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The Nepal Institute for International Cooperation and Engagement (NIICE) is organizing a high-level seminar titled “Terrorism in South Asia: Challenges to Regional Peace and Security”. This timely and important discussion will bring together policymakers, security experts, diplomats, scholars, and journalists to deliberate on the evolving threat of terrorism in the region and its implications for regional peace, cooperation, and security.

The seminar will feature keynote addresses and panel discussions focusing on terrorism as a transnational threat, state-sponsored terrorism, regional security architecture, and Nepal’s strategic role in counter-terrorism cooperation. 

Russia and Ukraine struck each other with hundreds of drones on Sunday, throwing Russian air travel in disarray, shortly after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced deals with Western partners that would allow Kyiv to scale up drone production, Associated Press reported.

Photos circulating on social media showed crowds huddling at Russian airports including key international hubs in Moscow and St. Petersburg, as hundreds of flights were delayed or canceled due to Ukrainian drone strikes on Saturday and overnight, according to Russia’s Transport Ministry.

The flight disruptions hit Moscow’s Sheremetyevo and St. Petersburg’s main Pulkovo airports. Other airports in western and central Russia also faced disruptions.

Russian air defenses shot down 120 Ukrainian drones during the nighttime attacks, and 39 more before 2 p.m. Moscow time (1100 GMT) on Sunday, Russia’s Defense Ministry said. It did not clarify how many had hit targets, or how many had been launched in total, according to Associated Press.

Archaeologists have announced the discovery of an ancient city in Peru's northern Barranca province, BBC reported.

The 3,500-year-old city, named Penico, is believed to have served as a key trading hub connecting early Pacific coast communities with those living in the Andes mountains and Amazon basin.

Located some 200km north of Lima, the site lies about 600 metres (1,970 feet) above sea level and is thought to have been founded between 1,800 and 1,500 BC - around the same time that early civilisations were flourishing in the Middle East and Asia.

Researchers say the discovery sheds light on what became of the Americas' oldest civilisation, the Caral, according to BBC.

Minister for Agriculture and Livestock Development, Ramnath Adhikari urged the Nepal Rastra Bank to place necessary arrangements in a way to simplify agriculture loans. 

In a discussion with the central bank governor, Dr Biswonath Paudel on Sunday, Minister Adhikari underscored the need for easy procedure for farmers to access agriculture loan as the role of banks and financial institutions is crucial for poverty alleviation through agro enterprises. 

"I urge the central bank for effective monitoring whether or not the agriculture loan is being properly utilized", Minister Adhikari shared, stressing the need to end misuse of loan for other purposes than agriculture. 

The government-owned banks should also increase agriculture loans and comply with the central bank's arrangements regarding agriculture loans, the minister noted. 

Governor Dr Paudel expressed concern over the improper use of current investments in agriculture, stating that it is essential to work to yield results. 

He emphasized the need for investments to be effective, as farmers are unable to gain returns from the investments made in agriculture without innovation. 

Dr Paudel further shared he has also listened to grievances during his field visits that those playing with soil are denied grants but those putting things in papers are receiving them. 

China's finance ministry said on Sunday it was restricting government purchases of medical devices from the European Union that exceed 45 million yuan ($6.3 million) in value, in retaliation to Brussels' own curbs last month, Reuters reported.

Tensions between Beijing and Brussels have been rising, with the European Union imposing tariffs on China-built electric vehicles and Beijing slapping duties on imported brandy from the bloc.

The European Union said last month it was barring Chinese companies from participating in EU public tenders for medical devices worth 60 billion euros ($70 billion) or more per year after concluding that EU firms were not given fair access in China.

The measure announced by the European Commission was the first under the EU's International Procurement Instrument, which entered into force in 2022 and is designed to ensure reciprocal market access, according to BBC.

Brazil will play host to a summit of the BRICS bloc of developing economies Sunday and Monday during which pressing topics like Israel’s attack on Iran, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and trade tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump are expected to be handled with caution, Associated Press reported.

Analysts and diplomats said the lack of cohesion in an enlarged BRICS, which doubled in size last year, may affect its ability to become another pole in world affairs. They also see the summit’s moderate agenda as an attempt by member countries to stay off Trump’s radar.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will have some of his priorities, such as debates on artificial intelligence and climate change, front and center for the talks with key leaders not in attendance. 

China’s President Xi Jinping won’t attend a BRICS summit for the first time since he became his country’s leader in 2012. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who will make an appearance via videoconference, continues to mostly avoid traveling abroad due to an international arrest warrant issued after Russia invaded Ukraine, according to Associated Press.

Iran’ s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday made his first public appearance since the 12-day war between Israel and Iran began, attending a mourning ceremony on the eve of Ashoura, Associated Press reported.

Khamenei’s absence during the war suggested the Iranian leader, who has final say on all state matters, had been in seclusion in a bunker — something not acknowledged by state media. State TV in Iran showed him waving and nodding to the chanting crowd, which rose to its feet as he entered and sat at a mosque next to his office and residence in the capital, Tehran.

There was no immediate report on any public statement made. Iranian officials such as the parliament speaker were present. Such events are always held under heavy security, according to Associated Press.

Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak has said that the Nepal Army (NA) has been assigned to construct a barrage on the Mahakali River before the monsoon reaches its peak.

The project aims to protect nearby settlements from potential flood-related disasters, he added.

During the inspection today of the under-construction barrage at Bhimdatta Municipality-12 in Kanchanpur, the Home Minister stated that the government entrusted the army with this task through a special decision, seeking a long-term solution to the recurring flood issues that have plagued the area for years.

He also pledged sufficient budget allocation for the project.

Last year, floods from the Mahakali River damaged a 260-meter section of the barrage, diverting water into residential areas and posing a serious threat to settlements in Bhimdatta and Dodhara Chandani municipalities.

The Minister instructed the team involved in the restoration work to complete the project on time with guarantee of standards.