News brief: Big stories of the day

The Maldives on Saturday conferred Prime Minister Narendra Modi with its highest honour accorded to foreign dignitaries - the Most Honourable Order of the Distinguished Rule of Nishan Izzuddeen (Order of Nishanizzuddeen) in recognition his services to cement the longstanding, amicable ties between two countries and for the magnanimous assistance that India has continued to provide the Maldives.

Amidst new peace overtures from the Imran Khan government after the re-election of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the White House has made it clear to Pakistan that the onus for sustained peace in South Asia was on it by putting the terror groups out of business.

Additional sanctions imposed on Iran by the United States show that Washington's offer of talks is not genuine, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Saturday.

Iran is keeping up oil sales through "unconventional" means to circumvent US sanctions, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said in an interview published Saturday.

Sri Lanka's President has sacked the national intelligence chief and will not cooperate with a parliamentary investigation into security lapses before the Easter suicide bombings, officials said Saturday.