Politics
Prince Rahim Aga Khan V inks MoUs on climate change, culture on first visit to Kenya
Prince Rahim Aga Khan V has commenced an official visit to Kenya from August 25 to 27 at the invitation of President William Ruto — marking his first official visit to East Africa, following his accession in February this year as the 50th hereditary Imam of the Ismaili Muslims.
Received by President Ruto, Aga Khan V discussed the long-standing warm relations between the Ismaili Imamat and Kenya and the priorities for future cooperation.
Apart from the two dignitaries signing an agreement to reaffirm the deep and long-standing partnership between the Ismaili Imamat and the Government of Kenya, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on general cooperation was also signed to deepen cooperation on issues such as environmental conservation, climate change, urban rehabilitation and cultural heritage.
The agreements support Kenya’s priorities for the coming years, which seek to stimulate grassroots economic activity, create opportunities and improve livelihoods for all Kenyans.
Expressing his views at the occasion, Aga Khan V said: “Our goal is to work alongside the [Kenyan] government as you tackle the emerging challenges of climate change, urban regeneration and delivery of public services”.
“Our approach will be to ensure that our programmes are meaningfully aligned with Kenya’s national priorities and the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda.
“As in the past, we will continue to mobilise not only our own institutional capacity and resources, but also those of our international partners and investors, for Kenya’s benefit,” he said.
Meanwhile, President Ruto remarked, “This moment is both historic and symbolic. It affirms Kenya’s deep appreciation of the enduring legacy of the Ismaili Imamat, whose service to humanity has long been a pillar of our national journey.”
“For decades, the Aga Khan Development Network has been a trusted ally in Kenya’s development: establishing hospitals and schools that save lives and nurture talent; investing in hospitality, media and insurance to spur growth and create jobs; and advancing cultural and environmental initiatives that safeguard our heritage and strengthen communities,” the president added.
Furthermore, President Ruto formally conferred Kenya’s highest civilian honour, the Chief of the Order of the Golden Heart (C.G.H.) upon Aga Khan V. The award recognises “distinguished and outstanding services to the nation,” and was first announced in March 2025.
Indian police this week seized 414 cooking‑gas canisters hidden in a graveyard in Hyderabad city and arrested those involved in trying to sell them on the black market amid shortages due to the Iran war, a government official said on Thursday.
Authorities have stepped up raids to curb hoarding of liquefied petroleum gas canisters after the US-Israeli war against Iran disrupted shipping, causing supply shortages. India, the world’s No 2 LPG importer, meets about 60% of its demand through overseas purchases, mostly from the Middle East.
“Just yesterday, around 2,600 raids were carried out and about 700 cylinders were seized,” Sujata Sharma, a senior official in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, told a regular briefing on the Middle East crisis.
“In addition, around 400 cylinders were recently found at one location inside a graveyard in Hyderabad. Ten people have been detained there, and the distributor involved has been suspended,” she said.
Police said the accused had been selling both commercial and domestic canisters from the graveyard at nearly three times the current market price. A commercial canister that costs about 2,100 Indian rupees ($22) had been sold for as much as 6,000 rupees.
The total value of the seized canisters and some vehicles used by the accused was nearly 2.2 million rupees, police said. Reuters could not immediately contact the accused or their representatives.
“The supply of natural gas to domestic consumers is 100% assured,” Sharma said. “With regard to LPG supply, prices have remained stable despite international volatility, and there has been no increase in the price of domestic LPG cylinders.”
To ease the pressure on LPG supplies, India has been promoting the use of alternatives such as kerosene, coal and biogas, while accelerating the rollout of piped natural gas for households.
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump made fun of the French president and his wife during a private lunch Wednesday, as he lambasted Nato allies for not joining the war against Iran that has roiled the Middle East.
“We didn’t need them, but I asked anyway,” Trump told a private lunch in a video posted briefly on the White House YouTube channel before access was blocked.
“I call up France, Macron — whose wife treats him extremely badly. Still recovering from the right to the jaw,” Trump said.
He was referring to a May 2025 news video that appeared to show Brigitte Macron shoving the French president’s face on a trip to Vietnam, which Macron later rejected as part of a disinformation campaign.
“And I said, ‘Emmanuel, we’d love to have some help in the Gulf even though we’re setting records on knocking out bad people and knocking out ballistic missiles. We’d love to have some help. If you could, could you please send ships immediately,'” Trump continued.
He then mimics a French accent to give Macron’s alleged answer: “‘No no no, we cannot do that, Donald. We can do that after the war is won,'” he said.
“I said, ‘No no, I don’t need after the war is won Emmanuel,'” Trump said.
“So I learned about Nato — Nato won’t be there if we ever have the big one, you know what I mean by the big one,” Trump said, without elaborating.
He also branded Nato a “paper tiger,” the latest salvo by Trump and his top officials against the transatlantic alliance since he returned to the White House last year.
On Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States “is going to have to reexamine” its relationship with Nato once the war against Iran has concluded.
Former Iranian foreign minister Kamal Kharazi was seriously wounded in a strike that also claimed the life of his wife, Iranian media reported.
Still an adviser to the government, Kharazi had given an interview to CNN a few weeks ago.
According to the newspapers Shargh, Etemad and Ham Mihan, his home in Tehran was targeted on Wednesday in a US-Israeli strike.
He was badly injured and hospitalised following the attack, the outlets said.
Kharazi had served as foreign minister from 1997 to 2005 under reformist ex-president Mohammad Khatami.
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