More than 280 dead, hundreds hurt in India horror rail crash

India -- At least 288 people were killed and more than 850 injured in a horrific three-train collision in India, officials said Saturday, the country's deadliest rail accident in more than 20 years. Images from the crash site showed smashed train compartments torn open with blood-stained holes near Balasore, in the eastern state of Odisha. Carriages had flipped over entirely in the crash late on Friday and rescue workers searched for survivors trapped in the mangled wreckage, with scores of

June 3, 2023

[Graphic News] N. Korea has world’s highest rates of modern slavery

According to the 2023 Global Slavery Index, modern slavery is present in every country, regardless of its wealth status. The index, published by the human rights charity Walk Free, has indicated that in 2021, around 50 million people were living in situations of modern slavery, with approximately 27.6 million of those people being in forced labor and 22 million in forced marriages. The index indicated that the countries estimated to have the highest modern slavery rates tend to be “conflic

May 31, 2023

Money makes the world go round – and development succeed

By Jeffrey Sachs The key to economic development and ending poverty is investment. Nations achieve prosperity by investing in four priorities. Most important is investing in people, through quality education and health care. The next is infrastructure, such as electricity, safe water, digital networks and public transport. The third is natural capital, protecting nature. The fourth is business investment. The key is finance: mobilizing the funds to invest at the scale and speed required. In pr

May 30, 2023

[Graphic News] Amnesty reports highest number of executions in 5 years

Recorded executions worldwide reached 883 last year, the highest since 2017, according to an Amnesty International report that decried the Middle East and North Africa in particular. The 2022 figure for 20 countries known to have executed people is a 53 percent increase on the previous 12 months, the global rights monitor said. It excludes the “thousands” of prisoners put to death secretively in China, but does count the “staggering” 81 people executed in a single day in

May 30, 2023

[Graphic News] AI threatens humanity’s future, 61% of Americans say: poll

The swift growth of artificial intelligence technology could put the future of humanity at risk, according to most Americans surveyed in a Reuters/Ipsos poll. More than two-thirds of Americans are concerned about the negative effects of AI and 61 percent believe it could threaten civilization. Since OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot became the fastest growing application of all time, the widespread integration of AI into everyday life has catapulted AI to the forefront of public discourse. ChatGPT h

May 25, 2023

[Graphic News] Press freedom in South Korea worsened from last year

South Korea ranked 47th in the 2023 World Press Freedom Index, the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF) announced, falling by four places from last year. The index, based on an evaluation of the journalism environment in 180 countries and territories, is divided into four categories; “good,” “satisfactory,” “very serious,” “difficult,” and “problematic.” Korea was remarked as “satisfactory.” South Korea appreciates me

May 23, 2023

Rights groups urge World Expo organizers to rethink Riyadh bid

A dozen human rights advocacy groups led by the Switzerland-based MENA Rights Group have in an open letter called on World Expo organizers not to consider Riyadh as a potential host for the World Expo 2030. In the letter dated May 16, the groups cited concerns that the event could be used to "whitewash" the country's human rights record, which includes the continued use of the death penalty, crushing of human rights activism, silencing of women’s rights advocates and targeti

May 22, 2023

Tens of thousands of Moldovans rally for EU membership

CHISINAU (AFP) -- Tens of thousands of Moldovans rallied on Sunday to demand European Union membership for their country, whose bid to join the bloc has been accelerated by the war in neighboring Ukraine. The former Soviet republic of 2.6 million people applied last year to join the EU and in June 2022 became a candidate country, alongside Ukraine. More than 75,000 people participated in the demonstration in the center of the capital, Chisinau, according to initial police estimates. They waved E

May 21, 2023

Japanese PM faces dilemma at G7 as he balances anti-nuke goals with reality of threats

HIROSHIMA (AP) -- 8:15 on the morning of Aug. 6, 1945. It's a big reason leaders from the world's most powerful democracies descended on Hiroshima for this weekend's Group of Seven summit: Part commemoration, part effort to confront the continuing consequences of the moment a US B-29 Superfortress released what the Americans named “Little Boy” over the city in the first wartime use of a nuclear bomb. It also presents Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the driving

