Foreign Minister Narayan Khadka and his Indian counterpart Jaishankar held a meeting in Colombo, Sri Lanka on Tuesday.

During the meeting, the duo discussed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba’s visit to India, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

PM Deuba is embarking on a three-day visit to India on Friday.

He will hold a meeting with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on Saturday.

At least 20 people have been killed and several others wounded in a mass shooting in central Mexico, authorities have said, in one of the deadliest attacks in recent years, Aljazeera reported.

The authorities did not immediately release a motive for the attack on Sunday evening that targeted a gathering in the town of Las Tinajas in Michoacan state. Local media reports said gunmen stormed a cockfighting pit and shot at the attendees.

It was a massacre of one group by another,” President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador told a news conference, expressing his regret at the deaths. He blamed criminal gangs for the shooting and said a team was dispatched to investigate the crime.

Officials said those killed included 17 men and three women, according to Aljazeera.

Michoacan and neighbouring Guanajuato state have seen years of violenceamid ongoing turf wars between rival gangs.

Last month, an attack during a wake in Michoacan, believed to be the result of a gang dispute, was reported to have killed up to 17 people.

That attack was believed to be motivated by “revenge” by one cell of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel against another, deputy security minister Ricardo Mejia said. However, the government said it was unable to confirm the death toll because no bodies were found. DNA samples of 11 possible victims were collected at the site, Aljazeera reported.

Michoacan is also the world’s biggest avocado-producing region. Threats against a plant inspector from the United States who worked there last month prompted Washington to suspend Mexican exports of the fruit for more than a week.

Four children died while another sustained injuries in a motorbike accident at Barkurwa of Sabaila Municipality-12 in Dhanusha district on Monday.

The deceased have been identified as Rahul Yadav (15), Laxmi Yadav (12), Bikas Yadav (12) and Sumit Yadav (14) of Sabaila Municipality-2, Dhanusha, said Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) and Spokesperson of the District Police Office, Dhanusha, Jitendra Kumar Basnet.

The reason behind the incident that occurred at around 8: 30 pm yesterday is yet to be ascertained, police said.

All of them were riding on the same bike (Ja 6 Pa 6739) when the incident occurred.

Critically injured in the incident, four died during the course of treatment at the Provincial Hospital, Janakpur

Similarly, Surendra Yadav (19), who was injured in the incident, is receiving treatment in the Provincial Hospital, police said.

Police said that they are looking into the case. RSS

Nepal received 4 million doses of Sinovac-CoronaVac Covid-19 vaccine from China.

According to the Department of Health Service, China provided 3.5 million doses of vaccine on Saturday and 500,000 on Monday under the grant assistance.

Badebabu Thapa, a senior official at the Logistic Management Section under the Department of Health Services, confirmed that Nepal received 4 million doses of Sinovac-CoronaVac Covid-19 vaccine.

It has been learnt that the vaccine can be administered to people above 18 years of age.

Earlier in May, the World Health Organization (WHO) had granted emergency use approval to the Sinovac-CoronaVac Covid-19 vaccine.

Gujarat Titans defeated Lucknow Super Giants by five wickets to start their IPL journey on a winning note, Hindustan Times reported.

Chasing 159 for the win, Rahul Tewatia (40 not out) and Abhinav Manohar (15*) held nerves and took Gujarat past the finish line with two balls to spare.

Earlier, pacer Dushmantha Chameera removed Shubman Gill and Vijay Shankar early in the powerplay to leave Gujarat Titans reeling at 44 for two after first six overs at the Wankhede Stadium. Skipper Hardik Pandya joined Matthew Wade after his team lost two early wickets in the chase, according to Hindustan Times.

Hardik and Wade added a 50 partnership but perished in quick succession. For Lucknow, Deepak Hooda and Ayush Badoni put up a rescue act to add a 50-run stand.

The pair bailed Lucknow Super Giants from a precarious situation as Lucknow reached 158 for six in 20 overs. Shami (3/25) produced one of the most breath-taking spells in the IPL before Hooda and Badoni resurrected the Lucknow innings, Hindustan Times reported.

Sri Lanka has sought an additional credit line of $1bn from India to import essentials amid its worst economic crisis in decades, Reuters has reported, citing two sources, as the Indian foreign minister began talks with the government of its neighbour, Aljazeera reported.

The island nation is struggling to pay for essential imports of food and fuel after a 70 percent drop in foreign exchange reserves since January 2020 led to a currency devaluation and efforts to seek help from global lenders.

New Delhi has indicated it would meet the request for the new line, to be used for importing essential items such as rice, wheat flour, pulses, sugar and medicine, said one of the sources briefed on the matter.

Sri Lanka has requested an additional $1 billion credit line from India for imports of essentials,” the second source said. “This will be on top of the $1-billion credit line already pledged by India.”

Both sources declined to be identified as the discussions were confidential.

The finance and foreign ministries of Sri Lanka, as well as India’s foreign ministry, did not immediately respond to requests for comment, according to Aljazeera.

Sri Lankan finance minister Basil Rajapaksa signed the earlier credit line of $1bn this month in the Indian capital of New Delhi to help pay for critical imports.

Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar met Rajapaksa on Monday after arriving in the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo late the previous day.

“Discussed the economic situation and India’s supportive response,” Jaishankar said on Twitter, with a photograph of the two officials together.

In addition to the credit lines, India extended a $400m currency swap and a $500m credit line for fuel purchases to Sri Lanka earlier this year.

Sri Lanka’s imports stalled, causing shortages of many essential items, after foreign currency reserves fell to $2.31bn by February.

The nation, just off India’s southern tip, has to repay debt of about $4bn in the rest of this year, including a $1bn international sovereign bond that matures in July, according to Aljazeera.

Rajapaksa is set to fly to Washington, DC next month to start talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a rescue plan.

“India is also very supportive of Sri Lanka’s decision to seek an IMF programme and has given their fullest support,” one of the sources added, according to Aljazeera.

Will Smith has apologised to Chris Rock after he slapped him at the Oscars, saying his behaviour was "unacceptable and inexcusable", BBC reported.

"I would like to publicly apologise to you, Chris," he said in a statement. "I was out of line and I was wrong."

It comes after the Oscars film academy condemned Smith over the incident and announced a formal review.

The star slapped Rock in the face on stage after the comic made a joke about the actor's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.

Rock had taken aim at Pinkett Smith's shaved head, a result of the hair-loss condition alopecia, according to BBC.

Moments later Smith picked up the first Oscar of his career for playing the father of tennis legends Venus and Serena Williams in King Richard.

"Violence in all of its forms is poisonous and destructive," Smith said in the statement, which was posted to Instagram.

"My behaviour at last night's Academy Awards was unacceptable and inexcusable. Jokes at my expense are a part of the job, but a joke about Jada's medical condition was too much for me to bear and I reacted emotionally."

Smith apologised directly to Rock, stating he was "out of line". He also apologised to the Academy and the Williams family.

"I deeply regret that my behaviour has stained what has been an otherwise gorgeous journey for all of us," he wrote, BBC reported.

Prior to Smith's apology, the organisation behind the Oscars said in a statement that it "condemns the actions" of Smith.

"We have officially started a formal review around the incident and will explore further action and consequences in accordance with our Bylaws, Standards of Conduct and California law," it said, according to BBC.

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