World news

World news

Air Forces Central, the air component of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), said on Tuesday that it would hold a multi-day readiness exercise to demonstrate the ability to deploy, disperse, and sustain combat airpower across the US Central Command area of responsibility. The exercise was designed to enhance asset and personnel dispersal capability, strengthen regional partnerships and prepare for flexible response execution, Air Forces Central added in a statement.

After a measured start from the tourists, Root anchored the innings with his trademark composure on his way to a 20th ODI hundred. He shared a crucial stand of 126 with Jacob Bethell before Brook joined him midway through the innings. As Root reached his century at a run-a-ball pace, Brook went on the offensive. The England captain launched a brutal assault, racing to three figures from just 57 deliveries.

News that a unit of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement would be part of the security detail for the U.S. delegation during the upcoming Winter Games has set off concern and confusion in Italy, where people have expressed outrage at the inclusion of an agency that has dominated headlines for leading the Trump administration's immigration crackdown. Homeland Security Investigations, a unit within ICE that focuses on cross-border crimes, frequently sends its officers to overseas events like the Olympics to assist with security.

Should we do more on shadow shipping? Yes we should, and I've now identified further military options that we can use to target shadow shipping,

"We expect over the next years, in advanced economies, 60% of jobs to be affected by AI either enhanced or eliminated or transformed, 40% globally. This is like a tsunami hitting the labor market," Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), said during a panel discussion on the global economic outlook. Young people searching for jobs will find it harder to get a good placement. "Wake up. AI is for real, and it is transforming our world faster than we are getting [it] handled," Georgieva said.

Archaeologists in Mexico have uncovered a 1,400-year-old tomb in the Central Valleys of Oaxaca that had been lost to history. The stone structure, built by the Zapotec culture, known as Be'ena'a, or 'The Cloud People', is adorned with sculptures, murals and carved symbols that suggest ritual significance. The Zapotec believed their ancestors descended from the clouds and that, in death, their souls returned to the heavens as spirits.

That era of fear, many Bangladeshis believed, had ended with Hasina's ouster in the popular student-led uprising, which forced her to flee to India on August 5, 2024. But while the interim government of Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus, who replaced Hasina, is not accused of orchestrating any such excesses, political violence in Bangladesh is surging again ahead of the upcoming vote.

We are listening to many of their people talk about disarming. We think they're going to. If they don't disarm, then they've breached the deal. We think disarmament comes along with some sort of amnesty, and candidly, we think we have a very, very good programme to disarm, the official said, according to the Reuters news agency.

Over the weekend, it emerged that authorities in China have opened investigations into two senior figures at the top of the People's Liberation Army for "serious disciplinary violations" a phrase commonly used in Chinese official communications to refer to corruption. Those affected include top general Zhang Youxia, who is one of President Xi Jinping's closest allies in the military and one of the two deputy chairmen of the powerful Central Military Commission. Another senior general, Liu Zhenli, is also being investigated.

The lawsuit, shared in advance with the Guardian, says that Chad Joseph, 26, and Rishi Samaroo, 41, both of Las Cuevas, Trinidad, were returning to Trinidad from Venezuela when they and four other people were killed in the strike. It was the fifth attack announced by the White House under Donald Trump's campaign against the small go-fast boats the administration claims are connected to cartels and gangs.

"Humanity has not made sufficient progress on the existential risks that endanger us all," said Alexandra Bell, president and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. "The Doomsday Clock is a tool for communicating how close we are to destroying the world with technologies of our own making. "The risks we face from nuclear weapons, climate change and disruptive technologies are all growing. Every second counts and we are running out of time. It is a hard truth, but this is our reality."

The e-commerce giant's data breach exposed 33.7 million customers-nearly two-thirds of the entire country's population-after hackers operated undetected for five months through overseas servers. Police have identified a former Chinese employee as the primary suspect, who exploited stolen encryption keys and authentication vulnerabilities to access customer names, phone numbers, email addresses, and delivery information. The suspect fled the country before authorities could make an arrest.

India could become the next major test case for age-based social media bans, as states weigh Australia-style restrictions on children's access to platforms amid a growing global regulatory push. The push has begun at the state level, with the western state of Goa becoming the latest to study whether to bar children under 16 from social media platforms. "Australia has brought in a law ensuring a ban on social media for children below the age of 16,"

Australian Open organizers instituted their extreme heat policy as temperatures soared at Melbourne Park on Tuesday. It prompted the suspension of play on outer courts and the closure of roofs on the main showcourts. The protocol, introduced in 2019, was developed to minimize the risk of heat-related illness and provide consistency for all players. It considers air temperature, radiant heat, wind speed humidity to assess playing conditions, and sets thresholds for cooling interventions.

Inside, there are still textbooks lying on the desks, pencil cases are strewn across the floor; empty bento boxes that were never taken home. Along the corridor, shoes line the route the children took when they fled, some still in their indoor plimsolls, as their town was rocked by a magnitude-9 earthquake on the afternoon of 11 March 2011 which went on to cause the world's worst nuclear disaster since Chornobyl.

Gold extended its advance on Tuesday, trading close to record levels after hitting an all-time high in the previous session. The move reflects strong safe-haven demand amid escalating trade frictions and persistent geopolitical uncertainty. On Monday, Donald Trump threatened to raise tariffs on goods from South Korea. The renewed tariff rhetoric has added to concerns over global growth and reinforced demand for safe-haven assets such as gold.

"With 5 days still to go, January has already brought more new users to BullionVault than any month before. The move has been led by private investors across Asia and Europe rushing to build their personal holdings of gold and silver. "US households are sitting it out so far, despite the Dollar falling fast amid the White House's attack on both its NATO allies and its domestic opponents."

Michael Eddie the Eagle Edwards, was the antithesis of the Olympic high-flyer. Heavily disadvantaged by his 82kg (181lb) weight far heavier than his rivals poor eyesight and the small matter of being entirely self-funded, he became Great Britain's first Olympic ski jumper. He finished 67th and last at the 1987 world championships but managed to hit the qualifying standard to secure the sole British spot for Calgary.

A horse toy in China meant to be a Lunar New Year decoration has turned into a symbol of corporate agony on Chinese social media. The red horse toy in question, made by the shop Happy Sisters in China's western Yiwu city, features an upside-down snout, giving it a morose look at odds with its festival golden bell. Per the Chinese zodiac, the incoming year will be the year of the horse.