Author: News Desk

Pyongyang: North Korea’s long-delayed Wonsan-Kalma beach resort is finally set to open in May 2025, according to state media reports after leader Kim Jong Un visited the site. The resort, a key part of North Korea’s strategy to boost tourism, has been under construction since early 2018 but has faced repeated delays due to missed deadlines and the COVID-19 pandemic. Resort details and construction update The ambitious project envisioned as a ‘world-level coastal tourist city,’ extends approximately 605 acres (245 hectares) along a 3.5-mile (5.5-km) stretch of white-sand beach. It includes thousands of hotel rooms and hundreds of buildings. Recent…

Australia: Several Australian institutions, including major banks, media outlets, and airlines, have reported a large IT outage. Sydney airport has grounded flights, supermarket checkout lines are chaotic, and television networks are struggling to stay on air due to computer, graphics, and autocue malfunctions. Just hours before significant effects reached Australia, a few US airlines also reported needing to cancel or postpone flights because of IT problems. Although the exact reason for the outage is unknown, numerous impacted parties have connected Microsoft PC operating systems to it. Information vanished from departure boards at Sydney Airport. Budget airline Jetstar said it was…

United States: Netflix will begin removing its Basic plan, the cheapest ad-free option at $11.99 per month in the US. The business had previously stopped taking new sign-ups for the Basic plan and directed users to the $6.99/month, ad-supported Netflix option. Existing customers, however, were permitted to maintain their basic package. The online streaming giant said in January that it would discontinue its least expensive ad-free plan in the UK and Canada. The US and France will be next, and the business will be announced on Thursday. These days, two options are available to US basic users who want to…

United States: Alphabet’s Google announced that it will integrate artificial intelligence into the U.S. broadcast of the Paris Olympics. The collaboration with NBCUniversal and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee will allow sports commentators to use AI to explain competitions. Google will become the official search AI partner of Team USA, marking the first partnership between a tech company and the sports nonprofit. The significant move comes as NBCUniversal, the U.S. broadcaster of the Games, seeks to modernize its coverage to attract viewers who prefer digital media over live television. NBCUniversal plans to launch personalized AI-generated daily recaps narrated by…

United Kingdom: The UK Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has announced £84 million in funding to help African and Middle Eastern countries address the migration crisis at “its source.” According to the government, the increased money for job possibilities, education, and humanitarian relief would help address the issues that cause people to flee their homes. Addressing the European Political Community (EPC) at its fourth summit, which the UK hosted at Oxfordshire’s Blenheim Palace, Sir Keir concurred with French President Emmanuel Macron that there was “no easy silver bullet” to prevent tiny boats from navigating the English Channel. However, the PM stated…

Strasbourg: The European Parliament will vote to decide whether Ursula von der Leyen to be re-elected for another five-year term as president of the European Commission. The vote carries significant implications for continuity within the EU’s central institution amid rising challenges both within and outside the 27-nation bloc, including high support for far-right and eurosceptic parties. With no clear alternative candidate, supporters of von der Leyen identifies the vote as a choice between stability and chaos, as her rejection would create a political deadlock. “It would be seen as rolling out the red carpet for the far-right,” remarked Sean Kelly,…

Germany: Germany is planning to cut its military aid to Ukraine nearly in half next year, reducing it from about $8.7 billion to around $4.4 billion, according to a draft budget approved by the government. Ukrainian financing, according to Finance Minister Christian Lindner, is “secure for the foreseeable future” because of a plan by the G7 group of wealthy countries to generate $50 billion in interest on Russian assets that have been frozen. After the United States, Germany is the second-largest military provider to Ukraine. Berlin has allocated over $8.25 billion for Kyiv in 2024. The proposed aid drop results…

United States: Technology stocks worldwide have dropped due to concerns over the global computer chip industry. The selloff was triggered by reports suggesting that the Joe Biden administration might further tighten restrictions on exports of semiconductor equipment to China. Adding more to the issue, former US President Donald Trump remarked that Taiwan, the leading producer of chips, should finance its defence. In the US, the tech-heavy Nasdaq index fell by 2.7 percent. Major chip stocks, including Nvidia and AMD, experienced significant losses in Europe and Asia. Nvidia closed 6.6 percent lower, while AMD saw a decline of over 10 percent.…

United States: US President Joe Biden has tested positive for COVID-19, causing him to cancel a campaign event in Las Vegas. There is growing pressure on him to withdraw from the re-election race due to his age. Biden, 81, is reportedly showing “mild symptoms,” according to White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who also said on Wednesday that he will travel to his Delaware home to “self-isolate and continue to carry out all of his duties fully.” According to Jean-Pierre, Biden intended to spend a long weekend at his beach property in Delaware. Shortly after the announcement, the president’s convoy…

Dhaka: Bangladesh has closed schools and universities indefinitely following violent protests over government job quotas that resulted in six deaths. University students have been long rallying against the reservation system, which allocates public sector jobs to the children of war heroes who fought in the 1971 independence war, as well as to women, ethnic minorities, and the disabled. One-third of government job posts are reserved for the children of war heroes, a system students argue is discriminatory and want to be replaced with merit-based recruitment. Clashes erupted in several cities, including Dhaka, between anti-quota protestors and supporters, particularly from the…