Live: Putin backs Iran in talks with Araghchi, vows Middle East peace push

Iran's foreign minister says Russia trip opportunity to coordinate after war

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Monday that his trip to Russia offered an opportunity to coordinate with Moscow after the war with Israel and the United States.

Araghchi made the comments in a pretaped interview posted by the state-run IRNA news agency.

“It is a good opportunity for us to consult with our Russian friends about the developments that have occurred in relation to the war during this period and what is happening now,” he said.

Araghchi said it was America's approach that “caused the negotiations to be delayed” that had been planned in Islamabad.

“The previous one, despite the progress that had been made, could not achieve its goals,” he said, blaming what he called Washington's “excessive demands.” Trump has questioned who is in charge in Iran at the moment and said confusion within its theocracy made it difficult to reach a deal.

Iran's foreign minister arrives in Russia

Iran's top diplomat arrived on Monday in Russia ahead of a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The state-run IRNA news agency said Abbas Araghchi landed in St. Petersburg for his meeting with Putin.

Araghchi has visited Islamabad twice and Muscat, Oman, on the foreign trip as negotiations with the US appear stalled over the Iran war.

Rupee falls 11 paise to 94.27 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee depreciated 11 paise to 94.27 against US dollar in early trade on Monday driven by persistent dollar demand and a broader shift toward safe-haven assets.

Forex traders said the Indian rupee has hit a rough patch, falling for five consecutive sessions, weighed down by a combination of factors such as the RBI loosening its grip on currency rules and rising oil prices caused by global tensions.

Moreover, investors are becoming cautious again, with foreign institutions pulling money out of the market after a brief period of buying amid rising geopolitical uncertainty.

At the interbank foreign exchange market the rupee opened at 94.25 against the US dollar, then lost some ground and touched 94.27 against the US dollar in initial trade, registering a fall of 11 paise over its previous close. On Friday, the rupee had settled at 94.16 against the American currency.

ED raids in case against former Punjab Police DIG Bhullar, linked entities

The Enforcement Directorate on Monday conducted searches at multiple locations in Punjab as part of a money laundering probe against former state police DIG Harcharan Singh Bhullar and entities linked to him, officials said.

They said about 11 premises in Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Patiala, Nabha and Jalandhar linked to the accused, his associates and suspected benamidars (the owner in whose name a benami property is held) are being covered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) probe stems from a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) case registered against Bhullar on allegations that he sought illegal gratification through a middleman for settlement of a criminal case, along with detection of assets disproportionate to known sources of income.

The searches aim to trace further proceeds of the alleged crime, identify benami assets and gather evidence related to money laundering, ED officials said.

Bhullar, who was serving as the deputy inspector general (DIG) of police (Ropar Range), was arrested by the CBI in October 2025 after a scrap dealer alleged that bribe was demanded from him through an intermediary to settle a case.

Death toll in Mundathikode fireworks explosion rises to 16

Sun Pharma to acquire US-based Organon & Co

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd on Monday said it will acquire US-based Organon & Co in an all-cash deal at an enterprise valuation of USD 11.75 billion.

The company has signed a definitive agreement under which Sun Pharma will acquire all outstanding shares of Organon for USD 14 per share in an all-cash transaction with an enterprise valuation of USD 11.75 billion, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries said in a statement.

Organon is a global healthcare company formed through a spinoff from Merck, known as MSD outside of the US and Canada, in 2021.

Trump on shooting incident: Wasn't worried

US President Donald Trump said he wanted to see what was happening when Secret Service agents hustled him out of the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner on Saturday night after a gunman opened fire at the hotel.

In an interview with CBS '60 Minutes', Trump described the chaotic moments that ensued after shots were fired at the Washington Hilton hotel, one floor above the basement-level ballroom, which was the venue of the annual dinner.

“I wasn’t worried. I understand life. We live in a crazy world,” Trump said when asked how worried he was about possible injuries after hearing the gunshots.

The US President said his curiosity to see for himself what was happening probably slowed the Secret Service’s efforts to rush him to safety.

“I wanted to see what was happening. I wasn’t making it that easy for them. I wanted to see what was going on. And by that time we started to realise maybe it was a bad problem, different kind of problem, a bad one – and different than what would be normal noise from a ballroom,” he said.

“I was surrounded by great people. And I probably made them act a little more slowly. I said, ‘Wait a minute, wait a minute’,” the President recalled, adding that the Secret Service agents had to repeatedly tell him to go down on the floor as they exited the stage.

“I started walking. And they said, ‘Please go down, please go down on the floor.’ So I went down and the first lady went down also,” Trump said.

Malian defence chief killed as jihadis, rebels seize towns, military bases

Mali's defence minister was killed in a sweeping attack by jihadis and rebels who seized several towns and military bases, authorities said Sunday.

This was the latest violence in the junta-run country that has long battled militants linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group as well as a separatist rebellion in the north.

The Malian government confirmed the death of the defence chief, Gen. Sadio Camara, in a post on the defence ministry's Facebook page, and expressed its condolences to his family.

State-run television also broadcast the announcement of his death by spokesman Gen. Issa Ousmane Coulibaly.

Mali was struck on Saturday by one of the biggest coordinated attacks on its army in the capital, Bamako, and several other cities and towns in an assault that also challenged Mali's security partner, Russia, which has forces on the ground in the West African country.

The government said Sunday the attacks appear to be over, but several questions remain, including who was in control of a key northern city that the separatists claim to have taken.

The government has not provided a death toll from Saturday and previously said only that at least 16 people were wounded in what it denounced as terror attacks.

The separatists have been fighting for years to create an independent state in northern Mali, while al-Qaida and IS-aligned militants have been fighting the government for over a decade.

Magnitude 6.2 earthquake shakes part of northern Japan

A magnitude 6.2 earthquake shook part of northern Japan early Monday, but no damage or casualties have been reported.

No tsunami advisory was issued by the Japan Meteorological Agency.

The quake struck 18 kilometres west of the small town of Sarabetsu on Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido at a depth of 81 kilometres, according to the US Geological Survey. It measured the quake's strength at 6.1 magnitude.

A week ago, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake prompted Japan to issue an advisory of a slightly higher risk of a possible megaquake for the nation's northeastern coastal areas.

Iran Foreign Minister Araghchi to meet Russian President Putin

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will visit Russia today and meet President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

Araghchi on Sunday landed in Pakistan for the second time in three days and met Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir in Islamabad before departing for Russia amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks with the US.

Araghchi, who left Islamabad on Saturday after talks with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Munir and other top officials, came from Oman where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.

Geo News quoting sources reported that Araghchi left for Moscow after the brief visit.

There was no official word from Pakistan about the meeting which apparently focused on the ongoing peace efforts by Islamabad to arrange the second round of talks between the US and Iran.

The first round of peace talks held on April 11 and 12 failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.

The Iranian leader arrived at Nur Khan Airbase in Rawalpindi after completing a day-long visit to Oman, the Dawn newspaper reported quoting sources.

Araghchi would convey "Iran's positions and views on the framework of any understanding to completely end the war", Geo TV reported quoting Iranian news agency ISNA.

After Araghchi left for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.

Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.