Pakistan school attack, plane disappearances – tragedies mark 2014

New Delh: The year 2014 drew to a close with twin tragedies. A suicide attack at an Army-run school in Pakistan by Taliban militants claimed the lives of over 140 people, mostly children.

An AirAsia flight carrying 162 people was recovered in the Java Sea off Indonesia. Earlier in the year, a Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 carrying 239 people from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing disappeared with no trace.

Malala Yousafzai became the youngest Nobel Prize winner when she was recognised for her efforts in securing education to all children.

Meanwhile, extremist group Boko Haram, who are against educating girls, abducted female students from a school in Nigeria.

In Hong Kong, protesters took to the streets demanding that Beijing allow democratic elections for the 2017 election for Hong Kong Chief Executive.

Ebola virus struck in Africa killing thousands and spread to other countries including isolated cases in India.

Afghanistan held a presidential election, Italy took over the EU presidency and Russia annexed Crimea. Two Indians were caught up in a hostage situation in Australia. Following is the diary of international events.

Jan 1: Kathmandu: At least 17 people, including six Indians, have been killed and 12 others injured in two separate road accidents in western Nepal, police says.

Jan 2: Islamabad: Former Pakistani dictator Pervez Musharraf suffers a "severe heart attack" on his way to a special court to face high treason charges and was admitted to an army hospital, in another dramatic turn in the high-profile case.

Jan 2: Melbourne: An Australian teenager, charged with brutally attacking and robbing a 20-year-old Indian student, was part of a gang that targeted people of Indian appearance, a court heard.

Jan 3: Dhaka: Bangladesh's main opposition party BNP called for a fresh 48-hour shutdown to derail Sunday's polls with its chief Khaleda Zia asking people to boycott the "farce" election, even as two people were killed in clashes and five makeshift voting centres torched.

Jan 4: Jerusalem: US Secretary of State John Kerry holds fresh talks with Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas as he struggles to keep the faltering Israel-Palestinian peace process on track after the two sides indulged in a fresh verbal spat, casting a shadow on a possible deal.

Jan 4: Islamabad: Any breakthrough on outstanding issues between India and Pakistan, including Kashmir and Siachen, can be expected only after the Indian elections, Prime Minister's Advisor on National Security and Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz says.

Jan 5: Dhaka: The ruling Awami League sweeps the general elections in Bangladesh which were marred by deadly clashes, a low turnout and a boycott by opposition parties, even as 21 people are killed in poll-related violence.

Jan 7 Washington: Janet Yellen is confirmed as the chairwoman of the US Federal Reserve by the Senate, making her the first woman to lead the the world's most powerful central bank in its 100-year history.

Jan 11: Washington: Expelled Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade, in effect, has been barred entry into the US, with the State Department saying her name would be placed in visa and immigration lookout systems to prevent routine issuance of visa.

Jan 11: Islamabad: Pakistan says fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim is not present in the country, a day after India asserted that its most wanted terrorist was living in the neighbouring country.

Jan 12: Dhaka: Sheikh Hasina was sworn in for her second straight term as Bangladesh's prime minister, a week after her Awami League party secured a landslide win in the violence-hit general election boycotted by the opposition.

Jan 13: Islamabad: Hours after Indian Army chief Gen Bikram Singh warned against any ceasefire violations on the LoC, the Pakistani military says such "provocative" statements were counterproductive.

Jan 13: Jerusalem: Former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, hailed as a military hero at home and loathed in the Arab world as a war criminal, was laid to rest at his family ranch in southern Israel after a state funeral.

Jan 14: Washington: Notwithstanding the "challenging" past few weeks for bilateral ties, India and the US have pledged to work on a broad range of issues including defence, counter-terrorism and civil nuclear cooperation.

Jan 15: London: Margaret Thatcher in a personal note to Indira Gandhi extended Britain's full support in the aftermath of the 1984 Operation Bluestar to flush out Sikh militants holed up in the Golden Temple, a media report says.

Jan 15: United Nations: An Indian peacekeeping contingent in South Sudan came under fire as fighting erupted between local groups near a UN base in Malakal, requiring the soldiers to fire multiple rounds in order to protect civilians

Jan 16: Islamabad: Pakistani journalist Mehr Tarar, at the centre of a raging controversy involving Union Minister Shashi Tharoor, says she was "absolutely shocked" to learn of his wife Sunanda Pushkar's death.

Jan 19: London: Declassification of confidential documents has thrown light on interesting nuggets in Indo-British relations 30 years ago besides triggering controversy over purported British help in operation Bluestar to flush out militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar in 1984.

Jan 19: Lahore: Two death row prisoners have been indicted in Pakistan for the murder of Indian national Sarabjit Singh at a jail here.

Jan 19: New York: A US judge here has granted Manhattan's top prosecutor Preet Bharara time till January 31 to file his opposition to the motion submitted by Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade seeking dismissal of the indictment against her on visa fraud charges.

Jan 20: Bangkok: At least 28 people were injured when two explosions hit an anti-government rally site here, the latest in a series of violence against defiant protesters as they intensified their campaign to oust beleaguered premier Yingluck Shinawatra.

Jan 21: Washington: The US and its allies relaxed a range of economic sanctions against Iran, allowing countries like India not to reduce oil imports from the Islamic republic, after Tehran began implementing a deal to curb its contentious nuclear programme.

Jan 21: United Nations: The UN has invited Iran to attend this week's crucial peace talks on Syria after Tehran pledged to play a "positive and constructive role" but the surprise move provoked a pull-out threat from the Syrian opposition and caution from the US.

Jan 21: Bangkok: The Thailand government imposed a 60-day state of emergency in the capital and surrounding areas to quell violent protests aimed at forcing embattled premier Yingluck Shinawatra from office.

Jan 22: Dhaka: A war of words erupted in Bangladesh after opposition chief Khaleda Zia questioned the nationality of troops deployed in a violence-hit district that borders India, with the ruling Awami League issuing a 24-hour ultimatum to her to apologise for the "seditious" comments.

Jan 25: Islamabad: Pakistan is committed to friendly and cooperative ties with India to ensure the progress and prosperity of the region, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif says in a message on the eve of India's Republic Day.

Jan 26: Bangkok/New Delhi: Tata Motors Managing Director Karl Slym dies after falling from the 22nd floor of a five-star hotel in Bangkok, where he had gone to attend a board meeting of the company's Thailand arm.

Jan 26: Kathmandu: Sushil Koirala is set to become Nepal's next Prime Minister after being elected today as the Parliamentary Party leader of the Nepali Congress, which emerged as the single largest party in the Constituent Assembly elections.

Jan 26: Cairo: Ousted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi strikes a defiant tone during his trial over charges related to 2011 prison breaks, insisting he was still the "legitimate" head of the country and a political prisoner.

Jan 28: Kiev: Prime Minister Mykola Azarov and his entire goverment resigns in a bid to defuse Ukraine's deadly crisis, giving in to months of pressure as parliament scraps anti- protest laws that had infuriated the opposition.

Jan 29 Beijing: All 20 Indian crew members of an oil tanker - which exploded and caught fire at a shipyard in east China while undergoing repairs- are safe, officials say a day after the incident killed seven Chinese workers.

Jan 29: London: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah says no Prime Minister can revoke Article 370 of the Constitution granting special status to the state "without calling into question" its accession to India.

Jan 30: Lahore: Indian national Fahim Ansari, an alleged member of Lashkar-e-Taiba, travelled to Pakistan before the 2008 Mumbai attacks using a fake identity, an anti-terrorism court hearing the case was told by an official.

Jan 30: Dhaka: Top ULFA leader Paresh Barua, one of India's most wanted militants, and two former ministers and as many army generals were among 14 people sentenced to death by a Bangladeshi court for the country's biggest weapons haul, nearly 10 years after the seizure.

Feb 1: New York: The US State Department contends that Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade does not enjoy immunity from prosecution on charges of visa fraud and making false statements but her lawyer rejects the assertion, saying the issue will be decided by the court.

Feb 2: Bangkok: Thailand votes under heavy security in violence-plagued snap election marred by an opposition boycott and cancellation of voting in 45 constituencies, casting doubts on the credibility of the polls held to end months of uncertainty in the polarised nation.

Feb 2: Aden: A small cargo ship transporting tyres runs aground off the southeastern coast of Yemen with 12 Indian sailors aboard

Feb 4: New York: India-born Satya Nadella is named by Microsoft as the new CEO of the 78 billion USD tech giant and the company veteran vows to "ruthlessly" remove any obstacles to innovation in the world's largest software firm.

Feb 4: London: Former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi writes a personal letter to her British counterpart Margaret Thatcher soon after the 1984 Operation Bluestar in an attempt to justify her decision to send army to flush out militants from the Golden Temple, the holiest Sikh shrine.

Feb 4: Karachi: In the second incident of its kind in less than two months, an Indian fisherman is found dead in mysterious circumstances in a jail in this Pakistani port city.

Feb 4: Khartoum: With bilateral trade set to touch USD 1 billion mark this year, India and Sudan seeks to firm up political and economic ties.

Feb 7: Beijing: Ahead of the 17th round of Sino-India talks on the contentious boundary issue, China says it is ready to achieve an early and mutually acceptable deal to make border areas a "bridge and bond" between them.

Feb 7: New York: Indian-origin hedge fund portfolio manager Mathew Martoma has been convicted for his role in the USD 275 million insider trading scheme, the most lucrative in US history, which involves sharing of secret information on testing of a potential breakthrough Alzheimer's drug.

Feb 8: Rome: Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino has said India's move to try two Italian marines accused of killing two Indian fisherman under an anti-piracy act has left her "dumbfounded and outraged", saying Rome will challenge it in the "strongest terms."

Feb 9: Kathmandu: Veteran Nepali Congress leader Sushil Koirala, who spent 16 years in political exile in India after the royal takeover of 1960 in Nepal and a novice to the administration, is elected as the country's Prime Minister, ending months of political crisis.

Feb 10: Algiers: A military aircraft carrying 78 people crashes in Algeria's mountainous northeast with just one survivor, in one of the country's deadliest air disasters.

Feb 10: Washington/Mumbai: The US drags India to WTO on the issue of the country mandating use of only local equipment for solar projects, a charge rejected by New Delhi saying several American states practise protectionist policy for renewable energy projects.

Feb 10: Algiers: A military aircraft carrying 78 people crashes in Algeria's mountainous northeast with just one survivor, in one of the country's deadliest air disasters.

Feb 10: Washington/Mumbai: The US drags India to WTO on the issue of the country mandating use of only local equipment for solar projects, a charge rejected by New Delhi saying several American states practise protectionist policy for renewable energy projects.

Feb 11: Beijing: In a huge setback to China's ambitious space programme, its first lunar rover Yutu or the Jade Rabbit is declared dead after attempts to revive it fails.

Feb 11: Washington: American Indologist Wendy Doniger whose book "The Hindus: An Alternative History" was withdrawn following objections that it hurt sentiments of Hindus is "angry and disappointed" over the development and says the "true villain" is the Indian law.

Feb 15: On board special aircraft: India would provide helicopters to war-torn Afghanistan "very soon", External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said months after President Hamid Karzai sought lethal weapons from the country.

Feb 15: Bangkok: Defiant Thai opposition activists vow to fight "to the end" as police braced to reclaim key state buildings and government headquarters besieged by protesters for months as part of their campaign to oust premier Yingluck Shinawatra.

Feb 16: Rome: Italy has regretted that the case of two of its marines accused of killing two Indian fishermen was not resolved within three days of the incident, before the issue became enmeshed in India's "deadly judicial and political-electoral gears".

Feb 17: Kathmandu: All 18 people, including an infant and a foreigner, aboard a Nepal Airlines plane that crashes into the side of a snow-clad mountain in the country's west have been killed.

Feb 18: Rome/New Delhi: A furious Italy ups the ante in its standoff with India over the trial of its two marines by recalling its Ambassador in New Delhi and accusing Indian authorities of "unreliable" behaviour amid reports that Italian government may freeze bilateral accords.

Feb 18: Beijing: All-weather allies China and Pakistan sign agreements for building an airport at the strategic Gwadar port and extend Karakoram highway as part of efforts to realise their "game changing" Economic Corridor project through PoK brushing aside Indian concerns.

Feb 20: Male: Pakistan assures India that it is moving expeditiously with the trial of seven persons accused of involvement in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and an outcome is expected in a "couple of months".

Feb 20: Beijing: Defending a proposed Economic Corridor through disputed Kashmir region, China says the multi-billion dollar project will have "no detriment" to the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan.

Feb 21: Washington/Beijing: US President Barack Obama offers "strong support" for Tibetans' human rights as he met region's spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, defying China which lodged a diplomatic protest stating that bilateral ties had been seriously damaged by it.

Feb 23: Sydney: Satisfied with the outcome of G20 meeting, Finance Minister P Chidambaram says India's concerns with regard to withdrawal of US stimulus and the need to expedite IMF quota reforms have been taken on board by the group of rich and developing nations.

Feb 24: Rome: Hours after India decides not to prosecute two of its marines accused of killing Indian fishermen under the strict anti-piracy SUA law, Italy says the decision was the "fruit of Italian firmness".

Feb 25: Kano (Nigeria): Suspected Boko Haram Islamists kill 43 people today when they attacked secondary school students as they slept in the latest school massacre to hit Nigeria's troubled northeast.

Feb 25: Colombo: The UN has called for an independent international probe into allegations of war crimes in Sri Lanka during the final battle with the LTTE, prompting an angry reaction from Colombo which rejects the demand and slammed it as "unwarranted interference".

Feb 27: Bangkok: Embattled Thai Premier Yingluck Shinawatra skips her appearance before an anti-graft body over charges related to a populist rice-pledging scheme, even as she shot down anti-government protest movement's conditional talk offer to end ongoing political deadlock.

Feb 27: Kano (Nigeria): Suspected Boko Haram gunmen kill at least 37 people in three separate attacks in northeast Nigeria, including at a theological college.

Feb 28: Islamabad: Pakistan says no decision has been made on launching a full-fledged military operation in the restive tribal areas, where air strikes have been carried out against the Taliban after the suspension of a peace process.

Feb 28: Boston: Two Indians are among seven persons charged in a US federal court here with wire fraud for their roles in a stock kickback scheme and face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Mar 1: Beijing: Twenty-eight people were killed and 113 others injured in a "violent terrorist attack" when a group of unidentified men armed with knives attacked a railway station in China's southwestern Kunming city.

Mar 1: Cairo: Egypt's new cabinet led by Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb is sworn, with army chief Field Marshal Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi retaining his position as the defence minister.

Mar 2: United Nations: Amid escalating tensions in Ukraine, UN chief Ban Ki-moon spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin and expressed grave concern over Russian forces seizing control of the Crimean peninsula and asked him to engage in direct dialogue with the authorities in Keiv.

Mar 3: Nay Pyi Taw: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made a strong pitch for a "collective vision" among South and East Asian countries to effectively deal with security challenges emanating from international terrorism, transnational crime and drug trafficking to bring about peace, stability and development in Asia as a whole.

Mar 3: Los Angeles: Steve McQueen's slavery drama "12 Years A Slave" scripted history by becoming the first film by a black director to win the best picture Oscar at the 86th Academy awards where Alfonso Cuaron's 3D space drama "Gravity" won seven trophies.

