Author: News Desk

Perth: Tens of thousands of residents across Western Australia were impacted as a powerful storm battered the state’s west coast, causing widespread damage, power outages, and dangerous weather conditions. Authorities warned that the most severe impacts of the weather system were still expected to occur later in the day. The intense low-pressure system was forecast to generate destructive wind gusts of up to 125km/h across Perth and several coastal communities in Western Australia. Images of storm damage quickly circulated on social media, including photographs from Mandurah showing a shed apparently blown into a swimming pool by the strong winds. https://twitter.com/BOM_au/status/2060925460981350646…

London: Doctors have welcomed what they describe as ‘unprecedented’ results from an international clinical trial showing that a new triple-action cancer injection can significantly shrink, and in some cases completely eliminate, tumours in patients whose disease had stopped responding to existing treatments. The drug, known as amivantamab, was tested in patients whose cancer had either spread or returned after standard therapies, including chemotherapy and immunotherapy, had failed. Conducted across 11 countries, the trial delivered encouraging outcomes for a group of patients with very limited treatment options. Among 102 patients with head and neck cancer enrolled in the study, tumours shrank…

California: Shrey Parikh, a 14-year-old eighth-grade student from Rancho Cucamonga, California, won the 2026 Scripps National Spelling Bee after a dramatic spell-off finale in which he correctly spelled 32 words within 90 seconds to secure the championship title and a $50,000 cash prize. Parikh defeated Ishaan Gupta, a 12-year-old seventh-grader from Jersey City, New Jersey, who correctly spelled 25 words from the same list during his turn in the rapid-fire tiebreak round. The two finalists advanced to the decisive spell-off after surviving 18 intense rounds on the final day of competition without making a spelling mistake. View this post…

Cape Canaveral: A rocket developed by Blue Origin exploded during a test at its launch facility in Florida, sending a massive fireball into the sky and prompting an investigation into the incident. Video footage captured the rocket erupting into flames on the launchpad at Cape Canaveral during a hotfire test conducted ahead of an upcoming mission. In a statement posted on social media, Blue Origin noted that it had experienced an ‘anomaly’ during the test and confirmed that all personnel had been accounted for safely. https://twitter.com/blueorigin/status/2060172114796204539 The company, founded in 2000 by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, said there was no…

Harare: Zimbabwe is facing a sharp rise in malaria cases and deaths following major US foreign aid cuts that disrupted key disease prevention, treatment, and research programmes across the country. The increase comes after the administration of Donald Trump reduced international assistance programmes shortly after returning to office for a second term in 2025, including initiatives supported by the United States Agency for International Development. The funding reductions affected several health programmes in Zimbabwe, including malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment efforts. Among the programmes impacted were the Zimbabwe Entomological Support Programme in Malaria (ZENTO) at Africa University, which…

London: The ongoing UK heatwave has prompted renewed water safety warnings across the country as record-breaking temperatures continue to draw people to rivers, lakes, and coastal areas. Safety organisations and emergency services have urged the public to remain cautious when entering open water during the UK heatwave, warning that water temperatures remain dangerously cold despite the unusually hot weather conditions. The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) warned of the “very real risk” associated with swimming in open water during the UK heatwave. Steve Instance, water safety lead for the charity, said waters around the UK remain “very much winter temperatures,”…

Dharamshala: Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) stormed into the Indian Premier League (IPL) final after a dominant 92-run victory over Gujarat Titans (GT) in Qualifier 1, powered by an unbeaten 93 from captain Rajat Patidar, keeping the defending champions on course for a second consecutive title. Chasing a massive 255, the highest target in IPL playoff history, the Gujarat Titans faltered early and were bowled out for 162 in 19.3 overs, never really recovering against Bengaluru’s disciplined bowling attack. Batting first, RCB made a strong start, reaching 76 for 1 in the powerplay, as Krunal Pandya and Patidar took full advantage…

San Francisco: Apple and Google urged Canadian lawmakers to amend a proposed online safety bill, warning that the legislation could allow authorities to issue secret orders requiring companies to weaken the encryption of software and devices without public disclosure or judicial oversight. The proposed legislation, known as Bill C-22, was introduced by Canada’s ruling Liberal Party and is currently under debate in the House of Commons. The bill is similar to measures adopted in countries such as Britain and Australia that aim to provide law enforcement agencies with greater access to encrypted communications and data. Canadian authorities have argued that…

London: Senior doctors in Britain have warned that the impact of social media on children should be treated as seriously as public health risks such as smoking and road safety, and they called on lawmakers to strengthen protections for young people online. The concerns were raised by the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges in its submission to the UK government’s consultation on online child safety. The organisation represents 23 royal medical colleges and faculties across the UK and Ireland. The medical body said excessive and unrestricted exposure to technology and digital devices is increasingly affecting the physical and mental well-being…

Stanford: Researchers have developed a wearable ultrasound patch designed to continuously monitor babies in the womb, a breakthrough that could help doctors identify pregnancy complications earlier and improve maternal and foetal care. The scientists behind the innovation explained that existing ultrasound monitoring methods have several limitations. Current systems used to continuously track foetal heart rates and uterine contractions often produce high levels of false alarms, while traditional handheld ultrasound scans can only provide limited snapshots during scheduled hospital visits and require trained professionals to operate them. Sheng Xu, a senior author of the study from Stanford University, said current diagnostic…