Author: News Desk

Oxford, UK: Finland has once again claimed the top spot in the 2025 World Happiness Report, followed by Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, the Netherlands, Costa Rica, Norway, Israel, Luxembourg, and Mexico. Meanwhile, the United States has fallen to its lowest ranking ever, amid increasing social isolation and political polarization. The annual report, published by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford in collaboration with Gallup and the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, assesses happiness in 147 countries. It evaluates factors such as health, wealth, freedom, generosity, and freedom from corruption, based on self-reported assessments from individuals worldwide. At…

New York, USA: Ben & Jerry’s has filed a lawsuit against its parent company, Unilever, alleging that it violated a merger agreement by removing CEO David Stever without consultation in an attempt to suppress the ice cream brand’s long-standing “social mission.” The legal filing, submitted to the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, claims that Unilever repeatedly threatened Ben & Jerry’s leadership, including Stever, for failing to comply with efforts to curb its political activism. The dispute follows years of tensions between the two companies over Ben & Jerry’s vocal stance on social and political issues.…

Wellington, New Zealand: Once known as the world’s ugliest animal due to its soft, droopy appearance, the blobfish has achieved a surprising triumph—earning the title of ‘Fish of the Year’ from New Zealand’s Mountain to Sea Conservation Trust. This year, the blobfish secured nearly 1,300 of the more than 5,500 votes cast, defeating the orange roughy, a deep-sea fish in the slime head family known for the mucous canals on its head. The victory was sealed after local radio hosts Sarah Gandy and Paul Flynn of More FM passionately campaigned for the blobfish, urging their audience to support the underdog.…

Cape Canaveral, Florida: After spending nine months in space, NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams have safely returned to Earth. Their SpaceX capsule re-entered the atmosphere in a fast, fiery descent before deploying four parachutes for a smooth splashdown off the Florida coast, where a pod of dolphins was spotted circling their craft. A recovery ship lifted the capsule from the water, and the astronauts, smiling and waving, were helped out alongside fellow crew members Nick Hague and Aleksandr Gorbunov. The mission, originally planned for just eight days, was extended due to technical failures with Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft, which…

London: John ‘Paddy’ Hemingway, the last surviving Battle of Britain pilot, has died at the age of 105, the Royal Air Force (RAF) confirmed. He passed away peacefully on Monday, 17th of March. Mr Hemingway, originally from Dublin, joined the Royal Air Force (RAF) as a teenager before World War Two and played a crucial role in defending the United Kingdom against Nazi forces in the summer of 1940. At 21, he was a fighter pilot in the Battle of Britain, three months when air force personnel defended the skies against a large-scale assault by the German air force, the…

London, UK: Netflix’s gripping new series Adolescence has quickly risen to the No. 1 spot on the platform, earning widespread acclaim for its intense storytelling and powerful social commentary. This limited series brings a gripping and unsettling story to life, following the arrest of 13-year-old Jamie Miller (Owen Cooper) for the murder of his classmate, Katie Leonard. While the drama is not based on a single real-life case, it draws inspiration from the rising knife-crime epidemic in the UK and the growing influence of misogynistic online spaces on young men. The four-part series, co-created by Stephen Graham, unfolds in real…

Washington DC: The administration of United States President Donald Trump has begun laying off staff at Voice of America (VOA) after signing an executive order to place nearly all employees at the state-funded media network on leave. VOA employees working under contract received an email informing them that their employment would end on March 31. The US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which oversees VOA, directed contractors to “cease all work immediately” and prohibited them from accessing agency buildings or systems. The decision follows Trump’s executive order on Friday to dismantle USAGM, which also manages Radio Free Europe, Radio Free…

Kočani, North Macedonia: A devastating fire broke out at Pulse nightclub in Kočani, North Macedonia, during a concert by popular hip-hop duo DNK, claiming at least 59 lives and injuring 155 others. Witnesses described chaos as panicked crowds struggled to escape, with only one accessible exit for around 500 people. Images on social media showed chaotic scenes as the fire broke out, and the band’s singer urged the audience to vacate the premises as quickly as possible. Nineteen-year-old survivor Elena Taseva recounted the horror, explaining how she was trapped on the ground while others trampled over her. Though she managed…

Belgrade, Serbia: Hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of Belgrade on Saturday to demand justice for the 15 victims of the Novi Sad railway station collapse. The tragedy, which occurred in November 2024, has become a symbol of public outrage against corruption and negligence in Serbia’s government. While the government estimated the turnout at 107,000, the Public Meeting Archive, an independent monitor, reported between 275,000 and 325,000 attendees, with the possibility of even higher numbers. This makes it Serbia’s largest protest in history. The station’s collapse has sparked growing dissatisfaction with President Aleksandar Vučić and the ruling Progressive…

Washington DC: At least 34 people have died as powerful tornadoes and dust storms wreaked havoc across multiple southeastern and central US states, leaving behind widespread destruction. Missouri reported 12 fatalities, while deaths were also confirmed in Mississippi, Arkansas, Georgia, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Texas. Missouri was one of the worst-hit states, with Governor Mike Kehoe stating that the state had been “devastated by severe storms and tornadoes, leaving homes destroyed and lives lost.” The state’s emergency management agency reported 19 tornadoes striking 25 counties. Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves confirmed six deaths, as multiple tornadoes ripped through the state. Alabama also…