- Wednesday, 20 August 2025
Reuters
Trump administration ending protected status for Nepalese migrants
The notice said the revocation will take effect 60 days from Friday, giving the approximately 7,000 Nepalese migrants with temporary protected status who aren't permanent residents until August 5, 2025, to leave the country or change their immigration status. After that date, they could face deportation.
Myanmar earthquake toll crosses 3,000; forecast rains pose new threat for rescuers
The death toll from Myanmar's devastating earthquake has surpassed 3,000, with hundreds more missing, as forecasts of unseasonal rain presented a new challenge for rescue and aid workers trying to reach people in a country riven by civil war. Last Friday's 7.7-magnitude quake, one of the Southeast Asian nation's strongest in a century, jolted a region home to 28 million, toppling buildings, flattening communities and leaving many without food, water and shelter.
SpaceX rocket cargo project puts Pacific seabirds in jeopardy
A project proposed by Elon Musk's SpaceX and the U.S. Air Force to test hypersonic rocket cargo deliveries from a remote Pacific atoll could harm the many seabirds that nest at the wildlife refuge, according to biologists and experts who have spent more than a decade working to protect them. It would not be the first time that SpaceX's activities have affected protected birds.
German startup's space rocket explodes seconds after takeoff from Norway
A test rocket aimed at kickstarting satellite launches from Europe fell to the ground and exploded 40 seconds after takeoff from a Norwegian space port on Sunday, in what German startup Isar Aerospace had described as an initial test.
Myanmar quake death toll hits 1,000 as international aid starts to arrive
Foreign rescue teams began flying into Myanmar on Saturday to aid the search for survivors from an earthquake that killed more than 1,000 people in the impoverished Southeast Asian nation crippling critical infrastructure amid a grinding civil war. The death toll in Myanmar was 1,002, the military government said on Saturday, up sharply from initial state media reports of 144 dead on Friday.
WHO calls for immediate action as report shows 10% rise in child TB infections in European region
Tuberculosis (TB) infections among children in the European region rose 10% in 2023, indicating ongoing transmission and the need for immediate public health measures to control the spread, the World Health Organization said on Monday. WHO's European region, which comprises 53 countries in Europe and Central Asia, reported more than 7,500 cases among children under 15 years of age in 2023, an increase of over 650 cases compared to 2022.
Trump launches large-scale strikes on Yemen's Houthis, at least 31 killed
U.S. President Donald Trump launched large-scale military strikes against Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis on Saturday over the group's attacks against Red Sea shipping, killing at least 31 people at the start of a campaign expected to last many days. Trump also warned Iran, the Houthis' main backer, that it needed to immediately halt support for the group. He said if Iran threatened the United States, "America will hold you fully accountable and, we won't be nice about it!"
More than 1,000 killed in Syrian crackdown on Alawite region
More than 1,000 people have been killed in two days of clashes between gunmen and security forces linked to Syria's new Islamist rulers and fighters from Bashar al-Assad's Alawite sect in the country's coastal region, a war monitor said. The casualties included 745 civilians, 125 members of the Syrian security forces and 148 fighters loyal to Assad, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Reuters could not independently verify the reports.
COVID-19's impact on global economy continues
Five years after the World Health Organization first described the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak as a pandemic, its effects are still being felt on the global economy. COVID-19 and efforts to contain it triggered record government debt, hit labour markets and shifted consumer behaviour. Inequality has increased, while remote work, digital payments and changes in travel patterns have endured. Though the immediate shock has passed, COVID-19's legacy continues to reshape global economies and markets. Here are some of the main impacts.
Obesity rates soaring globally in 'monumental social failure', study says
Rates of obesity and overweight are spiralling due to a "monumental societal failure" to tackle the problem, with more than half of adults and almost a third of children and young people set to be affected by 2050, according to a new study. That represents more than 3.8 billion adults and 746 million children and adolescents, research published in The Lancet said.
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Actor Gene Hackman and wife found dead alongside dog at home
Gene Hackman, the intense character actor who won two Oscars in a more than 60-year career, has died alongside his wife, pianist Betsy Arakawa, and their dog at home, the sheriff's office in Santa Fe, New Mexico, said on Thursday. A statement from the sheriff said deputies had found the 95-year-old actor and Arakawa, 64, deceased on Wednesday afternoon at around 1:45 p.m.
Trump floats $5 million 'gold card' as a route to US citizenship
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday floated the idea of replacing a visa program for foreign investors with a so-called "gold card" that could be bought for $5 million as a route to American citizenship. Trump told reporters he will replace the "EB-5" immigrant investor visa program, which allows foreign investors of large sums of money that create or preserve U.S. jobs to become permanent residents, with a so-called "gold card."
Germans start voting, polls suggest shift to right
Germans were voting in a national election on Sunday that is expected to see Friedrich Merz's conservatives regain power and the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) score its best ever result as Europe's ailing economic powerhouse lurches rightwards. Merz's CDU/CSU bloc has consistently led polls but is unlikely to win a majority given Germany's fragmented political landscape, forcing it to sound out coalition partners.
Bangladesh asks India to stop former PM Hasina from making 'false statements'
Bangladesh has asked India to stop ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from making "false and fabricated" comments while she is in the country, its foreign ministry said. Hasina fled to India last year following violent protests that killed more than 1,000 people.
India offers middle-class tax relief to support growth; targets narrower budget gap
India plans to cut personal income tax rates to boost middle-class spending power, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday, as she announced an annual budget that also sought to increase private investment to strengthen growth. The world's fifth-largest economy is expected to post its slowest growth in four years next year amid frail urban demand and weak private investment, while stubbornly high food inflation has dented disposable incomes.