Mar 4: Nay Pyi Taw: Brushing aside opposition from DMK and other parties in Tamil Nadu, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa but did not give him any assurance on which way India will vote on a UNHRC resolution for an independent international probe into rights abuses during the war with LTTE.

Mar 5: Washington: US First Lady Michelle Obama has felicitated Indian acid attack victim Laxmi after she won the International Women of Courage Award for successfully leading the campaign against acid attacks on women in India.

Mar 6: Beijing: China has extended its rail network in Tibet up to Xigaze, close to the Indian border in Sikkim, a step that would provide its military a strategic capability to easily move troops and weapons in the remote Himalayan region.

Mar 7: Simferopol (Ukraine): Top Russian lawmakers welcomed the prospect of Crimea joining the country, despite stiffening sanctions on Moscow over the worst East-West crisis since the Cold War

Mar 8: Beijing/Kuala Lumpur: A Beijing-bound Malaysia Airlines flight with 239 people, including five Indians, on board was presumed to have crashed and the worst is feared as two large oil slicks have been spotted off Vietnam's sea coast where the plane went missing.

Mar 9: New York: A 13-year old Indian-origin boy has emerged as the winner of a spelling bee contest in the US in an epic verbal duel that lasted a total of 95 rounds, after judges ran out of words in a previous marathon round held last month.

Mar 10: Beijing: As the mystery over a missing Malaysia Airlines plane deepens, China presses 10 high-resolution satellites to scurry South China Sea to find leads that could help locate the flight with 239 people on board.

Mar 11: Kabul: Vice President Hamid Ansari attends the funeral of Afghanistan's First Vice President Marshal Mohammad Qasim Fahim, and says in his demise India has lost a "true partner".

Mar 12: Lahore: The hearing in the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks trial against seven Pakistani suspects is adjourned till next week after the judge did not turn up, citing "security concerns".

Mar 13: Kuala Lumpur/New Delhi: India deploys four warships to locate the jetliner missing for six days as Malaysia debunked as false leads Chinese satellite image.

Mar 13: London: External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid questions the role of the Supreme Court and the Election Commission in some matters, making mocking comments about them at a seminar at the School of Oriental and African Studies.

Mar 13: New York: Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade, whose arrest and strip search soured Indo-US relations, won dismissal of a federal indictment against her in the visa fraud case with a US judge ruling she had full diplomatic immunity.

Mar 14: New York: In fresh trouble for Devyani Khobragade, US prosecutors re-indicts her on visa fraud charges and accused the Indian diplomat of "illegally" underpaying and "exploiting" her domestic maid.

Mar 15: United Nations: Russia today vetoed a UN Security Council resolution drafted by the US declaring the referendum in Crimea invalid, even as close ally China abstained, isolating Moscow further on the Ukraine crisis.

Mar 15: Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian investigators suspect that the communication system in the missing aircraft was deliberately disabled and its transponder switched off before the plane veered from its path and flew for more than seven hours.

Mar 16: Simferopol (Ukraine): Crimeans votes in favour of joining former political master Russia as tensions soared in the east of the splintered ex-Soviet nation amid the worst East-West crisis since the Cold War.

Mar 16: Karachi: A Hindu temple and a dharmashala have been set on fire by a frenzied mob in Pakistan's southern Sindh province over alleged desecration of a holy book, marring Holi celebrations and prompting authorities to impose a curfew in the area.

Mar 17: Washington: The US and the EU impose sanctions on a number of top Russian officials, including presidential aides, and lawmakers for their alleged actions in Crimea that violated Ukraine's sovereignty, worsening the most serious East-West crisis since the Cold War.

Mar 18: Moscow: With a sweep of his pen, President Vladimir Putin added Crimea to the map of Russia, describing the move as correcting past injustice and responding to what he called Western encroachment upon Russia's vital interests.

Mar 18: Bangkok: Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra lifts a nearly two-month-old emergency in Bangkok and surrounding areas and replaced it with a security law after political violence against her government eased.

Mar 19: Kuala Lumpur: Investigators examining a flight simulator seized from the home of the missing Malaysian plane's pilot have discovered that some data had been erased from it and experts are trying to retrieve it, Defence Minister says.

Mar 19: Dhaka: Former Bangladeshi premier Khaleda Zia and her fugitive son are charged with corruption by a court for allegedly collecting nearly USD 1 million in donations for charities named after her late husband.

Mar 20: Singapore: Fourteen Indians are jailed for clashing with a group of people in Singapore's Little India, a precinct of South Asian businesses where the country's worst riot in 40 years broke out last year.

Mar 21: Kabul: The four gunmen were swift as they entered the Kabul hotel, making their way to the restaurant where they pulled out small pistols and began shooting diners in the head, killing nine people, including two Canadians and an Afghan journalist, his wife and two children.

Mar 23: Kuala Lumpur: India deploys two long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft in the Indian Ocean to help trace the Malaysian plane that mysteriously went missing over two weeks ago, carrying 239 people on board.

Mar 25: The Hague: India warns that nuclear terrorism and clandestine proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, including attempts by "non-state actors", pose a serious threat to global peace and any breach in nuclear security could undermine public confidence in atomic energy.

Mar 26: Moscow continues its incursion into Ukraine. Islamabad/Peshawar: The banned Pakistani Taliban agrees to continue its ceasefire after holding first-ever direct talks with government negotiators at an secret location in the restive tribal region of North Waziristan.

Mar 27: United Nations: The UN General Assembly adopts a resolution reaffirming Ukraine's territorial integrity and calling as illegal the referendum that led to Russia's annexation of Crimea in a vote from which India abstained.

Mar 28: Colombo: An elated President Mahinda Rajapaksa orders the release of all 98 Indian fishermen in Sri Lankan custody for alleged poaching, a day after India abstained from voting on a US-backed UN resolution censuring Colombo on its human rights record.

Mar 29: Kabul: Afghan police killed all five militants who attacked the election commission headquarters in Kabul with rocket-propelled grenades and machine guns, ending a four-hour standoff, according to a top government official.

Mar 30: Cairo: Unfazed by political unrest in Egypt, India is set to launch the second edition of a mega cultural extravaganza, including a Bollywood musical, to showcase vibrant bilateral ties and make the relationship more dynamic.

Mar 30 Washington: US Ambassador to India Nancy J Powell's resignation is not related to any tension or any recent situation, the Obama Administration asserts refuting all such media reports in this regard.

Mar 30: Islamabad: Former Pakistani dictator Pervez Musharraf is indicted by a special court on five counts of high treason, becoming the first ever military ruler to face criminal prosecution that may potentially lead to the death penalty.

Apr 3: Houston: A US soldier goes on a shooting spree killing three colleagues and wounding 16 others at a major army base in Texas that was the scene of a deadly rampage in 2009.

Apr 3: Islamabad: Pakistan's former military dictator Pervez Musharraf, facing treason trial, narrowly escapes an assassination attempt when a powerful bomb went off near his farmhouse here minutes after his convoy had passed.

Apr 4: Kabul: An Afghan police commander opens fire on two Associated Press journalists inside a security forces base in eastern Afghanistan, killing prize-winning photographer Anja Niedringhaus and wounding veteran correspondent Kathy Gannon.

Apr 7: London: UK-based Indian-origin businessman Shrien Dewani is extradited to South Africa to stand trial for allegedly plotting the 2010 murder of his Indo-Swedish wife while on their honeymoon.

Apr 8: Johannesburg: Indian-origin businessman Shrien Dewani is charged by a South African court with plotting his wife's murder during their honeymoon and is remanded to a psychiatric hospital, shortly after being extradited from the UK.

Apr 8: New York: Sonia Gandhi declines to provide a copy of her passport to a US court as documentary evidence in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots case, citing refusal by Indian government on grounds of personal security and confidentiality.

Apr 9: Islamabad: A powerful bomb rips through a bustling fruit and vegetable market killing at least 23 people and injuring over 100 others, in one of the deadliest attacks in the Pakistani capital.

Apr 13: Kano: Suspected Boko Haram Islamists killed at least 60 people in Nigeria's troubled northeastern Borno state close to the border with Cameroon, a local official say.

Apr 15: Perth: The first mission of the robotic submarine deployed to locate the crashed Malaysian jet's wreckage has failed to detect any "objects of interest" after its search was cut short as the US Navy warned the hunt for the plane could take up to two months.

Apr 15: New York: India-born poet Vijay Seshadri wins the prestigious 2014 Pulitzer Prize in the poetry category for his collection of poems "3 Sections."

Apr 18: Kathmandu: A massive avalanche strickes Mount Everest killing at least 12 Nepalese Sherpa guides and injuring 10 others in the deadliest mountaineering accident on the world's highest peak.

Apr 18: Mexico City: Tributes pour for Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the Nobel-winning Colombian author whose "magical realism" told epic stories of love, family and dictatorship in Latin America.

Apr 19: Karachi: Senior Pakistani TV journalist Hamid Mir, who faced threats from multiple quarters here including the Taliban, was shot at in Karachi by four unidentified gunmen who waylaid his vehicle near a bridge on way to his office.

Apr 22: London: Around 75 professors and other academics of Indian origin working at some of Britain's prestigious institutions such as Cambridge and Oxford university and London School of Economics issued an open letter, sharply attacking Narendra Modi and saying, "The idea of Modi in power fills us with dread".

Apr 23: Lahore: A fistful of ashes of legendary Indian journalist and author Khushwant Singh have been brought to his birthplace in Pakistan's Punjab province to fulfil his desire to be "reunited with his roots".

Apr 24: Rome: Italy is mulls international arbitration over its two marines accused of killing two Indian fishermen in 2012 as bilateral efforts have failed, says Defence Minister Federica Mogherini.

Apr 25: Mazar-i-Sharif (Afghanistan): Flash floods in northern Afghanistan after two days of torrential rain have killed more than 80 people, officials with scores more missing as helicopters searched for stranded villagers.

Apr 27: Islamabad: "India is hopping mad. Please get out of the places you have occupied," was the American message to Pakistan in the wake of the Kargil War in 1999, the country's then envoy to the US, Riaz Khokhar says.

Apr 27: Vatican City: Pope Francis declares his two predecessors John XXIII and John Paul II saints before hundreds of thousands of people in St Peter's Square, an unprecedented ceremony made even more historic by the presence of retired Pope Benedict XVI.

Apr 28: Kiev: The mayor of Ukraine's second-largest city is shot in the back and hundreds of men attacked a peaceful pro-Ukraine rally with batons, bricks and stun grenades, wounding dozens as tensions soared in Ukraine's volatile east.

Apr 28: Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif praises the ISI for "ensuring protection and defence of the country" amid a raging controversy over the recent assassination attempt on senior TV anchor Hamid Mir.

Apr 28: Cairo: An Egyptian court sentences Muslim Brotherhood chief Mohamed Badie and his 682 supporters to death, a move that could raise tension in the country which has been gripped by turmoil since the ouster of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi last year.

Apr 29: New York: An American court dismisses a human rights violation lawsuit against Congress party filed by a Sikh group in the anti-Sikh riots case, saying the group has no legal standing to file such a suit and events that do not "touch and concern" the US will not be heard in a US court.

May 1: Beijing: An outraged Chinese President Xi Jinping ordered a "decisive" crackdown on Muslim Uygur militants in the restive Xinjiang province, after a knife and bomb attack killed three people and left 79 others injured.

May 1: Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia Airlines asked distraught relatives of the 227 passengers on board the ill-fated Flight MH370 to go back to the "comfort of their own homes" as the search for the plane could be a prolonged one.

May 2: Slavyansk (Ukraine): More than 30 people were killed in a "criminal" blaze in Ukraine's southern city of Odessa, as violence spread across the country during the bloodiest day since Kiev's Western-backed government took power.

May 2: Kabul: A landslide triggered by heavy rain buried large sections of a remote northeastern Afghan village, killing at least 350 people and leaving more than 2,000 missing.

May 3: Aab Bareek (Afghanistan): Rescue teams abandoned the search for survivors after a landslide buried a hillside village in northern Afghanistan, killing at least 300 people under a fast-moving tide of rock and mud.

May 4: Dhaka: Bangladesh's Supreme Court cleared hurdles to turn legendary Indian actress Suchitra Sen's ancestral home in northwestern Pabna into a museum as it ordered authorities to evict a pro-Jamaat-e-Islami group from the premises.

May 4: Seoul: South Korean President Park Geun-Hye met relatives of passengers still missing after the sinking of a ferry last month, vowing that any culprits would be "sternly punished" as the confirmed death toll rose to 244.

May 5: Slavyansk (Ukraine): Ukraine's military suffered heavy casualties in a stepped-up offensive on pro-Russian rebels, as Europe and the head of the UN made a last-ditch diplomatic effort to reel the country back from the brink of civil war.

May 5: Islamabad: The WHO slapped international travel restrictions on Pakistan, Cameroon and Syria over the countries' failure to control the spread of the deadly polio virus, just a month after India did the same.

May 5: Canberra: Australia, China and Malaysia held talks to hammer out future steps to find the wreckage of Flight MH370, vowing not to give up the fruitless hunt though it could be up to two months before more advanced equipment is deployed in the largely unmapped Indian Ocean seabed.

May 6: Washington: As part of its efforts to attract and retain highly skilled immigrants from countries like India, the US announced two proposals, including a rule to extend employment authorisation to spouses of certain H-1B workers.

May 6: Slavyansk (Ukraine): The death toll from a military offensive in a flashpoint town in east Ukraine rose to at least 34, officials say, amid fresh warnings of civil war and the shutdown of a major airport in the region.

May 8: Bangkok: In yet another setback, deposed Thai premier Yingluck Shinawatra was indicted by an anti-graft body over a controversial rice subsidy scheme and will face impeachment that could dash her hopes of an electoral comeback, a day after a court dismissed her from office.

May 8: Islamabad: Pakistan successfully test-fired a short-range surface-to-surface ballistic missile Hatf III, capable of carrying nuclear and conventional warheads up to a range of 290 kilometres, that could cover parts of India.

May 9: Bangkok: A buoyed Thai opposition launched an "all out final battle" to topple the government as five persons were injured in clashes with police, raising concerns that the country's prolonged political crisis could worsen.

May 9: Sevastopol: President Vladimir Putin took a victory lap in his first visit to Crimea since its annexation by Russia, as fighting in eastern Ukraine left more than 20 dead just days ahead of a separatist vote.

May 11: Kabul: Afghan election front-runner Abdullah Abdullah received a major boost to his presidential campaign when Zalmai Rassoul, a close ally of the current leader, endorsed him after withdrawing from the race.

May 12: Donetsk: Pro-Russia insurgents in Ukraine's Donetsk region declared independence today and asked to join Russia, a day after holding a hastily arranged vote on separatism that Ukraine's government and its western allies says violated international law.

May 12: Kabul: The Taliban unleashed a wave of attacks across Afghanistan to mark the start of their spring offensive, storming a government building in the east where attackers killed two police guards and five civilians, and striking a police checkpoint to the south and killing nine policemen.

May 13: Kiev: Separatist rebels killed seven Ukrainian soldiers in a bloody ambush in the restive east, rattling efforts by Europe to step up a diplomatic push to resolve the escalating crisis on its doorstep.

May 13: Tel Aviv: For the first time in Israel's history, a court sentenced former prime minister Ehud Olmert to six years in prison for his involvement in a real estate project, considered the largest in the country.

