News brief: Big stories of the day

Rafale deal was done with national security as a priority, says Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament

Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman defended the government's move to buy Rafale fighter jets declaring that the country's "national security" was the government's top priority.

Willing to work with India to enhance communication in international affairs: China

China on Friday said "practical" cooperation with India is on a fast track since the last year's Wuhan summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping and expressed readiness to work with New Delhi to uphold the rights of the two countries at a time of global uncertainty.

Watch: Tropical storm Pabuk makes landfall in southern Thailand; 1 dead

Tropical storm Pabuk made landfall in Pak Phanang district of Nakhon Si Thammarat province accompanied by torrential downpours and strong winds in 15 provinces in Thailand's southern coast.

Data of politicians leaked, including of Chancellor Merkel: German government

Private data stolen from hundreds of German politicians, including Chancellor Angela Merkel, have been released online, the government said Friday.

Penalty of Rs 58 lakh on telecom service providers for call drop: Telecom Minister Manoj Sinha

The government has initiated steps to check call drops and penalty of Rs 58 lakh crore was imposed on telecom service providers, including Idea and BSNL, Telecom Minister Manoj Sinha said in Rajya Sabha on Friday.