Qamar Munawer

Qamar Munawer is an editor at The Eastern Herald covering heritage, travel, tourism, immigration, visas, business and economic developments, with a focus on practical and internationally relevant stories across these areas.

A wrecked wooden boat lies on a beach under a stormy sky after a migrant shipwreck off Djibouti

Djibouti Takes In Yemen’s Refugees as a Migrant Boat Sinks the Other Way

Djibouti took in about 4,000 Yemeni refugees in a week as the Houthi advance reached Mokha, and a migrant boat bound for Yemen sank off its coast with 139 dead and 84

October 14, 2026

by Qamar Munawer

An aerial view from orbit of the River Thames winding through east London past Canary Wharf and London City Airport

HSBC’s Islamic Fund Holds $131m in Five Firms Linked to Israel’s Military

Middle East Eye says HSBC's Islamic Global Equity Index Fund holds about $131 million in RTX, Palantir, Analog Devices, Honeywell and Rolls-Royce, which it links to Israel's military. The fund tracks an index, and HSBC has not responded to questions

October 14, 2026

by Qamar Munawer

Young women working at laptops in a skills class in Damascus, Syria

UN Warns 800 Million Young People in Developing Countries Face No Jobs

UNDP chief Alexander De Croo says only about 400 million of 1.2 billion young people entering

Three Social Security cards fanned out on a pile of 20-dollar bills

Social Security’s 3.6% Raise for 2027 Barely Keeps Pace With Inflation

More than 75 million Americans will get a 3.6 percent Social Security raise in January, about

A diver beside an amphora on a rocky seabed at the shipwreck site near Kekova Island

Turkey Says It Found a Shipwreck 800 Years Older Than Its Last ‘Oldest’

Turkey's culture minister says archaeologists have found the world's oldest known shipwreck near Kekova Island, estimated at 4,400 to 4,700 years old. The date rests on pottery and earlier surveys, the hull

October 14, 2026

News·Science

President Donald Trump gesturing with both hands as he speaks outdoors

Trump Says Taiwan Agreed to Buy 30% of Alaska LNG for 20 Years

Trump told an Alaska campaign rally that Taiwan has agreed to buy 30% of the gas from a planned pipeline for 20 years, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick put Taiwan's investment at

October 14, 2026

Business·Government and Politics·News

Jamaican Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith speaks at a lectern in front of the Jamaican flag at Jamaica House

Jamaica Takes First US Third-Country Deportee Flight Under a Secret Deal

Jamaica received its first third-country deportation flight from the US on Tuesday, 22 people bussed to an undisclosed location. The government calls it a transit point but has not published the memorandum,

October 14, 2026

Government and Politics·News

An IMF official speaking in an office atrium in the IMF's video release of the October 2026 Global Financial Stability Report

IMF Sees Hormuz Reopening Only in March 2027, and the Gulf Pays for It

The IMF now assumes the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until March 2027, and the Gulf economies carry the cost: Saudi Arabia is forecast to shrink 3.3 percent this year, Kuwait

October 13, 2026

Business·Economy·News

Masked federal immigration agents including ICE officers during an enforcement operation

ICE Told to Add 1,000 Arrests a Day as Midterms Near, DHS Denies Quotas

ICE leaders have told agents to raise immigration arrests by 1,000 a day, restoring a 3,000-a-day goal, CNN reports. The Department of Homeland Security says there are no quotas.

October 8, 2026

Government and Politics·News

Vice President JD Vance speaks at a news conference on visa fraud and PERM suspensions

US Freezes Green-Card Filings for Microsoft, Adobe and Six IT Giants in Visa Crackdown

The Trump administration has halted new and pending PERM labour certifications for Microsoft, Adobe and six outsourcing firms. Microsoft says most of its H-1B filings were for staff it already employs.

October 8, 2026

Business·Government and Politics·News

Department of Homeland Security headquarters Washington DC where the F-1 J-1 Duration of Status rule eliminating open-ended student visa status was finalized

US Ends Duration of Status for F-1 and J-1 Students as September 15 Deadline Arrives

The Trump administration's elimination of the Duration of Status designation for F-1 and J-1 visa holders takes effect September 15, 2026, after Congress let its 60-day review window expire without action. Roughly

September 5, 2026

Government and Politics·News

Tourists at a Thai airport check-in counter as Thailand cuts visa-free stay to 30 days

Thailand Cuts Visa-Free Stay to 30 Days for 60 Countries Starting September 15

Thailand's Ministry of Interior formally cut visa-free stays from 60 to 30 days for citizens of 60 countries, effective September 15, 2026, following four Royal Gazette regulations published August 31. Digital nomads

September 1, 2026

News·Travel

H-1B visa application form on desk with pen

September Visa Bulletin Warns EB-1 India Could Go Unavailable Before Fiscal Year Ends

The State Department's final Visa Bulletin of fiscal year 2026 holds India's EB-1 Final Action Date at October 15, 2022 and warns that high demand could push the category to Unavailable before

September 1, 2026

Government and Politics·News

Sundair aircraft arrives at Damascus International Airport on inaugural Berlin-Damascus flight, August 2026

Sundair Restores Berlin-Damascus Direct Flights After 15 Years, Opening Route for Germany’s Syrian Diaspora

German charter airline Sundair launched the first direct flight between Berlin and Damascus in nearly fifteen years on August 15, 2026. For Germany's 790,000-strong Syrian diaspora, the twice-weekly route ends a decade

August 30, 2026

News·Travel

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Qamar Munawer

Djibouti Takes In Yemen’s Refugees as a Migrant Boat Sinks the Other Way

HSBC’s Islamic Fund Holds $131m in Five Firms Linked to Israel’s Military

UN Warns 800 Million Young People in Developing Countries Face No Jobs

Turkey Says It Found a Shipwreck 800 Years Older Than Its Last ‘Oldest’

Trump Says Taiwan Agreed to Buy 30% of Alaska LNG for 20 Years

Jamaica Takes First US Third-Country Deportee Flight Under a Secret Deal

IMF Sees Hormuz Reopening Only in March 2027, and the Gulf Pays for It

ICE Told to Add 1,000 Arrests a Day as Midterms Near, DHS Denies Quotas

US Freezes Green-Card Filings for Microsoft, Adobe and Six IT Giants in Visa Crackdown

US Ends Duration of Status for F-1 and J-1 Students as September 15 Deadline Arrives

Thailand Cuts Visa-Free Stay to 30 Days for 60 Countries Starting September 15

September Visa Bulletin Warns EB-1 India Could Go Unavailable Before Fiscal Year Ends

Sundair Restores Berlin-Damascus Direct Flights After 15 Years, Opening Route for Germany’s Syrian Diaspora

Radical Islam is being appreciated by Indian authorities too

Bangladesh; India’s Biggest Ally or China’s Dragon Nest?

Ahmadis in Bangladesh face fresh threat of persecution

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