Author: News Desk

Turkey: The United Nations (UN) has appealed for funds worth more than $1 billion for the Turkish earthquake relief operation. The move comes just two days after launching a $400 million appeal for Syrians. After his recent visit to Turkey, UN aid chief Mr. Martin Griffiths remarked that the people have “experienced unspeakable heartache. We must stand with them in their darkest hour and ensure they receive the support they need.” UN Secretary-General Mr. Antonio Guterres commented in a statement that the funds would provide humanitarian relief for three months to 5.2 million people. According to the Secretary-General, the money…

United States:  Mr. David Malpass, the head of the World Bank, has announced he will leave in June 2023, almost a year before his tenure is up. Mr. Malpass, who was appointed to his five-year term in 2019 by former US President Donald Trump, stated that he has made the decision to move on from the “enormous honour and privilege” of serving as the head of the international lender. “With developing countries facing unprecedented crises, I’m proud that the Bank Group has responded with speed, scale, innovation, and impact,” Mr. Malpass remarked in a statement posted on the lender’s website.…

United Kingdom: A ThinkTank report has warned that the world is at risk of descending into a climate “doom loop.” The report stated that simply coping with the escalating impacts of the climate crisis could draw resources and focus away from efforts to slash carbon emissions, making the situation even worse. The damage caused by global warming across the globe is increasingly clear, and recovering from climate disasters is already costing billions of dollars. In addition, these disasters can cause cascading problems, including water, food, and energy crises, as well as increased migration and conflict. The researchers, from the Institute…

South Korea: For the first time in six years, South Korea referred to the nuclear-armed North as its “enemy” in a defence document signalling a further hardening of Seoul’s stance towards Pyongyang. Since the 1950–1953 Korean War concluded in an armistice rather than a peace treaty, the two nations are still technically at war. After the failure of a rare round of negotiation in 2019, talks have stopped as Mr. Kim Jong Un intensifies his military buildup. The North Korean leader declared his nation to be an “irreversible” nuclear power and conducted nearly monthly weapons tests that violated international sanctions…

Nicaragua: Nicaragua has stripped of citizenship 94 political opponents, including prominent writers, activists, and journalists. Appeals Court Justice Ernesto Rodriguez Mejia shared in a statement that the 94 people were labelled “traitors” and would have their properties confiscated. Mr. Rodriguez claimed those on the list, including rights activist Ms. Vilma Nunez, former Sandinista rebel commander Mr. Luis Carrión, and journalist Mr. Carlos Fernando Chamorro, were guilty of “spreading false news” and “conspiracy to undermine national integrity.” Most of those included in the list left Nicaragua when President Mr. Daniel Ortega began arresting opponents in 2021, and Mr. Mejia stated that…

United States: The White House stated that it is working with Tesla to increase the number of electric vehicle charging stations in the US, with the goal of having at least 7,500 of these stations open to all-electric vehicles (EVs) by the end of 2024. Tesla EVs require use an adaptor to connect to charging stations that employ a specific type of power connector. According to the White House, Tesla will seek to add at least 3,500 new and existing 250 KW superchargers along highways and level 2 destination charges at establishments like hotels and restaurants across the nation. Additionally,…

Antarctica: A new study has found that antarctic glaciers, including Thwaites, may be more sensitive to changes in sea temperature than previously thought. The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) and the US Antarctic Program put sensors and an underwater robot beneath the vast Thwaites glacier, also known as Doomsday glacier, to study melting. According to scientists, warm water is seeping into the glacier’s weak spots, threatening its demise and a massive sea rise. Thwaites, which is roughly the size of Florida, represents more than half a metre (1.6 feet) of global sea level rise potential and could destabilise neighbouring glaciers that…

Russia: A new report published in the United States has found that at least 6,000 children from Ukraine have attended Russian “re-education” camps in 2022, with several hundred held there for weeks or months beyond their scheduled return date. Researchers from the Yale School of Public Health’s Humanitarian Research Lab stated that they had identified at least 43 camps and other facilities where Ukrainian children as young as four months old were held and whose “primary purpose” appeared to be political reeducation. “Multiple camps endorsed by the Russian Federation are advertised as “integration programs,” with the apparent goal of integrating…

Dubai, UAE: Mr. Elon Musk, the CEO of Twitter, stated that a change in leadership could happen by the end of 2023, calling the past year a “rollercoaster” since he acquired full ownership of the social media. “I’m guessing probably towards the end of this year should be good timing to find someone else to run the company,” the CEO told the World Government Summit conference in Dubai via video. “I need to stabilise the organisation and make sure it’s in a healthy place and that the product roadmap is clearly laid out… I think it should be in a…

China: China has announced that the country will resume issuing short-term visas to travellers from South Korea after Seoul scrapped pandemic-related travel restrictions that angered Beijing. “China will begin processing short-term visas for South Koreans for business, transit, and other private affairs,” the Chinese embassy in Seoul shared in a post on its official WeChat account. The world’s most populous country stopped issuing short-term visas to South Koreans in January 2023, after Seoul slapped COVID restrictions on travellers from China. The restriction was imposed amid concerns that Beijing’s sudden dismantling of its controversial “zero-COVID” policy could spawn new coronavirus variants.…