First European Union airline flight in 35 years lands in Baghdad
Baghdad, Iraq -- Iraq's transport ministry said Tuesday that a flight operated by Greece's Aegean Airlines had been the first...
Geostrategy
Gunmen kill 11 at Jewish festival on Australia’s Bondi Beach, one of the biggest tourist draws
Police declared the shooting a "terrorist incident" and said they had found suspected "improvised explosive devices" in a vehicle near...
Geostrategy
US no longer recommends Covid shots for children, pregnant women
Washington, United States - The US will no longer recommend Covid-19 vaccines for children and healthy pregnant women, Health Secretary...
- The change follows last week's announcement by Food and Drug Administration officials that they would limit approval of Covid shots to adults aged 65 and older
- It comes as Kennedy who has long promoted misinformation about vaccines in general and the Covid shots in particular pushes to overhaul federal public health policy
Arts & Culture
Turkey’s 5,000-year-old bread finds new life
Round and flat like a pancake, 12 centimeters (five inches) in diameter, the bread was discovered during excavations at Kulluoba,...
- In the early Bronze Age, a piece of bread was buried beneath the threshold of a newly built house in what is today central Turkey.
- Now, more than 5,000 years later, archaeologists have unearthed it, and helped a local bakery to recreate the recipe -- with customers lining up to buy it.
Arts & Culture
Is Cristiano Ronaldo leaving Saudi Arabia? Cryptic post fuels speculation
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia -- Questions swirled over Cristiano Ronaldo's future in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, hours after the superstar indicated...
- The 40-year-old Portuguese forward joined Al Nassr in 2022 from Manchester United and his contract with the Saudi club ends this summer.
- Ronaldo's potential exit from Saudi Arabia will likely raise fresh questions about how the Saudi Pro League would fare in his absence.
Geostrategy
South East Asia, Gulf and China three-way talks ‘response to call of times’
The trade-dependent economies are looking to insulate themselves after US President Donald Trump blew up global trade norms by announcing...
- Though he subsequently instigated a 90-day pause for most, the experience has spurred ASEAN and others to accelerate efforts to diversify their trading networks.
- China is only Southeast Asia's fourth largest source of foreign direct investment, after the United States, Japan and the European Union, noted NUS' Chong.
Geostrategy
US-backed group says it has begun aid distribution in Gaza
A controversial US-backed aid group for Gaza announced Monday that it had begun distributing food in the war-ravaged Palestinian territory,...
- The Gaza Humanitarian foundation (GHF) said in a statement that it commenced operations in Gaza today, delivering truckloads of food to its Secure Distribution Sites
- The United Nations and international aid agencies have meanwhile said they will not cooperate with the GHF, amid accusations it is working with Israel
Israel strikes Gaza, kills 53 people as Witkoff says Hamas didn’t accept 70-day temporary ceasefire
Hamas said Monday it had accepted a new ceasefire proposal by US envoy Steve Witkoff, presented by mediators, but a...
- Israel has in recent weeks expanded its offensive in the Gaza Strip, drawing international condemnation as aid trickles in following a monthslong blockade
- European and Arab leaders meeting in Spain over the weekend called for an end to the "inhumane" war, while humanitarian groups said the trickle of aid was not enough
Arts & Culture
Filmmaker Panahi cheered on return to Iran after Cannes triumph
Paris, France - Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi was given a hero's welcome by supporters on his return to Tehran on...
- After being banned from leaving Iran for years, Panahi attended the French festival in person and sensationally walked away with the Palme d'Or for his latest movie
- With some fans concerned that Panahi could face trouble on his return to Iran, he arrived without incident in the early hours of Monday at Tehran's main international airport
Geostrategy
Iran rejects push to suspend uranium enrichment to reach nuclear deal with US
The issue has come into focus in recent weeks, with Iran staunchly defending its right to enrich uranium as part...
- The issue has come into focus in recent weeks, with Iran staunchly defending its right to enrich uranium as part of what it says is a civilian nuclear programme
- The negotiations, which began in April, are the highest-level contact between the two sides since the United States quit a landmark 2015 nuclear accord
Geostrategy
Hamas accepts mediators’ latest Gaza ceasefire proposal
The outline of the new potential deal was revealed as Israel ramped up its offensive in the Palestinian territory, and...
- "Hamas has agreed to the new proposal by US envoy Steve Witkoff, which the movement received from mediators," the Hamas source told AFP.
- The deal included "a 70-day truce in exchange for the release of 10 hostages in two batches, and during the truce, negotiations would begin on a permanent ceasefire.
Geostrategy
Due to war, under 5 percent of Gaza cropland useable for farming: UN
Paris, France -- Under five percent of Gaza's farmland is useable due to war, further exacerbating the risk of famine...
- By the end of April, more than 80 percent of the farmland was damaged and 77.8 percent was no longer accessible, leaving barely 4.6 percent of potentially arable land.
- Some 688 hectares (1,700 acres) is all that remains for cultivation, according to the assessment.
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First European Union airline flight in 35 years lands in Baghdad
Baghdad, Iraq -- Iraq's transport ministry said Tuesday that a flight operated by Greece's Aegean Airlines had been the first...
Geostrategy
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WTO fishing deal: the net results
Geostrategy
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Pro-Gaza protests flare in UK on anniversary of Hamas attack
London, United Kingdom - Thousands of students protested in London and other UK cities on Tuesday, defying a plea from...
Geostrategy
UN chief demands end to Gaza hostilities, immediate release of hostages
On the second anniversary of the Hamas October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, Antonio Guterres decried a "humanitarian catastrophe on...
Geostrategy
WTO hikes 2025 trade growth outlook but tariffs to bite in 2026
The WTO raised its forecast for trade volume growth in 2025 to 2.4 percent -- up from 0.9 percent in...
Economy
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Arts & Culture
Ancient tablet disappears from Egypt’s Saqqara necropolis
Cairo, Egypt - A limestone tablet dating back more than 4,000 years has disappeared from Egypt's Saqqara necropolis, authorities said...
- In a statement, the antiquities ministry announced "the disappearance of an ancient tablet from the tomb of Khenti Ka in the Saqqara archaeological area".
- In September, Egyptian police said they arrested a museum employee and three alleged accomplices after a priceless ancient gold bracelet was stolen from Cairo's Egyptian Museum
Business
OpenAI signs multi-billion dollar chip deal with AMD
OpenAI signed a multi-year partnership Monday with chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices as the ChatGPT-maker continues an investment spree to secure...
- The companies announced the plan to develop AI data centers that the chipmaker said would bring in tens of billions of dollars in new revenue over the next five years
- AMD's share price surged 35 percent when markets opened on news of the agreement that would see the company deliver six gigawatts worth of chips to the ChatGPT-maker
Business
OpenAI signs multi-billion dollar chip deal with AMD
New York, United States -- OpenAI signed a multi-year partnership Monday with chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices as the ChatGPT-maker continues...
- The companies announced the plan to develop AI data centers that the chipmaker said would bring in tens of billions of dollars in new revenue over the next five years.
- AMD's share price surged 35 percent when markets opened on news of the agreement that would see the company deliver six gigawatts worth of chips to the ChatGPT-maker.