Sports

England captain Stokes announces retirement from international cricket

LONDON — England captain Ben Stokes made the dramatic decision Sunday to announce his imminent retirement from international cricket midway through the deciding third test against New Zealand. “This is my last two days as your captain and my last two days representing England,” Stokes told his England teammates inside the dressing room at the […]

Middle East

Israel says 4 soldiers killed by Hezbollah drone attack while Israeli strike in Gaza leaves 20 dead

GAZA — A Hezbollah drone attack on an army base in central Israel killed four soldiers and severely wounded seven others Sunday, the military said, in the deadliest strike by the militant group since Israel launched its ground invasion of Lebanon nearly two weeks ago. The Lebanon-based Hezbollah called the attack near Binyamina city retaliation […]

Asia

Foreign delegations arrive in Pakistan for SCO summit; security beefed up in national capital

ISLAMABAD — Foreign delegations started arriving in Pakistan Sunday for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, amid heightened security and the deployment of the army in the national capital to maintain law and order during the event. A 76-member Russian delegation and seven representatives of the SCO reached Pakistan. Separately, a four-member official delegation of […]

Sports

‘India didn’t bench Virat during his rough stretch’: Fakhar reacts on Babar’s snub

NEW DELHI — Pakistan batter Fakhar Zaman expressed frustration with former captain Babar Azam’s omission from the Test squad for the remaining two matches against England. The news came after Babar failed to score a single Test half-century since December 2022. However, Fakhar criticised the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for not backing the senior player […]