May 14: Soma (Turkey): Anger and grief boiled over into a violent protests in the western Turkish town of Soma, where officials say at least 245 miners died in a coal mine explosion and fire.

May 14: Abuja: More than 200 schoolgirls began their second month as Boko Haram hostages, with Nigeria's government indicating it was willing to talk to the militants to secure their release.

May 15: Kuala Lumpur: A sinister plot to attack foreign missions in Chennai and Bangalore has been foiled with a South Asian suspect being arrested here for terror activities, Malaysian police say.

May 15: Seoul: Prosecutors indicted the captain of the sunken South Korean ferry and three crew members on homicide charges, alleging they were negligent and failed to protect more than 300 people missing or dead in the disaster. Less serious indictments were issued against the 11 other crew members responsible for navigating the vessel.

May 16: Soma: A maximum of 18 miners remain missing inside a devastated coal mine and the final death toll will be around 300, Turkey's energy minister says.

May 17: Dhaka: Rescuers retrieves 25 bodies from a sunken ferry in Bangladesh, taking the death toll to 54 as search continued with many more feared to have drowned when the overcrowded vessel capsized two days ago.

May 18: Damascus: The head of Syria's air defenses is killed in clashes near the capital, Damascus, a government official and activists say, one of a few high-ranking military officers to be killed in the country's 3-year-old civil war.

May 19: Baghdad: Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki won the most seats in Iraq's elections but fell short of a majority leaving him in the driver's seat to retain his post despite vocal opposition.

May 20: Bangkok: Thailand's military in a surprise pre-dawn move declares martial law to maintain order after six months of anti-government protests that left the country paralysed, but denied it had staged a coup even as the interim premier announced fresh elections on August 3.

May 21: Islamabad: Pakistani air force jets pound Taliban targets in the country's restive tribal region near the Afghan border while clashes took place between the military and insurgents in the same area, leaving 71 militants and four soldiers dead.

May 22: Bangkok: In a sudden move, Thailand's army seizes power in a bloodless coup, suspends the Constitution and declares night curfew after months of anti-government protests left the country in limb

May 23: Kabul: Indian Consulate in Afghanistan's Herat province was attacked by four heavily-armed gunmen, who were subsequently killed by the security forces after a nine-hour-long encounter.

May 24: St. Petersburg: Russian President Vladimir Putin says his country was looking forward to working closely with newly-elected Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and promised to work for lifting bilateral ties in economic, military and technical cooperation.

May 24: Bangkok: Thailand's military junta dismissed the country's Senate as it intensified its post-coup crackdown and summoned 35 more people after detaining former premier Yingluck Shinawatra and top leaders of the ousted government for up to a week.

May 24 : Pretoria: Jacob Zuma is sworn-in as South Africa's President for a second consecutive term and vowed to spearhead a "radical social economic transformation" to eradicate corruption that has plagued Africa's second largest economy.

May 25: Karachi/Colombo: In a goodwill gesture, Pakistan frees 151 Indian fishermen while Sri Lanka ordered the release of all detained Indian fishermen on the eve of the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister-designate Narendra Modi.

May 25: United Nations: Eight Indian soldiers, who lost their lives while serving in UN peacekeeping operations last year, are among 106 military, police and civilian personnel to be posthumously awarded a prestigious UN medal this week for their courage and sacrifice in the line of duty.

May 26: Washington: US President Barack Obama greets Narendra Modi on being sworn-in as India's 15th Prime Minister and says he looks forward to working with the new leader to strengthen the strategic partnership.

May 26: Bangkok: Former Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra is released by the military junta, three days after the army put her under detention following a coup.

May 26: Kiev: Ukraine's new president-elect wasted no time immediately focusing on the top issues at hand promising to negotiate an end to a pro-Russia insurgency in the east and saying he was willing to begin talks with Moscow.

May 27: Donetsk: Ukraine says it had recaptured the airport in the eastern city of Donetsk after a day of air strikes and fierce gunbattles with pro-Moscow separatist militants that left dozens of people dead.

May 28: Washington: US President Barack Obama announced a USD 5 billion fund to help countries deal with the rising challenge of terrorism and extremism across the globe.

May 28: Washington: The US will reduce its troops in Afghanistan to 9,800 by the end of this year and withdraw them completely by 2016, President Barack Obama says outlining an end to America's longest war it launched after the 9/11 attack.

May 29: Cairo: Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the ex-army chief who toppled Egypt's first freely elected Islamist President, won a landslide victory bagging over 96 per cent votes in the presidential polls that strengthened the military's grip on power in the deeply polarised nation.

May 29: Beijing/New Delhi: Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang conveys his government's desire to establish robust partnership with the new government during a call to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, who expressed keenness to work closely to deal with any "outstanding issues".

May 29: Sydney: The search for the missing Malaysian jet suffers yet another blow after Australia ruled out a large area in the Indian Ocean where four acoustic signals were detected as the final resting place of the plane.

May 30: United Nations: The United Nations honours 106 peacekeepers, including eight Indian soldiers, who lost their lives in peacekeeping operations, even as India stressed that the Security Council should act to restore political situation in troubled nations as peacekeeping is not the solution to instability in such countries.

May 30: Singapore: An Airbus A-380 of the Singapore Airlines (SIA) took off from Delhi, marking the maiden flight of the superjumbo to India.

May 31: Lahore: A ruling PML-N legislator and an ISI official are allegedly kidnapped by the Taliban from Pakistan's Punjab province.

May 31: Singapore: Four Indians, facing charges for their roles in Singapore's worst riot in four decades in December last year, have withdrawn their applications for judicial review proceedings against the government.

Jun 1: Kathmandu: Two teenage Indian mountaineers, including a 13-year-old girl, were felicitated in Nepal for successfully climbing Mount Everest from the Chinese side of the world's highest peak.

Jun 3: Dhaka: A huge cache of illegal weapons, including around 200 anti-tank rocket shells, is seized by Bangladesh's elite security force in a jungle bordering Tripura, the single biggest arms recovery since the 2004 Chittagong case.

Jun 3: Kathmandu: At least 18 Indian pilgrims are killed and 53 others injured when an overloaded bus carrying them veers off a mountain road and rolled about 100 meters before plunging into a river in western Nepal.

Jun 4: Colombo: Sri Lanka says it had made it clear to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that devolving police powers to the provinces, including the Tamil-dominated areas, is not possible saying "it has nothing to do with ethnic considerations".

Jun 4: United Nations: Appalled by the brutal rape and murder of two teenaged girls in India, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has demanded action against sexual violence and appealed to the society to reject the destructive attitude of "boys will be boys".

Jun 5: Dubai: An Indian expatriate in the UAE is set to enter record books by becoming the first person to cultivate rice and wheat as a crop in the Gulf nation.

Jun 5: Beijing: China's fast-track courts sentences 81 people, including 12 to death, and arrested 29 others in the restive Xinjiang province for terrorism-related crimes as part of a nationwide crackdown on Islamist militants blamed for a spate of recent attacks.

Jun 6: Islamabad: Pakistan suspends the licence of Geo News for 15 days for defaming the army and the powerful ISI, a day after the leading television channel decides to sue authorities for maligning its image and demanded a public apology and Rs 50 billion as damages.

Jun 6: Beijing: China says it is open to holding talks with a personal envoy of the Dalai Lama about the future of the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader but rules out any "independence or semi-independence under disguise" for the restive Himalayan region.

Jun 7: London: Pakistan's powerful MQM chief Altaf Hussain is released on bail, four days after he was arrested here by the British police on charges of money laundering.

Jun 8: London: An iconic statue of Mahatma Gandhi in the UK has been vandalised in the city of Leicester apparently in protest against the 1984 Operation Bluestar military raid on the Golden Temple.

Jun 8: Cairo: Egypt's former army chief Abdel Fattah el-Sisi pledges to "correct the mistakes of the past" as he is sworn-in as the country's new President, strengthening the military's grip on power in the deeply polarised nation.

Jun 10: Moscow: Russia has in principle agreed on the Indian nuclear liability law, paving the way for signing a contract for unit 3 and 4 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in July, Russian officials say.

Jun 10: Karachi: Taliban militants attack a training camp of the Airport Security Force outside Karachi international airport, but fled after Pakistani forces repulsed the assault, a day after an all-night siege at the facility leaves nearly 40 people dead.

Jun 10: Beijing: China says Foreign Minister Wang Yi's just concluded visit to India is of "great significance" and sends out a message that Chinese leaders pay high attention to bilateral ties and their mutual interests far outweigh disputes.

Jun 11: Peshawar: At least six militants are killed in US' first drone strike in Pakistan this year and a high value target may be among the fatalities in the attack in the country's restive tribal region.

Jun 12: Baghdad: Jihadists moved nearer to Baghdad after capturing a town just hours to the north, as President Barack Obama says Washington was exploring all options to save Iraq's security forces from collapse.

Jun 13: Bangkok: Thailand's military government fully lifts a curfew it imposed nationwide after seizing power last month, saying there is no threat of violence.

Jun 14: Kabul: Millions of Afghans turned out to vote in a presidential run-off election despite Taliban threats and violence that killed nearly 50 people ahead of the withdrawal of NATO troops later this year.

Jun 14: Novohannivka (Ukraine): Pro-Russia separatists shot down a Ukrainian military transport plane, killing all 49 crew and troops aboard in a bloody escalation of the conflict in the country's restive east.

Jun 15: Islamabad: Pakistan launched the much-awaited military operation against foreign and local militants hiding in sanctuaries near the Afghan border, a week after the Pakistani Taliban brazenly attacked the Karachi airport.

Jun 15: Thimphu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Bhutanese King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk and the two discussed an entire gamut of ties to cement the "unique and special" bilateral relationship.

Jun 16: Thimphu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi concluded his "extremely successful" first foreign visit since assuming office with a message to Bhutan and other neighbouring countries that a strong and prosperous India was in their interest.

Jun 16: Islamabad: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif says he will not allow Pakistan to become a "sanctuary of terrorists" and asserted that the military operation against the Taliban in North Waziristan tribal region would continue until militants are eliminated.

Jun 16: Baghdad: Sunni militants captured a strategic northern Iraqi city along the highway to Syria, sending thousands of residents from an ethnic minority fleeing for safety and moving closer to their goal of linking areas under their control on both sides of the border.

Jun 17: New York: Rajat Gupta, a one-time poster boy of Indians in America and former Goldman Sachs Director, began his two-year prison sentence after fighting a protracted legal battle to clear his name in one of the biggest insider trading schemes in US history.

Jun 18: Kabul: Afghan President Hamid Karzai says the US-led "war on terror" after 9/11 should not have been fought in his country but in "sanctuaries beyond our borders", a clear indication to Pakistan which has been repeatedly accused of harbouring the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

Jun 18: Colombo: Sri Lankan parliament overwhelmingly voted not to allow the UNHRC team into the country to investigate alleged human rights abuses during the last phase of the civil war against the LTTE.

Jun 19: Peshawar: About 100,000 people have fled the troubled North Waziristan tribal region as curfew was relaxed in the area where the Pakistan Army has launched an all-out offensive against the Taliban, officials says.

Jun 19: Washington: India-born plant scientist Sanjaya Rajaram has been named the winner of the USD 250,000 World Food Prize for his breakthrough achievement in increasing global wheat production by more than 200 million tonnes following the Green Revolution.

Jun 20: Sydney: The search for the missing Flight MH370 will now revert to an area hundreds of kilometers south of the first suspected crash site, an official says, as months of fruitless scouring in the Indian Ocean has failed to crack the unprecedented aviation mystery.

Jun 21: Beijing: Expressing its readiness to work with the new Indian government to promote bilateral ties, China invoked 'Panchasheel' to improve relations with neighbours to settle disputes peacefully while firmly holding on to its core interests.

Jun 22: Washington: Al-Qaeda splinter group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), which has carved out a large fiefdom along the Iraqi-Syrian border, poses a medium and long-term threat, US President Barack Obama says.

Jun 22: Baghdad: Sunni militants captured two border crossings, one along the frontier with Jordan and the other with Syria, security and military officials say, as they pressed on with their offensive in one of Iraq's most restive regions.

Jun 23: Islamabad: Pakistan's Supreme Court overturned a High Court ruling to lift a travel ban slapped on Pervez Musharraf last year, a setback to the former military ruler facing multiple trials including one for high-treason.

Jun 23: Lahore/Islamabad: Amid high drama, a Canada-based divisive cleric returned to Pakistan to lead a "revolution" against the government, but his Islamabad-bound flight was diverted to Lahore amid fears of unrest in the capital as his supporters fought pitched battles with police, leaving over 70 security personnel injured.

Jun 25: Washington: Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was responsible for the terror attack at the Indian Consulate in Afghanistan's Herat province last month, the US says.

Jun 25: Washington: Tightening its noose around LeT, the US added its affiliates, including the JuD, to its list of designated terror organisations and slapped sanctions against two Pakistan-based LeT leaders.

Jun 25: Colombo: The UN has named three experts, including prominent Pakistani rights activist Asma Jahangir, to conduct a comprehensive probe into alleged human rights violations in Sri Lanka.

Jun 26: Dhaka: Carrying a "message of friendship and goodwill" from the newly-elected Indian government, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj gave a commitment to address Bangladesh's concerns over sharing of Teesta waters and implementation of the Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) "in a manner that improves the welfare and well-being of both our people".

Jun 27: Brussels: Ukraine's new leader signed a landmark EU pact that drew immediate threats of retaliation by Russia in its standoff over the ex-Soviet country's future with the West.

Jun 29: Baghdad: Iraqi forces pressed a counter-attack on Saddam Hussein's hometown Tikrit as jihadists who led a blistering Sunni militant offensive that captured swathes of territory declared a "caliphate".

Jun 29: Dhaka: Describing illegal immigration from Bangladesh as a "sensitive issue", External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has underlined the need for consultations with all stakeholders to carefully handle the problem along India's nearly 4,000-km porous border with its eastern neighbour.

Jun 30: Beijing: India backed China's initiative to build a regional economic corridor also linking Bangladesh and Myanmar, but sought more details from Beijing about its plans for a Maritime Silk Road (MSR) before deciding to take part in the endeavour.

Jul 1: Washington: America's top spy agency was authorised by a US court in 2010 to carry out surveillance on the BJP along with five other political organisations across the globe, including Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood and Pakistan Peoples Party, according to a classified document.

Jul 2: Islamabad: Amid an all-out military operation against the Taliban in North Waziristan, Pakistan's parliament passed a controversial anti-terror law, giving security forces unbridled powers, including shoot-at-sight suspects involved in terrorism, arson and murder.

Jul 2: Baghdad: Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki offered a general amnesty in a rare conciliatory move to undercut support for militants whose offensive has overrun swathes of territory and threatens to tear Iraq apart.

Jul 2: Paris: France's former president Nicolas Sarkozy has been charged with corruption and influence peddling, French prosecutors says, a dramatic move in a criminal probe that could wreck his hopes of a political comeback.

Jul 3: Beijing: Army Chief General Bikram Singh held wide-ranging talks with China's military top brass on issues like measures to increase mutual trust, implementation of the new border defence mechanism and maritime cooperation.

