Jammu: J&K Assembly proceedings disrupted on Wednesday after CM Omar Abdullahremarks bjp Lawmaker ‘beaten’ by federal interior minister Amit Shahtriggering protests and strikes by opposition members.Bharatiya Janata Party sources said Shah, during his three-day visit last week, rebuked party lawmakers seeking separate statehood for Jammu, stressing that Kashmir cannot be divided. They claim Abdullah mentioned that meeting but did not elaborate. Former minister and BJP MP Sham Lal Sharma denied any confrontation, saying the meeting was friendly and questioned the basis of the chief minister’s remarks.The conflict in Parliament dates back to Tuesday night’s budget debate, when Abdullah criticized the India-US trade deal as unfair to Johnson & Johnson, saying duty-free imports of US apples and dry fruits would hurt local farmers. The BJP legislators objected, triggering a heated exchange in which Abdullah referred to a meeting between the BJP legislators and Shah in language that prompted the speaker to adjourn the House.When proceedings resumed on Wednesday, BJP MPs went into the well demanding an apology. Opposition leader Sunil Sharma said the remarks were derogatory and unprecedented for the chief minister. Abdullah refused to apologize and told Speaker Abdullah Rahim to delete any non-parliamentary remarks if deemed necessary.Addressing the Assembly, Abdullah said his remarks were directed at the BJP MPs and did not involve personal or family insults, and accused Sharma and other opposition members of repeatedly mentioning his father and late grandfather. He warned that continued disruption could impact members’ issues and funding.The BJP members then walked out, with Sharma saying: “Such words have never been used in the history of rallies”. He insisted on an apology from the chief minister.
Representative of the Indian Democratic Party Pramila Jayapal Washington Governor and Attorney General Pam Bondi have sharp exchanges over convicted sex offenders Jeffrey Epstein A hearing highlighted anger on both sides over the way Congress and the administration handled the Epstein scandal. Jayapal began by praising the “incredible courage” of Epstein’s survivors who were present. She said the Epstein Dossier Transparency Act requires the Justice Department to redact survivors’ information, but said the department has shown a pattern of redacting the names of “powerful predators.” She said the names, identities and in some cases “nude photos” of survivors were released, some of whose identities had been protected “for decades.” Jayapal then asked the survivors in the room to stand and raise their hands if they were unable to meet with the Justice Department, which all did. Bundy was asked if she would apologize to the victims. Jayapal asked Bundy to apologize directly to Epstein’s victims in the hearing room, the BBC reported. Bundy refused, leading to an almost shouting match. “I’m not going to get into trouble with her drama,” Bundy said, later adding, “I’m not going to get into trouble with this woman.” Jayapal responded that the Justice Department was engaged in a “massive cover-up” of the release of millions of documents related to Epstein.
