INTERNATIONAL

Multiple regions across the world simultaneously experiencing heat extremes could become an “emerging feature” of a warmer planet, according to a new study. The new research that reviewed the weather and climate of 2023 also said that many of the extreme events experienced last year are consistent with predictions previously made about a warmer world. Putting the events of the warmest year on record in perspective, researchers said that in a warmer future, more events involving record-breaking hot temperatures occurring earlier in the year, and cyclones exacerbating rainfall extremes are in order. Change in seasonality of extreme events too is another trend the researchers observed. “We are seeing extremes appearing in seasons in which they are usually less likely. Heatwaves, f...

Google has terminated 28 employees following protests against the company's cloud-computing contract with Israel. The terminations occurred on Wednesday after nine employees were arrested on Tuesday during sit-in protests at Google offices in Sunnyvale, California, and New York City. According to the employees, they were held for a few hours before being released. Chris Rackow, Google's vice president for global security, stated in a company-wide email that the employees' behavior was "unacceptable, extremely disruptive, and made co-workers feel threatened." The protesting employees, who are part of a group called No Tech for Apartheid, have been campaigning against Google's deal to sell technology to Israel since 2021. Tensions over the cloud-computing contract, known as Ni...

Explosions were reported near the central Iranian city of Isfahan and Tabriz in the northwest, following the activation of air defense systems targeting "suspicious objects" early Friday. Officials assured the public of the safety of critical facilities in Isfahan province, particularly nuclear installations, with no incidents reported. Brigadier Siavash Mihandoust, a senior Army commander in Isfahan province, confirmed that the sound stemmed from the firing of Isfahan's air defense systems at the perceived threats, emphasizing the absence of damage or accidents. The Iran Airports and Air Navigation Company announced the resumption of normal flight operations at Iranian airports, including Imam Khomeini International Airport and Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, following ...

Israel has attacked Iran early on Friday morning as Iranian forces  forces had destroyed drones, days after Iran launched a retaliatory drone strike on Israel. Quoting sources Reuters reported that the U.S. was not involved but was notified by Israel before the attack. Iran's Fars news agency reported three explosions were heard near an army base in the central city of Isfahan. An Iranian official told Reuters there was no missile attack and the explosions were the result of the activation of Iran's air defense systems. Iranian state TV said that shortly after midnight "three drones were observed in the sky over Isfahan. The air defense system became active and destroyed these drones in the sky." The broadcaster later said the situation in Isfahan was normal and no ground explo...

Israeli government has accelerated the expansion of illegal settlements in occupied East Jerusalem since 07 October according to planning documents reviewed by The Guardian. The documents reveal that over 20 projects totaling thousands of housing units have been “approved or advanced" by the Israeli government. The surge in settlement activities has primarily been concentrated in neighborhoods like Sheikh Jarrah, Silwan, and the historic Old City, areas that are predominantly Palestinian. The report suggest that hundreds of new housing units have been approved or are under construction, with plans for thousands more in the coming years. This scale of development is unparalleled in recent years, both in terms of speed and magnitude, the report added. The expansion of settleme...

Over 10,000 women, including an estimated 6,000 mothers, have tragically lost their lives in Israel's six-month-long war on Gaza, leaving 19,000 children orphaned, according to a recent report by UN Women released on Tuesday. Dubbed as "a war on women" by the UN agency, the conflict's devastating toll was highlighted in the report titled "Scarcity and Fear: A Gender Analysis of the Impact of the War in Gaza on Vital Services Essential to Women’s and Girls’ Health, Safety, and Dignity". The dire situation in Gaza is exacerbating, with more than one million Palestinian women and girls facing severe hunger and nearly nonexistent access to essential resources like food, clean water, and sanitation facilities, putting their lives at grave risk. "Access to clean water is especially crit...

Israel War Room, an official page of Israel's military has shared a map excluding Kashmir and Arunachal from India, evoking widespread anger on social media. In this map, shared on April 14 by Israel War Room, Kashmir has been excluded, while parts of it and Arunachal Pradesh have been shown as parts of China. https://twitter.com/IsraelWarRoom/status/1779272337948389685 Social media users from India have expressed anger over the exclusion of Kashmir from India's map. One Priyanka Deshmukh expressing anger over the map wrote, "On one hand, Israel is using a wrong map of India in which Kashmir is shown in Pakistan and China, and on the other hand, it is also threatening to attack India with missiles. But the Foreign Minister is busy making reels on Instagram." https://twitter.com...

Two days after the attacks and sole reliance on social media for updates, the world on Monday has finally gained access to factual information, revealing damage caused by Iran's retaliation against Israel. Quoting a senior American official, ABC News reported that at least nine Iranian missiles penetrated Israeli air defenses and hit two Israeli air bases. "Five ballistic missiles hit the Nevatim Air Base, causing huge damage to a C-130 transport plane, a runway, and storage facilities." The official said that four additional ballistic missiles hit the Nevatim Air Base, causing damage to the airbase. On Saturday evening, Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force targeted Israeli positions with dozens of drones and missiles, as part of the retaliatory response to...

Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip have expressed support for the Iranian retaliation against the Israeli regime. Late on Saturday, massive demonstrations took place in Gaza and West bank territories to welcome the retaliation of Israel by the Iranian forces. Iran fired over 100 unmanned drones and missiles at Israel, may hit their desired targets. As per Iranian media, the Rolan airbase, which was used to launch attacks on Iranian embassy in Syria, was attacked. The Israeli military bombed the Iranian embassy in Syria on April 1 killing at least five Iranian officials. Following this Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei issued a stern warning to Israel stating that Israel will have to pay back for its sins including the killing of innocent Palestinians. Following these t...

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has expressed deep concern over the escalating military tensions in the region and the potential fallout, Saudi Gazette reported. The Kingdom has urged all parties involved to exercise maximum restraint in order to protect both the region and its people from the looming specter of war. The ministry has reiterated Saudi Arabia's stance, calling on the United Nations Security Council to fulfill its responsibility in maintaining international peace and security. With the region's significance to global stability in mind, urgent action from the Council is necessary to prevent the crisis from spiraling further, as any escalation could have dire consequences. Earlier, Kuwait, Qatar, Turkey along other Muslim countri...