Jul 4: Baghdad: Iraq's premier insisted he would "never give up" on a third term despite allegations at home and abroad of sectarianism and authoritarianism amid a sweeping jihadist-led offensive.

Jul 5: Donetsk (Ukraine): Resurgent government forces hoisted the Ukrainian flag over pro-Russian rebels' main stronghold after a devastating shelling assault that levelled much of the city but delivered Kiev its biggest success of the campaign.

Jul 8: Mogadishu: Somalia's Islamist Shebab rebels carried out a major bomb and armed assault against the country's presidential palace late, penetrating the heavily-fortified complex before blowing themselves up.

Jul 8: Kabul: Presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah claimed victory in Afghanistan's disputed election, blaming fraud for putting him behind in preliminary results as fears rise of instability and ethnic unrest.

Jul 9: Washington: The US National Security Agency (NSA) and the FBI spied on five prominent Muslim-American activists, including an Indian-origin attorney, according to the leaked documents which showed use of objectionable religious slurs against these individuals.

Jul 10: Beirut: The death toll in Syria's three-year war has eclipsed 170,000 people, one-third of them civilians, a monitoring group says in a new toll released.

Jul 10: Islamabad: Upping its ante, Pakistan asserted that it had never accepted Kashmir's accession to India saying that the UNSC mandate remains till the Kashmir issue is resolved.

Jul 11: Gaza/Jerusalem: Israeli jets bombed the Gaza Strip for the fourth day killing 13 Palestinians, taking the death toll to 105, as the Jewish state was targeted by rocket attacks from Lebanon for the first time since the military offensive began.

Jul 12: Baghdad: Gunmen killed 25 women and wounded at least eight people when they stormed two buildings in a residential Baghdad compound reputed to be used for prostitution, police and government sources say.

Jul 12: Donetsk: Panicked refugees flooded highways and packed trains heading out of the main remaining rebel strongholds in eastern Ukraine fearing an attack by government forces who lost 30 servicemen to defiant militants.

Jul 12: London: The UK Court of Appeal has cleared the way for a minimum income threshold of 18,600 pounds for British citizens bringing foreign spouses to live with them in the country, a move likely to affect thousands of visa applicants, including Indian-origin people.

Jul 13: Kiev: Escalating clashes between pro-Kremlin separatists and Ukrainian forces killed 18 civilians and forced the new Western-backed leader to cancel a pivotal meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the World Cup in Brazil.

Jul 13: London: A Pakistan-based militant group has become the first jihadi outfit in the South Asia region to break ranks from al-Qaeda and declare its allegiance to the Islamic State, that has seized power across Iraq and Syria.

Jul 14: Davydo-Mykilske (Ukraine): Ukrainian forces hunted for the crew of a downed military plane after Kiev says the aircraft was "likely" shot down from Russia, ratcheting up tensions along their volatile border.

Jul 15: Fortaleza: Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping and pressed for a solution to the boundary question, saying if the two sides could amicably resolve the vexed issue, it would set an example for the world on peaceful conflict resolution.

Jul 15: Fortaleza: In a major victory for India, the BRICS Summit decided to establish the new development bank with an initial authorised capital of USD 100 billion for which the initial subscribed capital will be equally shared by the founding members, a point New Delhi emphasised to prevent by domination by anyone of the members.

Jul 16: Gaza/Jerusalem: Israel threatened ground operations in Gaza and asked 100,000 Palestinians to flee their homes as it stepped up its airstrikes on the ninth day of the military offensive that has claimed 220 lives.

Jul 16: Brasilia: Giving a fillip to bilateral ties, India and Brazil decided to expand trade and investment flows while deepening collaboration in the fields of renewable energy, defence and cyber security as they signed three pacts including one on cooperation in the environment sector.

Jul 17: Kuala Lumpur/Kiev: All 295 people on board a Malaysia Airlines plane were killed after the jet was shot down by "terrorists" over war-torn eastern Ukraine near the Russian border, nearly four months after the mysterious disappearance of MH370 in the Indian Ocean.

Jul 17: Brasilia: Asserting that distance is not a barrier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi says India will work more closely with the resource-rich Latin American nations than ever before as the setting up of the BRICS development bank opens up newer opportunities for cooperation.

Jul 17: Frankfurt: Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and conveyed that Germany was a "valued friend" of India and he was looking forward to working with her to make bilateral ties stronger.

Jul 18: Gaza/Jerusalem: Israel warned it would "significantly widen" its first ground offensive in five years in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, after 11 days of airstrikes that have killed 285 Palestinians so far failed to stop the militants' rocket attacks on the Jewish state.

Jul 18: Beijing: China is distributing millions of controversial updated maps to its military in the first upgrade in 30 years, reportedly reinforcing its claims over Arunachal Pradesh.

Jul 18: Kuala Lumpur/Kiev: Ukraine's security agency has claimed that they have intercepted phone calls between Russian military officers and pro-Russian separatists with the rebels claiming responsibility for shooting down a Malaysian plane killing all 298 people on board, a media report says.

Jul 19: Washington / Vienna: The negotiations between the P5+1 nations and Iran on the latter's nuclear program failed to reach an agreement before the deadline of July 20 and agreed to extend the talks till November 24 for brokering an agreement.

Jul 20: Kiev: Pro-Moscow insurgents took control of the 219 bodies recovered so far from the debris of the downed Malaysian jet, even as global pressure mounted on Russian President Vladimir Putin to ensure unfettered access to the crash site in Ukraine's rebel-held region.

Jul 21: Vienna: Iran has eliminated all its most sensitive nuclear material in line with an interim deal struck with world powers, a new UN atomic agency report showed.

Jul 21: Beijing: China's new special envoy to Afghanistan gave a clean chit to Pakistan and its powerful spy agency ISI amid allegations that they backed terrorist outfits.

Jul 22: Kharkiv (Ukraine): Dutch experts prepared to fly out some 280 bodies recovered from downed Malaysian flight MH17, after a train carrying the remains arrived in the government-held Ukrainian city of Kharkiv.

Jul 22: United Nations: India has the sixth highest prevalence of child marriage in the world with one in every three child bride living in India, a United Nations report says.

Jul 22: Donetsk (Ukraine): Rebels controlling the crash site of Malaysian flight MH17 handed over the plane's black boxes, and declared a localised truce to allow international experts full access to the forensic minefield in east Ukraine.

Jul 23: Taipei (Taiwan): A plane attempting to land in stormy weather crashed on a small Taiwanese island, killing 47 people and wrecking houses and cars on the ground.

Jul 23: Eindhoven (Netherlands): Two military transport planes carrying 40 coffins bearing victims of the downed Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 landed today in the southern city of Eindhoven, and pro-Russian rebels shot down two fighter jets in Ukraine's restive east as fighting flared in the region.

Jul 23: Geneva: India along with BRICS countries voted in support of a UN Human Rights Council resolution to launch a probe into Israel's offensive on Gaza.

Jul 24: Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso): The wreckage of an Air Algerie plane missing with 116 people on board has been found in Mali near the Burkina Faso border, an army coordinator in Ouagadougou says.

Jul 24: Magong (Taiwan): Rescuers say they had recovered black boxes from the Taiwanese aircraft which crashed in torrential rain killing 48 people, as angry relatives blamed authorities for the worst air disaster in a decade.

Jul 24: Glasgow: Sachin Tendulkar and Bollywood music provided the Indian connect as Scotland ushered in the 20th Commonwealth Games with a dazzling and colourful opening ceremony which celebrated the country's culture and heritage to set the ball rolling for the 11-day sporting extravaganza.

Jul 25: Glasgow: It was a memorable swansong at the Commonwealth Games for Abhinav Bindra as the ace marksman bagged the 10m Air Rifle gold medal in a gripping finale with young schoolgirl Malaika Goel turning out to be surprise package winning silver in the 10m air pistol event.

Jul 25: Bamako: France announced there were no survivors among the 116 people on board the Air Algerie flight that crashed over Mali, saying bad weather was the likely cause of the disaster.

Jul 25: Gaza/Jerusalem: Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip killed a top militant commander, two of his sons and a pregnant woman among others, taking the Palestinian toll to 832, as the 18-day conflict spread to the West Bank where largest anti-Israel protests in years turned violent.

Jul 26: Washington: The US expressed disappointment over India's stand on worldwide reform of trade facilitation rules saying "backsliding" on commitments has brought the WTO to the brink of crisis.

Jul 27: Grabove: The Netherlands scrapped plans to send an international armed mission to secure the crash site of Malaysian flight MH17, fearing a deployment risked being dragged into the conflict in east Ukraine.

Jul 28: Beijing/New Delhi: India and China admitted to intrusion by Chinese herdsmen into Ladakh last week but both the sides sought to play it down saying the issue was resolved amicably through a flag meeting.

Jul 28: Beijing: China made a strong pitch to improve relations with Bhutan and expressed readiness for an early and "fair" solution to their boundary dispute, amid efforts by the new Indian government to cement ties with Thimpu.

Jul 29: United Nations: India has warned the UN Security Council that the new trend of using peacekeepers to tackle internal political conflicts is an "unsustainable" approach to the maintenance of global peace and security.

Jul 30: Beijing: At least 32 people were killed and several others wounded in a major terror attack by a mob armed with knives and axes in northwest China's volatile Xinjiang province on the eve of Eid, in the latest violence blamed on Islamist militants.

Jul 31: United Nations: The UN General Assembly adopted a draft resolution that aims at using information and communications technologies for development, a significant victory for developing countries, led by India which says the resolution will focus on bridging the digital divide.

Jul 31: Rozsypne (Ukraine): Explosions rang out near the crash site of downed flight MH17 in eastern Ukraine as international investigators arrived for the first time in nearly a week after Kiev announced a surprise one-day halt to its offensive against rebels.

Jul 31: Beijing: For the first time, the Chinese military acknowledged last year's incursion at the Depsang Valley in Ladakh region and said such incidents occurred due to different perception about the Line of Actual Control.

Aug 1: Colombo: Sri Lanka tendered an unqualified apology to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa over a derogatory article posted on its Defence Ministry website that triggered a furore in India.

Aug 1: Conakry: The World Health Organisation warned west Africa's Ebola-hit nations that the epidemic was spiralling out of control and could spread to other countries, causing "catastrophic" loss of life and severe economic disruption.

Aug 2: Kathmandu: At least eight persons are killed in a massive landslide that blocked Sunkoshi river in northeast Nepal, turning the river into a grand lake with rescuers resorting to controlled blasts to drain the water posing a risk of flash floods.

Aug 3: Kathmandu: Assuring Nepal that India did not want to interfere in its internal affairs, Narendra Modi, the first Indian Premier to visit the Himalayan nation in 17 years, to stressed that their border should be a "bridge" and not a barrier, as he announced a USD 1 billion Line Of Credit to this country.

Aug 3: Kathmandu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets his Nepalese counterpart Sushil Koirala during which the two sides inked three agreements, including one on the 5,600 MW Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project that will pave the way to start the stalled project.

Aug 4: Kathmandu: With an intent of opening a "new chapter" in ties with Nepal, India announces a slew of sops for it focusing on 4Cs -- cooperation, connectivity, culture and constitution -- amid Prime Minister Narendra Modi's promise to review any aspect of the 1950 Treaty that may be of concern.

Aug 4: Gaza/Jerusalem: Israel resumes shelling on Gaza Strip as a seven-hour humanitarian ceasefire ended and vows to press ahead with its offensive against Hamas until long-term calm is restored even as the death toll in the 28-day conflict neared 1,900.

Aug 5: London: A man was arrested on suspicion of making a mid-air hoax bomb threat that forced a Qatar Airways plane carrying 282 people to make an emergency landing at Manchester Airport with British fighter jets escorting it to safety.

Aug 6: Jerusalem: Israel agrees to extend beyond Friday a 72-hour ceasefire that has halted a month of fighting in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, officials say as Egyptian efforts intensified to broker a long-term truce between the two sides.

Aug 9: Nay Pyi Taw (Myanmar): Giving a fresh impetus to its ties with ASEAN, India says it would soon draft a five-year action plan starting 2016 for enhancing connectivity and cooperation in diverse areas and hoped the long-delayed free trade pact on services and investment will be signed later this month.

Aug 10: Nay Pyi Taw: The fresh standoff in the South China Sea (SCS) dominated proceedings at the ASEAN and East Asia Summit where India strongly favoured freedom of navigation and access to resources in the resource-rich area saying the dispute must be resolved as per international law.

Aug 10: Tehran: An Iranian passenger plane crashes moments after takeoff from Tehran, killing at least 38 on board and narrowly avoiding many more deaths when it plummets near a busy market.

Aug 11: Nay Pyi Taw: President U Thein Sein assures India that Myanmar will never allow its territory to be used for anti-India activities as visiting External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj raises serious concern over some North Eastern militant outfits taking shelter in this country.

Aug 12: Geneva: The World Health Organisation authorises the use of experimental drugs in the fight against Ebola as the death toll topped 1,000 and a Spanish priest becomes the first European to succumb to the virus in the latest outbreak.

Aug 12: Geneva: The World Health Organisation authorises the use of experimental drugs in the fight against Ebola as the death toll topped 1,000 and a Spanish priest became the first European to succumb to the virus in the latest outbreak.

Aug 13: Cairo: Hosni Mubarak defends his 30-year rule and denies charges of ordering the killing of protesters as the wheelchair-bound former dictator appears before a court here for a retrial over the deaths of 850 demonstrators during the 2011 uprising against his regime.

Aug 13: Islamabad: A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused it of indulging in a proxy war against India, Pakistan hits back by dubbing it as "baseless rhetoric" and said both countries should focus on resolving issues instead of engaging in blame game.

Aug 14: Islamabad: Raking up the Kashmir issue, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif says it is the "main source of tension" in Indo-Pak relations and sought its peaceful resolution to explore new ways to bolster bilateral ties.

Aug 14: United Nations: UN Chief Ban Ki-moon honours over a million Indian soldiers who fought in the World War I at a commemorative event here and releases a photo book authored by the Ambassador to the Permanent Mission of India to the UN featuring war memorials from across the world.

Aug 15: Islamabad/Lahore: Clashes erupt between ruling PML-N activists and supporters of opposition leader Imran Khan after shots were fired at his vehicle, as tens of thousands of protesters march towards the capital with an aim of ousting Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Aug 16: Singapore: Having allocated over Rs 7,000 crores in its recent budget for development of 100 'smart cities', India roped in Singapore for providing its expertise in this even as the two countries decided to step up economic engagement besides defence and security cooperation.

Aug 16: Islamabad: Over 25,000 supporters of opposition leader Imran Khan and cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri vowing not to back down till Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif resigns and dissolves Parliament and provincial assemblies, poured into the streets of Pakistan's capital, posing the biggest challenge to the 15-month-old civilian government.

Aug 17: Islamabad: Pakistan's opposition leader Imran Khan declares a "civil disobedience movement" against the Nawaz Sharif-led government, saying the country's future is bleak under the rule of businessmen, as cleric Tahirul Qadri gave a 48-hour ultimatum to the embattled Prime Minister to resign.

Aug 18: London: Sikh men, women and children found in a shipping container in Britain were fleeing persecution in Afghanistan and had been trapped in the airless compartment without food or water for 18 hours, their translator say.

