Category: World

SEOUL: South Korea’s arrested President Yoon Suk Yeol does not intend to take part in a second day of questioning on Thursday, his lawyer said, further stonewalling a criminal probe into whether he committed insurrection with his martial law bid. Yoon, the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested, was taken to the Seoul Detention Centre on Wednesday evening after refusing to cooperate, where he was expected to have spent the night in a solitary cell. Authorities have 48 hours to question the suspended president, after which they must…

Read More

Fire-wrecked Los Angeles got a break Wednesday as dangerous winds dropped, giving hope to weary firefighters still battling to snuff out deadly blazes. More than a week after fires fanned by hurricane-force gusts began a destructive march that has left two dozen people dead and large areas of the city in ruins, forecasters said the end was in sight — at least for now. Onshore breezes were set to bring much-needed moisture over the coming days, forecasters at the National Weather Service told AFP. There will be “a big improvement for…

Read More

WASHINGTON: United States President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth survived fierce Democratic grilling over everything from his inexperience, alleged drinking and his past opposition to women in combat to emerge largely unscathed among Republicans at his confirmation hearing on Tuesday. Hegseth, a former Fox News host and decorated veteran, is one of the most controversial figures ever nominated to lead the Pentagon and any vote to confirm him is expected to be very close. But he survived the four-hour hearing without making any major gaffe that might have alienated Republicans…

Read More

Billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg are set to attend Donald Trump’s inauguration next week, NBC news reported Tuesday, underscoring the tech leaders’ attempts to build stronger connections with the incoming president. The network, citing an unnamed official involved in planning the January 20 ceremony, said the three men will be seated together on the platform with prominent guests, including Trump cabinet nominees. Musk — the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX and the majority owner of X — has become one of Trump’s closest allies and his planned presence at…

Read More

LOS ANGELES: Firefighters on Tuesday held the line against two massive wildfires that have ravaged parts of Los Angeles for the past week, even as desert winds and a parched landscape presented extremely hazardous conditions. Some 8,500 firefighters from at least seven states and two foreign countries prevented the fires from growing for a second straight day as they gained slightly more control of the perimeter of the blazes, which nonetheless have consumed an area the size of Washington, DC. A fleet of aircraft dropped water and retardant into the…

Read More

Saudi Arabia braces for the annual Hajj pilgrimage as experts stress the urgency of mitigating extreme heat risks, which last year claimed over 1,300 lives. Temperatures soared to 51.8 degrees Celsius (125 degrees Fahrenheit) in the holy city of Makkah last June as 1.8 million worshippers took part in the annual rites, one of the five pillars of Islam. Saudi officials said 83% of the 1,301 recorded fatalities did not have official Hajj permits and were, therefore, unable to access amenities meant to make the Hajj more bearable, including air-conditioned…

Read More

SEOUL: South Korean Constitutional Court adjourned the opening session of the impeachment trial of suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol within minutes on Tuesday after the embattled leader did not attend court. A lawyer, who is advising Yoon, had said the president, who has been holed up in his hillside villa in Seoul for weeks, would not attend, saying a bid by authorities to detain him prevented Yoon from expressing his position at the trial. The next trial session is scheduled for Thursday and if Yoon also decides not to attend…

Read More

WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden, days before the end of his term, highlighted his foreign policy achievements on Monday, asserting that America’s rivals are now weaker than they were four years ago, despite ongoing global challenges the country is currently facing. Biden told American diplomats in his final foreign policy speech that the United States is “winning the worldwide competition” in a new era of global economics and technology. “The United States is winning the worldwide competition compared to four years ago,” said Biden, after diplomats at the State Department gave…

Read More

Iran and European powers met in Geneva on Monday to hold confidential discussions on Tehran’s nuclear programme, just a week before US President-elect Donald Trump assumes office. The huddle marks the second meeting in less than two months, following a previous discreet gathering in Geneva last November involving Tehran and the E3 — Britain, France, and Germany. Despite the significance of the discussions, officials maintained strict secrecy, withholding details about the agenda or even the location of the talks. “These are not negotiations,” the German foreign ministry told AFP. Iran has…

Read More

California Governor Gavin Newsom has accused tech billionaire Elon Musk of spreading “lies” about the state’s response to deadly wildfires ravaging Los Angeles, escalating their online row over swirling misinformation. President-elect Donald Trump and Musk — the Tesla and SpaceX owner poised to play a key role advising the incoming administration — have stepped up criticism of the governor’s handling of the devastating blazes that have killed at least 24 people and displaced tens of thousands. In a post on his social media platform X, Musk blamed the huge loss…

Read More