Hamas said on Wednesday that it had submitted a proposal to Israel, through mediators, for a comprehensive prisoner-for-hostage swap based on the principle of "all for all" as part of ongoing negotiations.

A senior Hamas official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the proposal calls for "the immediate release of all Israeli prisoners held by Hamas in exchange for Israel releasing all Palestinian prisoners in its custody."

The official did not specify whether the proposal is part of the first phase of the agreement or linked to the upcoming second phase of negotiations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump could meet as early as this month, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday.

"The Western media write a lot, our media write a lot ... Maybe, or maybe not," said Peskov when asked whether Putin and Trump could meet before the end of February.

The meeting would require some preparation from the Russian foreign ministry, he said.

Russian and US officials held talks on Tuesday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held talks with the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and US special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff.

In yet another incident of health workers being attacked in Pakistan, unknown gunmen killed a police officer while he was providing security to the polio vaccination team in Damadola, Mamund, Bajaur district of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

As per Bajaur police officials, gunmen on motorbikes attacked the polio vaccination team which was engaged in a door-to-door vaccination campaign to give polio drops to children. The police official deployed to guard the polio team was shot dead by the attackers who later fled the scene. Police officials confirmed that the policeman died on the spot.

Bajaur district, a restive region bordering Afghanistan, has been one of the strongholds of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and a battlefield between the militant groups and the Pakistani security forces. The area has been known for being sensitive, critical and unwelcoming towards polio eradication campaigns with polio workers, security forces and their supporters being regularly targetted and killed by militants.

The United States on Wednesday severely criticised the "dangerous maneuvers" by a Chinese Navy helicopter towards a Philippines aircraft on Tuesday.

"We condemn the dangerous maneuvers by a PLA Navy helicopter that endangered pilots and passengers on a Philippine air mission," US Ambassador to the Philippines, MaryKay Carlson posted on X, while condemning the act.

The Philippines Coast Guard said that the Chinese Navy helicopter flew within three metres (10 feet) of a surveillance flight carrying a group of journalists over the contested Scarborough Shoal.

"Around 0839 hours, a People's Liberation Army Navy (PLA-Navy) helicopter performed dangerous flight maneuvers towards the BFAR aircraft. This reckless action posed a serious risk to the safety of the pilots and passengers during the MDA flight," read a statement issued by the Philippines Coast Guard.

Bhutan's Minister for Industry, Commerce, and Employment Lyonpo Namgyal Dorji on Tuesday inaugurated a project funded by India that will further strengthen energy security and distribution in the land-locked country.

The development of Garmani Eastern Petroleum Oil Lubricants Depot (POL) in Monggar, which was inaugurated by Dorji, was taken up as an India-Bhutan friendship project under Trade Facility Support (TFS), the India Embassy in Thimphu posted on X.

The milestone project, which cost 324.684 million Bhutanese Ngultrum, reflects meticulous planning, dedicated efforts, and a significant step forward in ensuring reliable fuel supply to Bhutan.

The newly-built residential and emergency infrastructure will significantly improve the capacity to storage and distribution of fuel and LPG, ensuring preparedness for natural disasters and emergencies, detailed Bhutan's Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Employment.

The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) announced that its forces had made advancements in their fight against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on different fronts.

In the fight in Bahri city, north of the capital Khartoum, the SAF has taken full control of the Kafouri area, the last stronghold of the RSF in the city.

"The SAF special forces at Al-Markhiat Military Base are advancing steadily ... in the Kafouri neighbourhood after successful, intense operations, cleaning the area of the militia forces," the SAF said in a statement on its Facebook page.

The capture of the Kafouri area marks a significant milestone in the army's military campaign across the major cities of Khartoum, Omdurman, and Bahri.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday revealed that a Russian drone hit the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, the site of the infamous 1986 nuclear disaster.

The drone hit occurred on the night of February 13, and Zelensky shared footage of the aftermath on social media platform X, drawing attention to the devastating implications of this strike.

Zelensky stated, "Last night, a Russian attack drone, armed with a high-explosive warhead, struck the shelter that protects the world from radiation at the destroyed fourth reactor of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. This shelter was a collaborative effort built by Ukraine alongside European countries, the United States, and the global community — all of whom are committed to ensuring real security for humanity."

He went on to condemn Russia's actions, asserting, "The only country in the world that would attack such sites, occupy nuclear power plants, and wage war with no regard for the consequences is today’s Russia. This is not just an attack on Ukraine, but a terrorist threat to the entire world."

Six workers died and 25 others were injured in a fire at a hotel construction site in South Korea's southeastern port city of Busan on Friday, authorities said.

The fire started at the Banyan Tree hotel under construction at approximately 10:50 a.m., presumably from insulating material loaded near a swimming pool on the first floor of one of the three buildings on the site, according to the Busan firefighting headquarters.

The flames were mostly extinguished by around 1:30 p.m., firefighters said.

Pakistan is grappling with a resurgence of polio virus as several new cases have been reported over the past few weeks. The National Institute of Health reported the country’s second case of Wild Poliovirus Type 1 (WPV1) when a sample from Sindh’s Badin district tested positive at its laboratory in Islamabad.

Last week, environmental samples collected from 26 districts confirmed the presence of WPV1. The positive samples collected from these areas that tested positive for polio put children at huge risk of contracting the disease.

Polio is still an endemic disease in Pakistan alongside Afghanistan, the last two countries in the world where the crippling disease persists. The challenges such as security issues, vaccine hesitancy, and misinformation have slowed progress in eradicating polio in Pakistan despite global efforts, maintains Pakistani authorities.

The US will seek to prioritise and boost defence and energy sales to India, senior White House officials said Thursday previewing a meeting later in the day between President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The officials also said the two leaders will build on the accomplishments of the American leader’s first term and focus their conversation when they meet later in the day, focusing on key areas of defence, trade, energy, infrastructure and regional partnerships.

The two leaders are expected to put back on track talks regarding a trade deal, picking up perhaps from where they left off in Trump's first term. The attempt will be to put together a deal in 2025, senior Trump administration officials said previewing the meeting.

The two leaders will meet in person for the first time after President Trump's return to the White House for a non-consecutive second term; his first lasted from 2017 to 2021. They have spoken on the phone two times, once in November and then again in January.