Coffee drinkers can sip their beverages and view a quiet North Korean mountain village from a new Starbucks at a South Korean border observatory. Customers have to pass a military checkpoint before entering the observatory at Aegibong Peace Ecopark, which is less than a mile from North Korean territory and overlooks North Korea’s Songaksan mountain and a nearby village in Kaephung county. The tables and windows face North Korea at the Starbucks, where about 40 people, a few of them foreigners, came to the opening Friday. The South Korean city of Gimpo said hosting Starbucks was part of efforts to develop its border facilities as a tourist destination and said the shop symbolizes “robust security on the Korean Peninsula through the presence of this iconic capitalist brand.” This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
30 November,2024 07:12 AM IST | Seoul | AgenciesThe population of giant pandas endemic to China has increased to around 1,900 after their survival rate improved in captive breeding. Their status has been changed from endangered to vulnerable. Experts say the breeding was the most difficult process. “In the early days, the artificial breeding of giant pandas was a big problem. Throughout the 1980s, we only bred one baby panda, which survived for two years,” Li Desheng, chief expert at China Conservation and Research Centre for the Giant Panda, said. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
30 November,2024 07:12 AM IST | Beijing | AgenciesThousands of Syrian insurgents pushed on with their advances on government-held areas in the country’s northwest, reaching the outskirts of Syria’s second largest city Aleppo and wrestling control of several towns and villages. Projectiles from insurgents landed in the student accommodations at Aleppo’s university, killing four people, including two students. Public transport to the city has been diverted from the main highway linking Aleppo to the capital Damascus to avoid clashes. Fighters also advanced on the town of Saraqab, in northwestern Idlib province, a strategic area that would secure supply lines to Aleppo. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
30 November,2024 07:11 AM IST | Beirut | AgenciesBangladesh’s authorities have ordered freezing for 30 days the bank accounts of 17 people associated with ISKCON, including its former member Chinmoy Krishna Das arrested this week on sedition charges, media reports said on Friday. The move comes after the Bangladesh High Court rejected a petition seeking a ban on International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), following the killing of a lawyer in a clash between the Hindu leader’s supporters and security personnel. The Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit (BFIU) sent these directives to different banks and financial institutions on Thursday, suspending all types of transactions related to these accounts for a month, newspaper Prothom Alo said. The agency also asked the banks and financial institutions to send information, including updated transaction statements of accounts related all businesses owned by these 17 individuals, within the next three working days. On October 30, a sedition case was filed against 19 people, including Das, accusing them of disrespecting Bangladesh’s national flag in Chattogram’s New Market area during a rally of the Hindu community. Das was arrested from Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on Monday. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
30 November,2024 07:11 AM IST | Dhaka | AgenciesBritish lawmakers started a historic debate Friday on a proposal to help terminally ill adults end their lives in England and Wales, an issue that has divided Parliament as well as the country at large. It’s the first time the House of Commons has had the opportunity to vote on legalising what some people call “assisted dying” while others term as “assisted suicide” in nearly a decade—and it looks like it will be a close result. Ahead of the debate on the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, around 180 lawmakers have indicated they will back the proposal, while about 150 have said they won’t. The other 300 or so lawmakers have either yet to make up their mind or have not disclosed how they will vote. The debate is set to be impassioned, touching on issues of ethics, grief, the law, religion, crime and money. Many lawmakers plan to recount personal experiences while others will focus on the impact on the hard-pressed state-run National Health Service and how to safeguard the most vulnerable from being exploited. Around 160 members of parliament have indicated they would like to make a speech during the debate, but the speaker of the House of Commons, Lyndsay Hoyle, said it’s unlikely that they all will have a chance to do so. A vote in favour of the bill would send it to another round of hearings, where it will face further scrutiny and votes in both Houses of Parliament. If approved, any new law is unlikely to come into effect within the next two to three years. 160No. of British MPs who want to make a speech This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
30 November,2024 07:11 AM IST | London | AgenciesRussian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov arrived in North Korea on Friday for talks with North Korean military and political leaders as the countries deepen their cooperation over Russia’s war in Ukraine. Russia’s Defence Ministry didn’t say whom Belousov would meet or the purpose of the talks. North Korean state media didn’t immediately confirm the visit. Belousov, a former economist, replaced Sergei Shoigu as defence minister in May after Russian President Vladimir Putin started a fifth term in power. Belousov applauded a strategic partnership agreement signed by Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un following their June meeting in Pyongyang, which he said is aimed at reducing tensions by maintaining a “balance of power” in the region and lowering the risk of war, including with nuclear weapons. North Korean Defence Minister No also praised the expanding cooperation. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
