Following are the top foreign stories at 2100 hours:

Following are the top foreign stories at 2100 hours:

FGN21 IMF-INDIA-AADHAAR

India should take steps to ensure privacy in biometric identification programmes: IMF

Washington: The IMF says India should take necessary measures to ensure privacy and security controls while implementing large identification programmes like the Aadhaar, as the global financial body identified India as a leader in the biometric identification system. By Lalit K Jha

FGN19 UK-SPY-LD CHEMICAL

Chemical weapons watchdog confirms UK findings in Russian ex-spy case

London: The international chemical weapons watchdog confirms the UK's findings that the source of the military-grade nerve agent used to target the former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter in the English city of Salisbury originally came from Russia. By Aditi Khanna

FGN22 PAK-INDIA-SAARC

Pak accuses India of 'scuttling' SAARC summit

Islamabad: Pakistan accuses India of "scuttling" the process to reconvene the SAARC summit in Islamabad and "holding hostage" the development and economic progress of the whole region. By Sajjad Hussain

FGN23 BANGLA-COURT-RAPE

Bangladesh's HC bans two-finger test on rape victims

Dhaka: A Bangladeshi High Court bans the derogatory "two-finger test" on rape victims, saying it has no scientific and legal merit. By Anisur Rahman

FGN17 US-INDIANS-MISSING

Search continues on swollen US river for SUV matching missing Indian family's vehicle

Los Angeles: Authorities in California have set up a joint incident command centre to trace the occupants of a vehicle that was swept away in flood waters, a week after four members of an Indian family went missing in the area.

 

FGN16 CHINA-INDIA

Sushma, Sitharaman scheduled to be in Beijing on same day on April 24

Beijing: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman are scheduled to be in Beijing on April 24 to attend different meetings of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and interact with their counterparts from the member states. By K J M Varma

FGN13 RAJAN-DEMONETISATION

Demonetisation was 'not a good idea': Raghuram Rajan

New York: RBI's former governor Raghuram Rajan says he had made it quite clear to the government that the demonetisation was "not a good idea" and that its implementation was "not well-planned" since 87.5 per cent of the currency was being demonetised. By Yoshita Singh

FGN11 ZUCKERBERG-HEARING

My data also harvested, sold by Cambridge Analytica: Zuckerberg

Washington: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg tells US lawmakers that his personal data was also harvested and sold by Cambridge Analytica and he intends to initiate legal action against the British firm accused of stealing personal information and using it for political purposes. By Lalit K Jha

FGN10 US-INDIAN-TERRORISM

Indian engineer in US pleads guilty to raising money for top al-Qaida leader

Houston: A 38-year-old Indian engineer in the US state of Ohio, accused of funding a top al-Qaida leader, pleads guilty to concealment of financing of terrorism.

FGN9 US-CHINA-LD POMPEO

China continues its provocations in South, East China seas: Pompeo

Washington: China continues its provocations in the South and East China seas and is making a "concerted" effort to compete with the US, CIA Director Mike Pompeo has warned while identifying Russia as a "danger" for America. By Lalit K Jha

FGN7 FACEBOOK-ZUCKERBERG-USERS

No significant increase in Facebook users deactivating their account: Zuckerberg

Washington: The Cambridge Analytica scandal in which personal data of over 87 million Facebook users, including 500,000 Indians, was compromised, has not hit the social media platform in a significant way in terms of people deactivating their accounts, company CEO Mark Zuckerberg says. By Lalit K Jha

FGN6 PAK-HINDUS

Act against those who hurt Hindus' religious sentiments: Pak Speaker to Interior Minister

Islamabad: Pakistan's National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq asks the interior ministry to crack down on any individual or groups involved in posting blasphemous material about the Hindu religion, after the minority community leaders protested against a wave of online hate speech hurting their religious sentiments. By Sajjad Hussain

FGN18 LANKA-LD MINISTERS

6 Sri Lankan ministers quit Sirisena-led unity govt

Colombo: Six ministers of President Maithripala Sirisena- led unity government in Sri Lanka resign, days after they voted in favour of a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

FGN20 RUSSIA-SPY-OPCW

Moscow says will not accept conclusions of OPCW on spy poisoning

Moscow: Moscow says it would not accept the conclusions of the world's chemical arms watchdog on the poisoning of a former spy in England unless Russian experts could access the samples used.