Aug 19: Islamabad: Pakistan opposition leader Imran Khan and cleric Tahirul Qadri march with thousands of their supporters towards the Parliament, entering the heavily fortified 'Red Zone', the capital's diplomatic and political enclave, even as minor clashes took place between anti- government protesters and security personnel.

Aug 19: London: Kashmiris were among 15 immigrants found in a lorry by the British police, as the vehicle's German driver was arrested on suspicion of people smuggling.

Aug 19: Monrovia, (Liberia): Liberia said it had found 17 Ebola patients who had fled an attack on their clinic, sparking a panicked manhunt across a city in the throes of a seemingly unstoppable epidemic.

Aug 20: Islamabad: The protest against the Nawaz Sharif regime took a new turn with cleric Tahirul Qadri opening a dialogue with government and Imran Khan sticking to his 'no-talks' position unless the Prime Minister resigns as the Supreme Court summoned both the leaders tomorrow for hearing a petition against the siege of Parliament.

Aug 20: Washington: The disturbing video released by jihadist militants showing American journalist James Foley being brutally executed is authentic, the White House says.

Aug 21: Gaza/Jerusalem: Intensifying its targeted assassination of Hamas leadership, Israel's air force bombs a house in Gaza killing three senior militant commanders and 21 other Palestinians on the 45th day of the deadly conflict that has claimed over 2,000 lives.

Aug 21: Bangkok: Thailand's army chief is all set to become the country's next prime minister after the junta- picked national assembly overwhelmingly approved his nomination, consolidating the military's hold on power three months after he ousted the elected government in a coup.

Aug 22: Jerusalem: In renewed hostilities between Hamas and Israel, the militant group publicly executes 18 suspected spies for collaborating with the Jewish state, even as a four-year-old Israeli boy was killed in Palestinian mortar fire on the 46th day of the conflict.

Aug 23: Dhaka: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has requested India to immediately sign the much-awaited agreement for sharing waters of the Teesta River during a meeting with Minister of State for External Affairs V K Singh.

Aug 23: Nay Pyi Taw: Promising all possible support to India's fight against terrorism, Myanmar says it will bust training camps of North East militant groups on its soil if India provides specific inputs about their existence.

Aug 25: Hanoi: India decided to ramp up its engagement with Vietnam in the oil sector and deepen defence ties with the strategically-important country which called for a more active Indian role in maintaining freedom of navigation and security in the disputed South China Sea.

Aug 25: Beirut: Syria's foreign minister warned the US not to conduct airstrikes inside Syria against the Islamic State group without Damascus' consent, saying any such attack would be considered an aggression.

Aug 26: Gaza/Jerusalem: Israel and the Palestinians agreed on a long-term Egyptian-brokered ceasefire to end the devastating 50-day war in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip that has killed over 2,200 people.

Aug 26: Lahore: A Pakistani court ordered the registration of a murder case against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his brother and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and 19 others for their alleged role in the killing of 14 supporters of fiery anti-government cleric Tahirul Qadri.

Aug 26: Hanoi: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj chaired a brain storming session of 15 Indian Heads of Mission in South East and East Asia here and directed them to Act East and not just Look East, as she discussed the foreign policy initiatives under the new BJP-led government.

Aug 27: Paris: IMF chief Christine Lagarde, one of the world's most powerful women, announced she had been charged with "negligence" over a multi-million-euro graft case relating to her time as French finance minister.

Aug 27: Beijing: In a rare public admission of Pakistani links to militancy in China's Muslim-majority Xinjiang province, the official media says the co-founder of al-Qaeda linked East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) was indoctrinated in a madarasa in that country.

Aug 28: Islamabad: Pakistan's rattled government asked the country's powerful army to help defuse the political crisis due to ongoing protests by opposition leader Imran Khan and influential cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri who are demanding the ouster of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Aug 28: Washington: The US has labelled a Pakistan-based money changer as a "global terrorist" for providing financial services to banned LeT terror group that has been involved in a series of terrorist attacks in India, including the 2008 Mumbai attacks that left 166 people dead.

Aug 28: Canberra: The multi-million dollar undersea hunt for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 will now focus on the southern part of the Indian Ocean after a new clue suggested that the jetliner may have turned south earlier than previously believed, Australia announced.

Aug 30: Islamabad: Amid Pakistan Army's mediation efforts, protesters have stepped up pressure on the embattled government with cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri setting yet another deadline of 24 hours for Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to quit.

Aug 31: Kyoto: Japan agreed to work with India in developing a treatment for the Sickle Cell Anaemia after Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought help for finding remedy to the deadly disease commonly found among tribals in India.

Aug 31: Kyoto: Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a presentation from Kyoto Mayor Daisaka Kadokawa on how the ancient tradition of Japan's cultural capital has been preserved while building it into a modern city, a day India signed a pact to develop Varanasi on the pattern of Kyoto.

Sept 1: Tokyo: India and Japan agreed to enhance their defence and strategic cooperation to a new level during talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his counterpart Shinzo Abe, who also decided to speed up negotiations on civil nuclear deal that could not be concluded now.

Sept 1: Tokyo: India will get USD 35 billion from Japan over the next five years for developmental projects, including building of smart cities and next generation infrastructure as also cleaning of the Ganga, as Premier Shinzo Abe pledged to partner Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "ambitious" vision of inclusive development.

Sept 2: Kabul: Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah was locked in last-chance talks with the United Nations as a deal to resolve the country's damaging election dispute edged closer to failure.

Sept 2: Washington: India is going to be a "very important" player globally and the stronger it becomes, the more beneficial it will be for world peace, a senior Obama Administration official says amid preparations here to give a red carpet welcome to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Sept 2: Tokyo: Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought to address concerns of international community over India not signing the NPT by saying that the country's commitment to peace and non-violence is engrained in the "DNA of Indian society" which is above any international treaty or processes.

Sept 3: Islamabad: The dreaded Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is trying to expand its influence in Pakistan, with pamphlets being distributed in Peshawar and border provinces of Afghanistan, seeking support for jihad.

Sept 3: Washington: The US says a disturbing video showing beheading of American journalist Steven Sotloff by dreaded terror group ISIS is authentic, as President Barack Obama warned that "our reach is long and justice will be served".

Sept 4: Washington: In an alarming development, al-Qaeda has established a new branch to wage jihad in India, revive its caliphate and impose sharia in the Indian sub-continent, US media and intelligence agencies say.

Sept 4: Geneva: India accounted for the highest estimated number of suicides in the world in 2012, according to a WHO report published which found that one person commits suicide every 40 seconds globally.

Sept 5: United Nations: About 77 per cent of girls aged between 15 and 19 in India have been subjected to sexual violence by their spouses, according to a report by UNICEF which also says more than half of the girls in the age group faced physical abuse at the hands of their parents.

Sept 5: Islamabad: Bogged down by over three weeks of political turmoil, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif says it "is not easy" to rule Pakistan and sought the support of all parties in Parliament as several rounds of talks between the government and protesters failed to break the logjam.

Sept 5: Minsk: The Ukrainian president declared a cease-fire to end nearly five months of fighting in the nation's east after his representatives reached a deal with the Russian-backed rebels at peace talks.

Sept 7: Tokyo: Notwithstanding the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement in place, India is facing market access problems in various sectors in Japan and concerns over this were articulated during the recent visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi here.

Sept 8: Washington: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet US President Barack Obama at the White House on September 29-30 during which the two leaders would discuss a wide range of bilateral and strategic issues including economic growth, a top Obama administration officials say.

Sept 8: Geneva: The jihadist militants who have seized large swaths of Iraq and Syria are intent upon creating "a house of blood", the UN's new human rights chief say.

Sept 8: United Nations: The UN system stands ready to help governments in India and Pakistan in their efforts to provide relief and assistance to the hundreds impacted by the severe floods in Kashmir, a spokesperson for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says.

Sept 9: Geneva: The Ebola epidemic in west Africa has claimed nearly 2,300 lives, the World Health Organization says, stressing that nearly half had died in less than a month.

Sept 9: United Nations: The UN General Assembly has decided to carry forward talks on Security Council reforms to the next session, with India expressing dismay that the draft decision was no different from the one adopted a year ago and hoping that there will be a "clear roadmap" on the issue in the upcoming session.

Sept 9: The Hague(Netherlands): A Malaysian passenger jet which blew up over rebel-held east Ukraine with the loss of all 298 people on board was hit by numerous "high-energy objects", according to a report which could back up claims it was downed by a missile.

Sept 10: Kabul: As Afghanistan prepares for a democratic transition of power, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Afghan President Hamid Karazi held wide-ranging talks on political and security situation in the war-torn country and agreed to intensify cooperation in areas like security and defence.

Sept 10: London: Alarmed by recent polls, British Prime Minister David Cameron rushed to Scotland to make an impassioned plea to Scots not to split the "family of nations", saying it would be heartbreaking if the Union is "torn apart".

Sept 10: Kabul: "India is here to stay," External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj assured Afghanistan as she conveyed the new government's resolve to work "hand-in-hand" with the war-torn country by providing all possible assistance, including in key areas of defence and security.

Sept 11: Washington: Asserting that Pakistan and Afghanistan based militant groups continue to pose a direct threat to the US interests and its allies in the region, a top American counter-terrorism official says that the LeT is against improving relations between India and Pakistan.

Sept 11: Islamabad: Pakistan's army used helicopters and boats to rescue thousands of stranded people as the country grapples with the deadliest floods in its history that have killed over 260 people and affected over a million others in Punjab and PoK.

Sept 11: Dushanbe (Tajikistan): Resolving to give a new momentum to bilateral ties, India and Tajikist decided to step up cooperation in diverse areas including combating terrorism in the region in the backdrop of US-led forces' drawdown from Afghanistan later this year.

Sept 12: Dushanbe (Tajikistan): India sought resolute and comprehensive global action against terror infrastructure, saying the challenge must be taken seriously as different "theatres" are getting interconnected through terror networks as well as globalisation of the "supply chain of ideology".

Sept 12: Dushanbe (Tajikistan): India and Russia reviewed entire gamut of their bilateral relationship including cooperation in crucial sectors of defence, energy security, trade and investment and agreed to inject fresh vigour in the strategic and time-tested ties.

Sept 11: Islamabad: After causing widespread damage in northern Punjab in Pakistan, the devastating floods now threaten the historic city of Multan and its famous shrines, even as authorities struggle to save the city.

Sept 13: Islamabad: Signs of a possible solution to end the political crisis engulfing Pakistan looked bleak as anti-government protest leaders suspended talks with the Nawaz Sharif government following a crackdown on demonstrators with opposition leader Imran Khan asserting that there was no room for negotiations any more.

Sept 13: Karachi: The Taliban militants who attacked Karachi's naval dockyard over the weekend wanted to hijack a Pakistani navy missile frigate, media reports say, even as at least 17 navy personnel have been detained for their alleged involvement in the assault.

Sept 14: London: The beheading of a British aid worker by the dreaded Islamic State (IS) terror group was described by Prime Minister David Cameron as an act of "pure evil" even as Britain confirmed that the video showing the gruesome killing was genuine.

Sept 14: Dushanbe: Ahead of President Xi Jinping's visit, China has sought "work efficiency" in India and welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's efforts to push reforms to spur economic growth, saying it was "ready to meet India halfway" in its quest for development and prosperity.

Sept 14: Dhaka: Bangladesh Supreme Court rejected the petitions of opposition leader Khaleda Zia, who challenged the legality of the appointment of a lower court judge who indicted her in two graft cases, paving the way for her trial on corruption charges.

Sept 15: Hanoi: Strategically important oil and gas cooperation and extension of a USD 100 million credit by India for defence purchases are among the seven pacts inked between India and Vietnam as they called for "freedom" of navigation in the South China Sea, a remark that could irk China which has been claiming territorial sovereignty over the high seas.

Sept 15: Islamabad: At least 312 people have died and over two million affected due to rains and devastating floods in Pakistan, even as swelling waters continued to ravage the country's southern Punjab province, officials say.

Sept 15: Kabul: Afghanistan's disputed presidential election inched towards a possible conclusion with a senior government official hailing a "breakthrough" in talks between the two candidates, who both claim to have won the vote.

Sept 16: Geneva: The deadliest Ebola epidemic on record has now infected nearly 5,000 people in west Africa and killed around half of them, the World Health Organisation says.

Sept 16: Ho Chi Minh City: India and Vietnam have agreed to work for securing the sea lanes in their international waters to safeguard maritime security in the face of threats posed by terrorists and transnational crimes.

Sept 16: Colombo: Sri Lanka and China clinched defence and maritime security cooperation deal with Colombo pledging to support silk trade route, a pet project of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Sept 17: Colombo: Describing Sri Lanka as an "all-weather" friend, China put bilateral ties on a firm footing with President Xi Jinping launching the construction of a USD 1.4 billion port city, the single largest FDI project in the country being built on an artificial island near here.

Sept 17: Kathmandu: Seeking to resolve longstanding border issues, the first meeting of the Nepal-India Boundary Working Group (BWG) stablished after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to Nepal, began here.

Sept 18: Washington: President Barack Obama nominated Indian-American, Richard Rahul Verma, as the next US Ambassador to India, ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Washington later this month.

Sept 18: Kathmandu: SAARC countries are facing common challenges and they should cooperate with each other to address them, Home Minister Rajnath Singh says, underlining that India is committed to reviving the grouping as a major forum to promote active regional collaboration.

Sept 18: Kathmandu: Home Minister Rajnath Singh expressed concern over the growth of religious fundamentalism in areas along the India-Nepal border.

Sept 19: Kathmandu: SAARC countries vowed to combat common challenges of terrorism, piracy, human trafficking, drugs smuggling, cyber crime and corruption by forging cooperation among the law enforcement agencies of the eight-member grouping.

Sept 19: London/Edinburgh: Scottish voters say a big "No" to independence and decided to stay in the 307-year-old union with England and Wales after a historic referendum that brought out bitter divisions while paving the way for a 'devolution revolution' in the UK.

Sept 19: Islamabad: Embattled Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif hit back at protesters, saying no "long or short march" can derail the government, even as Imran Khan vowed to continue his sit-in indefinitely till the Premier resigns.

Sept 20: Wellington: New Zealand's conservative Prime Minister John Key swept to a historic election victory, securing a third term as voters ignored campaign allegations of dirty tricks and mass spying.

Sept 21: Colombo: In a major blow to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, his ruling coalition's popularity dwindled by an unprecedented 23 per cent in a key provincial election seen as precursor to a possible snap presidential poll.

Sept 21: Kabul: Former finance minister Ashraf Ghani was declared Afghanistan's next president, hours after signing a power-sharing deal with his rival Abdullah Abdullah that ended a prolonged standoff over the disputed result.

Sept 22: Dhaka: Bangladesh's main opposition leader and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia went on trial accused of embezzling about USD 680,000 in two corruption cases that could see her jailed for life if found guilty.

Sept 22: Islamabad: Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar, a close confidant of Pakistan's Army Chief, was named the new head of the powerful spy agency ISI, enhancing the military's clout over the embattled government facing protests.

Sept 23: United Nations: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Pakistan's National Security and Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz are expected to meet at two multilateral fora on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly this week.

Sept 23: United Nations: India tops the chart in showing attractive women in its movies and as much as 35 per cent of these female characters are shown with some nudity, finds a first-ever UN sponsored global study of female characters in popular films across the world.

