Author: News Desk

United States: American tech giant Google will pay $93 million to settle a lawsuit for misleading consumers about the tracking and storage of their location information. The settlement was announced by the California attorney general (AG), Mr. Rob Bonta. The company has misled consumers into believing they had more control over their location information than they actually did. “Our investigation revealed that Google was telling its users one thing: that it would no longer track their location once they opted out, but doing the opposite and continuing to track its users’ movements for its own commercial gain. That’s unacceptable, and…

Russia: Russian President Mr. Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Mr. Kim Jong Un gifted each other rifles at a space center in Russia. The Russian leader also presented his counterpart from Pyongyang with a glove from a cosmonaut’s space suit. Traveling onboard his armored train from North Korea, Mr. Kim met with Mr. Putin at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in the Amur region of the Russian Far East, where the two leaders greeted each other warmly. The Kremlin stated that Mr. Kim’s visit to Russia’s Far East would last “a few more days.” Asked whether the two had exchanged gifts,…

France: Footballers in Spain’s women’s top league, Liga F, have cancelled their strike that delayed the first week of matches. This decision comes after an agreement on wages was reached, as announced by both unions and the league. “Liga F and the unions have reached an agreement regarding the minimum wage that allows the strike to be called off,” said Liga F in a statement. Last week, five unions, including AFE and Futpro, organized a strike that affected the first two rounds of fixtures. “The deal is in regard to the minimum wage, the main cause of the strike, –…

Afghanistan: China has become the first country to name an ambassador to Afghanistan since the Taliban came to power in 2021. The Afghan government commented that Mr. Zhao Sheng’s appointment is a sign for other nations to establish ties with its government. No other country has recognised the Taliban-led government, which has been criticised for human rights violations in Afghanistan. China was among the first countries to cooperate with the Taliban. China’s Foreign Ministry remarked that Beijing will “continue advancing dialogue and cooperation” with Afghanistan and that its policy towards the country is “clear and consistent.” “Mr. Zhao’s appointment is…

United States: A Unites States senator has stated that the US plans to withhold $85 million in military aid to Egypt since Cairo’s failed to uphold US conditions on freeing political prisoners and due to other human rights issues. Senator Mr. Chris Murphy, a Democrat, urged US President Joe Biden’s administration to withhold $235 million more in military aid for what he described as Egypt’s “egregious human rights record.” “The administration rightly decided to withhold that first tranche – $85 million tied to the release of political prisoners – because there’s just no question there has not been enough progress.…

London, UK: A new study has suggested that a vegan diet may be healthier for pet cats. The researchers discovered that owners who fed cats vegan diets reported fewer vet visits and reduced medications, and vets described their pets as healthy. The findings provide reassurance to a growing number of owners who are considering alternative diets for their pets, the researchers remarked. “Biologically, what cats need is not meat but a specific set of nutrients. There’s no scientific reason why you can’t supply all the necessary nutrients through plant additives,” said Professor Andrew Knight of the University of Winchester, who…

Russia: Russian President Mr. Vladimir Putin has accepted an invitation from Mr. Kim Jong Un to visit North Korea. Mr. Kim is in Russia for the first face-to-face meeting with Mr. Putin in four years. The North Korean leader’s visit aims to strengthen their military modernization, while Mr. Putin looks forward to reinforcing alliances in the war with Ukraine. Mr. Kim invited the Russian President at the end of the day, where the two held more than four hours of talks and toured the Vostochny Cosmodrome space centre. “Putin accepted the invitation with pleasure and reaffirmed his will to invariably…

United Kingdom: The European Union has launched a probe into China’s subsidies for electric vehicle makers due to concerns that the payments are harming European companies. “Global markets are now flooded with cheaper Chinese electric cars, and their prices are kept artificially low by huge state subsidies. This is distorting our market,” European Commission President Ms. Ursula von der Leyen told EU lawmakers. “As we do not accept this distortion from the inside in our market, we do not accept this from the outside. So, I can announce today that the commission is launching an anti-subsidy investigation into electric vehicles…

Taiwan: Taiwan’s Defence Ministry has stated that China has launched drills in the western Pacific involving its Shandong aircraft carrier and dozens of warplanes, which are analysed as Beijing’s “largest” manoeuvres in the region. The report came as Beijing stepped up military and political pressure on the democratically governed island in a bid to assert its sovereignty claims. In a statement, the Taiwanese Defence Ministry noted that it tracked some 35 Chinese warplanes, including J-10 fighters, around the island early on Wednesday. About 28 of them flew into the southwestern corner of the island’s air defence identification zone, or ADIZ.…

Australia: Australia’s High Court has ruled that Qantas Airways broke the law by sacking 1,700 ground staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. The High Court said that Qantas interfered with unionised employees’ legal right to take industrial action and collectively bargain when it replaced the workers with contractors. Qantas appealed a previous Federal Court ruling that found the airline guilty of breaking the law by outsourcing ground handling jobs. They couldn’t prove they weren’t trying to stop workers from taking future industrial action, and the latest ruling supports this decision. This decision comes after the ongoing challenges facing Qantas as the…