Bangladesh will hold parliamentary elections on Thursday, which could have a more profound impact on India than any recent such event in its neighbor. Ironically, with Sheikh HasinaWith the Awami League not in the fray, the best hope for a realistic reset in India’s relations with Dhaka rests on a majority in the front-runner Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Hasina’s most hated party and a party with historically tense relations with New Delhi. India was caught off guard by the July 2024 uprising that toppled long-time ally Hasina and stepped up its engagement with the BNP, realizing that the party then led by Khaleda Zia offered the best option for the country’s future legitimacy and stability. Despite Hasina’s constraints in India, re-engagement with BNP leaders, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s offer of assistance for Zia’s treatment before his death and a letter to Zia’s son and current leader Tariq Rehman through External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar strengthened the initiative. In the absence of the banned Awami League, the election is expected to be a fierce bipolar contest between the BNP alliance – which includes an odd mix of Islamists and Generation Z revolutionaries – and the other main bloc of 11 parties, led by India’s traditional enemy the Jamaat-e-Islami. The National Civic Party (NCP) has also joined Jamaat, a new political group of student leaders who led the massive protests that ousted Hasina. In addition to the election results, India will also pay close attention to the constitutional “July Charter” referendum held at the same time as the general election. The referendum, which emphasized a two-term limit for the prime minister, the introduction of an upper house to scrutinize legislation, and an identity as Bangladeshi rather than Bengali, seemed aimed not only at preventing a return of “authoritarianism” but also at minimizing India’s deep-rooted cultural and linguistic ties with the country. While India does not want to delay any engagement with a possible new government, any such exercise would be mindful of several key issues, given the importance India attaches to its relationship with Dhaka to its own security, and Bangladesh’s reputation as a “swing country” coveted by major powers like the United States and China. The first is of course safety. Not allowing Indian insurgent groups in the northeast to use Bangladeshi territory against India will be high on the agenda of the new Indian government, as the BNP-Jamaat government two decades ago was accused of providing safe haven to these groups. Strong security cooperation, including intelligence sharing, can allay concerns. Equally important is preventing Pakistan’s military from using Bangladesh to target Indian interests. The interim government has achieved a dramatic shift in relations with Pakistan, and efforts by ISI officials to visit Dhaka frequently to strengthen defense and security ties will exacerbate India’s security concerns. The BNP-Jamaat government has also been accused of turning towards Pakistan in the past. India will also closely monitor China’s entry into Bangladesh’s defense sector, including a recent agreement to manufacture drones near Indian territory. The security of the 13 million-strong Hindu community will also be high on the agenda of India’s new government, as is evident from the way Modi himself has raised the issue on several occasions. India looks forward to continuing cooperation within the existing framework to transport goods to the Northeast through Bangladeshi ports. However, for any outreach to be meaningful, India may have to address the Hasina factor first. The BNP will continue to demand the extradition of Hasina, who is sentenced to death for alleged crimes against humanity. Sources in Dhaka said this is a matter of people’s sentiments and India will be seen as a reliable ally only if it is seen as harboring Hasina. While a possible BNP government is expected to aggressively address issues related to border killings, water sharing and even reviving SAARC, India may also face challenges from a resurgent Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, which is expected to win between 50 and 100 seats, more than at any time in history. If this happens, the party could cause some serious anxiety in India as it is not only a powerful opposition but also a potential ally of the BNP.
The sudden and surprising airspace closure over El Paso, Texas, stems from the Pentagon’s plan to test a laser designed to shoot down drones used by Mexican drug cartels, according to three people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Passengers lined up at El Paso International Airport after the Federal Aviation Administration lifted a temporary closure of El Paso airspace, saying all flights would return to normal and there was no threat to commercial aviation in El Paso, Texas. (Reuters)
That has caused friction with the Federal Aviation Administration, which wants to ensure commercial aviation is safe, and the two agencies have sought coordination, two people familiar with the matter said.
The Pentagon wanted to continue testing despite a planned meeting later this month to discuss the issue, prompting the FAA to close the airspace. It’s unclear whether the laser was ultimately deployed.
Transport Secretary Sean Duffy earlier said airspace had been closed in response to a Mexican cartel drone incursion and the threat had been neutralized. Drone incursions along the southern border are not uncommon.
Federal officials abruptly shut down the skies over El Paso, Texas, for several hours early Wednesday over what the Trump administration said was drone activity by a Mexican cartel, temporarily grounding flights and angering local officials who said they had received no advance warning.
The Federal Aviation Administration initially announced a 10-day closure of the airspace, confusing travelers at the airport in El Paso, a border city with a population of nearly 700,000. The order was rescinded hours later. Mexican airspace was not closed.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy posted on He did not reveal how many drones were involved or what specific steps were taken to disable them.
Democratic Rep. Veronica Escobar, whose district includes El Paso, said her office, the city of El Paso and airport operations received no advance notice. She said she did not believe the shutdown was due to Mexican cartel drones flying in U.S. airspace, saying “that’s not what we in Congress have been told.”
Pentagon officials declined to comment on Escobar’s remarks, and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office referred questions to the FAA.
