Politics

Gaza sisters win Earth Prize for turning war rubble into bricks

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Palestinian sisters Tala and Farah Mousa turned the rubble of their bombed Gaza home into reusable bricks for reconstruction. The pair became the first Palestinian team to win the 2026 Earth Prize Middle East award.

Published On 21 May 2026

Politics

Who gets what in Vijays new Tamil Nadu cabinet? Full list of names

Tamil Nadu chief minister C Joseph Vijay-led TVK Cabinet was expanded on Thursday with the inclusion of 23 MLAs in the Council of Ministers, and the Governor has proved their pointment as ministers.

2 Congress MLAs, 21 from CM Vijay's TVK take oath in historic Tamil Nadu cabinet expansion. ()

The swearing-in ceremony of the ministers-designate took place on May 21, at 10 am at Lok Bhavan in Chennai.

Who gets what in new cabinet?

Vijay also revised several ministerial portfolios following the Cabinet expansion. Congress leaders S Rajesh Kumar and P Viswanathan have been assigned the Tourism and Higher Education portfolios, respectively. K A Sengottaiyan, who earlier handled Finance, has now been allocated the Revenue and Disaster Management department, while TVK leader N Marie Wilson has been named Minister for Finance, Planning and Development. TVK’s Mohamed Farvas has been given the Labour Welfare and Skill Development portfolio.

Also read | 2 Congress MLAs, 21 from CM Vijay’s TVK take oath in historic Tamil Nadu cabinet expansion | TN ministers list 2026

Full list of 23 MLAs

Congress MLAs who took oath

S Rajesh Kumar, a seasoned politician and a three time legislator for Killiyoor constituency in Kanyakumari district took oath on Thursday to join the Tamil Nadu cabinet. Rajesh Kumar, 51, is also the former District Congress Committee President of the Kanyakumari west.

In the 2026 assembly elections, he secured 66,434 votes defeating Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam candidate S Sabin by a margin of 1,311 votes.

P Viswanathan, another seasoned politician elected from the Melur constituency in Madurai, is the second Congress leader who joined the Vijay-led cabinet on Thursday. Viswanathan, 61, is a post graduate and is also a practicing advocate. He has held various responsibilities in the Congress and had also been elected as an MP from Kancheepuram constituency in 2009. He is also the All India Congress committee in charge for Telangana.

He secured 60,080 votes in the 2026 Tamil Nadu assembly elections defeating TVK candidate A Maduraiveeran by a margin of 2,724 votes.

Politics

UK agrees £3.7bn trade deal with six Gulf states

Politics

Iran says surrender to US an illusion, diplomacy far wiser than war

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Israeli attacks have killed 3,073 people across Lebanon since March, according to Lebanese Health Ministry.

Published On 21 May 2026

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian says that all paths to a diplomatic solution remain open from our side, but warns that forcing Iran to surrender through coercion is nothing but an illusion.
Global condemnation is growing after Israel’s far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, posted a video of himself taunting abducted Gaza aid flotilla activists as they were being mistreated by Israeli prison guards.

Politics

Health secy reviews Ebola preparedness with states, says no case in India so far

Union health secretary held a high-level review meeting with the states on Wednesday to assess preparedness and response measures regarding the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), according to people familiar with the matter.

During the meeting, states and UTs were advised to ensure readiness at all levels.

The health secretary, Punya Salila Srivastava, discussed the measures with health secretaries of all states and Union Territories.

The health ministry reiterated that no case of EVD has been reported in India so far. However, following the declaration of Ebola as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) by the World Health Organization (WHO), the government has proactively strengthened surveillance and preparedness measures across the country as an abundant precaution.

During the meeting, states and Union Territories (UTs) were advised to ensure readiness at all levels.

Detailed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) covering pre-arrival and post-arrival screening, quarantine protocols, case management, referral mechanisms, and laboratory testing have already been shared with all states and UTs.

The health secretary emphasized the importance of coordinated surveillance, timely reporting, and preparedness of designated health facilities. All ministries and departments concerned have also been sensitised and are undertaking propriate preventive and surveillance measures in coordination with the health ministry, an official, requesting anonymity, said.

The ministry reiterated that India has prior experience in handling such situations effectively, including during the 2014 Ebola outbreak in Africa, when similar precautionary measures were implemented successfully.

So far, 51 cases have been confirmed in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), although WHO said it was aware that the scale of the epidemic in DRC is much larger.

Uganda has also informed WHO of two confirmed cases in the cital, Kampala, including one death, among two individuals who travelled from DRC to Uganda.

The government of India remains fully vigilant and prepared to respond swiftly to any emerging situation. Citizens are advised that there is no cause for panic, while continuing to follow official advisories and updates issued by health authorities, senior health ministry official cited above said.