Author: News Desk

Spain: Spain is likely to be heading towards a hung parliament following the national election result on 23rd July 2023. The results have left both right-wing and left-wing parties without a straightforward path to forming a new government. The conservative Popular Party (PP) had won the elections, but it failed to secure a clear majority. The snap election was called by Prime Minister Mr. Pedro Sánchez after his Socialist Party’s dismal performance at the local elections in May 2023. The bloc that was expected to potentially support Mr. Sanchez consisted of 172 seats, while the right bloc, led by the…

United States: The Hollywood blockbusters Barbie and Oppenheimer have earned a combined $235.5 million for their opening weekend in North America by attracting moviegoers in record numbers. The film Barbie, directed by Ms. Greta Gerwig and produced by Warner Bros., achieved the highest-grossing opening of 2023 by generating an impressive $155 million in ticket sales. Mr. Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, chronicling the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb, earned $80.5 million, marking one of the most successful openings for a biographical drama to date. ‘Barbenheimer,’ coined through social media to refer to the simultaneous release of…

United States: Mr. Elon Musk has posted on Twitter that the social media platform will be changing its logo to an “X” and “all the birds will be disappearing from the platform.” In a series of tweets shared on his official account, Mr. Musk stated that “soon we shall bid adieu to the Twitter brand and, gradually, all the birds.” In the same series, the former Twitter CEO posted “Paint It Black,” before launching a user poll to “Change default platform colour to black.” “If a good enough X logo is posted tonight, we’ll make it go live worldwide tomorrow,”…

Israel: Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Prime Minister, will undergo an emergency procedure to receive a pacemaker, a surgery scheduled just before the Knesset, Israel’s unicameral parliament, is set to vote on a controversial judicial reform bill. According to a statement from the PM’s office, the procedure is scheduled to happen at Tel Hashomer Hospital. The Prime Minister will be sedated during the surgery. “During the procedure, the Minister of Justice and Deputy Prime Minister Mr. Yariv Levin will take his place,” the statement added. The 73-year-old Mr. Netanyahu earlier posted on Twitter that he would be fitted with the device,…

Russia: Mr. Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of Russia’s Belgorod region, has stated that Ukraine attacked a village near the Ukrainian border with cluster munitions but that there were no casualties or damage. The governor’s comments came during a daily briefing on his Telegram channel without providing visual evidence. There was no immediate comment from Ukrainian authorities. “In Belgorod district, 21 artillery shells and three cluster munitions from a multiple-launch rocket system were fired at the village of Zhuravlevka,” Mr. Gladkov noted. Ukraine received cluster bombs from the United States in July, but the country has previously pledged to use them only…

London, UK: In a study, researchers have suggested that “brain fog” (cognitive dysfunction) symptoms linked with long COVID are comparable to ageing by 10 years. The study was conducted by researchers from King’s College London. They have investigated the impact of COVID-19 on memory and found cognitive impairment to be highest in individuals who had tested positive and had more than three months of symptoms. The study also found that the symptoms in affected individuals stretched back almost two years since the initial infection. “The fact remains that two years on from their first infection, some people don’t feel fully…

Brazil: Mr. Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil, has signed a decree tightening restrictions on civilian access to guns in Brazil. There was a significant increase in registered users during the time Mr. Jair Bolsonaro served as Brazil’s president. According to the 2023 Brazilian Yearbook of Public Security, the number of registered gun owners in the country has increased to nearly 800,000, a substantial rise from the figure of less than 120,000 which was recorded in 2018. Under the new decree, individuals face limitations on the number of guns they can possess for personal safety. The limit has…

India: The Indian Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi, and the President of Sri Lanka, Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe, have agreed to enhance their countries’ economic and energy ties. It’s Mr. Wickremesinghe’s first official state visit since becoming President last year, following an economic meltdown. India supported Sri Lanka during a crucial period between January and July of the previous year while the country was facing a financial crisis. India’s aid of nearly $4 billion helped the country meet its urgent import needs and ensure the continued availability of essential commodities like fuel and medicine. “The past one year has been full…

Ukraine: Ukrainian President Mr. Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed his country’s ambassador to the UK, Mr. Vadym Prystaiko, after the envoy publicly criticised the president. Kyive gave no reason for the dismissal of Mr. Prystaiko, who had also been removed as Ukraine’s representative to the International Maritime Organisation. Mr. Prystaiko had called the Ukrainian President’s promise to thank the UK defence minister every morning “unhealthy sarcasm,” as per the statement. Mr. Ben Wallace, Secretary of State for Defence of the UK, stated earlier this month that he cautioned Ukraine, emphasising that its allies were “not Amazon.” He emphasised the importance of…

Turkey: The Turkish presidency has announced that Palestinian President Mr. Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu will travel to the country later this month to hold talks with President Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan. According to reports, Mr. Netanyahu is scheduled to arrive on July 28, a few days after Mr. Abbas, who is expected to visit on July 25. “President Mr. Erdogan will welcome the Palestinian president and the Israeli Prime Minister in Turkey in the course of the same week,” the presidency noted in a statement. The statement added that the leaders will discuss “Turkey-Palestine relations…