38 m. ago Chernobyl safety shield damaged, UN confirms. Ukraine blames Russian drones

A protective shield at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in war-torn Ukraine, built to contain radioactive material from the 1986 disaster, can no longer perform its main safety function due to drone damage, the UN nuclear watchdog said on Friday, a strike Ukraine has attributed to Russia. The International Atomic Energy Agency said an inspection last week of the steel confinement structure completed in 2019 found the drone impact in February, three years into Russia’s conflict in Ukraine, had...

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11 h. ago Dutch minister admits he was blindsided by China in Nexperia chip crisis

Export controls may have been the economic weapon of choice in 2025, but the Dutch minister at the centre of the Nexperia crisis has admitted he was blindsided by Beijing when it blocked the company’s chips from leaving China. His concession raises fresh questions over how much planning went into the decision to reach for a Cold War-era law to intervene in the Chinese-owned, Dutch-headquartered chipmaker in September, a move that triggered a supply chain shock in the global automotive...

Politics

13 h. ago Letters to the Editor: China dominates the EV market, but that doesn’t mean we should give up

Letters to the Editor: China dominates the EV market, but that doesn’t mean we should give up  Los Angeles Times

Politics

16 h. ago Australia on high alert as PLA naval fleet in Philippine Sea sails south

China’s deployment of a naval fleet, led by a Type 075 amphibious assault ship in the Philippine Sea this week, has triggered a rapid response from Australia. Canberra deployed a P-8 maritime patrol aircraft to track the flotilla, reviving security concerns raised after an unprecedented circumnavigation of the Australian continent by a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) fleet nine months ago. US satellite images, first reported by Australian media on Wednesday, confirmed the presence of the Chinese...

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16 h. ago Australia on high alert as PLA Navy fleet in Philippine Sea sails south

China’s deployment this week of a naval fleet led by a Type 075 amphibious assault ship in the Philippine Sea has triggered a rapid response from Australia. Canberra deployed a P-8 maritime patrol aircraft to track the flotilla, reviving security concerns raised after an unprecedented circumnavigation of the Australian continent by a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) fleet nine months ago. US satellite images, first reported by Australian media on Wednesday, confirmed the presence of the Chinese...

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19 h. ago East Asia on High Alert as Beijing Deploys Unprecedented Maritime Armada

East Asia on High Alert as Beijing Deploys Unprecedented Maritime Armada  AnewZ

Events

19 h. ago East Asia on high alert as Beijing deploys large fleet into strategic waters

East Asia on high alert as Beijing deploys large fleet into strategic waters  AnewZ

Events

24 h. ago Drones spotted near Zelensky’s flight path to Dublin spark security alert

An Irish navy ship spotted up to five drones operating near the flight path of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s aircraft as he arrived for a state visit to Ireland on Monday, local media reported on Thursday. The sighting triggered a major security alert amid fears it was an attempt to interfere with the flight path, the Irish Times reported. It quoted unnamed sources as saying the aircraft, which arrived slightly early, was not in any danger. The Ukrainian delegation arrived late on...

Events

34 h. ago Why is Nvidia’s CEO lobbying Republicans on AI chip sales to China?

Why is Nvidia’s CEO lobbying Republicans on AI chip sales to China?  Los Angeles Times

Politics

34 h. ago FBI charges man with planting pipe bombs on eve of January 6, 2021 Capitol riot

The FBI arrested a 30-year-old Virginia man and charged him on Thursday with planting a pair of pipe bombs in Washington the night before the January 6, 2021, assault on the US Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump, capping a years-long investigation that gave rise to numerous conspiracy theories. The suspect, Brian Cole Jnr, of Woodbridge, was charged with use of an explosive device and attempted malicious destruction by means of explosive materials, Attorney General Pam Bondi and...

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41 h. ago Malaysian man stranded by Thai floods with ‘colleagues’ exposed holidaying with lover

A Malaysian man who informed his wife that he was on a business trip with colleagues was discovered to be stranded with his mistress amid severe floods in Thailand. Heavy flooding, triggered by torrential rains, has struck southern Thailand, claiming over 80 lives and affecting three million people across 12 provinces, including Hat Yai, the largest city in southern Thailand. On November 24, a Malaysian woman, who had been sharing rescue updates in Hat Yai, posted that a distressed Malaysian...