Sept 23: United Nations: Warning that the cost of climate change is "fast becoming unbearable", UN chief Ban Ki-moon has asked an unprecedented gathering of world leaders to take action to reverse global warming and begin to capitalise the Green Climate Fund, an issue that India says it would raise at the conference.

Sept 24: United Nations: India has told a high-powered summit on climate change convened by UN chief Ban Ki-moon that if the developed world "walks the talk", the international community can certainly achieve the targets it has set to tackle climate change.

Sept 24: Algiers: Jihadists linked to the Islamic State group claimed to have beheaded a Frenchman abducted in Algeria in a video posted online today, after Paris rejected their demand to halt strikes in Iraq.

Sept 24: New York: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu here during his stay in the city to attend the UN General Assembly.

Sept 25: United Nations: In a rare move, US President Barack Obama chaired a crucial UN Security Council meeting during which a resolution was unanimously adopted demanding that countries take action to stem the flow of foreign jihadists to terror groups like the Islamic State.

Sept 25: Beijing: India and China held hectic parlays to resolve the standoff at the Ladakh border area even as the Chinese military played it down, saying such incidents are "sometimes inevitable" but the situation is under "effective control" with the joint efforts of the two sides.

Sept 26: United Nations: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif raked up the Kashmir issue at the UN General Assembly here and blamed India for "another missed opportunity" to address outstanding issues by cancelling the Foreign Secretary-level talks.

Sept 26: New York: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj says Pakistan "spoiled the talks" by talking to Hurriyat leaders just ahead of Foreign Secretaries of the two nations were scheduled to meet in Islamabad last month.

Sept 26: New York: Describing America as India's "natural global partner", Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived here on a five-day visit to the US, holding out an assurance that India is "open and friendly" for business and innovations.

Sept 27: New York: Taking forward his 'neighbourhood first' policy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi discusses matters of regional and bilateral cooperation with top leaders of Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal.

Sept 27: United Nations: Strongly pitching for India's permanent membership of the UN Security Council, Prime Minister Narendra Modi says the reforms of the 15-member powerful body should be carried out by 2015 to make it more "democratic and participative".

Sept 27: United Nations: India strongly rejects the "untenable comments" made by Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Jammu and Kashmir in the UNGA, asserting that the people of the state have peacefully chosen their destiny in accordance with universally accepted democratic principles.

Sept 28: New York: Prime Minister Narendra Modi tells a rapturous crowd of NRIs that Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) cardholders will get lifetime Indian visa and that American tourists will be given visa on arrival.

Sept 28: New York: Addressing a rapturous crowd of NRIs here, Prime Minister Narendra Modi affirms that India will move ahead at a rapid pace and lead the 21st century world.

Sept 28: New York: Pakistan has admitted that the timing of its High Commissioner's meeting with the Hurriyat leaders in New Delhi ahead of the Foreign Secretary-level talks was "perhaps not totally right".

Sept 28: New York: Furthering his 'neighbourhood first' policy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Bangladesh and Nepal and Sri Lankan President and discussed matters of common concern, including terrorism, while affirming his commitment to make SAARC a strong regional block.

Sept 29: New York: Hours ahead of his dinner with President Barack Obama, Prime Minister Narendra Modi cautions the US against hasty withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan, citing the mistakes it has committed while pulling out from Iraq.

Sept 29: New York: Prime Minister Narendra Modi rejects any need for outside arbitration to resolve the vexed issue of India's boundary dispute with China, saying the two countries are competent to find a solution through talks.

Sept 30: Washington: Furthering Indo-US cooperation on terrorism, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama agree to make "joint and concerted efforts" to dismantle safe havens for terror and criminal networks like LeT, JeM, D-company, Al-Qaeda and Haqqani network.

Sept 30: Jeddah: India assures Saudi Arabia that the new government is committed to strengthen bilateral relationship with the resource-rich Gulf nation.

Oct 1: Hong Kong: Raising the stakes in their standoff with the authorities, Hong Kong's pro-democracy protesters threaten to occupy key government buildings unless the territory's top official resigns by the end of the day tomorrow.

Oct 1: Washington: With a 'Thank You America', Prime Minister Narendra Modi winds up his five-day US visit describing it as "very successful and satisfactory" with observers here saying that he had succeeded in establishing a personal rapport with President Barack Obama and largely repairing bilateral ties.

Oct 2: Beijing: Amid raging pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong, China throws its weight behind the region's Chief Executive CY Leung and warned demonstrators of "unimaginable" consequences if the standoff continues.

Oct 2: Mina (Saudi Arabia): Clad in white seamless cloth, about 1.50 lakh Indians along with tens of thousands of Muslims from across the world today moved from the holy city Mecca to nearby Mina marking the beginning of the annual Haj pilgrimage.

Oct 3: Washington: Describing the just concluded US visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as extraordinarily successful, the White House has said that his meeting with President Barack Obama has re-energised the strategic relationship between the two largest democracies of the world.

Oct 3: Lahore: Stung by the political campaign to oust Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan's government has ordered a crackdown on those putting up slogans against the embattled premier on street walls across the country with an FIR lodged against five people including a woman.

Oct 4: Cairo: An Internet video released purports to show an Islamic State group fighter beheading British hostage Alan Henning, the fourth such killing carried out by the extremist group now targeted in US-led airstrikes.

Oct 5: Islamabad: The Pakistani Taliban has switched allegiance to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, which has been vying for supremacy with the al-Qaeda in the region,and vowed to send jihadists to help the ruthless terror group.

Oct 5: London: The Islamic State (ISIS) terror group plans to seize Iran's nuclear secrets, unleash a vicious campaign of ethnic cleansing and Nazi-style eugenics to consolidate and expand its self-declared caliphate, according to a seized policy manifesto of the dreaded outfit.

Oct 6: Washington: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj says that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has "very clear" priorities to forge good relations with neighbouring countries as part of his "fast track" diplomacy.

Oct 6: Melbourne: A new phase of the multimillion dollar search for the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 began in a refined zone in the remote Indian Ocean after a long pause, in a last ditch-effort to solve the greatest aviation mystery.

Oct 6: Stockholm: British-American researcher John O'Keefe won the Nobel Medicine Prize with a Norwegian couple, Edvard and May-Britt Moser, for discovering how the brain navigates.

Oct 7: Stockholm: Three Japanese-born researchers won the Nobel Prize for Physics for inventing the LED lamp, a boon in the fight against global warming and aiding people in poverty.

Oct 7: Washington: In view of a sudden spurt in anti-Hindu hate crimes, which includes a series of vandalism incidents and hate graffiti, in a suburb of Washington, US authorities have announced a reward of USD 21,000 for information leading to arrest of those responsible for it.

Oct 8: Berne/New Delhi: Under global pressure including from India, Switzerland began a process to put in place the necessary framework for automatic exchange of information on tax matters with the US, European Union and "further selected countries".

Oct 8: Stockholm: Americans Eric Betzig and William Moerner and German scientist Stefan Hell won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for developing new methods that let microscopes see finer details than they could before.

Oct 8: Beijing: China sharply reacted to India and the US expressing concern over the South China Sea dispute during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Washington, asserting that the maritime row should be resolved directly by parties concerned and no third party should meddle in it.

Oct 9: Islamabad: Under fire from Opposition leaders for not adequately responding to border crisis, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has called a meeting of the National Security Committee tomorrow to discuss with top military and civilian leaders the current situation.

Oct 9: Stockholm: Patrick Modiano of France, who has made a lifelong study of the Nazi occupation and its effect on his country, was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature.

Oct 9: Hong Kong: Crunch talks between Hong Kong democracy protesters and the government were called off just hours after demonstrators vowed to ratchet up their occupation of key parts of the city if their demands were not met.

Oct 10: Islamabad: Making a veiled reference to its nuclear capability, Pakistan sought immediate defusing of tension at the LoC saying "both countries are aware of each other's capabilities" and war was not an option.

Oct 10: London: Indian Nobel Peace Prize winner Kailash Satyarthi and Pakistan's Malala Yousafzai agreed to work jointly to build "strong relations" between their countries, amid growing tensions along the border.

Oct 11: Toronto: Indo-Canadian Nadir Patel has been appointed as Canada's new High Commissioner to India, a move aimed at strengthening the relationship between two countries.

Oct 12: Baghdad: A triple suicide bombing killed at least 58 people in Iraq as a roadside bomb killed the police chief of the western Anbar province, authorities say, attacks that dealt major blows to Iraqi security forces struggling to combat the Islamic State extremist group.

Oct 12: Islamabad: Stepping up its attempts to internationalise the Kashmir issue, Pakistan has written to the UN chief on the security situation along the LoC and the International Border with India and sought the world body's intervention in resolving the issue.

Oct 13: Stockholm: French economist Jean Tirole won the Nobel prize for economics for research on market power and regulation that has helped policy-makers understand how to deal with industries dominated by a few dominant companies.

Oct 14: Helsinki: Finland supported Indian candidacy for permanent membership of the expanded UN Security Council, saying a superpower like India should be represented in the powerful council of the world body.

Oct 14: Geneva: A World Health Organisation official says there could be up to 10,000 new cases of Ebola per week within two months.

Oct 14: Oslo: India and Norway signed over a dozen pacts to step up cooperation in defence, science and technology, education and other sectors, as President Pranab Mukherjee invited Norwegian companies to join the 'Make in India' initiative of the new government.

Oct 15: Helsinki: India and Finland signed 19 agreements including one for peaceful use of nuclear energy as well as management of radioactive waste from atomic power plants as President Pranab Mukherjee began his two-day visit to the key Scandinavian country.

Oct 15: Beijing: China sharply reacted to India's plans to construct a road network along the McMohan line in Arunachal Pradesh and expressed hope that India will not take any action which may complicate the situation before a final settlement is reached to end the boundary dispute.

Oct 15: United Nations: The Ebola outbreak is "winning the race" against attempts to contain it, chief of the UN mission working to stop the deadly virus has warned as he asked the international community to help expand on-the-ground efforts across the affected nations in West Africa.

Oct 16: Colombo: Sri Lanka expressed concern over an European Union court decision to strike down anti-terrorism sanctions against the LTTE imposed in 2006.

Oct 16: Kathmandu: At least 3 Indian trekkers were killed and 4 others rescued as the death toll in one of the worst snowstorms to hit Nepal's Himalayan mountain range reached 30.

Oct 16: Islamabad: Pakistan says India cannot afford to carry out "surgical strikes" inside the country as it is aware of Pakistan's response to any such action.

Oct 17: Hong Kong: Hong Kong riot police battled with thousands of pro-democracy protesters for control of the city's streets, using pepper spray and batons to hold back defiant activists who returned to a protest zone that officers had partially cleared.

Oct 17: London: India briefed the UK about the new government's initiatives to break out of a mould in which Indo-Pak relations have been stuck in the past and made it clear that it will continue the peace process but in an atmosphere bereft of any violence.

Oct 17: Abuja: Nigeria claimed to have reached a deal with Boko Haram militants on a ceasefire and the release of more than 200 kidnapped schoolgirls but doubts immediately surrounded the purported breakthrough.

Oct 18: London: Britain's Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, has assured visiting External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj of a more pragmatic visa regime during a "very productive meeting" here.

Oct 19: Singapore: More than 400 people on board a Singapore Airlines Airbus A380 superjumbo from Singapore to Mumbai had a narrow escape after it was hit by a sudden turbulence on descent, injuring 22 passengers and crew.

Oct 20: Islamabad: Continuing its attempts to internationalise the Kashmir issue, Pakistan has raised the matter with the UN chief, saying the world body's engagement would add to its credibility in managing crisis situations.

Oct 20: Sanaa: At least 60 people were killed in Yemen as clashes raged between Shiite rebels and al-Qaeda militants backed by Sunni tribesmen battling for territory in the strife-hit country, sources say.

Oct 20: Washington: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is immune from the human rights violation lawsuit filed against him for his alleged role in 2002 communal riots in Gujarat when he was the state's chief minister, the US says.

Oct 20: Baghdad: Iraq's top Shiite cleric gave his support to the new government battling the Islamic State group as militants unleashed a wave of deadly attacks on the country's majority Shiite community, killing at least 43 people.

Oct 21: Islamabad: Fiery cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri ended his over two months-long anti-government protest in the Pakistani capital but says demonstrations will now be held across the country as the "next stage of the revolution".

Oct 21: United Nations: In a significant victory, India was re-elected to the UN's main human rights body for the period of 2015-17, receiving the highest number of votes in the Asia-Pacific group.

Oct 21: Geneva/New Delhi: With India sticking to its tough stand, efforts to break the impasse in the WTO on trade facilitation agreement and food security issues proved futile and further consultations will continue over the week.

Oct 22: Ottawa: Canada's Parliament came under attack with a barrage of gunshots fired both inside and outside the building as security forces gunned down a man suspected of killing a soldier.

Oct 22: New York: India has made it clear that there is no question of it joining the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as a non-nuclear weapon state while reaffirming its commitment to check further proliferation of atomic weapons.

Oct 23: Geneva: Top Ebola experts raised grave concerns about the worsening epidemic in west Africa as the number of infections soared to almost 10,000 and the death toll edged closer to 4,900.

Oct 23: Islamabad: Pakistan's parliament unanimously passed a resolution against the alleged "unprovoked and indiscriminate" ceasefire violations by India and asked the government to seek UN intervention to resolve the Kashmir issue.

Oct 23: Beijing: China's ruling Communist Party vowed autonomy for Hong Kong where pro-democracy protesters have locked horns with the city administration for over a month on the election of next Chief Executive and stop interfering in the judicial process to make it more independent.

Oct 24: Cairo: At least 25 Egyptian soldiers were killed and 26 others injured in a major terrorist attack close to Israel and Gaza Strip borders in the restive North Sinai governorate.

Oct 24: United Nations: India has asked the UN Security Council to enforce its resolutions on countering terrorism "without exception", saying that condoning the use of terror on account of perceived political purposes is counter-productive to stem the growing spiral of violence.

Oct 25: Islamabad: Pakistan says that it will continue to trade with India despite tensions along the border casting a shadow on bilateral economic ties as no country can improve its relations without going into business.

Oct 25: Washington: In yet another tragic shooting in a US school, a student opened fire in a school cafeteria, killing one student and critically injuring four others before taking his own life, police says.

Oct 27: Rio de Janeiro: Leftist President Dilma Rousseff vowed to reconcile Brazil, reboot the economy and fight corruption after narrowly winning re-election in the most divisive race since the return to democracy in 1985.

Oct 27: Bangkok: Thailand's popular island resort of Phuket was on high alert after it was announced that former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh's killer, who is on the run might be trying to enter the country, a media report says.

Oct 27: Paris: The head of the UN's climate science panel urged national policymakers not to lose heart in the face of a mighty challenge to tackle global warming.

Oct 28: Beijing: China warned that it will firmly oppose any exploration activity in South China Sea if it undermines its "sovereignty and interests", hours after India inked a pact with Vietnam for exploration in two additional oil and gas blocks in the resource-rich area.

Oct 29: United Nations: India overwhelmingly won its re-election to the United Nations' body on economic and social issues, the win coming just a week after it got re-elected to the world body's human rights council.

Oct 29: Dhaka: Matiur Rahman Nizami, chief of Bangladesh's fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami, was sentenced to death by a special tribunal for war crimes he committed during the nation's independence war against Pakistan in 1971, triggering violent clashes between his supporters and police.

