Following are the top foreign stories at 1700 hours

FGN23 CHINA-VIRUS-INDIA-VISA Coronavirus: India cancels valid visas to Chinese, foreigners who visited China in last two weeks Beijing: As the coronavirus death toll mounted to 425, India on Tuesday further tightened visa rules by cancelling the existing visas for Chinese and foreigners who had visited the country in the last two weeks.

FGN6 CHINA-\RVIRUS -2NDLD TOLL

Death toll in China's coronavirus jumps to 425, confirmed cases soar to over 20,000 Beijing: The death toll in China's coronavirus rose sharply to 425 with 64 deaths on Monday alone while 3,235 new confirmed cases were reported, taking the number of those infected with the deadly disease to 20,438, Chinese health authorities said on Tuesday.

FGN43 MALAYSIA-IMRAN-PALMOIL

Pak to buy more Malaysian palm oil to 'compensate' after row with India: Imran Kuala Lumpur: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday thanked Mahathir Mohamad for "speaking up" on the Kashmir issue and promised to do his best to buy more Malaysian palm oil to "compensate" it after India restricted the import of the commodity from the country amid a diplomatic row.

FGN39 MALAYSIA-IMRAN

Imran Khan meets Malaysian PM; expresses regret over not attending summit of Muslim nations Kuala Lumpur: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday regretted not attending a recent summit of Muslim nations hosted by Malaysia, saying there was "misconception" among some countries that it would divide the global Muslim community, according to media reports.

FGN31 US-IOWA-LD TRUMP

President Trump triumphs in Iowa caucuses Washington: US President Donald Trump, seeking reelection, on Monday coasted to victory in the 2020 Iowa Republican caucuses, trouncing his two lesser-known ruling Republican Party rivals.

FGN29 LANKA-DAY-RAJAPAKSA

Will not allow extremist organisations to be active in Sri Lanka: Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa Colombo: Sri Lanka will not allow extremist organisations to be active in the country, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa vowed at the Independence Day ceremony on Tuesday during which his government dropped the rendering of the national anthem in Tamil for the first time since 2016.

FGN42 LANKA-RAJAPAKSA-INDIA India, Lanka expected discuss trade, defence during Premier Mahinda Rajapaksa's visit

Colombo: India and Sri Lanka are expected to discuss trade, defence and maritime security initiatives and finalise the implementation agenda for a USD 450 million line of credit offered by New Delhi during Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa's first overseas visit from February 7-11, according to a media report.

FGN22 UN-INDIA-CANCER

One in 10 Indians will develop cancer during their lifetime: WHO United Nations: India had an estimated 1.16 million new cancer cases in 2018, according to a report by the World Health Organization (WHO), which said that one in 10 Indians will develop cancer during their lifetime and one in 15 will die of the disease.

FGN37 HK-2NDLD \RVIRUS Hong Kong virus patient dies as local transmissions increase

Hong Kong: Hong Kong on Tuesday became the second place outside mainland China to report the death of a coronavirus patient as officials said they feared local transmissions were increasing in the densely populated city.

FGN41 SINGAPORE-LD VIRUS Singapore announces first local coronavirus transmissions

Singapore: Singapore on Tuesday announced the first local transmissions of the deadly coronavirus from China as a major aviation conference was scrapped due to the escalating health scare.

FGN25 PAK-MUSHARRAF

Pak lawyer moves SC against high court verdict of suspending Musharraf's death sentence Islamabad: A Pakistani lawyer has approached the Supreme Court to set aside the verdict of a high court that annulled the death sentence of self-exiled former dictator Pervez Musharraf.