Islamabad / AFP Pakistan’s top foreign affairs official has said he plans to visit India next month for a regional conference, the first high-profile visit since tensions spiralled between the arch-rivals after a deadly attack on an Indian army base. Sartaj Aziz, adviser to Pakistan’s prime minister Nawaz Sharif and de facto foreign minister, said he will attend the Heart …

  Beirut / AFP Internet cafes closed down, travel bans and new checkpoints: residents say extremists are trying to tighten their grip on power in Raqa as US-backed forces near the IS group’s Syrian bastion. A Kurdish-Arab alliance called the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) began an operation to recapture the northern city on November 5. Since then, residents say IS …

  Kabul / AFP A suicide bomber on foot struck a government vehicle in Kabul on Wednesday, killing at least six people and wounding 10 others, officials said, in an attack claimed by the IS group. The latest bombing to hit the Afghan capital came during the morning rush hour, as militants intensify nationwide attacks on the Western-backed government. “A suicide …