Oct 29: Berlin: Fifty-one countries signed an agreement to share financial data and boost efforts to crack down on tax evasion.

Oct 30: Ouagadougou: Burkina Faso's President Blaise Compaore was toppled as the army took power after protesters set parliament ablaze in a popular uprising against the veteran leader's 27-year-rule.

Oct 30: Colombo/New Delhi: Five Indian fishermen were given the death penalty by a Sri Lankan court for alleged drug trafficking, invoking a sharp reaction from India which took up the matter with Sri Lanka and said it would appeal to a higher court against the judgement.

Oct 30: Colombo: At least 10 people have been killed and nearly 160 others are feared to have been buried alive in Sri Lanka after a deadly landslide destroyed the homes of mostly Indian-origin tea plantation workers with slim chances of any survivors being found even as India offered help to deal with the disaster.

Oct 31: New York: Former Union Carbide chief Warren Anderson, wanted in India in connection with the 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy which claimed over 3,000 lives in one of the world's most lethal industrial accidents, has died in the US state of Florida aged 92.

Oct 31: United Nations: India has voted against the provisions of draft resolutions that would have required it to accede to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), saying there is "no question" of it joining the treaty as a non- nuclear weapon state.

Nov 1: Beijing: China successfully completed its first return mission to the moon with its unmanned orbiter landing back on Earth, becoming only the third country in the world to do so after the former Soviet Union and the US accomplished the feat about 40 years ago.

Nov 1: Los Angeles: Virgin's pioneering tourist-carrying spacecraft has crashed on a test flight in California, killing a pilot and scattering debris across the desert -- and raising questions about the programme's future.

Nov 1: Baghdad: Islamic State group extremists lined up and shot dead at least 50 tribesmen and women in Iraq's Anbar province, officials say, the latest mass killing committed by the group.

Nov 2: Dhaka: Top leader of fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami party and Bangladeshi media tycoon Mir Quasem Ali was sentenced to death by a special war crimes court for atrocities he committed during the 1971 independence war against Pakistan, days after the party's chief was given capital punishment on identical charges.

Nov 2: Wagah Border: At least 55 people, including 11 women and three security personnel, were killed and nearly 200 injured when a suicide attacker detonated a powerful bomb at Wagah in Pakistan, minutes after the popular flag-lowering ceremony at the main Indo-Pak land border crossing.

Nov 3: Dhaka: Bangladesh's Supreme Court upheld the death sentence given to a top fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami leader for mass murder and war crimes during the 1971 war of independence from Pakistan, the third verdict within a week that went against the party's stalwarts.

Nov 3: Lahore: At least 21 people, including a suicide-bomber, were arrested and explosives and a suicide vest recovered from Wagah border area as entire Pakistan was put on red alert after 61 people were killed in a deadly terror attack at the Indo-Pak land border crossing.

Nov 3: Male: India reaffirmed its commitment towards security, stability and prosperity of Maldives while favouring expansion of ties in areas like trade and investment.

Nov 4: Washington: In a blunt assessment of terrorist safe havens in Pakistan, the Pentagon has told the US Congress that the country is using militant groups as proxies to counter the superior Indian military.

Nov 4: United Nations: Recognising the threat of nuclear terrorism, India has called for effective international cooperation and responsible action by governments to strengthen nuclear security and prevent non-state actors from acquiring vulnerable atomic material.

Nov 5: Monaco: In a veiled attack on Pakistan, India says nations must refrain from hosting and encouraging terror activities and ensure that their territories are not used for setting up terrorist training camps.

Nov 5: Tokyo: Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was conferred with one of Japan's top national awards for his significant contribution to Indo-Japanese ties, becoming the first Indian to receive the rare honour.

Nov 5: Monaco: Seeking global cooperation in combating cyber-crime, India says social media is increasingly being used to instigate communal riots and women and children are equally vulnerable in cyberspace as in the real world.

Nov 6: Islamabad: Pakistan called Kashmiri separatists "freedom fighters", a day after Defence Minister Arun Jaitley asked the country to draw a red line and decide whether it wants to talk to Government or those who want to break India.

Nov 6: Islamabad: Pakistan reacted sharply to Defence Minister Arun Jaitley's remarks that it should decide whether to talk to India or to separatist Kashmiri leaders, saying it does not accept "any conditionality" in the dialogue process.

Nov 6: Washington: A day after a poll drubbing, US President Barack Obama struck a defiant tone saying he is ready to work with Republicans but could bypass Congress on his signature initiatives like immigration reforms that would allow 11 million illegal immigrants, including 2.4 lakh Indians, to stay in the country.

Nov 7: Thimphu: India says Bhutan and its security is "intricately interlinked" and it is important for the two neighbours to be sensitive to each other's concerns, as President Pranab Mukherjee held wide-ranging talks with the Bhutanese leadership.

Nov 7: Islamabad: Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar, a close confidant of Pakistan's Army Chief, took over as the new head of the powerful spy agency ISI.

Nov 7: Tel Aviv: Recognising the evolving global terror threats, India and Israel have resolved to deepen cooperation in fighting the menace and collaborate in the field of cyber security.

Nov 8: Thimphu: Terming his just-concluded state visit to Bhutan as very successful and his "most memorable", President Pranab Mukherjee hoped that bilateral relations between the two countries would continue to grow from strength to strength.

Nov 8: United Nations: The UN rights chief has accused Sri Lanka of sabotaging a UN-mandated probe into the country's nearly three decades-long brutal civil war, drawing a sharp reaction from Colombo as it dismissed the charges.

Nov 9: Berlin: Thousands of illuminated balloons sailed into the night sky today from the former route of the Berlin Wall, as German Chancellor Angela Merkel said its fall 25 years ago proved that "dreams can come true".

Nov 9: Tel Aviv: India is confident that the Islamic State militants will not be able to make a "big impact" in the country and the government is trying its best to prevent radicalisation among the youth, Home Minister Rajnath Singh has said.

Nov 10: Beijing: Amid growing big-power rivalries, China rolls out the red carpet for world leaders including US President Barack Obama at the APEC Summit which got off to a colourful start.

Nov 10: Washington: Six out of ten men in India have acted violently against their wives or partners at some point of time, with those facing economic woes more likely to perpetrate violence, says a new study highlighting prevalence of intimate partner abuse.

Nov 10: Beijing: In a diplomatic breakthrough, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Premier Shinzo Abe held their maiden talks, marking the "first step" towards mending ties between the two Asian rivals after years of territorial disputes and animosity due to wartime history.

Nov 11: Islamabad: At least 37 militants, including some foreign fighters believed to be involved in the deadly Wagah Border attack, are killed by Pakistani military which also lost six soldiers in the restive northwestern tribal region.

Nov 11: Kathmandu: India extends full support to Nepal to develop its transport system and infrastructure and suggested it to follow India's successful public-private partnership model in constructing roads and other development projects.

Nov 11: Washington: Nine American and Israeli victims of the 2008 Mumbai attacks have demanded a compensation of USD 688 million from the Pakistan-based perpetrators of the terror assault, including JuD chief Hafiz Saeed.

Nov 11: Nay Pyi Taw: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives here in the Myanmarese capital to attend the ASEAN and the East Asia summits on the first leg of his three-nation tour that will also take him to Australia and Fiji.

Nov 12: Darmstadt (Germany): Hundreds of millions of miles from Earth, a European spacecraft made history by successfully landing on the icy, dusty surface of a speeding comet - an audacious cosmic first designed to answer big questions about the origin of the universe.

Nov 12: Kathmandu: Indian Army Chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag meets with his Nepalese counterpart and other top military officers here and discussed ways to step up bilateral defence ties.

Nov 12: Nay Pyi Taw: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a brief interaction here with Barack Obama during which the US President called him a "man of action".

Nov 12: Nay Pyi Taw: Asserting that India and ASEAN have "no irritants" in their ties and can be "great" partners, Prime Minister Narendra Modi says there will be "major improvement" in India's trade policy and environment and proposes a special facility for speedy implementation of connectivity projects with the 10-nation bloc.

Nov 13: Nay Pyi Taw: Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposes SAARC-specific benefits like polio eradication and dedicated regional satellite to Myanmar, an observer in the eight-member South Asian grouping.

Nov 13: Nay Pyi Taw: Prime Minister Narendra Modi tells world leaders that his government accorded high priority to turn India's erstwhile "Look East" policy into an "Act East" policy.

Nov 13: Islamabad: Pakistan successfully test-fires a ballistic missile capable of carrying nuclear and conventional warheads to targets as far as 1,500 kilometres, bringing many Indian cities under its range.

Nov 13: Nay Pyi Taw: Ahead of next month's annual Indo-Russia summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Russian Premier Dmitry Medvedev who says India is a "close and valued" partner for his country.

Nov 14: Brisbane: The resolution of a row between India and the US over food subsidies is hailed as a "win-win" situation by leading industrialised countries -- Japan, the EU and the UK -- who expressed confidence that a landmark global trade pact stalled for months can now move forward.

Nov 14: Brisbane: After Yoga got a strong leg up on the world stage following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for observing an International Yoga Day, the European Union (EU) has backed the initiative.

Nov 15: Brisbane: As the US leads a sustained campaign against the dreaded terror outfit Islamic State (IS), Prime Minister Narendra Modi says success against global terror is within reach if countries adopt a common strategy.

Nov 16: Brisbane: German Chancellor Angela Merkel utilised a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to raise the move to drop German as an alternative to Sanskrit as a third language in Kendriya Vidyalayas and was assured it would be looked into within the confines of the Indian system.

Nov 16: Brisbane: Prime Minister Narendra Modi was accorded a red carpet welcome as he kicked off his first bilateral visit to Australia, unveiling a bronze statue of Mahatma Gandhi with the message that he is as relevant now as he was during his time.

Nov 16: Brisbane: In a major gain for India, the G20 summit endorsed the need for transparency and disclosure by countries of tax information as Prime Minister Narendra Modi voiced support to the new global standard on automatic exchange to tackle the black money issue.

Nov 17: Islamabad: Pakistan successfully test-fired a nuclear capable ballistic missile with a range of 900 kilometers, days after testing a similar missile capable of hitting targets as far as 1,500 kilometers, bringing many Indian cities under its range.

Nov 17: Sydney: Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured a visa on arrival facility for Australian tourists and announced a two-month deadline for the long-pending merger of OCI and PIO status to woo the Indian diaspora from whom he sought support for his ambitious Clean India campaign.

Nov 18: Canberra: Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted Australian lawyer John Lang's 1854 petition on behalf of Rani Lakshmibai against the East India Company to his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott.

Nov 18: Canberra: India and Australia agreed on a landmark framework for security cooperation across the spectrum in defence, cyber and maritime security and combating terrorism, including the threats posed by foreign fighters joining extremists groups.

Nov 19: Suva: India's Pacific Ocean outreach gained traction with the announcement of a slew of Lines of Credit and development assistance totalling USD 80 million for Fiji and a visa on arrival for all the 14 island countries in the region during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit.

Nov 19: Colombo: Five Indian fishermen sentenced to death in Sri Lanka for alleged drug trafficking were released after President Mahinda Rajapaksa pardoned them.

Nov 19: London: Terming slavery and child trafficking the "biggest scandal of our times", Indian Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi launched a new campaign here to end the menace posed by the trafficking "mafia".

Nov 20: New York: Describing the composition of an unreformed UN Security Council as "anachronistic", India says the legitimacy of the United Nations itself will be at stake if its most powerful body is not representative of the international community.

Nov 20: Islamabad: Ignoring India's opposition, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif says Pakistan will hold dialogue with Kashmiri separatists to take them into confidence before engaging in peace talks with India.

Nov 20: Paris: Breaking its silence, India took a positive stand at a multilateral forum on the issue of phasing down of climate damaging hydroflurocarbons (HFCs) but asked the UN to produce reports of country-wise production and consumption of the greenhouse gas over last decade.

Nov 21: Washington: President Barack Obama bypassed Congress to announce the most sweeping reform to fix America's "broken" immigration system to protect 5 million illegal workers from deportation, a move that could also benefit thousands of Indian techies seeking the Green Card.

Nov 21: Washington: For the first time, a US President will be the Chief Guest at India's Republic Day Parade with President Barack Obama accepting an invitation in this regard.

Nov 21: Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif asks US President Barack Obama to take up the Kashmir issue with the Indian leadership when he travels to India in January next year.

Nov 22: Nairobi(Kenya): Al-Shabab militants from Somalia hijacked a bus in Kenya's north and killed 28 non-Muslims on board after they had been singled out from the rest of the passengers, police officials say.

Nov 23: Tokyo: Helicopter surveys showed more extensive damage than earlier thought from an overnight earthquake in the mountainous central Japan area that hosted the 1998 Winter Olympics

Nov 23: Beijing: China partly commissioned its largest hydropower station in Tibet, built on the Brahmaputra river, that could restrict the flow of water in the major river in the riparian regions in India and Bangladesh.

Nov 23: Vatican City: Father Kuriakose Elias Chavara and Sister Euphrasia from India were among six conferred Sainthood by Pope Francis at a special canonisation mass here, a moment of elation and spiritual fervour for the Christians in India.

Nov 24: Washington: US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel resigned amid reports of differences with President Barack Obama who apparently wants to install a new leadership at the Pentagon as he enters the last two years of his presidency facing new global challenges like the rise of IS.

Nov 24: Dhaka: Bangladesh's Supreme Court rejected appeals by main opposition leader and former prime minister Khaleda Zia, clearing the way for her trial on graft charges which could see her jailed for life if found guilty.

Nov 25: Kathmandu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with his Nepalese counterpart Sushil Koirala on key strategic issues after which ten agreements, including a pact on USD 1 billion assistance to Nepal, were inked.

Nov 25: Kathmandu: India and Nepal inked an agreement to construct a USD one billion hydropower plant on Arun river to generate 900-megawatt of electricity in the power starved Himalayan nation.

Nov 26: Kathmandu: Outlining India's initiatives in key sectors for South Asia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a series of announcements for SAARC countries - from granting business visa for 3-5 years to immediate medical visa -- and assured all possible help to the grouping.

Nov 26: Kathmandu: Amid continued strain in ties, Pakistan says it does not see any prospect of having structured talks with India in the near future and made it clear that the ball is in India's court to initiate dialogue.

Nov 26: Kathmandu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held bilateral talks with all Heads of Government and State attending the 18th SAARC Summit here with Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif the only conspicuous exemption.

Nov 27: Kathmandu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other SAARC leaders headed for Dhulikhel in Kavre district, 20 km east from, for a retreat as they are expected to make a last ditch effort to push Pakistani premier Nawaz Sharif to ink the regional connectivity agreements.

Nov 27: Sydney: Promising Australian batsman Philip Hughes succumbed to his head injuries that he sustained during a domestic match, leaving the cricket fraternity in shock over the huge tragedy.

Nov 27: Kathmandu: Unequivocally condemning terrorism, India, Pakistan and six other SAARC countries underlined the need for effective cooperation among them to combat the menace and decided to establish a cyber crime monitoring desk to stop high-tech illegal activities.

Nov 28: Islamabad: A day after a handshake with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif says that talks with India should not be at the cost of his country's "dignity, self-respect and reputation".

