Author: News Desk

Sweden: The Swedish government has denounced the recent burning of a Quran outside the main mosque in Stockholm, describing it as an “Islamophobic” act. The condemnation came in response to a call for action by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), a Saudi-based international body representing 57 member states, aimed at preventing future desecration of the Muslim holy book. In a statement released by the foreign ministry on 2nd July 2023, the Swedish government expressed its understanding of the offensive nature of the Islamophobic acts committed by individuals during demonstrations in Sweden. The government strongly condemned these acts, emphasizing that…

United States: Ms. Janet Yellen, the United States Treasury Secretary, will make a trip to Beijing this week, marking the second visit by a prominent official in a short span of time as the two largest economies in the world aim to mend strained relations. According to a statement from the US Treasury Department, Ms. Yellen will be travelling to Beijing from July 6–9. China’s Finance Ministry also confirmed the visit in a statement. During her visit, Ms. Yellen is expected to emphasise the importance of responsible management of the relationship between the two countries, direct communication regarding areas of…

United States: The Twitter owner Mr. Elon Musk has stated that the social media platform is limiting how many tweets various accounts can read per day in a bid to discourage “extreme levels” of data scraping and system manipulation. “The restrictions began to have ripple effects early on Saturday, causing more than 7,500 people at one point to report problems using the social media service,” Downdetector, a website that tracks online outages, stated. Although that’s a relatively small number of Twitter’s more than 200 million worldwide users, the trouble was widespread enough to cause the #TwitterDown hashtag to trend in some…

United Kingdom: A cutting-edge satellite called Euclid, built in Europe, has been successfully launched from Florida on a mission to investigate the mysteries of dark energy and dark matter, unseen forces scientists say account for 95 percent of the known universe. Scientists hope that the insights gained from the $1.4 billion European Space Agency (ESA) mission will revolutionise astrophysics and enhance our understanding of gravity itself. Euclid, named after the renowned Greek mathematician, was carried into space aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. After a brief flight, the two-tonne spacecraft will embark on a month-long…

Haiti: Mr. Antonio Guterres has arrived in Haiti on his first visit as UN secretary-general in a bid to shine a spotlight on the Caribbean nation’s worsening plight and request a multinational force to stabilise the country. “I’m in Port-au-Prince to express my full solidarity with the Haitian people and call on the international community to continue to stand with Haiti, including with a robust international force to assist the Haitian National Police,” Mr. Guterres posted on Twitter a few minutes after his arrival. Mr. Ricard Pierre, Haiti’s minister of planning and external cooperation, warned the country could descend into…

Australia: Australia has become the first country to officially classify psychedelics as medicines at a national level. In a groundbreaking decision earlier this year, the country’s conservative medicine regulator granted approval for the use of psychedelics in therapy sessions. The move allows the use of psilocybin, the active compound in magic mushrooms, for treating treatment-resistant depression and MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy, for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The new regulations will be a significant milestone in the field of psychedelic medicine. While access to these drugs will initially be limited and expensive, experts and patients alike are celebrating the development…

Ukraine: CIA Director Mr. William Burns recently made a trip to Ukraine where he met with Ukrainian President Mr. Volodymyr Zelensky and intelligence officials, according to a US official. The purpose of the visit was to reaffirm the United States’ commitment to sharing intelligence and supporting Ukraine in defending itself against Russian aggression. The official stated that Director Mr. Burns has been regularly visiting Ukraine since Russia’s recent acts of aggression began over a year ago. During his trip, he held meetings with Ukrainian intelligence counterparts and President Mr. Zelensky. The discussions aimed to strengthen the partnership between the two…

London, UK: Euclid, Europe’s space telescope, is set to launch on 1st July 2023 from Cape Canaveral in Florida, marking the first-ever mission dedicated to unraveling the mysteries of dark energy and dark matter in the universe. Originally planned for launch using Russia’s Soyuz rockets, the European Space Agency turned to Mr. Elon Musk’s SpaceX due to the Russian rockets being unavailable due to sanctions related to the war in Ukraine. After a month-long journey through space, Euclid will join the James Webb Space Telescope at a point called the second Lagrange Point, about 1.5 million kilometers away from Earth.…

United States: Apple Inc reached a significant milestone on 30th June 2023 as its stock market value surpassed $3 trillion for the first time. This achievement was fueled by positive signs of improving inflation and optimism surrounding Apple’s expansion into new markets. During the trading session, Apple’s shares rose by 2.3 percent to reach $193.97, resulting in a market capitalization of $3.05 trillion, according to Refinitiv data. Previously, Apple had briefly exceeded the $3 trillion mark on 3rd January, 2022, but only in intraday trading. The recent increase in Apple’s shares, which have risen by 49 percent so far in…

United States: A new review has stated that the US State Department failed to sufficiently anticipate the rapid downfall of the Afghan government in 2021. The report adds to the criticism surrounding the chaotic withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan. The After Action Review (AAR) lauded the actions of State Department staff, remarking that they worked “heroically” under extreme “stress, demands, and risks,” adding that the department should have better prepared for the fall of the Afghan capital, Kabul. The internationally backed Afghan government collapsed, and then-President Mr. Ashraf Ghani fled the country in August 2021 as the Taliban…