Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has said he would act against the perpetrators of the Pulwama terror attack if India shared “actionable intelligence”.

He, however, warned against any “revenge” retaliatory action.

In a video message, PM Khan said it is in Pakistan’s interest that nobody from the Pakistani soil spreads violence. “Let me clearly tell the Indian side that Pakistan will take necessary action if evidence is found against anyone involved in the attack from Pakistan,” he said.

In his address, PM Khan said he should have responded immediately as Pakistan was blamed for it. “Since Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia was visiting, and an investment conference was under way, for which Pakistan prepared a lot, I decided not to respond then.”

Now that the Crown Prince has left, he said he decided to respond.

He said India blamed Pakistan for the attack without any evidence adding that the allegations were made without a thought as to how Pakistan would gain from it.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has conferred Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman with Pakistan’s highest civilian honor. The honor has been conferred a day after signing $20 bn in investment deals between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

Prince Mohammed on Monday met President Arif Alvi in Islamabad, where he was awarded the Nishan-e-Pakistan (Order of Pakistan) at an official ceremony, according to agencies.

Pakistan was the first stop in the crown prince Salman’s three-nation tour. He will also visit India and China next. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan had received him at an airbase in Pakistan on Sunday. (Agencies)

ISLAMABAD: Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman has said Saudi Arabia has signed investment agreements worth $20 billion during his visit to Pakistan, agency reports said.

He said the $20 billion figure represents the start of an economic tie-up aimed at bringing the historic Muslim allies closer.

Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia has kicked off his tour of South Asia and China, according to agencies.

However, his visit is at risk of being overshadowed by Pakistan’s growing tensions with India. Last week a suicide bomber killed 44 Indian paramilitary police in the disputed Kashmir region. Indian has accused Pakistan of having a hand in the bombing, which Pakistan denies. (Agencies)

DUBAI: Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has said Iran is ready to ‘work with all its neighbors’ to secure peace in the Middle East, reports said.

His views come at a time when Iran and Saudi Arabia have been fighting proxy wars for years.

Observers has taken this move as an ‘attempt to weaken ties’ between Saudi Arabia and the US.

In a speech telecast live on state TV, Rouhani said his country is ready to work with all regional states to ‘preserve security’ in the Middle East, agencies have said.

“Iran wants to establish brotherly ties with all countries of the region,” newspapers quoted him as saying. (Agencies)

DHAKA: A devastating blaze that raged through a slum in Bangladesh killed at least nine people, a fire official said.

The fire that broke out early morning in Chaktai of Chittagong injured dozens of slum dwellers, officials said. The slum dwellers were asleep when the fire broke out, agencies have said.

According to officials, at least 200 shanty homes were gutted. However, the fire was brought under control with the help of fore brigades.

The cause of the fire was not yet known, agencies quoted officials as saying. (Agencies)

NEW DELHI: India is holding the general election in May this year. Hundreds of millions of Indians prepare to cast their votes to decide who will govern the world’s largest democracy for the next five years.

Here are the key numbers to know:

875 million: The number of voters. Earlier in 2014, there were 830 million voters. Out of them, only 550 million cast their votes.

545: The number of seats in the Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament of India.

1 million: The number of polling stations

10 million: 10 million election officials will be deployed for the elections.

464: The total number of political parties that took part in the 2014 general election.

 8,251: The total number of candidates in 2014 general election.

282: BJP won 282 seats in the Lok Sabha in 2014. This is the largest majority win by a single party in 30 years in India. (Agencies)

WARSAW: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said the United States aims to “get as far down the road as we can” ahead of a summit with North Korea, reports said.

US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un are meeting in Vietnam on February 27 and 28 this month.

Pompeo said he was sending a team to Asia soon to hold further discussions around all issues. The two leaders had in last June met and discussed at a groundbreaking Singapore summit, according to Reuters.

Speaking at a press conference in Warsaw that Trump and Kim would be talking about “denuclearization pillar they agreed to” at their first summit, reports said.

He said that the US aims to get this “as far down the road as we can”. (Agencies)

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting South Korea on a two-day visit from February 21.

During his visit, PM Modi will hold talks with President Moon Jae-in on a host of issues aimed at strengthening strategic ties, agencies have said.

The prime minister’s visit is said to provide an important occasion for the two leaders to review bilateral relations, according to a statement issued by India’s Ministry of External Affairs. (Agencies)

MOSCOW: Russia has showed its readiness to facilitate the dialogue between Venezuela’s government and opposition. It has, however, warned the United States against intervening in the country’s internal affairs.

Russia, which has sided with President Nicolas Maduro in Velezuela crisis, on Tuesday said that the country would facilitate talks to end the ongoing crisis, according to agencies. Maduro retains control of state institutions, including the military. However, most western countries, including the United States, have recognized Guaido as Venezuela’s President.

Tass news agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying that Russia been maintaining contacts with the government of Venezuela and stand ready to provide service in order to facilitate the process of finding ways out.

BANGKOK: The Election Commission of Thailand has disqualified Princess Ubolratana for prime minister.

In a statement issued by the commission on Monday ended the candidacy of King Maha Vajiralongkorn’s sister releasing the final name list of the candidates for the prime minister without the name of 67 years old princess.

Princess had filed her candidacy for a populist party Thai Raksa Chart party. The king, however, opposed her candidacy terming it as ‘inappropriate’ and had added that it was against the spirit of the constitution for royalty to be involved in politics.