Author: Verified News Online

TOI correspondent from Washington: US Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday doubled down on the Trump administration’s restrictive immigration posture, signaling a deepened skepticism toward the H-1B visa program while framing national “loyalty” as the ultimate litmus test for immigrants.Speaking at TurningPointUSA townhall in Georgia, Vance deflected an Indian-origin student’s question regarding the decades-long green card backlog, instead pivoting to systemic fraud in the program and cultural expectations of assimilation, rather than offering a policy fix for the estimated million-plus Indians currently stuck in the permanent residency queue. Watch 'Great Contributors': How JD Vance Balances Praise For Indian Roots With Criticism Of H1B Visa Fraud The US Veep, who has long characterized the H-1B program as a tool for “big tech” to suppress American wages — despite being bankrolled by big tech at the start of his political career — told the young audience that the system is c..

UK Home Office (File photo) An undercover media investigation has claimed that migrants from Pakistan and Bangladesh — both countries where homosexual relationships are outlawed — are being charged thousands of pounds by immigration advisors to pose as gay in order to remain in the UK.The BBC reported that its journalists uncovered how migrants nearing the end of their visas are being provided with fabricated cover stories and are being coached on creating false evidence. They can then apply for asylum on the grounds that they are gay and fear for their lives if returned to Pakistan or Bangladesh.“The UK's asylum process offers protection to people who can't return to their home countries because they would be in danger, for example, in countries like Pakistan and Bangladesh where gay relationships are illegal,” the BBC report stated, according to PTI.“These are often people whose student, work, or tourist visas have expired, rather than those who have just arrived in the cou..

AdvertisementBritainWorldEuropeUK PM Starmer says ‘not going to yield’ to Trump’s Mideast war threatsKeir Starmer insists the UK will not be dragged into the Iran war despite Trump’s threats to scrap a bilateral trade deal
2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenAgence France-PressePublished: 10:35pm, 15 Apr 2026British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Wednesday said he would not “yield” to pressure to join the Iran war after US President Donald Trump threatened to scrap a UK trade deal.
“We’re not going to get dragged into this war. It is not our war,” Starmer told parliament.
“I’m not going to change my mind. I’m not going to yield. It is not in our national interest to join this war,” the Labour leader added.
AdvertisementIn a phone interview with Sky News, Trump threatened to alter an agreement struck with Britain that limits the impact of his US tariffs blitz.
Trump, who has repeatedly slammed Starmer’s policies, said strains in the relationship with the Nato ally would “not at all” negatively affect..

AdvertisementUS, Israel war on IranChinaDiplomacyTrump says the Iran war is ‘close to over’. Is he just out of options?Several clocks are ticking for the American president as he looks for a way out of the deadlock, observers suggest
3-MIN READ3-MIN4 ListenFan ChenPublished: 10:00pm, 15 Apr 2026Donald Trump’s claim that the US war with Iran is nearing an end reflects a desire to break the conflict’s deadlock to ease political pressure at home, according to analysts.Halfway into a two-week ceasefire and with a stand-off in the Strait of Hormuz, the US president was running out of time, they said, adding that a deal was still possible.In an interview with Fox News on Tuesday, Trump said the United States was “not done” but the six-week-old war was nearing the finish line.
Advertisement“I think it’s close to over, yeah. I view it as very close to being over,” he said.
That is despite the failure of peace talks in Pakistan on the weekend and the start of a US naval blockade in the strait.A..

Indian man accused of stealing $3,500 from Burger King in Florida where he used to work as a manager.

Kris Kumar, an Indian man, who used to work at a Burger King outlet in Florida was called 'Burger King bandit' after the law enforcement found that he was behind the sudden disappearance of dollars from the restaurant safe. According to reports, Kumar used to be the manager of the outlet but he was fired as he missed several shifts. Kumar had the key and the security code of the safe and after $3,500 was stolen from the outlet, he was one of the suspects as he lost his job around the same time. The new manager of the outlet told the cops that someone had entered the business office and opened the safe using a code. Kumar was the only other person who would have known the combination. Investigators found out that Kumar had gone to a Home Depot before he was terminated to make a copy of the key for the restaurant. While he returned his official building key and his uniform af..

AdvertisementHong Kong societyHong KongSocietyHong Kong landlords face HK$17,000 inspection bill over ignored water seepageThe plan shifts responsibility of shouldering inspection costs from government to flat owners who fail to address water seepage problems
2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenTheodora YuPublished: 10:40pm, 14 Apr 2026Updated: 10:45pm, 14 Apr 2026Hong Kong landlords who fail to fix water seepage affecting flats below face a minimum inspection bill of HK$17,000 (US$2,170) if they take no action within 28 days of notification under a pilot scheme designed to fast-track such cases.
The plan, launched by a joint office under the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) and Buildings Department, shifts the responsibility of shouldering inspection costs from the government to flat owners who fail to address water seepage problems.
Latest figures show 99 per cent of the confirmed water seepage cases last year were traced back to the flat directly above, resulting to about 5,000 nu..