World Echo

Iranian police said 139 foreign nationals have so far been arrested in the central province of Yazd for their participation in recent protests, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Tuesday, without specifying their nationalities. Yazd, a predominantly desert province with a relatively small population above 1 million, was one of many provinces affected by nationwide protests in January. The protests, which started in December over economic hardships and quickly turned political, were repressed in the most violent crackdown since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The official death toll stands at 3,117, although rights groups say many more people have been killed. US-based rights group HRANA has said that nearly 50,000 people have so far been arrested. Authorities blame Israel and the United States for fomenting the violence. "These (foreign) individuals played an active role in organising, inciting, and directing riotous actions, and in some cases were in contact with netwo...

India’s main opposition party has accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government of quietly conceding too much in a newly announced trade deal with the United States, after President Donald Trump revealed the agreement following a call with Modi. Wonderful to speak with my dear friend President Trump today. Delighted that Made in India products will now have a reduced tariff of 18%. Big thanks to President Trump on behalf of the 1.4 billion people of India for this wonderful announcement. When two large economies and the… — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 2, 2026 In a series of statements on Tuesday, the Indian National Congress said the government should take parliament and the public “into confidence” and disclose the deal’s full terms, warning that lowering trade barriers could hurt domestic industry, small traders and farmers. Just like the ceasefire, the announcement of the trade deal was also made by US President Trump. It has been stated that the trade deal is being do...

Israel reopened the border between Gaza and Egypt on Monday for a limited number of people on foot, allowing a small number of Palestinians to leave the enclave and some of those who escaped the conflict to return for the first time. The crossing, in Israeli-held territory in what was once a city of a quarter of a million people that Israel has since completely demolished and depopulated, is the sole route in or out for nearly all of Gaza's more than 2m residents. It has been largely shut for most of the conflict, and reopening it to give even a small number of Gaza residents access to the outside world is one of the last major steps required under the initial phase of a United States-brokered ceasefire reached in October. A Palestinian source said that on the first day 50 Palestinians were expected to enter Gaza, where they will face stringent Israeli security checks, and a similar number would be permitted to leave. Those allowed to enter would be among the more than 100,000...

India will spend a record amount on infrastructure and defence, the finance minister said in her national budget speech on Sunday, with plans for high-speed rail, submarines and fighter jets. New Delhi plans to spend $133 billion on infrastructure and $85b on defence, a respective rise of around 9% and 15% compared to last year's budget. Data centres, artificial intelligence, and the mining and processing of rare earths will also receive government support, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told parliament. She said public spending on infrastructure had increased dramatically from around $21b in 2014-15 and that it was now at an "all-time high". Read: India denies reports of exit from Chabahar port amid US sanctions The defence spending hike comes after a four-day conflict with arch-rival Pakistan last May that killed at least 70 people, and saw both sides make extensive use of drones as well as intense missile and artillery barrages. 'Best interest' Defence Min...

Iran is weighing the terms for resuming talks with the United States soon, a foreign ministry official said on Monday, after both sides signalled readiness to revive diplomacy over a long-running nuclear dispute and dispel fears of a new regional war. Tensions are running high amid a military buildup by the US Navy near Iran, following a violent crackdown against anti-government demonstrations last month, the deadliest domestic unrest in Iran since its 1979 revolution. US President Donald Trump, who stopped short of carrying out threats to intervene during the crackdown, has since demanded Iran make nuclear concessions and sent a flotilla to its coast. He said last week Iran was "seriously talking", while Tehran's top security official Ali Larijani said on X that arrangements for negotiations were underway. برخلاف فضاسازی‌‌ِ جنگ رسانه‌ای تصنعی، شکل‌گیری ساختاری برای #مذاکرات در حال پیشرفت است. — Ali Larijani | علی لاریجانی (@alilarijani_ir) January 31, 2026 Iranian source...

China's annual Spring Festival travel rush, 40 days commonly referred to as the world's largest annual human migration, kicked off on Monday ahead of an extended Lunar New Year holiday. This year's Lunar New Year, ushering in the Year of the Horse in the Chinese zodiac, falls on February 17 and will be accompanied by an extra-long nine-day public holiday in China, running from February 15 to 23. It's hoped a longer holiday (last year's break was eight days long) might prompt Chinese consumers to boost consumption by spending more on travel, meals and more during this festival period. Read: Saudi Arabia suspends 1,800 foreign Umrah travel agencies Many Chinese consumers have been shaken by the country's uncertain economic outlook and would rather save than spend. Homeowners have seen their assets depreciate in a years-long property market slump, while weaker growth momentum since the pandemic has added to job insecurity. This said, a state planning official said ...

US President Donald Trump on Saturday said the United States would respond in a significant way if Canada proceeds with ‌the trade ‌agreement that ‌it ⁠negotiated with ‌China. “If they do a deal with China, yeah, we’ll do something very substantial,” Trump told ⁠reporters aboard Air Force ‌One. “We don’t want ‍China ‍to take over ‍Canada. And if they make the deal that he’s looking to make, China will take over Canada.” Trump ⁠last week said he would impose a 100 percent tariffs on Canada if it follows through on a trade deal with China. Read More: Trump escalates feud with Carney after Davos dust-up A week ago, US President Donald Trump on  warned Canada that if it concludes a trade deal with China, he will impose a 100 percent tariff on all goods coming over the border. Relations between the United States and its northern neighbor have been rocky since Trump returned to the White House a year ago, with spats over trade and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney decrying a "rupt...

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's powerful Security Council, said that Russia will "soon" win military victory in the Ukraine war but the key thing was to prevent any further conflict. "Soon," Medvedev, who served as Russian president from 2008 to 2012, said, when asked by the WarGonzo Russian war blogger in an interview when Russia would win the war. "I would like this to happen as soon as possible." "But it is equally important to think about what will happen next. After all, the goal of victory is to prevent new conflicts. This is absolutely obvious," Medvedev said in the interview with TASS, War Gonzo and Reuters. Read More: Russian attacks kill 6 in Ukraine Ukraine talks next week US-backed trilateral talks involving Ukraine and Russia will take place next week in Abu Dhabi, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday, as Ukrainians faced uncertainty over the fate of an energy ceasefire with Russia amid plunging temperatures....

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has said that if the United States attacked Iran, it would become a regional conflict, state media reported on Sunday, amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran. The US has built up its naval presence in the Middle East after President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened Iran with intervention if it did not agree to a nuclear deal or failed to stop killing protesters. "(Trump) regularly says that he brought ships (...) The Iranian nation shall not be scared by these things, the Iranian people will not be stirred by these threats," Khamenei said. Read: US-Iran tension "We are not the initiators and do not want to attack any country, but the Iranian nation will strike a strong blow against anyone who attacks and harasses them". A diplomatic solution remains on the cards, with Tehran saying it is ready for "fair" negotiations that do not seek to curtail its defensive capabilities. The US Navy curren...