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42 h. ago In wake of Hong Kong blaze, Southeast Asia’s fire hazards come under scrutiny

Last year, Mutalib Uthman was forced to look on helplessly as his house burned to the ground and all his possessions were incinerated in a wall of flames and thick, black smoke. The book publisher from Selangor said a faulty fuse box on the lower floor sparked the blaze inside his home in Bandar Baru Bangi. His two-storey house in the town near Putrajaya was destroyed quickly despite a neighbour trying to help with a fire extinguisher. “The box was inside the store room, which was full of unused...

Events

53 h. ago Doctor who sold ketamine to Friends star Matthew Perry gets 2½ years in prison

A doctor who pleaded guilty to selling ketamine to Matthew Perry in the weeks before the Friends star’s overdose death was sentenced to 2½ years in prison on Wednesday. Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett handed down the sentence plus two years of probation to 44-year-old Salvador Plasencia in a federal courtroom in Los Angeles. The judge emphasised that Plasencia did not provide the ketamine that killed Perry, but told him: “You and others helped Mr Perry on the road to such an ending by continuing to...

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56 h. ago Hegseth’s use of Signal posed risk to US personnel, Pentagon watchdog finds

The Pentagon’s watchdog found that US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth put American personnel and their mission at risk when he used the Signal messaging app to convey sensitive information about a military strike against Houthi militants in Yemen, two people familiar with the findings said on Wednesday. Hegseth, however, has the ability to declassify material and the report did not find he did so improperly, according to one of the people familiar with the report’s findings who spoke on condition...

Events

56 h. ago Hegseth’s use of Signal posed risk to US troops, Pentagon watchdog finds

The Pentagon’s watchdog found that US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth put American personnel and their mission at risk when he used the Signal messaging app to convey sensitive information about a military strike against Houthi militants in Yemen, two people familiar with the findings said on Wednesday. Hegseth, however, has the ability to declassify material and the report did not find he did so improperly, according to one of the people familiar with the report’s findings who spoke on condition...

Events

56 h. ago Hegseth’s Signal use posed risk to US forces, Pentagon review finds

The Pentagon’s watchdog found that US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth put US personnel and their mission at risk when he used the Signal messaging app to convey sensitive information about a military strike against Yemen’s Houthi militants, two people familiar with the findings said on Wednesday. Hegseth, however, has the ability to declassify material and the report did not find he did so improperly, according to one of the people familiar with the findings who spoke on condition of anonymity to...

Events

64 h. ago China trains industry AI tool using ‘world’s largest’ port operation data set

China is training an artificial intelligence tool to support the country’s port industry using what the National Development and Reform Commission said was the “world’s largest” port operation data set. The AI application draws on data covering “the most comprehensive range of port business scenarios”, according to Li Chao, deputy director of the NDRC’s policy research office. “It will provide strong support for technological research and development as well as verification in areas such as port...

Politics

64 h. ago Safety alert on net certificates sparks renovation probe at 2 Hong Kong estates

Police have launched an investigation into renovation work under way at two housing estates in Hong Kong, following media reports that their scaffolding net safety certificates may have been falsified. Security chief Chris Tang Ping-keung said on Wednesday evening that an official police probe had been launched into renovation projects at Fung Wah Estate in Chai Wan and Fortress Garden in Fortress Hill. Both estates were found to be using scaffolding mesh obtained from the same Shandong...

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65 h. ago Asia’s floods kill over 1,000, lay bare human cost of climate inaction

More than 1,400 people have been killed across South and Southeast Asia in a week of catastrophic floods, exposing how rising global temperatures are amplifying extreme weather, even as international negotiations to phase out fossil fuels stall. Successive storms, cyclones and relentless rains have triggered catastrophic flash floods and landslides in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia, overwhelming local authorities already operating at the limits of their capacity. While...

Events

3 d. ago India scraps mandatory cybersecurity app on new phones after backlash

India revoked its order to smartphone makers on Wednesday to require the installation of a state-run cybersecurity app days after the plan triggered a major backlash from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s opponents and privacy activists over surveillance fears. The Indian government had confidentially ordered companies including Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi to install new phones with an app called Sanchar Saathi, or Communication Partner, within 90 days, Reuters was first to report on...

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