Category: World

LOS ANGELES: Warner Bros Discovery has filed a lawsuit against artificial intelligence photo generation company Midjourney for allegedly stealing its copyrighted characters. The entertainment giant claims Midjourney brazenly used its works to generate images of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Bugs Bunny and Scooby-Doo without permission. Warner Bros stated in a complaint filed in Los Angeles… Continue reading Warner Bros sues Midjourney for AI copyright infringement over characters

ST LOUIS: Boeing Defence will hire permanent replacement workers for striking machinists who assemble military aircraft and munitions in the St Louis area. Company vice president Dan Gillian announced the hiring process for manufacturing roles in a Thursday message to employees, stating this would ensure proper staffing to support customers. International Association of Machinists and… Continue reading Boeing to hire permanent replacements for striking St Louis defence workers

BEIJING: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has pledged his country’s continued support for China’s efforts to protect its sovereignty, territory and development interests. Kim made the commitment during a bilateral summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday. The North Korean leader stated that no matter how the international situation changes, the… Continue reading North Korea’s Kim pledges support for China’s interests in Beijing summit

PARIS: Leading figures from cinema and fashion paid heartfelt tribute to the enduring legacy of Giorgio Armani following his passing at age 91. Julia Roberts, a frequent wearer of his designs, described the Italian maestro as both a true friend and an undeniable legend in the industry. Claudia Cardinale expressed immense pain at the news,… Continue reading Hollywood stars and fashion icons pay tribute to Giorgio Armani

NURGAL: The death toll from a powerful earthquake that struck eastern Afghanistan has risen sharply to more than 2,200 people, making it the deadliest seismic event to hit the country in decades. The vast majority of casualties occurred in Kunar province, where 2,205 people died and 3,640 were injured, with additional fatalities and hundreds of… Continue reading Afghanistan earthquake death toll exceeds 2,200 in deadliest quake in decades

WASHINGTON: US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr defended his decision to fire scientists and overhaul national vaccine policies during a contentious Senate hearing. Democrats demanded his resignation while Republicans largely supported his controversial actions during the three-hour session that frequently erupted into shouting matches. The hearing followed last week’s ousting of Centers for Disease… Continue reading RFK Jr defends CDC shakeup amid Democratic calls for resignation

DOHA: EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas met with Tehran’s top diplomat in Doha to seek a negotiated solution regarding Iran’s nuclear programme as sanctions loom. The meeting occurred after European powers triggered a deadline for sanctions to return due to Iran’s failure to comply with commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal. This action initiated… Continue reading EU diplomat holds nuclear talks with Iran as sanctions deadline approaches

PARIS: More than two dozen countries have pledged to join a security force for deployment in Ukraine following any eventual peace agreement with Russia. The “reassurance force” aims to deter Moscow from launching fresh attacks against its neighbour once hostilities cease through either a peace deal or ceasefire. French President Emmanuel Macron announced that 26… Continue reading Coalition pledges Ukraine force after peace deal to deter Russia

WASHINGTON: A United States appeals court has upheld a lower court ruling requiring the Trump administration to resume issuing passports with an X gender marker for transgender and nonbinary citizens. President Donald Trump had issued an executive order in January recognising only male and female genders, thereby ending official policies that acknowledged a third gender… Continue reading US appeals court upholds ruling on X gender marker passports

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday reducing United States tariffs on Japanese automobiles from 27.5% to 15%. The White House published the order’s text confirming the new rate structure as part of a broader trade agreement between the two nations. This adjustment represents a significant victory for Japan following weeks of… Continue reading US lowers Japan auto tariffs to 15% in new trade pact implementation

WASHINGTON: The United States plans to terminate long-standing military assistance for European nations bordering Russia as the Trump administration urges the continent to assume a larger defence role. The Washington Post cited six informed sources confirming the move, which affects hundreds of millions of dollars in aid intended to strengthen defences against Russia. The Financial… Continue reading US to end military aid for Europe amid defence spending push

