Istanbul / AFP Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday asked forgiveness over his past alliance with US-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen whom Ankara blames for last month’s attempted coup. In a rare show of public humility, Erdogan said he had failed to see the “true face” of Gulen, who cooperated closely with the Turkish strongman while he was mayor …

  Riyadh / AFP Saudi Arabia promised “urgent” action to resolve the plight of some 2,500 Indian workers stranded without money in the kingdom after a plunge in oil prices sparked construction layoffs. Labour Minister Mufarrej al-Haqbani issued orders to allow the Indian workers “to immediately transfer their kafala (sponsorship) and renew their residencies,” the Okaz daily reported on Wednesday. Haqbani’s …

  Kathmandu/ AFP Nepal’s parliament elected former guerrilla and Maoist leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal as prime minister on Wednesday after his predecessor resigned following deadly unrest over a divisive new constitution. Dahal, better known by his nom de guerre Prachanda or “the fierce one”, led a decade-long Maoist insurgency before transforming the rebel movement into a political party after a 2006 …