Author: Ishika Raj

According to a security source and Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency, an armed man took staff members and clients at gunpoint hostage at a bank on busy Hamra Street in Beirut on Thursday and demanded the release of his frozen cash

On Wednesday, a Chinese court dismissed an appeal by a former state television intern challenging the rejection of her historic #MeToo case in which she accused a prominent presenter of sexual harassment. According to Zhou Xiaoxuan, popularly known as Xianzi, she was 21-year-old when she worked on Zhu Jun’s show. Her statement accused Zhu Jun of grabbing and forcibly kissing her in a dressing room and soon she became the face of the nation’s #MeToo movement. Zhu, who was 50 years old at the time of the purported occurrence, refuted the charge and sued Zhou for defamation. She then filed…

The foreign minister of Taiwan claimed on Tuesday that PLA was using the military drills it started as a show of force against Nancy Pelosi’s visit as part of a strategy to invade the autonomous island.  Without giving a timeline for a potential invasion of Taiwan, which China claims as its own, Joseph Wu declared that Taiwan would not be intimidated despite the drills continuing and China frequently crossing the unofficial median line down the Taiwan Strait. Wu stated at a news conference in Taipei that “China is using the military drill to train its forces for the invasion of…

On Saturday, August 6, Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. met with America’s top diplomat, Antony Blinken, as the two nations work to strengthen their ties amid rising regional tensions. Secretary of State Antony Blinken reassured the Philippines that if they were attacked in the South China Sea, the US would defend them, attempting to ease fears about the scope of the US commitment to a mutual defense treaty. Highlights of the meeting In his brief introductory remarks, Marcos mentioned recent events including the invasion of Ukraine and US Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan earlier this week, which had spurred…

Canada announced on Friday that it would temporarily forbid the import of restricted handguns from August 19. The step is intended to obliquely further the objectives of gun restriction legislation put forth in May. The Canadian government announced in a statement that the import embargo would remain in effect until a nationwide firearm freeze took effect. In an effort to combat gun violence, the Liberal administration of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau proposed bill C-21 in May. While away on vacation, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Twitter. “On August 19th, Canada will outlaw the importing of handguns. According to his…

A day after basketball player Brittney Griner was found guilty of narcotics smuggling and given a nine-year prison term for bringing less than a gram of cannabis oil through a Moscow airport, the US and Russia made it known that they are prepared to conduct negotiations over prisoner’s swap. According to Russian news agency RIA Novosti, Sergey Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia, told reporters that the Kremlin is “ready for talks over prisoners swap but within the scope of the channel that presidents have agreed upon.” Lavrov at the ASEAN conference on Friday said, no matter what is said…

NASA announced that it would send two more Ingenuity-class helicopters to Mars as part of its future Sample Retrieval Lander mission. This is in light of the organization’s ongoing Mars Ingenuity-class helicopters mission’s resounding success. Although it may be nearing the end of its useful life, the small rotorcraft has outlasted expectations and, with 29 successful flights to date, has demonstrated that employing a helicopter to explore Mars is more than feasible. The Perseverance rover’s linked Ingenuity-class helicopters have performed much above expectations since it touched down on Mars in February of last year. 11 samples from Mars’s surface were…

In apparent retaliation for US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the autonomous island, China has banned some trade with Taiwan. The restrictions include a halt of some Taiwanese imports of fruits and fish as well as natural sand exports to the island. According to the Taiwanese government, China is Taiwan’s greatest trading partner. Bilateral trade between the two countries totaled $273 billion last year, or 33 percent of the island’s overall trade with the rest of the world. Experts are particularly worried about the potential effects of Taipei and Beijing’s deteriorating relations on Taiwan’s semiconductor industry when inflation all…

For the second day in a row, gold prices in India decreased, but the declines were contained as they remained stable globally. It is to be noted here, that the price of gold hit a one-month high all around the world on Tuesday, but it was trading down in India. On Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), Silver futures decreased 0.4 percent to 58,100 per kg, while gold futures were trading lower at 51,480 per 10 grams. Gold was steady in world markets at $1,775.29 per ounce. Globally gold prices are high due to a decline in US Treasury yields amid a…

Sanjay Arora, an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer from Tamil Nadu’s 1988 batch, was named the new Police commissioner of Delhi by the Central government on Sunday. From Monday, August 1, Arora, who is also the incumbent director-general of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), would assume over as commissioner of the Delhi Police. “Police division, MHA, dated July 31, 2022, has sent the competent authority’s approval for Sanjay Arora’s inter-cadre deputation from Tamil Nadu Cadre to AGMUT Cadre. Sanjay Arora is appointed as the new Delhi Police Commissioner by the approval. The order will be effective from August 1, 2022,…