Oil prices surge 20% on supply fears as US-Israeli war with Iran expands
Oil prices surged about 20% in early trade on Monday, hitting their highest since July 2022, as the expanding U.S.-Israeli war with Iran fuelled fears of tighter supply and prolonged disruptions to shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reported.
Iran on Monday named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father Ali Khamenei as Supreme Leader, signalling that hardliners remain firmly in charge in Tehran a week into its conflict with the United States and Israel.
Brent crude futures rose as much as $18.35, or 19.8%, to $111.04 a barrel and were up $14.38, or 15.5%, at $107.07 as of 2314 GMT, according to Reuters.
Iranian army says at least 104 killed in US attack on Iranian warship last week
The Iranian army said on Sunday that at ‌least 104 people were killed and 32 were wounded in an attack by the U.S. on an Iranian warship off Sri Lanka's coast last week, Reuters reported.
A U.S. submarine sank the frigate Dena in the Indian Ocean ‌about 19 nautical miles off Sri Lanka's southern port city of Galle on Wednesday, killing dozens of sailors and dramatically widening Washington's pursuit of the Iranian navy.
Iran names Khamenei's hardline son Mojtaba as new supreme leader, oil surges
Iran on Monday named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father Ali Khamenei as supreme leader, signaling that hardliners remain firmly in charge, as the week-old U.S.-Israeli war with Iran pushed oil above $100 a barrel, Reuters reported.
Mojtaba, a cleric with influence inside Iran's security forces and vast business networks ‌under his father, had been viewed as a frontrunner in the lead-up to Sunday's vote by the Assembly of Experts, a body of 88 clerics tasked with choosing Ali Khamenei's successor.
"By a decisive vote, the Assembly of Experts, appointed Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei as the third Leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iran," the Assembly said in a statement issued just after midnight Tehran time, according to Reuters.
Explosion at US embassy in Oslo may have been terrorism, Norway police say
An overnight explosion at the US embassy in Oslo may have been an act of terrorism, Norway's police have said, BBC reported.
The embassy in the Norwegian capital sustained minor damage after the blast in the early hours of Sunday - but no-one was injured.
"One of the hypotheses is that it is an act of terrorism, but we are not completely locked into it," Frode Larsen, the head of police joint investigation and intelligence unit, told Norway's public broadcaster NRK, according to BBC.
Inquiry Commission recommends action against Oli and Lekhak among others
The Inquiry Commission formed to investigate the Gen Z protest of September 8 and the violent incidents that followed on September 9 has found former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and former Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak responsible and recommended action against them.
The Commission led by former Special Court Chairman Gauri Bahadur Karki submitted its report to Prime Minister Sushila Karki on Sunday.
According to a source, the Commission has also held the then Home Secretary Gokarna Mani Duwadi, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chandrakuber Khapung, and the then Chief District Officer Chhabi Rijal responsible in the incident and recommended action against them.
Speaking to mediapersons after handing over the report, Commission Chairman Karki said, "The report we submitted should be made public and implemented immediately. We have recommended legal action against those whose negligence led to the death of young people in the September 8 incident."
Nineteen people died, including 17 in Baneshwor Chowk and two in Sunsari on September 8 while 57 more people died on September 9, bringing the total number of deaths to 76 in two days.
According to the report, properties worth around Rs 84 were damaged during the unrest.
On September 9, protesters vandalized and set fire on
government offices, commercial buildings, and private properties, including Singha Durbar and Supreme Court among others.
Former AIG Bigyan Raj Sharma and legal expert Bishweshwar Bhandari conducted a detailed analysis of the incident.
Samson and Bumrah star as India beat NZ to retain T20 World Cup title
India became the first team to retain the men's Twenty20 World Cup title after handing out a 96-run demolition of New Zealand in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium ‌on Sunday, Reuters reported.
India also became the first team to lift the title three times, while New Zealand's wait for a maiden white-ball World Cup continues.
The victory will taste particularly sweet for India since it came at a venue where they were beaten by Australia in the final of the 50-overs World Cup three years ago, according to Reuters.
Half of 42 candidates in Kavrepalanchok fail to secure even 100 votes
Of the 42 candidates, who contested in the March 5 election to the House of Representatives from two constituencies of Kavrepalanchok district, half of them failed to secure even 100 votes.
Among the contestants in these two constituencies, 11 were independent candidates.
In constituency- 2, seven candidates received less than 100 votes. Also, four of the candidates in this constituency gained less than 1,000 votes.
Candidates unable to cross 1,000 votes were Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal's Man Bahadur Tamang (71 votes), Nepal Workers and Peasant Party's Raju Tamang (52 votes), Pragatishil Lokatantrik Party's Gyanendra Kumar Shrestha (56 votes), Samabeshi Samajwadi's Binod Lama (80 votes), National Republican Nepal's Bharat Tamang (35 votes) and independent candidate Jivan Lama (94 votes), according to the Office of the Chief Election Officer.
Independent candidate Yubaraj Chaulagain recorded the lowest number of votes in this constituency- only 7 votes.
Likewise, candidates receiving less than 1,000 votes in this constituency were Rastriya Prajatantra Party's Nawaraj Satyal (699 votes), Shram Sanskriti Party's Dhiraj Lama (287 votes), Mangol National Organization's Kamal Bahadur Lama (156 votes), Kanchha Tamang of Nepal Communist Party (Maoist) (149), Sanyukta Nagarik Party's Ratna Lama (114 votes) and independent candidate Rajesh Kumar Shrestha (169 votes).
In constituency- 2, more than a dozen of candidates were limited to less than 50 votes, reported the Office of the Election Officer.
They were Miteri Party Nepal's Hari Bahadur Thapa (10 votes), National Republican Nepal's Sukaman Tamang (15 votes), Mangol National Organization's Umesh Lama (28 votes), Rajan Thapa (28 votes) of Nepal Communist Party (United), Janata Samajwadi party's Rakam Lama (32 votes), Rastriya Janamorcha's Subarna Bikram Thapa (39 votes).
Independent candidate Asha Tamang got 59 votes. Unlike Tamang, other independent candidates from this constituency did not receive more than 50 votes.
RSP leads vote counts under PR system in Surkhet-2
The Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) has led the vote counts in Surkhet- 2 under the proportional representation (PR) system.
According to the Karnali Province Office of the Election Commission, RSP became the first in the constituency by getting 33,699 votes under the PR system.
Information Officer of the Office, Nandaram Chaulagain, shared that Nepali Congress secured 14,320 votes, CPN-UML got 12,062 votes and Nepali Communist Party obtained 4,289 votes from Surkhet-2.
Likewise, Shram Sanskriti Party received 2,271 votes and Rastriya Prajatantra Party garnered 2,125 votes.
Of the total 128,467 voters, 73,113 voters cast their votes in the election to the House of Representatives (HoR) held on March 5.
