Author: i2wtc

This report is from this week’s The Tech Download newsletter. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.Banking, payments, enterprise and consumer services in the UAE experienced outages earlier this week as AWS (Amazon Web Services) data centers in the country were hit by Iranian drone strikes on Sunday.Many of the apps have since come back online after companies scrambled to migrate servers, but the downtime of services that many use daily highlights how digital infrastructure has become a strategic target.After the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran last weekend, Tehran’s wave of retaliatory attacks across the Middle East…

Heavy arms and ammunition seized from retreating Taliban forces are displayed amid ongoing Operation Ghazab Lil Haq. ISLAMABAD: Security officials said on Thursday that Pakistan’s ongoing Operation Ghazab Lil-Haq against terrorist networks in Afghanistan would continue until credible guarantees are provided that terrorism would no longer be supported from across the border. Ties between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban have been at their lowest level since the group assumed power four years ago. On Feb 22, Pakistan carried out overnight strikes on terrorist camps and hideouts in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar and Paktika provinces. The Afghan Taliban subsequently launched unprovoked attacks along…

KOLKATA: South African coach Shukri Conrad on Wednesday made no excuses and called his team’s nine-wicket defeat by New Zealand in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup a “walloping”. South Africa, the 2024 runners-up, were unbeaten going into the knockout match in Kolkata but were blown away after New Zealand chased down their target of 170 with 7.1 overs to spare. New Zealand opener Finn Allen hit the fastest-ever T20 World Cup century in 33 balls to send his team through to the final in Ahmedabad on Sunday. Often called “chokers” for failing in the knockouts of top global…

Move comes amid Section 144 restrictions on drone use, protests following Khamenei’s assassination LAHORE: In a first for the country, the Punjab government has decided to establish dedicated anti-drone units in every district of the province, marking a significant step towards modernising law enforcement capabilities for aerial surveillance and counter-terrorism. The newly formed units will conduct aerial surveillance across their respective districts using specialised drone fleets. An anti-drone system equipped with jammers capable of disabling hostile or unauthorised drones will also be deployed. Read: Punjab to launch Safe City project in Katcha areas Both the anti-drone units and the systems…

TOPSHOT – US President Donald Trump (L) and China’s President Xi Jinping arrive for talks at the Gimhae Air Base, located next to the Gimhae International Airport in Busan on October 30, 2025. Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will seek a truce in their bruising trade war on October 30, with the US president predicting a “great meeting” but Beijing being more circumspect. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP) (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images) Andrew Caballero-reynolds | Afp | Getty ImagesChina’s opposition to the U.S. and Israeli war on Iran is stoking tensions between Beijing and…

FT says some Gulf states have started internal reviews whether force majeure clauses can be invoked Smoke billows from Zayed port after an Iranian attack, following United States and Israel strikes on Iran, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, March 1, 2026. Picture taken with phone. PHOTO: REUTERS Gulf states could review their overseas investments and future commitments as they consider options to ease pressure on their budgets following the US-Israeli attacks on Iran, the Financial Times reported on Thursday. FT Exclusive: Pressure on the Gulf states’ budgets could cause them to review their overseas investments and future commitments as…

UNICEF said 168 girls were killed when a strike hit the Shajareh Tayyebeh Girls’ Elementary School in MinabAn Iranian flag is planted in the rubble of a police station, damaged in airstrikes in Tehran, Iran. PHOTO: REUTERS The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) has voiced deep concern over the deadly toll the ongoing military escalation in Iran is taking on children, saying around 180 children have reportedly been killed and many more injured. In a statement, UNICEF said 168 girls were killed when a strike hit the Shajareh Tayyebeh Girls’ Elementary School in Minab, southern Iran, on February 28 while…

Israeli military claims carried out 26 strikes; IRGC conducts Operation True Promise 4United States President Donald Trump in a video address on February 28. PHOTO: SCREENGRAB Israel carried out heavy air strikes on Hezbollah-controlled southern suburbs of Beirut and started a “broad-scale” wave of attacks against infrastructure in Tehran on Friday, while Iran said it targeted the heart of Tel Aviv with missiles. Explosions and flashes lit up the night sky over Beirut’s southern suburbs. The Israeli military said it had carried out 26 waves of strikes overnight in the southern suburbs, saying targets included Iran-backed Hezbollah militia command centres and weapons storage facilities. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Kheibar missiles were fired toward Tel Aviv on Friday…

Bangladesh on Thursday recalled Litton Das and Afif Hossain to their 15-member squad for the three-match one-day international (ODI) series against Pakistan starting next week. Pacers Nahid Rana and Shoriful Islam also returned as the selection panel, led by Gazi Ashraf Hossain, made several changes to the squad that last played an ODI series against the West Indies in October. Jaker Ali, Shamim Hossain, Nurul Hasan and Nasum Ahmed were dropped, while Tanzim Hasan Sakib and Hasan Mahmud were ruled out through injury. Litton last played an ODI in July against Sri Lanka before missing the series against Afghanistan in…

WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 14: U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) speaks alongside U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) at a news conference on border security outside of the U.S. Capitol Building on November 14, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesU.S. Representative Tony Gonzales, a Texas Republican, will not seek re-election, he said on Thursday, following calls from top House Republicans to drop his bid due to allegations that he had an affair with a former staff member who later died by suicide.”After deep reflection and with the support of my loving family, I have decided not to seek re-election while serving out the rest of this Congress…