Author: News Desk

Sudan: The United Nations refugee agency has stated that the ongoing conflict in Sudan may cause over 800,000 people to flee the country, including Sudanese citizens and thousands of existing refugees who are currently residing there. The estimate provided by the agency includes around 580,000 Sudanese, while the rest are refugees who have settled in the country. “In consultation with all concerned governments and partners, we’ve arrived at a planning figure of 815,000 people that may flee into the seven neighbouring countries,” Mr. Raouf Mazou, UNHCR assistant high commissioner for refugees, told a member-state briefing in Geneva, Switzerland. Some 73,000…

Uzbekistan: Preliminary results indicate that voters in Uzbekistan have shown significant support for constitutional amendments, which could permit President Mr. Shavkat Mirziyoyev to extend his term in office until 2040. The Uzbekistan elections commission announced that over 90 percent of voters in the Central Asian nation approved the constitutional changes, which would allow President Mr. Mirziyoyev to potentially serve until 2040. Despite concerns raised by human rights organizations regarding the government’s authoritarian behaviour restricting the freedom of expression, voter turnout was approximately 85 in the former Soviet state. Following the passing of the oppressive leader Mr. Islam Karimov, Mr. Mirziyoyev,…

United States: Arm, the British company known for designing microchips, has submitted paperwork to sell its shares in the United States. This move could potentially lead to the largest stock market debut of the year. According to reports, the company based in Cambridge aims to generate as much as $10 billion (£8 billion) from the sale. In March 2023 the company dealt a setback to the UK by announcing its lack of intention to list its shares in London. In a deal valued at $29.3 billion, Japanese conglomerate Softbank acquired Arm in 2016, when the company was listed on the…

China: A recent study conducted in China has found a strong link between spikes in air pollution and an increased risk of cardiac arrhythmias. The study, based on nearly 200,000 hospital admissions, found that there was a significant increase in the risk of arrhythmias within the first few hours of exposure to high levels of air pollution. The risks could persist for up to 24 hours.  Arrhythmias can further increase the risk of heart disease and sudden cardiac death. The study included 190,115 patients admitted to hospitals in 322 Chinese cities, who were suffering from sudden onset arrhythmia, including atrial…

Paraguay: Mr. Santiago Pena, a 44-year-old economist and former finance minister, has been elected as Paraguay’s president, bringing the conservative Colorado Party back into power after a closely fought election campaign that threatened to end its seven-decade rule. According to the electoral body, Mr. Pena had secured 42.7 percent of the vote, with a lead of over 15 points over his centre-left opponent, Mr. Efrain Alegre, a 60-year-old lawyer from the Concertacion coalition. Some 4.8 million out of the 7.5 million eligible voters participated in the election. “Thank you for this Colorado victory. Thank you for this Paraguayan victory,” Mr.…

United States: The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Mr. Antonio Guterres, is dispatching a representative to the Sudan region in response to the ongoing and “unprecedented” violence that has persisted for three weeks, according to his spokesperson’s announcement. The move reflects the UN’s concern and commitment to resolving the deadly hostilities in the region. Despite the extension of a ceasefire that has been widely ignored, the military and heavily armed paramilitary groups in Khartoum remain locked in deadly conflict, as reported at the time of the announcement regarding the dispatch of a UN representative to the region. In a statement…

Hungary: Pope Francis has stated that the Vatican is involved in a peace mission to try to end the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. “I am willing to do everything that has to be done. There is a mission in progress now, but it is not yet public. When it is public, I will reveal it,” the pope told reporters during a flight home after a three-day visit to Hungary. The pope’s announcement comes hours after Moscow claimed that its forces took control of four more urban quarters in the front-line Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. “I think that peace is…

United States: The United States has accused China of intimidating and harassing Philippine vessels in the South China Sea, calling for an end to the “provocative” actions. This comes after a near-miss between a Chinese vessel and a Philippine Coast Guard boat near the Spratly Islands. “We call upon Beijing to desist from its provocative and unsafe conduct,” the US State Department spokesperson Mr. Matthew Miller said in a statement, just two days before President Mr. Joe Biden is to host his counterpart, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, in Washington, DC. The State Department further warned that an attack on Philippine…

United Kingdom: A new study has found that the Juan Fernández fur seal, a species that was hunted to near-extinction in the 19th century, can tolerate high levels of cadmium and other metallic pollutants without any adverse effects. This is significant as it offers hope for finding solutions to one of the most harmful environmental pollutants. The Juan Fernández seal is a rare aquatic mammal that lives only on the Juan Fernández archipelago and nearby islands in the Pacific Ocean, hundreds of miles off the coast of Chile. The species was believed to be extinct until a small colony was…

Japan: Japan has approved a drug that can terminate early-stage pregnancies and will make the abortion pill available for the first time. Abortion is legal in Japan for up to 22 weeks, but consent is usually required from a spouse or partner, and until now, surgical procedures had been the only option. The health ministry has approved a two-step treatment of mifepristone and misoprostol made by British pharmaceutical company, Linepharma. Similar medication has been available in many countries, including France since 1988, and in the US since 2000. The approval of the pill to end pregnancies up to nine weeks…