Author: News Desk

China: China has launched a spacecraft to take three new astronauts, including the country’s first civilian, to its space station. The Shenzhou-16 spacecraft lifted off from the Jiuquan launch centre on the edge of the Gobi Desert in northwestern China on a Long March 2F rocket. “The launch was a complete success, and the astronauts are in good condition,” Mr. Zou Lipeng, the centre’s director, commented. The crew will overlap briefly with the three astronauts currently on board the Tiangong station, who will then return to Earth after completing their six-month mission. Dozens of employees from the space program, many…

London, UK: The government has announced plans to crack down on vape marketing and close a loophole that enables retailers to provide free vape samples to children. Chancellor Mr. Rishi Sunak described the targeting of children and teenagers as “unacceptable” and emphasized the need to curb their use of vaping products. The proposed measures also include a review of the regulations surrounding the sale of “nicotine-free” products to individuals under the age of 18. The Labour Party has referred to the announcement as a “baby step” and urged for more immediate action to be taken. Additionally, the government intends to…

Sudan: Sudan’s warring sides have agreed to extend a shaky ceasefire in their struggle for power over the nation after two key international mediators signalled impatience with persistent truce violations. The five-day extension of the ceasefire between Sudan’s military and its rival, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), was announced in a joint statement by Saudi Arabia and the United States. “The extension will provide time for further humanitarian assistance, restoration of essential services, and discussion of a potential longer-term extension,” the statement added. The development came as both sides were under pressure to extend the shaky ceasefire, which was…

Uganda: Uganda’s President Mr. Yoweri Museveni has officially enacted a contentious anti-gay bill into law, according to both his office and the country’s parliament. The legislation imposes severe and oppressive measures against homosexuality, earning global criticism for being one of the most stringent anti-gay laws worldwide. Mr. Museveni “has assented to the Anti-Homosexuality Bill 2023. It now becomes the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023,” a statement posted on the presidency’s official Twitter account wrote. Uganda’s parliament, through Twitter, confirmed that President has given his approval to a revised version of the controversial legislation. The bill had recently received overwhelming support from lawmakers,…

France: Kylian Mbappe, the French star forward, is set to clinch the top scorer title in the league for the fifth consecutive season, having scored an impressive 28 goals thus far. Mbappe expressed his delight at the achievement, stating that he always aimed to make his mark in the league’s history and win accolades. Surprisingly, he admitted not expecting to achieve such success at such a rapid pace. Mbappe’s decision to remain with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) became evident last season when he turned down an offer from Real Madrid. He extended his contract for an additional three years, binding him…

United States: United States President Mr. Joe Biden has finalised an agreement with House Speaker Mr. Kevin McCarthy to raise the debt ceiling over two years until January 1, 2025, saying the deal is ready to move to Congress for a vote. The Democratic president and Republican speaker spoke as negotiators rushed to draft and post the bill’s text to enable lawmakers to review compromises that are unlikely to be popular with progressive Democrats or hard-right Republicans. The two leaders hope they can secure sufficient votes before the June 5 deadline to avert a first-ever default by the federal government.…

China: A new report has stated that China’s justice system has faced scrutiny due to its lack of transparency, the increasing number of prosecutions, and protests against court rulings. According to data released by the Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) in March 2023, Chinese courts prosecuted 8.3 million individuals between 2017 and 2022, marking a 12 percent increase compared to the previous period. Additionally, there was an almost 20% rise in protests against court rulings during the same timeframe. Mr. Zhang Jun, the outgoing director of the SPP, highlighted that prosecutions for violent crimes decreased by 31.7 percent, while internet-based crimes…

Australia: In a developing scandal surrounding the disclosure of sensitive government tax plans, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Australia has instructed nine partners to step aside while an internal investigation takes place. The investigation aims to shed light on the leak of confidential information. Alongside the partners, the chairs of PwC’s governance board and risk committee have announced their resignation. PwC is implementing measures to separate its services to government agencies and intends to appoint independent directors to its governance board. The company also plans to release the findings of a previously announced review of its corporate culture. Australian police have initiated a…

Tukey: Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has extended his rule for two decades by emerging victorious in an unprecedented presidential runoff election against his opponent Mr. Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. Turkey’s supreme election authority announced that Mr. Erdoğan had won 52.14 percent of the votes, while Kılıçdaroğlu received 47.86 percent. “Look at this scene. It’s magnificent. We have completed the second round of the presidential elections with the favour of our nation,” Mr. Erdogan commented on his victory. “Elections come and go, the flood goes away but the sand remains. The main thing is that our country does not deviate from its goals,…

Ukraine: Ukraine has managed to surpass England in the completion of onshore wind turbines, despite the latter’s government’s pledge to ease restrictions on wind farms. This revelation comes in the wake of Russia’s occupation of Ukraine, which began in February 2022. Since the invasion, England has only managed to install a meagre two onshore wind turbines, generating a mere 1 megawatt (MW) of electricity in the village of Keele in Staffordshire. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Tyligulska wind power plant, located just 60 miles away from the conflict’s frontline in the southern region of Mykolaiv, has commenced operations, producing enough clean electricity to…