“I think the FAA owes the community and the state an explanation as to why this happened so suddenly and suddenly and was canceled so abruptly,” Escobar said at a news conference. “Given the duration and size of the metropolitan area surrounding El Paso, the lockdown is expected to cause significant disruption.”
“The information coming out of the federal government doesn’t add up,” Escobar said.
Cross-border drone activity is not new
U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, whose district covers an area stretching about 800 miles (1,300 kilometers) of Texas’ border with Mexico, said cartel drone sightings are common.
“For any of us who live and work along the border, daily drone incursions by criminal organizations are part of our daily lives. For us, this is Wednesday,” Gonzalez said.
Asked about U.S. officials’ explanation for the drones, Mexican President Claudia Scheinbaum said she had “no information about the use of drones at the border.” She noted that if U.S. authorities have more information, they should contact the Mexican government.
Drug cartels use drones almost daily to transport drugs across the border and spy on Border Patrol agents, Steven Willoughby, deputy director of the Department of Homeland Security’s counterdrone program, told lawmakers in July.
He testified that more than 27,000 drones were detected within 500 meters (1,600 feet) of the southern border in the last six months of 2024, mostly at night. In recent years, agents have seized thousands of pounds of methamphetamine, fentanyl and other drugs that cartels have attempted to use drones to fly across the border, the Department of Homeland Security said.
Mexican officials travel to Washington
El Paso, along with Ciudad Juárez, is a center for cross-border trade. Some residents of the Mexican city of about 1.5 million are accustomed to taking advantage of facilities such as airports on both sides of the border. Like other border cities, Juarez’s ease of access to the United States also makes Juarez attractive to Mexican drug cartels, which seek to protect their smuggling routes that keep drugs and immigrants flowing north and cash and guns south.
El Paso International Airport said in an Instagram post after announcing the closure that all flights in and out of the airport will be grounded until February 20, including commercial, cargo and general aviation flights. Local news broadcasts showed stranded travelers lining up with luggage at ticket and car rental counters at the El Paso airport hours after flights were grounded.
Late Wednesday morning, the airport posted a message that operations had resumed and encouraged travelers to contact airlines for the latest flight information.
Scheinbaum told a news conference that Mexico’s defense and navy secretaries would meet with Northern Command officials in Washington on Wednesday, with representatives from several other countries also in attendance. Scheinbaum said Mexican officials will be “listening” in the meeting and her government will investigate the “exact reasons” for the shutdown.
“This is a significant and unnecessary disruption”
El Paso Mayor Leonard Johnson said at a news conference that he had not heard about the closures until after the alert was issued, calling the failure to communicate the news to the city unacceptable.
“Decisions made without notification and coordination put lives at risk and create unnecessary danger and chaos,” Johnson said. “This is a significant and unnecessary disruption the likes of which has not happened since 9/11.”
The airport bills itself as the gateway to western Texas, southern New Mexico and northern Mexico. Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, American Airlines and Delta Air Lines, among others, all operate flights there.
Similar temporary 10-day flight restrictions remained in effect Wednesday morning around Santa Teresa, New Mexico, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) northwest of the El Paso airport, for special security reasons. FAA officials did not immediately explain why the restriction was in place.
“It’s critical that our communities stay informed and safe,” Sen. Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., said in a statement. “I demand answers from the FAA and the administration as to why the airspace was closed in the first place without notifying appropriate officials, exposing travelers to unnecessary confusion.”
Shutdowns and reopenings cause chaos for travelers
The airspace closure disrupted travel plans on both sides of the border.
María Aracelia pushed two rolling suitcases across a pedestrian bridge from Ciudad Juárez to El Paso on Wednesday morning. She was scheduled to catch a round-trip flight to Illinois in the afternoon.
After receiving a text message at 4 a.m. telling her of the 10-day closure, she scrambled to find other options, even how to get to another airport. Then came the announcement that the El Paso airport had reopened.