CHINESE CAMP: A cluster of lightning-sparked wildfires raged across portions of two Northern California counties on Wednesday, forcing widespread evacuations and engulfing part of an historic Gold Rush mining town once home to thousands of Chinese immigrants. Wind-whipped flames from nearly two dozen separate blazes have scorched more than 13,000 acres (5,261 hectares) of sun-baked… Continue reading Wildfires blaze across California Gold Country, ravage historic town

ISTANBUL: Some Google services including YouTube temporarily went down on Thursday in Turkey and some parts of Europe including Greece and Germany, according to a Turkish deputy minister, internet monitors and users in the regions. The Freedom of Expression Association, which monitors local censorship on the internet, said the outage on Alphabet’s Google began around… Continue reading Google services were down in Turkey, parts of Europe

BANGKOK: Thai royal officials rejected a request by the ruling party to dissolve parliament, the country’s acting prime minister said Thursday, clearing the way for a vote that could select his successor. A power vacuum has consumed Thailand’s top office since last Friday, when the Constitutional Court sacked prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra over an ethics… Continue reading Thailand set for vote on new PM after dissolution bid rejected

ISTANBUL: Google services were reportedly inaccessible for millions in several countries, primarily in Southeast Europe, on Thursday, Anadolu Ajansi (AA) reported. According to DownDetector, a surge of reports from users struggling to access Google services such as YouTube, Gmail, Chrome, Maps, Google Translate and other services started at 10am local time (0700GMT). “There was a… Continue reading Google services down across several countries

LISBON: Flags flew at half-mast in Lisbon on Thursday after at least 16 people were killed in a crash of a hillside funicular railway popular with tourists, and the remaining two lines were shut as Portuguese authorities investigated the cause of the accident. Twenty-three people were injured, and one of them died during the night,… Continue reading Lisbon mourns 16 victims of cable car crash as investigation begins

MOSCOW: A senior Russian official on Thursday said that Russia would take more Ukrainian territory and go after British property after London said it had spent around $1.3 billion of money raised from frozen Russian assets on weapons for Ukraine. British Defence Minister John Healey said more than 1 billion pounds of military support for… Continue reading Medvedev says Russia may seize British assets and more Ukrainian land over frozen funds

JOHANNESBURG: Nelson Mandela’s grandson has said Palestinians’ lives under Israeli occupation are worse than anything Black South Africans experienced under apartheid, and urged the global community to come to their aid. Mandla Mandela, 51, spoke to Reuters on Wednesday evening at Johannesburg Airport, where he was boarding a flight to Tunisia to join a flotilla… Continue reading Mandela’s grandson says Palestinians’ plight is worse than apartheid

TOKYO: Japan’s tariff envoy headed to Washington on Thursday to press US President Donald Trump to sign an executive order implementing a tariffs deal announced six weeks ago. Ryosei Akazawa abruptly cancelled his previous planned visit last week, saying further working-level discussions were still needed between the two sides. “It’s necessary that the US issues… Continue reading Japan tariff envoy heads to US after cancellation

LISBON: Portugal observed a national day of mourning on Thursday following a catastrophic funicular train derailment that killed at least 15 people in one of Lisbon’s most visited tourist locations. The tragic accident occurred on Wednesday when the distinctive yellow Gloria funicular veered off its steep tracks near Liberty Avenue and smashed into a building… Continue reading Portugal mourns 15 killed in Lisbon funicular derailment tragedy

PARIS: Stargazers will witness a “Blood Moon” during Sunday night’s total lunar eclipse visible across Asia and significant portions of Europe and Africa. The phenomenon occurs when the Sun, Earth, and Moon align perfectly, casting Earth’s shadow onto the lunar surface and creating an eerie deep red colour that has fascinated humans for thousands of… Continue reading Blood Moon total lunar eclipse visible across Asia and Europe Sunday

