Author: News Desk

United States: With the signing of a contract by Warner Bros and New Line to produce additional adaptations of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, Middle-Earth is returning to the big screen. Warner Bros Discovery’s CEO, David Zaslav, disclosed that a contract had been negotiated to produce “several” movies based on JRR Tolkien’s works. The price of the agreement with the Swedish game business Embracer Group, which holds the rights to most of Tolkien’s realm, has not yet been made public. The movies will be created by the Warner Bros. production business New Line Cinema, which also worked…

Moldova: The government of Moldova has dismissed an accusation by Russia’s Defence Ministry that Ukraine is planning to invade the breakaway Moldovan region of Transnistria after staging a false-flag operation. “We call for calm and for information to be received [by the public] from official and credible sources of the Republic of Moldova,” the government remarked in a statement. The statement further added that “our institutions cooperate with foreign partners, and in the case of threats to the country, the public will be promptly informed,” and that the government “does not confirm” the Russian defence ministry’s allegations. On a visit…

Zimbabwe: Zimbabwe has deployed new technology to enhance diagnostic tests aiming at combating the growing burden of antibiotic resistance. Over-reliance on antibiotics has also led to the growing silent pandemic of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) over the years. AMR happens when bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites evolve and stop responding to antimicrobials over time. The Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase Escherichia coli (ESBL Ec) Tricycle study’s preliminary findings indicated that multidrug-resistant bacteria were widely distributed in Zimbabwe. Additionally, the 2015 AMR situation analysis in Zimbabwe revealed that only 25 percent of public health laboratories have the manpower, resources, and supplies required to perform…

China: Search and rescue efforts continued in northern China following the collapse of a coal mine, which left at least four people dead and scores missing. As of February 23rd 2023 afternoon, 49 persons were still unaccounted for, as per Chinese state media. According to state broadcaster CCTV, the disaster happened on February 22nd 2023 in Alxa League, Inner Mongolia, when a 180-metre (590-foot) steep slope gave way above the open-pit mine. A significant landslide close to the scene on February 22nd 2023 night caused the rescue effort to be suspended overnight. As of early February 23rd 2023 morning, efforts…

Switzerland: The latest data published by the World Health Organization (WHO) has stated that one woman dies every two minutes during pregnancy or childbirth, with too few countries in the world managing to substantially reduce maternal death rates since 2016. According to the WHO report, Trends in Maternal Mortality, while there was significant progress in reducing maternal deaths between 2000 and 2015, those gains stalled or were even reversed in the five years to 2020. “While pregnancy should be a time of immense hope and a positive experience for all women, it is tragically still a shockingly dangerous experience for…

Mexico: In advance of significant elections next year, Mexican senators have approved a contentious electoral reform supported by President Mr. Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The Senate voted 72 to 50 in favour of the plan to cut the independent organisation responsible for overseeing elections and its funding. After passing the lower house with a number of amendments, the bill now goes to the president for enactment. The bill is a scaled-back version of the more radical reforms that Mr. Lopez Obrador had originally proposed, which had sparked large-scale street demonstrations in response to what was seen as an attack on…

Ukraine: UN Secretary-General Mr. António Guterres has condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as an “affront” to the world’s collective conscience at a meeting of the General Assembly nearly one year on. The meeting was discussing a motion backed by Ukraine and its allies demanding the end of war immediately and calling for a “just and lasting peace.” In his opening remarks, the Secretary-General highlighted the impact on the world of Russia’s invasion. Mr. Guterres noted that it has generated eight million refugees and damaged global food and energy supplies in countries far away from the war zone. “That invasion is…

United States: United States President Mr. Joe Biden has condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to suspend his country’s participation in the last remaining US-Russia nuclear arms control treaty as a “big mistake.” The comment came as the US president ended his wartime visit to Europe, working to enhance partnerships with allies on Nato’s perilous eastern flank even as Mr. Putin was approaching China for help as his invasion of Ukraine reaches one year. Mr. Biden’s comments came as he met a key group of NATO allies in Poland. The group of eastern European states, known as the Bucharest Nine,…

United Kingdom: Two new studies have found that satisfying relationships with partners, family, friends, and work colleagues as well as exercising at least once every month could boost physical and mental health in old age. The two new research papers in specialist journals published by the British Medical Journal (BMJ) have shed new light on what behaviours in middle age might help improve our chances of enjoying good health later in life. The first study found that social relationships with partners, relatives, friends, and colleagues are linked to a lower risk of accumulating multiple long-term conditions in old age. The…

Saudi Arabia: Saudi Arabia has agreed to deposit $1 billion in Yemen’s central bank, which is situated in Aden. The move is intended to stimulate the war-torn nation’s economy. Months after the internationally recognised government was deposed by Houthi rebels, who now rule Sanaa, the capital, and a sizable portion of the country’s north, Riyadh engaged militarily. After the Houthis launched a series of raids on facilities there late last year that hindered oil shipments, a crucial source of income, the internationally recognised government situated in the south saw its public finances deteriorate. The Arab Monetary Fund, situated in the…