News

Pakistanis Take to the Streets en Masse After the Arrest of Former Prime Minister Imran Khan
Asia, News, Pakistan

Pakistanis Take to the Streets en Masse After the Arrest of Former Prime Minister Imran Khan

Supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan took to the streets en masse on Tuesday after his arrest. Police use water cannons and tear gas. Khan, 70, was arrested in Islamabad on Tuesday for corruption. Footage posted on social media shows thousands of Pakistanis protesting his arrest in Islamabad, Karachi, Peshawar and Khan's home city of Lahore. Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party says on Twitter that a "red line" has been crossed with his arrest. "Take to the streets and save Pakistan," the PTI calls on its sympathizers. An attempt was made to arrest the former prime minister in March. That failed because thousands of Khan's supporters came to his home in Lahore to thwart the arrest. Khan was prime minister until April 2022, when he was ousted following a no-co...
British Watchdog is Investigating the AI Market
Business, News, Technology, UK

British Watchdog is Investigating the AI Market

The British competition watchdog CMA has launched a broad investigation into the development of the artificial intelligence (AI) market. The regulator wants to know what impact this fast-growing technology will have on competition in the technology sector and whether more rules are needed to protect consumers. Artificial intelligence develops computer systems that come close to human intelligence. For example, chatbots such as ChatGPT can write texts that appear to have been written by a human. The increasing possibilities offered by AI systems have prompted major technology companies such as Microsoft and Alphabet, the owner of Google, to accelerate investments in the sector. “The potential benefits of this transformative technology must be easily accessible to UK businesses...
Russian Former President Medvedev: World on Eve of New World War
News, Russia

Russian Former President Medvedev: World on Eve of New World War

"The world is probably on the eve of another world war, and the chance of a nuclear confrontation is also increasing." That is what former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said. Medvedev, now chairman of Russia's Security Council, describes the world as "sick", calling the threat of nuclear war more significant than that of the climate crisis. According to Medvedev, however, it is not yet too late to prevent such a major international conflict. The former president and former prime minister of Russia often make threatening statements regarding nuclear war. Many Western countries assume that he mainly wants to intimidate. Earlier this month, he said, "Poland, given its role as a NATO outpost, will most likely cease to exist, along with its stupid prime minister." And in F...
Lego Builds First Factory in the United States
Business, News, Technology, US

Lego Builds First Factory in the United States

Lego wants to build its first factory in the United States, specifically in Virginia in the east. The toy manufacturer intends to increase its market share in this way. It concerns an investment of 1 billion dollars. “If we look at the potential in the US, we still have a long way to go,” US chief operating officer Carsten Rasmussen told Bloomberg news agency. The popularity of colourful building blocks across the ocean is much lower than in Europe. “We are already strong on the east coast and the north, but there is still much potential elsewhere. We think we can succeed in the coming years.” The Danish company competes globally for first place with American toy giants Mattel and Hasbro. Over the past four years, Lego has doubled its turnover in the US, but there is still much ...
Two Missing After Severe Storm and Flooding in Israel
Israel, News

Two Missing After Severe Storm and Flooding in Israel

Two people were reported missing in Israel on Tuesday after severe storms ravaged the country's south and caused flooding. The Israeli police report this. In the night from Monday to Tuesday, the emergency services had their hands full rescuing holidaymakers who were surprised by the torrential rain. About sixty people were rescued, some of whom were dragged in their cars by the rising water. However, two people are still reported missing in the desert region of the Negev, police said in a statement on Tuesday. Since Monday evening, "heavy rainfall and strong winds are causing rivers to flood near highways 90 and 40," the country's two main roads. Several roads have been blocked near the seaside resort of Eilat, and the police have asked the population not to go near the floo...
Chinese Spy Balloon Collected Information About US Military Bases
China, News, US

