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[00:00:09] This is your Daily Dose of News from Onmanorama. I'm your host Vaishnavi and these are the major news stories of Tuesday, February 11, 2025. The Gaza ceasefire in place since January 19 is facing increasing strain after Hamas criticised US President Donald Trump's warning, claiming it further complicates the agreement with Israel.
[00:00:32] Trump threatened that all hell would break out if Hamas failed to release all Israeli hostages by the weekend. International efforts to salvage the ceasefire were ramped up. Hamas leaders argued that Trump's threats were unhelpful and urged him to push Israel to honour the agreement. At the India-Israel Business Summit, Israeli Ambassador Reuven Azar announced that the Israeli government will create a protocol
[00:01:01] to offer infrastructure tenders to Indian companies. He proposed signing a mutual investment agreement between the two countries. Azar outlined plans to have a Treasury delegation finalise the agreement in March, with further steps in May to establish a financial protocol for offering infrastructure tenders to Indian firms. Venezuela sent two planes to bring nearly 200 undocumented migrants back from the United States,
[00:01:30] signalling a potential new beginning in relations with Washington, which does not recognise Nicolas Maduro as the illegitimate president. This move follows an agreement between Maduro and a US envoy in January to accept deported migrants, with Venezuela offering transportation. Between October 2024 and January 2025, the Indian rupee depreciated by 3.3% against the US dollar,
[00:01:59] a decline that was lower than some other Asian currencies, such as the South Korean won and Indonesian rupee, which fell by 8.1% and 6.9% respectively. This depreciation was driven by a 7% rise in the US dollar index and global uncertainties, particularly around US election results. The Indian stock market saw a significant crash, with the Sensex and Nifty dropping over 1.3% in afternoon trading,
[00:02:29] as US President Donald Trump announced plans to impose 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports. The Sensex fell nearly 1,000 points to around 76,300, while the Nifty slipped below 23,100. The Supreme Court ruled that lottery distributors are not required to pay service tax to the union government, upholding the Sikkim High Court's decision and dismissing an appeal by the centre.
[00:02:59] The court stated that there is no agency relationship between the lottery distributors and purchasers, and therefore service tax cannot be imposed. Only state governments have the authority to tax lotteries, as they fall under betting and gambling in the state list of the constitution. That brings us to the end of this episode. Thanks for listening to Daily News Toes, hosted by me Vaishnavi and produced by Kannan. Follow on Manorama.com for detailed updates on the latest news, and be sure to come back tomorrow. Thank you.