Nov 28: Kano(Nigeria): At least 120 people were killed and 270 others wounded when two suicide bombers blew themselves up and gunmen opened fire during weekly prayers at the mosque of one of Nigeria's top Islamic leaders.

Nov 29: Beijing: Fifteen people were killed and 14 others injured when militants armed with knives and bombs attacked crowds at a food street in China's restive northwestern Xinjiang province, official media reported.

Nov 29: Adelaide: With the cricket world mourning Phillip Hughes' tragic death, next week's first Test between India and Australia was pushed back to an unspecified date to let the players attend the late batsman's funeral scheduled on Wednesday in his hometown.

Nov 29: Cairo: Ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was acquitted of a murder charge by a court which found him not guilty in the killing of hundreds of unarmed protesters during the 2011 revolution that toppled the former strongman's nearly three decades-long regime.

Nov 30: Kathmandu: Afghanistan's new regime has expressed unhappiness over India's delay in supply of military hardware as it grapples with intensified Taliban attacks ahead of the US-led NATO troop drawdown from the war-torn country.

Nov 30: Ferguson (US): The white American policeman who shot dead an unarmed black teenager in the St Louis suburb of Ferguson has resigned, but it failed to deter angry protesters demanding justice and reform.

Nov 30: Islamabad/Beijing: China and Pakistan have kicked off their multi-billion dollar Economic Corridor project that passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) by laying the foundation of a fenced four-lane motorway, setting in motion a mammoth project connecting the two countries.

Dec 1: Lima (Peru): Officials from over 190 nations, including India, converged here at the UN climate summit to negotiate on a new ambitious and binding deal to cut global carbon emissions, in the last chance to reach on a historic deal to be signed next year in Paris.

Dec 1: Dhaka: Three Myanmar nationals have been arrested here in connection with the Burdwan blast, as India and Bangladesh stepped up the hunt for the conspirators along their borders to nab over 100 militants of the outlawed JMB.

Dec 2: Lima (Peru): Amid rising emissions and 2014 threatening to be the hottest year in history, India and representatives from over 190 nations began talks at the UN climate summit on a new ambitious and binding deal to cut global carbon emissions ahead of next year's deadline.

Dec 2: Cairo: An Egyptian court sentenced 188 people to death pending the opinion of the country's top religious authority, the latest mass death sentence handed down by the country's judicial system despite widespread international criticism.

Dec 3: Dhaka: A close aide of fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim was arrested after he completed a five-year jail term in Bangladesh and was sent to police custody for questioning over possible terror links.

Dec 3: United Nations: India, along with the US and Pakistan, has voted against a provision in a UN resolution calling on to "promptly" accede to the NPT as non-nuclear-weapon nation "without conditions" and to place all its nuclear facilities under IAEA safeguards.

Dec 3: Kano: More than 150 people, including 38 police, died in a Boko Haram raid on the northeast Nigerian city of Damaturu this week, police, a rescue official and a health worker said.

Dec 4: Washington: US President Barack Obama praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's efforts to shake up the "bureaucratic inertia" in India, less than a month after he described the Indian leader as a "man of action".

Dec 4: Lima (Peru): Telling rich nations that they cannot be absolved of their past "sins", India demanded that they should compensate developing nations for the effects their greenhouse gas emissions have had on climate.

Dec 5: Cape Canaveral (US): The US space agency's Orion capsule blasted off today on its first journey into orbit, in a key test flight before carrying people to deep space destinations like Mars in the coming years.

Dec 5: Male/New Delhi: With the Maldives facing a national crisis after a fire in its capital's lone water treatment plant, India sent nearly 200 tonnes of water by air and dispatched a naval vessel carrying a large consignment of water and RO facility to the island nation.

Dec 5: Washington: The Indo-US defence relationship may now get personal attention with strong India-backer Ashton Carter being nominated by President Barack Obama for the key post of the Defense Secretary.

Dec 6: Male/New Delhi: India has sent over 1,200 tonnes of fresh water to the Maldives that is facing a crippling water crisis after its capital's main water treatment plant got damaged in a fire.

Dec 6: Washington: Ahead of Russian President Vladimir Putin's India visit, the US has said it would not impact President Barack Obama's trip to the country in January but warned now was not the right time to do business with Russia.

Dec 7: Male: An Indian Navy vessel and an Air Force aircraft carrying nearly 1,000 tonnes of fresh water reaches here as India mounts a major effort to help the Maldivian capital that is reeling from an acute shortage of drinking water after its lone desalination plant caught fire.

Dec 7: Lima: With the two-week annual climate summit here reaching its half-way mark, India says that it does not support an ex-ante review of its intended nationally determined contributions as it is an issue of sovereignty.

Dec 7: United Nations: UN chief Ban Ki-moon has called on India, the world's third-largest emitter, to spell out its nationally determined commitment on reducing emissions by June, saying a "constructive" role played by it will make a universal climate agreement possible in Paris next year.

Dec 8: Cape Town: British-Indian millionaire Shrien Dewani, accused of hiring hitmen to kill his Indo-Swedish bride during their honeymoon here in 2010, is acquitted by a South African court that dismissed the case against him, ending a four-year-long dramatic murder saga.

Dec 8: Islamabad: Pakistan reacts sharply to India's assertion that terrorists from across the border were responsible for the recent deadly attacks in Kashmir and that Islamabad's support to Mumbai terror attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed is nothing short of "mainstreaming of terrorism".

Dec 8: New York: Arvind Kejriwal assures his supporters in the US that he will not repeat the "mistake" of resigning if the Aam Aadmi Party returns to power in Delhi and dismisses the notion that the party is falling apart, saying the brakes and clutch of his AAP bus are working fine.

Dec 9: Karachi: Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf says friendship with India could only be "possible on equal terms" without sacrificing the country's self-respect.

Dec 9: Moscow: Terming the ties with India as a "privileged strategic partnership", Russian President Vladimir Putin discloses that construction of new nuclear plants besides military and technical cooperation was high on the agenda during his visit to New Delhi.

Dec 9: Oslo (Norway): Child rights activists Kailash Satyarthi and Pakistan's Malala Yousafzai says the Nobel peace prize gives them tremendous opportunity in their fight and struggle for children's rights.

Dec 10: Lima: India pitches for finance and technology for developing nations from developed countries to deal with challenges posed by climate change, amidst intense negotiations here to agree on a new ambitious and binding deal to cut global carbon emissions.

Dec 10: Colombo: Ahead of next month's snap polls, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa suffers another setback as he lost his government's two-thirds majority in the Parliament after two parties of Indian-origin Tamils in the ruling coalition joined forces with the opposition.

Dec 10: Oslo: Sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan and his sons Amaan and Ayaan perform at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert here after India's Kailash Satyarthi and Pakistan's Malala Yousafazi are honoured with the prestigious award.

Dec 11: United Nations: Less than three months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi proposes the idea, the UN General Assembly adopts an India-led resolution declaring June 21 as 'International Day of Yoga', recognising that "Yoga provides a holistic approach to health and well-being."

Dec 11: Islamabad: Pakistan says India has no "choice" other than implementing the UN resolutions on the Kashmir issue and demanded an "impartial plebiscite".

Dec 12: London: The Hinduja Group, in partnership with a Spanish industrial company, acquires UK's iconic Old War Office building that was once occupied by the country's war-time Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

Dec 12: Washington/Sydney: The visit to India by Sergey Aksyonov, Head of the Republic of Crimea, accompanying Russian President Vladimir Putin has raised the hackles in the West with the US saying it was "troubled" by the news and an an angry Ukrainian President decrying it.

Dec 13: Kabul: Taliban insurgents killed at least 20 people in a series of gun and suicide attacks in Afghanistan, underlining worsening security as US-led NATO forces end their combat mission in the country.

Dec 13: Moscow: Russia responded angrily to news that US senators had passed a bill calling for fresh sanctions against Moscow and the supply of lethal military aid to Ukraine.

Dec 14: Tokyo: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe won comfortable re-election in a snap poll he had billed as a referendum on his economic policies, but a record low voter turnout threatened to cloud any mandate.

Dec 14: Lima: Negotiators adopted a compromise draft for national pledges to cut global carbon emissions at marathon UN climate talks here that addressed all of India's concerns and paved way for a new ambitious and binding deal to be signed in Paris next year to combat climate change.

Dec 15: Sydney: A 17-hour-long hostage drama in which a lone heavily-armed man of Iranian-origin held 17 people hostage at a cafe here ended late tonight with the police storming it, resulting in three deaths but two Indians who were among the captives escaped safely.

Dec 15: Lahore: Pakistan Opposition Leader Imran Khan gave a 48-hour deadline to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to constitute a judicial commission to investigate the alleged rigging of 2013 elections as his party workers blocked all major roads, cutting the city from rest of the country.

Dec 16: Sydney: Two hostages who have been killed in the 17-hour-long hostage drama at a cafeteria here were identified as the manager of the Lindt Chocolate cafe and a lawyer.

Dec 16: Sydney: Prime Minister Tony Abbott led a shocked nation in mourning the death of two Australians who lost their lives at the cafe siege here that ended with the killing of lone Iranian-born ISIS sympathiser who took 17 people hostages, including two Indians.

Dec 16: Peshawar: As many as 141 people, nearly all of them school children, were massacred when heavily armed Taliban suicide bombers stormed a Pakistan army-run school here, firing indiscriminately, leaving another 130 injured.

Dec17: Peshawar: Shaken by the Taliban terror attack in which 148 people, including 132 school children, were killed here yesterday, Pakistan pledged to announce a "national plan" to tackle terrorism within a week with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif saying "this entire region" should be cleaned of terrorism.

Dec 17: Peshawar: Seven more adults wounded in the brutal terror attack on a school run by Pakistan army here succumbed to their injuries today, taking the number of those fallen to the bullets of Taliban militants to 148, most of them children.

Dec 17: Beijing: The Dalai Lama conceded that he may be the last one to hold the top spiritual title in Tibetan Buddhism, even as he blamed "hardliners" in Beijing for holding back President Xi Jinping from taking an objective look at his demand for genuine autonomy for Tibet.

Dec 18: Moscow: President Vladimir Putin vowed that Russia would rapidly recover from its financial crisis and says his grip on power was firm, even as new Western sanctions and a run on the ruble pile on the pressure.

Dec 18: Peshawar: Taliban chief Mullah Fazlullah, his deputy Khalid Haqqani and 14 of the top commanders of the militant group have been named in an FIR in the Peshawar school massacre, even as investigators visited the site, collected evidence and recorded statements from the survivors.

Dec 19: Colombo: Sri Lanka's main opposition pledged to have closer ties with India that would be neither "anti-Indian nor dependent" if they win the January presidential polls against incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Dec 19: Islamabad: Mumbai attack planner Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, whose bail from a court sparked an outrage in India, was blocked from coming out of a Rawalpindi jail as Pakistan government detained him for three months under a preventive detention law.

Dec 19: Havana: Cuba's parliament unanimously ratified a deal reached between Havana and Washington normalising relations after a half-century of hostility.

Dec 20: Washington: Richard Rahul Verma, who quietly played a key role in the Congressional passage of the civil nuclear deal and a strong advocate of deepening Indo-US ties, has been sworn in as the US Ambassador to New Delhi, becoming the first ever Indian-American to hold the post.

Dec 20: Islamabad: Pakistan says that Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, a key planner of the 2008 Mumbai attack, has not been released from jail and a petition challenging the bail given to him is being firmed up.

Dec 21: New York: Two New York police officers were executed at point-blank range in their patrol car by a black man here with an apparent grudge before committing suicide with the same gun, officials say, amid weeks of nation-wide protests over police killings of unarmed black men.

Dec 22: Lagos: A bombing at a bus station in northeast Nigeria killed at least 20 people, as Boko Haram was blamed for a separate attack in the embattled region.

Dec 22: United Nations: A UN Security Council panel has issued a "revised" letter removing the term 'sahib' from the name of Mumbai terror attack mastermind and JuD chief Hafiz Saeed, saying it regrets the mistake after India objected to the use of the salutation.

Dec 23: Islamabad: For the first time, Pakistan and Russia have signed an energy deal worth USD 1.7 billion to lay a gas pipeline from Karachi to Lahore, a move that may lead to further improvement in their ties.

Dec 23: Lahore: Malik Ishaq, dreaded chief of banned LeJ that has carried out attacks on minority Shias and the mastermind of the assault on the Sri Lankan cricket team in 2009, has been released after three years in jail with the Pakistan government not seeking an extension of his detention.

Dec 23: Peshawar: The death toll in the brutal Taliban attack on a school run by Pakistan army here rose to 150 with two more children succumbing to their injuries.

Dec 24: Tokyo: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe promised at the start of his new term to revive Japan's economy so he can pursue "powerful diplomacy", but China's state media warned him to be wary about changing the pacifist constitution.

Dec 24: Washington: In the latest incident to fuel tension between US police and the black community, a teenager was shot dead by a white officer in a suburb of St Louis, ground zero of a new protest movement

Dec 25: Lahore: Set to be released, banned militant outfit Lashkar-e-Jhangvi's chief Malik Ishaq has been remanded to judicial custody in a murder and terrorism case pending against him by a Pakistani court for two weeks.

Dec 25: Vatican City: Pope Francis roundly condemned jihadist violence and the "brutal persecution" of religious minorities in a Christmas message to the world's 1.2 billion Catholics and millions of others.

Dec 26: Peshawar: A senior Taliban commander, believed to be a key planner in the Peshawar school massacre, has been killed by the security forces in Pakistan's troubled Khyber Agency.

Dec 26: Paris: With India expected to spend over USD 200 billion in the next decade to modernise its military, French defence firms are eyeing a piece of the cake and are ready to "adapt" to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Make in India' push.

Dec 26: Islamabad: Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the key planner of 2008 Mumbai attacks, challenged his detention under a public security order in the high court here after the Pakistan government rejected his plea seeking release.

Dec 27: Lahore/Karachi: PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari stayed away from Pakistan as his mother and former premier Benazir's death anniversary was observed today across the country, giving credence to reports that he is having serious differences with his father Asif Ali Zardari.

Dec 28: Jakarta/Singapore: An AirAsia plane with 162 people on board went missing en route from Indonesia to Singapore today after pilots requested a change of flight plan due to bad weather, triggering a massive search in the third major incident this year involving a Malaysian carrier.

Dec 29: Seoul: In boost to their strategic ties, India and South Korea decide to enhance cooperation in sectors like shipbuilding, electronics, defence production, infrastructure and energy besides outlining mutual interest in areas of nuclear energy and cyber security.

Dec 29: Islamabad/New Delhi: Mumbai attacks mastermind Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi's detention under a public security order was suspended today by a Pakistani court, evoking sharp reaction from India which said Pakistan remained a safe-haven for well-known terror groups.

Dec 30: Jakarta/Singapore: After three days of intense search, debris of the missing AirAsia aircraft carrying 162 people was found today in the Java Sea off Indonesia but only three bodies have been retrieved so far as mystery remained over the cause of the crash.

Dec 30: Islamabad: Mumbai attack mastermind Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi is arrested for kidnapping a man six years ago, stalling his release a day after a Pakistani court suspended his detention under a public security order drawing India's ire.

Dec 31: United Nations: The UN Security Council fails to adopt a Palestinian statehood resolution that set a deadline for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Palestinian territories by 2017.