Chinese Spy Balloon Collected Information About US Military Bases

The Chinese balloon launched over the coast of the US state of South Carolina on February 4 was indeed able to collect sensitive information. Various sources report this to the American channel NBC News. In February of this year, the world was under the spell of suspicious objects over North American skies. On February 4, an American F-22 fighter jet shot down a large white balloon. A Chinese spy balloon, the United States declared. China has always denied that and spoke of a weather balloon. Nevertheless, the discovery of the balloon certainly caused a lot of tension between the two countries. After further investigation, the United States found that the balloon, first spotted over Alaska on January 28, could gather information. China could steer the balloon to fly over some lo...
Spanish Authorities Do Not Want Fire Tourists: Call to Stay Away From Forest Fires
Europe, News, Spain

Spanish Authorities Do Not Want Fire Tourists: Call to Stay Away From Forest Fires

Spanish authorities have called for people to avoid forest fires in Castellón and Teruel, near Valencia. So-called "fire tourists" can put themselves at risk and disrupt efforts to control wildfires. "We ask again, especially tourists, not to approach the perimeter." In Castellón and Teruel, near Valencia, Spain, wildfires have burned large parts of the region to ashes. Since Saturday, 700 firefighters have been trying to contain the fire. In addition, firefighting planes and helicopters were deployed. It is the first major forest fire in Spain this year. The forest fire destroyed more than 4,000 hectares of forest. As a result, about 1,700 Spaniards had to leave their homes. Since the wildfires started, several disaster tourists have explored the neighbourhood. The police have ...
25 Injured After Ship Overturns in Edinburgh Harbour
News, Scotland

25 Injured After Ship Overturns in Edinburgh Harbour

Twenty-five people were injured on Wednesday morning after a large ship overturned in a dry dock in Leith, near Edinburgh, Scotland. According to local aid workers, 15 injured people had to be hospitalised. The 3,000-tonne research vessel "Petrel" overturned on Wednesday morning when it was in dry dock in Leith. Emergency services immediately arrived on the scene. 25 people were injured in the incident. Ten could be treated at the scene, but the remaining 15 were treated at the hospital. According to Cammy Day, local council president, the ship became detached from the dock due to the strong wind. The 76-meter-long ship was laid up in 2020 due to "operational challenges" during the corona pandemic. It has not been used since then, the BBC writes. Before that, the ship w...
Swiss Coalition Party: UBS/Credit Suisse Merger Bank Too Big
Business, Europe, News, Switzerland

Swiss Coalition Party: UBS/Credit Suisse Merger Bank Too Big

The merger bank created after UBS's takeover of Credit Suisse is too big for Switzerland. Leader Roger Nordmann of the social-democratic SP said this on Monday. That party is the second largest in the Swiss parliament and is part of the governing coalition. “The new UBS is a huge risk,” said Nordmann. “That bank will soon have over 1500 billion francs in assets and is simply too big for Switzerland.” Moreover, if UBS got into trouble, the Swiss central bank SNB and the Swiss government would not have enough resources to prevent a collapse. The acquisition of Credit Suisse by UBS was finalized this weekend. Credit Suisse had been hit by a series of scandals and reported that more and more customers were withdrawing their money from the bank. The financial markets were alrea...
Newspaper: US Prosecutors Investigate Bankruptcy of Silicon Valley Bank
Business, News, US

Newspaper: US Prosecutors Investigate Bankruptcy of Silicon Valley Bank

US prosecutors have launched an investigation into the bankrupt Silicon Valley Bank. The US regulator for stock exchange trading, the Securities and Exchange Commission, is also investigating the California bank that was taken over by US authorities last Friday. The Wall Street Journal reports this based on insiders. According to the business newspaper, the investigation is still in an exploratory phase, and it is far from a foregone conclusion that there will be formal accusations against SVB or its directors. Public prosecutors and the regulator often start an investigation when financial services companies run into problems. The investigation at SVB would focus on, among others, directors who sold shares a few days before the bank collapsed.