Author: News Desk

Uzbekistan: Uzbekistan’s President Mr. Shavkat Mirziyoyev has been re-elected with an overwhelming majority of 87.1 percent of the vote, according to preliminary results announced by the country’s Central Election Commission. The election took place on 9th July 2023, with more than 15 million voters participating. Mr. Mirziyoyev, who has been ruling since 2016, called for a snap election after amending the constitution through a referendum. The constitutional changes reset his term count and extended the presidential term from five to seven years. Running against three relatively unknown candidates from minor parties, Mr. Mirziyoyev was widely expected to secure a majority…

North Korea: North Korea has strongly condemned the United States’ plan to deploy a nuclear missile submarine near the Korean peninsula, warning that it could lead to a devastating atomic conflict. The North Korean defense ministry, in a statement carried out by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), expressed concern over the introduction of US strategic nuclear weapons to the region, calling it a dangerous situation that could escalate military tensions and potentially trigger a nuclear crisis. The KCNA stated that the US plan amounted to nuclear blackmail against North Korea and other regional countries, posing a serious threat to…

Sudan: The United Nations has warned Sudan is on the verge of a large-scale civil war, as Egypt said it would host a summit on July 13 to discuss ways to end a 12-week conflict between rival Sudanese military factions. The upcoming summit in Cairo will focus on establishing effective mechanisms in collaboration with neighboring countries, as well as coordinating with regional and international initiatives, with the goal of achieving a peaceful resolution to the conflict. Diplomatic efforts to cease the fighting between Sudan’s army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary have thus far been unsuccessful, as various competing…

France: France has banned the sale, possession, and transport of fireworks during the July 14 national holiday weekend, following protests sparked by the killing of a teenager by the police. Fireworks were used in some protests that erupted in France after a police officer shot dead 17-year-old Nahel M during a traffic stop on June 27 near Paris. The shooting of Nahel, who is of Algerian and Moroccan origin, rekindled long-pent-up frustrations and accusations of systemic racism among France’s security forces and sparked the severest unrest since 2005. More than 3,700 people were taken into police custody in connection with…

China: Ms. Janet Yellen, the United States Treasury Secretary, has stated that her talks with top Chinese officials in recent days were “direct” and “productive” and helped put the US-China relationship on “surer footing”. Ms. Yellen told a press conference that the US and China remained at odds on a number of issues but expressed confidence that her bilateral meetings, which totaled about 10 hours, had advanced Washington’s efforts to stabilise fraught relations between the world’s two biggest economies. “The US and China have significant disagreements,” the US Treasury Secretary told reporters at the US Embassy in Beijing, citing her…

Israel: A European envoy criticised Israel for the lack of proportionality in the use of force, while international envoys visited the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank after a deadly raid. Mr. Sven Kuehn von Burgsdorff, the European Union representative to the Palestinian territories, expressed his concerns while leading a delegation of UN officials and diplomats from 25 countries to the camp in the northern occupied West Bank. The envoy’s statements echoed those of UN chief Antonio Guterres, who stated on Thursday that Israeli forces had used excessive force during their 48-hour operation, the largest in the occupied…

United Kingdom: A recent study from Harvard Medical School reveals that an artificial intelligence (AI) tool has the potential to assist neurosurgeons in treating brain tumors, specifically gliomas, which are the most common type of brain tumor among cancer patients. Gliomas, including an aggressive form responsible for the deaths of individuals like Beau Biden and Senator John McCain, have long posed challenges for researchers and doctors. The research team, led by Professor Kun-Hsing Yu, emphasizes the need for different surgical approaches based on the type of glioma. Currently, surgeons face difficulties obtaining crucial information about the tumor until the patient…

Ukraine: Mr. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the President of Ukraine, has shared a video of his visit to Snake Island, an island that has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance, as the country’s war with Russia reaches its 500th day. At the beginning of the conflict, Ukrainian soldiers stationed on Snake Island famously defied an order from a Russian warship to surrender. While the island was initially seized by Russia, it was later reclaimed by Ukraine. In the video posted on Telegram, Mr. Zelenskyy referred to Snake Island as a “place of victory” and emphasized that Ukraine would never allow it to…

Japan: Japan commemorated the one-year anniversary of the shocking assassination of former Prime Minister Mr. Shinzo Abe, who was the country’s longest-serving leader and a prominent political figure. Mr. Abe was fatally shot in broad daylight while delivering a campaign speech in western Japan. The assailant, Mr. Tetsuya Yamagami, was immediately apprehended and allegedly targeted Abe due to his perceived connections to the Unification Church. Mr. Yamagami, driven by resentment over his family’s financial troubles caused by his mother’s large donations to the sect, is believed to have used a homemade weapon. Gun violence is highly uncommon in Japan, which…

China: Ms. Janet Yellen, the Treasury Secretary of the United States, has urged China to increase its support for international climate institutions that play a crucial role in financing green projects worldwide. Ms. Yellen emphasised the need for stronger collaboration in tackling the urgent and critical issue of global warming, which she described as an “existential threat.” “Climate finance should be targeted efficiently and effectively. I believe that if China were to support existing multilateral climate institutions like the Green Climate Fund and the Climate Investment Funds alongside us and other donor governments, we could have a greater impact than…