30 November,2024 07:10 AM IST | Seoul | AgenciesIsrael and Lebanon accused each other of a ceasefire breach after the Israeli military claimed that they attacked a Hezbollah facility in South Lebanon, ANI reported. Thursday's attack came hours after Israel Defence Forces admitted they fired in several areas in Lebanon, who "it said were violating the terms of the ceasefire". Lebanon then claimed that Israel violated the ceasefire terms multiple times on Wednesday and Thursday, as per ANI. Israel launched its first air strike since the ceasefire began on Wednesday morning, according to Lebanese security sources and local news agencies, the incident occurred near Baysariyah, north of the Litani River, ANI cited. Following the incident, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the army to prepare for war if the ceasefire was violated, according to Al Jazeera. Earlier in the day, US President Joe Biden announced on X that he spoke to the Prime Ministers of Lebanon and Israel, who have accepted the US proposal to put an end to the "devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah". Today, I have good news to report from the Middle East. I have spoken to the Prime Ministers of Lebanon and Israel. And I am pleased to announce:They have accepted the United States’ proposal to end the devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. — President Biden (@POTUS) November 26, 2024 "Today, I have good news to report from the Middle East. I have spoken to the Prime Ministers of Lebanon and Israel. And I am pleased to announce: They have accepted the United States' proposal to end the devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah", he wrote. Israel and Lebanon have been at war with each other since October of last year, when Hezbollah attacked Israeli-controlled territory in support of Hamas and Palestinians in Gaza, ANI reported. This incident started a series of revenge border attacks, which eventually escalated into a major military attack launched by Israel in mid-September. In September, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) conducted air strikes against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia and sent troops to southern Lebanon. This was in response to Hezbollah's missile strikes into Israel, which were intended to show support with the Hamas group responsible for the deadly October 7, 2023 attacks. In the midst of this volatile scenario, the United States and France a ceasefire was negotiated between Israel and Lebanon. (With inputs from ANI)
29 November,2024 02:15 PM IST | Tel Aviv | mid-day online correspondentIn the remotest reaches of Alaska, there’s no relying on DoorDash to have Thanksgiving dinner—or any dinner—delivered. But some residents living well off the grid nevertheless have turkeys this holiday, thanks to the Alaska Turkey Bomb. For the third straight year, Esther Keim has been flying low and slow in a small plane over rural parts of south-central Alaska, dropping frozen turkeys to those who can’t run to a store. Only about 20 per cent of Alaska is accessible by road. Using a small plane she had rebuilt with her father, Keim launched her turkey delivery mission a few years back after learning of a family living off the land nearby who had little for Thanksgiving dinner. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
29 November,2024 07:58 AM IST | Anchorage | AgenciesSyrian armed groups have launched a large-scale attack on areas controlled by government forces, setting off fierce clashes for a second day and seizing territory in Western Aleppo, government and opposition factions said on Thursday. Syria’s armed forces said on Thursday the offensive was led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, which controls much of northwest Syria and is a violation of a de-escalation agreement. It said the attacks are ongoing and have targeted a number of villages and military bases. Opposition factions began the offensive on Wednesday and claim to have wrestled control of over 15 villages from government forces. They claim to have captured a military base and hardware, and say several soldiers were taken hostage. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
29 November,2024 07:53 AM IST | Aleppo | AgenciesBangladesh High Court on Thursday rejected a petition seeking a ban on ISKCON’s activities in the country, days after a lawyer was killed in a clash between security personnel and supporters of a Hindu leader, previously linked to the religious group. A lawyer had sought a ban on the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) after placing some newspaper reports related to the organisation on Wednesday. “The two-member High Court bench on Thursday declined to ban the ISKCON activities in Bangladesh,” a spokesman of the attorney general’s office said. He said the bench made the decision after the attorney general’s office submitted a report on the action taken by the government regarding the death of assistant government prosecutor Saiful Islam Alif in the northeastern port city of Chattogram earlier this week. Hindu leader Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachary, arrested earlier this week, was sent to jail by a Chattogram court on sedition charges, sparking a violent protest during which advocate Alif was killed. Chinmoy was earlier expelled from ISKCON. The decision came a day after Attorney-General Mohammad Asaduzzaman urged the court not to take any decisions on the ISKCON issue as the government has started taking the required action. ICC trial sought for Sheikh Hasina Bangladesh has sought to pursue deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s trial in the International Criminal Court (ICC) even as she faces a trial in a domestic tribunal for crimes against humanity. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
29 November,2024 07:50 AM IST | Dhaka | AgenciesA social media ban for children under 16 passed the Australian Senate Thursday and will soon become a world-first law. The law will make platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars (USD 33 million) for systemic failures to prevent children younger than 16 from holding accounts. The Senate passed the bill 34 votes to 19. The House of Representatives on Wednesday approved the legislation by 102 votes to 13. The House has yet to endorse opposition amendments, but that is a formality since the government has already agreed they will pass. The platforms will have one year to work out how they could implement the ban before penalties are enforced. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
29 November,2024 07:46 AM IST | Melbourne | AgenciesADVERTISEMENT
