hostages in Gaza

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday wrote to the leaders of Egypt and Qatar, calling on them to press Hamas for a hostage deal with Israel, according to a senior administration official, one day after Biden called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to redouble efforts to...

Biden urges Egypt, Qatar leaders to press Hamas for hostage deal with Israel, after pushing Netanyahu for cease-fire

Israel clears way to expel Al Jazeera. Channel says Netanyahu's incitement claim is a dangerous lie

JERUSALEM (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday vowed to shut down Al Jazeera’s operations in Israel, calling it a “terror channel” that spreads incitement, after parliament passed a law clearing the way for the closure. Netanyahu’s pledge escalated Israel’s...

The Latest | Netanyahu says Israel will return to table for cease-fire talks with Hamas

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel will return to the table for cease-fire talks with Hamas. Friday’s announcement marks yet another attempt to reach a deal to pause Israel’s devastating war in Gaza against Hamas in exchange for the release of Israeli hostages. Efforts...

Blinken says an Israeli assault on Gaza's Rafah would be a mistake and isn't needed to defeat Hamas

CAIRO (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday a major Israeli ground assault on the southern Gaza town of Rafah would be “a mistake” and “unnecessary” to defeating Hamas, underscoring the further souring of relations between the United States and Israel. ...

The Latest | Blinken says he'll talk with Israelis about alternatives to Rafah ground assault

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says he will share alternatives to Israel's planned ground assault into the southern Gaza town of Rafah when he meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his War Cabinet on Friday. Blinken and Arab leaders on Thursday discussed efforts...

Cease-fire talks with Israel and Hamas are expected to resume on Sunday in Qatar

CAIRO (AP) — Stalled talks aimed at securing a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war are expected to resume in earnest in Qatar as soon as Sunday, according to Egyptian officials. The talks would mark the first time both Israeli officials and Hamas leaders join the indirect...