KUALA LUMPUR/JAKARTA: Indonesian delivery driver Rizky Azhar received an unexpected food order from Malaysia accompanied by a note stating the smoked beef with rice was for him. This order represented part of a regional surge in food purchases for motorcycle taxi and delivery drivers across Indonesia. The movement emerged as a show of solidarity with… Continue reading Southeast Asia shows solidarity with Indonesian drivers via food orders

BEIJING: China will impose tariffs of up to 78.2% on certain United States optical fibre imports starting September 4. The commerce ministry announced the decision just before midnight on Wednesday, accusing American producers of evading anti-dumping measures. The levies specifically target cut-off shifted single-mode optical fibre, with Corning facing a 37.9% duty and OFS-Felite receiving… Continue reading China imposes up to 78.2% tariffs on US optical fibre imports

NEW DELHI: Parts of Delhi and Indian Kashmir experienced severe flooding on Thursday after two major rivers breached their danger marks following intense monsoon rains across northern regions. Weather officials have forecast some respite from the downpours after a fierce monsoon season caused immense destruction throughout the region this year. Torrential rainfall in the hilly… Continue reading Yamuna river crosses danger mark as heavy rains flood parts of Delhi

SYDNEY: The Australian government has agreed to pay a further 475 million Australian dollars ($308.66 million) in compensation to victims of an illegal welfare debt recovery programme. This settlement would become the largest class action payout in Australian history if approved by the courts. The programme known as Robodebt pursued hundreds of thousands of welfare… Continue reading Australia agrees record $309 million payout for Robodebt victims

WASHINGTON: Donald Trump’s administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to swiftly hear a bid to preserve his sweeping tariffs pursued under a 1977 law meant for emergencies after a lower court invalidated most of the levies that have been central to the Republican president’s economic and trade agenda. The Justice Department appealed an… Continue reading Trump administration appeals tariffs ruling to US Supreme Court

VLADIVOSTOK (Russia): Russia has no plans to discuss any potential foreign military deployment in Ukraine in any format, calling it “unacceptable”, foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters on Thursday. She was commenting on remarks by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on plans to send European troops to Ukraine, a move, which was… Continue reading Russia rejects potential foreign military deployment in Ukraine

LIMA: A top Peruvian court has ordered the release of former President Martin Vizcarra while he awaits trial for allegedly taking bribes during his tenure as governor more than a decade ago. Vizcarra had been jailed last month ahead of his trial, where prosecutors have requested a 15-year sentence for the former leader. The court’s… Continue reading Peru court orders release of jailed ex-President Vizcarra

SEOUL: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country would “fully support” Russia’s army as a “fraternal duty”, and Russian President Vladimir Putin called the two countries’ ties “special”, state media KCNA reported on Thursday. Kim and Putin held a meeting on Wednesday on the sidelines of China’s celebrations to mark the formal surrender… Continue reading Kim Jong Un pledges full military support to Russia in Ukraine war

LIMA: A Peruvian court on Wednesday sentenced former President Alejandro Toledo to 13 years and four months in prison for money laundering, his second conviction in connection with widespread corruption. Toledo, 79, who was president from 2001 to 2006, was found guilty of using bribe money from the Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht, now known as… Continue reading Former Peruvian president Toledo gets second corruption sentence

WASHINGTON: The United States Department of Homeland Security has moved to end the Biden-era designation of Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelan migrants. A department spokesperson stated that Venezuela no longer meets the requirements for this protected immigration status. Temporary Protected Status provides work authorisation and deportation protection to migrants from countries experiencing disasters or conflicts.… Continue reading Trump administration ends Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans

MOSCOW: Russia’s defence ministry announced on Wednesday that its troops had captured approximately half of the Ukrainian city of Kupiansk in the northeastern Kharkiv region. Ukraine’s military immediately denied any such Russian advance in the strategically important city. Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports from either side regarding the situation in Kupiansk. The… Continue reading Russia claims capture of half of Kupiansk as Ukraine denies advance