“It’s stressful and there’s not time to make so many changes, especially if you need to go back to work,” Aracelia said.
The FAA announced a 10-day closure of airspace around the Texas border city of El Paso, but lifted it within hours after confirming the threat had been eliminated. The sudden closure of airspace sparked panic and local officials said they knew nothing about it. The sudden lifting of the blockade also raised concerns about any aviation risks involving Mexican cartel drones. Mexico, on the other hand, denies knowledge of these rapid developments.
U.S. officials said on condition of anonymity that a Mexican cartel drone violated airspace and was intercepted by the Pentagon. The FAA and the Department of the Army must act quickly to eliminate the cartel drones. After it was assessed that no threat existed, restrictions were lifted and normal flights resumed. But Mexican President Claudia Scheinbaum said there was no information about drones at the border — and if the U.S. had information, it could ask the Mexican government. “Mexico’s airspace is not closed… We will find out why the airspace is closed,” she said.
High energy anti-drone laser
CNN reported that the Pentagon planned to use high-powered anti-drone lasers, leading to an unprecedented closure of the airspace over El Paso. But it’s unclear whether the Pentagon is using the new technology, and it hasn’t been tested. The new technology is being tested in remote areas of the country, and FAA and Pentagon officials plan to meet on February 20 to review the impact of the new laser system.
Didn’t even the White House notify?
According to reports, the decision to close the airspace was made by the FAA, which made the decision on its own without notifying the White House in advance. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy praised the FAA and Department of Defense for their “quick action to address cartel drone intrusions” in a social media post. “The threat has been neutralized and there is no danger to commercial travel in the area,” he wrote on X.
Gangtok: Water supply will be provided only once a day in the service area of the state capital in view of acute water shortage at various resource points due to lack of winter rainfall, a senior official said on Wednesday.He said engineers from the Public Health and Engineering Department (PHED) were conducting trial runs to regulate water supply in different areas of the state capital and once the mechanism was finalized, it would be operational.“Due to acute scarcity of natural resources, we will supply water in our service areas in Gangtok and only once during the day,” PHED Minister Sailendra Sharma told reporters here.He said that drinking water is the basis of life and domestic water must be given priority and therefore, commercial establishments must reduce their activities slightly during this critical period.With months of lack of rainfall depleting natural resources and leading to widespread water shortages, wastage must be reduced as continued drought conditions may lead to severe shortages in the coming months.He said given the current situation, all households should take steps to avoid wastage and consider installing float valves to ensure that if a tank overflows due to a higher pressure differential, there is a fair flow to a house with lower pressure.Sharma warned that any waste discovered could trigger strict action.“Together, through responsible use and collective efforts, we can protect this most important resource and ensure every family has equitable access,” PHED officials said.It is worth mentioning that Gangtok has been facing a water crisis for some time due to unprecedented lack of rainfall since November last year.Under the guidance of Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang, an ADB-financed project to draw water from alternative sources is in an advanced stage of completion.
On Wednesday morning, the FBI office PhoenixThe state of Arizona issued a statement saying it was conducting an “extensive search” in the Catalina Foothills near Nancy Guthrie’s home outside Tucson.
An investigator looks inside a culvert in the neighborhood where Annie Guthrie lives, where her mother, Nancy Guthrie, has been missing for more than a week outside Tucson, Arizona. (Associated Press)
The search has entered its 11th day since the host of NBC’s Today show went missing from her home on Sunday, January 31. The search was conducted in a note received by entertainment news outlet TMZ. Sender requirements 1 Bitcoin (worth about $66,000 as of Wednesday) will be transferred to the wallet in exchange for information about the alleged suspect.
“This morning, numerous FBI agents were conducting extensive searches on multiple roadways in the Catalina Foothills area related to the Nancy Guthrie investigation,” the FBI said.
