Author: HeraldStar

Malaysian authorities have rescued more than 400 children suspected of being sexually abused at charity homes run by a prominent Islamic business organization with links to a banned religious sect. The children, aged between one and 17, were rescued during coordinated raids on 20 premises across two Malaysian states, resulting in the arrest of 171 adults, including Islamic religious teachers. The raids were conducted after reports were filed alleging neglect, abuse, sexual harassment, and molestation at the charity homes operated by Global Ikhwan Services and Business (GISB). GISB has denied the sexual abuse allegations, stating that it does not manage…

Junior doctors in Kolkata are continuing their protests against the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at a state-run hospital, despite a court order to return to work. The protests, which have been ongoing for over a month, have put the West Bengal state government on the back foot. The protests were sparked by the discovery of the body of a 31-year-old trainee doctor on August 9, which led to nationwide outrage in India. A hospital volunteer was arrested for the crime, which is now being investigated by a federal agency. The protesting doctors have set up camp outside…

The US State Department has imposed sanctions on a Chinese research institute and several companies for their involvement in supplying Pakistan’s ballistic missile program. The sanctions target the Beijing Research Institute of Automation for Machine Building Industry, which allegedly worked with Pakistan to procure equipment for testing rocket motors for the Shaheen-3 and Ababeel systems. Additionally, the sanctions target several China-based firms, including Hubei Huachangda Intelligent Equipment Co, Universal Enterprise, and Xi’an Longde Technology Development Co, as well as Pakistan-based Innovative Equipment and a Chinese national. These entities are accused of knowingly transferring equipment under missile technology restrictions. The US…

In a significant move, Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has dissolved the opposition-led national assembly, setting the stage for early legislative elections on November 17. The decision, announced in an evening address, comes after the assembly refused to engage in discussions on the budget law and rejected efforts to dissolve wasteful state institutions. Faye, who took office in April, stated that working with the assembly had become increasingly difficult, prompting him to seek a fresh mandate from the people. “I dissolve the national assembly to ask the sovereign people for the institutional means to bring about the systemic transformation that…

In a significant victory for reproductive rights in the United States, a North Dakota state court judge has overturned the state’s near-total abortion ban, paving the way for abortion to become legal in the Midwestern state for the first time in over a year. Judge Bruce Romanick’s ruling, issued on Thursday, found that the North Dakota state constitution protects women’s right to an abortion before the fetus is viable, aligning with US constitutional precedents. The decision comes after abortion providers challenged the ban, which was signed into law by North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum in April 2023. The law made…

U.S. Steel, a 123-year-old company, is facing a fiery nationalistic and labor backlash over its proposed $15 billion merger with Japanese peer Nippon Steel. The deal, which was announced in December, has been met with resistance from U.S. security regulators, who are expected to reject the transaction due to concerns over national security. The merger would have seen Nippon Steel acquire U.S. Steel, but the deal has been opposed by labor unions and some lawmakers, who argue that it would lead to job losses and compromise national security. The United Steelworkers union, which represents blast-furnace employees, has been particularly vocal…

For Immediate Release: Commenting at the conclusion of the 11th Technical Expert Dialogue and the 3rd Meeting Under the Ad Hoc Work Programme, COP29 President-Designate Mukhtar Babayev said: “The COP29 Presidency was honoured to welcome parties to Baku where we moved on from early negotiating positions and worked to narrow down potential options for the New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance. The conclusion of the final meeting of the Ad Hoc Work Programme marks the beginning of the end. “We have full confidence in the co-chairs of the Ad Hoc Work Programme as they now develop a substantive framework…

Ukraine has accused Russia of using strategic bombers to strike a civilian grain vessel in a missile attack in Black Sea waters near NATO member Romania, escalating tensions between Moscow and the military alliance. The vessel, carrying Ukrainian grain to Egypt, was hit overnight by a Russian missile just after it left Ukrainian territorial waters, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. There were no casualties reported. The Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, condemned the strike as “a brazen attack on freedom of navigation and global food security”. The Ukrainian navy said Russian Tupolev Tu-22 bombers had fired a number of cruise…

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has confirmed that three of its workers were killed and two others injured in a strike in eastern Ukraine. The incident occurred while the team was preparing to distribute aid in the frontline region of Donetsk. The ICRC did not identify who was behind the attack, but described it as “unconscionable” that “shelling would hit an aid distribution site”. The agency’s vehicles are clearly marked and operate regularly in the region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky blamed Moscow for the shelling, calling it “another Russian war crime”. He shared a photo of a…

Russia’s defense ministry has announced that its forces have recaptured 10 settlements in the Kursk border region, which were previously seized by Ukrainian forces in a surprise incursion last month. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that Russia had begun “counter-offensive actions, which is going in line with our Ukrainian plan”. According to Russia, its “Units of the North” forces reclaimed the settlements over two days in the area around Snagost, on the western flank of the area occupied by Ukraine. The counter-offensive was first reported by Chechen special forces commander, Maj Gen Apti Alaudinov, who claimed that six Ukrainian brigades…