New Delhi: Nearly one-third of the posts in the National Medical Commission (NMC), the country’s top medical education regulator, are vacant, the Center informed the Indian Parliament on February 10, 2026.Replying to a question from Shri Vivek K. Tankha, Health Minister Anupriya Patel said that the sanctioned number of NMC and its four autonomous committees is 54, out of which 19 posts are vacant. Currently, the commission and its board of directors have only 35 positions filled.Within the Commission, 28 of the 33 approved positions (including Chair, ex-officio and part-time members) are in place. The secretary position is filled. However, vacancies are more pronounced in autonomous committees responsible for regulating undergraduate and postgraduate medical education, medical assessment and accreditation, ethics and medical registration.Parliamentary figures show some committees are operating with only a limited number of members, with some chair and full-time member positions vacant. These committees play a vital role in approving medical schools, overseeing training standards and enforcing professional ethics.Addressing concerns over operations during the vacancy period, the commission informed the government that “appropriate institutional mechanisms” are in place to ensure that statutory duties under the National Medical Commission Act, 2019 continue to be discharged.The ministry added that filling vacancies is an ongoing process and action is taken in accordance with the provisions of the Act, including issuing advertisements to fill vacant posts from time to time.The disclosure comes at a time when India is expanding its medical education capabilities, increasing the number of colleges and seats, making adequate staffing at the regulatory level critical to maintaining standards and oversight.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told Euronews on February 9 that the crowd at the opening ceremony of the Milan Winter Olympics booed US Vice President Vance as a way to express European pride.During the opening ceremony, Vance and second lady Usha Vance appeared on the San Siro stadium’s big screen and briefly waved American flags, drawing enthusiastic jeers. The reaction comes amid growing tensions across the Atlantic over Washington’s rhetoric toward Europe.
Milan Olympics turn hostile as J.D. Vance and wife Usha boo on international stage
When asked about the incident, Karas linked it to recent US rhetoric against the EU.“Well, I think we’ve heard a lot of not-so-nice things about Europe from the United States,” she said. “Of course there is also a sense of pride among our public – a sense of European pride. And it shows.”Vance has repeatedly criticized the EU, most notably in a speech at last year’s Munich Security Conference in which he questioned whether the United States and Europe still share a common vision for democracy.He also criticized the EU’s efforts to combat disinformation, arguing that they restricted free speech.Karas made the remarks ahead of this year’s Munich Security Conference, scheduled for February 13-15, which Vance is not expected to attend. The meeting comes as relations between Washington and European capitals remain tense.Tensions have increased as US President Donald Trump threatened to seize Greenland, Denmark’s self-governing territory, and suggested he might use military force.
The disappearance of Nancy Guthrie took a new twist on Wednesday, the 11th day of the search for the 84-year-old, when news outlet TMZ received a note demanding 1 Bitcoin in exchange for information on the suspect.
Saw a photo of Nancy Guthrie’s missing poster on her phone. (Getty Images)
This is the third note received in the case. Earlier, deadlines for two ransom letters, one of which demanded $6 million in Bitcoin, were missed when the senders were unable to provide proof of survival. The Guthrie family made a video agreeing to pay the fee in exchange for proof of life.
The new note was not a ransom note like the previous two. Here, the sender demands that 1 Bitcoin be transferred to the wallet in exchange for information on the suspect who kidnapped Nancy Guthrie.
According to TMZ, the note read: “If they want the names of the individuals involved, then I would like to deposit 1 Bitcoin into the following wallet.” Time is more important than relevance. “
Police have not confirmed the authenticity of the note. So far, the Guthrie family has not responded to the note. However, the new ransom note has sparked interest in the dollar value of 1 Bitcoin.
How much does 1 Bitcoin cost?
As of Wednesday, February 11, 1 Bitcoin costs approximately $66,300. Notably, Bitcoin prices fell 3.64% (about $2,400) on Wednesday, continuing a steady decline of more than 45% since August 2025. Back in October 2025, the price of 1 Bitcoin was approximately $123,000.