May 21, 2023

Zelenskyy denies Ukrainian city of Bakhmut occupied by Russian forces

HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that Russian forces weren't occupying Bakhmut, casting doubt on Moscow's claims that the eastern Ukrainian city had fallen. Responding to a reporter’s question about the status of the city at the Group of Seven meeting in Japan, Zelenskyy said: “Bakhmut is not occupied by the Russian Federation as of today.” The fog of war made it impossible to confirm the situation on the ground in the inv

May 21, 2023

Zelenskyy to attend G7 in Japan as bloc targets Russia 'war machine'

HIROSHIMA, Japan -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is poised for a first post-invasion trip to the Asia-Pacific, meeting allies at a G7 summit in Hiroshima as the bloc hit Russia's "war machine" with further sanctions. The previously unannounced visit was revealed by officials Friday -- a rare long-haul foray for the war-time president and an opportunity to huddle with leaders of seven wealthy democracies that bankroll his country's stoic defence. The visit comes at

May 19, 2023

[Graphic News] Prices for sugar spike to record high in 11 years

Global sugar prices have risen every month this year, the highest level in 11 1/2 years since October 2011. The global Sugar Price Index soared 27.9 percent from January, according to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization. The index rose every month from 116.8 in January to 125.2 in February, 127 in March, and 149.4 last month due to concerns about reduced global sugar production in India, China and other countries. For instance, increased rainfall in Brazil has trimmed the

May 19, 2023

Iran frees two jailed French citizens: Paris

PARIS -- Iran on Friday released two French citizens jailed in separate cases and they are both now returning to France, the French foreign minister said. Bernard Phelan, who also holds Irish nationality, and Benjamin Briere were freed from their prison in the northeastern city of Mashhad and are "on their way to France," Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said. The pair were among some two dozen foreigners jailed in Iran who campaigners see as hostages held in a deliberate strategy by

May 12, 2023

Hundreds of thousands to be evacuated as Bangladesh and Myanmar brace for severe cyclone

DHAKA, Bangladesh — Authorities in Bangladesh and Myanmar prepared to evacuate hundreds of thousands of people Friday, warning them to stay away from coastal areas as a severe cyclone churned in the Bay of Bengal. Cyclone Mocha is expected to hit land on Sunday with wind speeds of up to 160 kilometers (100 miles) per hour and gusts up to 175 kph (110 mph) between Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh and Kyaukpyu in Myanmar, India's Meteorological Department said. Bangladesh, a delta nati

May 12, 2023

Palestinian militants fire more rockets, Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza despite cease-fire efforts

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Palestinian militants fired rockets toward Jerusalem on Friday, further escalating the most violent confrontation in months between Israel and militants in the Gaza Strip despite efforts to broker a cease-fire. The burst of rocket fire from Gaza sent warning sirens wailing as far north as the contested capital of Jerusalem — about 48 miles (77 kilometers) from the Gaza border — breaking a 12-hour lull that had raised hopes that regional powers could soon

May 12, 2023

Zelenskyy to meet Italian president in Rome Saturday

ROME -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected in Rome on Saturday for talks with his Italian counterpart, an official told AFP Friday, with a meeting with Pope Francis also possible. "We confirm that this meeting will take place tomorrow," a spokesperson for Italian President Sergio Mattarella said when asked about reports of a meeting with Zelenskyy. It would be the first visit by Zelenskyy to EU and NATO member Italy since Russia's invasion in February 2022. A Va

May 12, 2023

[Graphic News] Mass shootings in US

A gunman shot and killed eight people and injured several others at a busy mall north of Dallas on Saturday. A Korean American couple and their 3-year-old son were among those killed in Texas mall massacre. Another 6-year-old boy was wounded and hospitalized. The massacre is among the latest in at least 202 mass shootings recorded in the United States this year, according to the nonprofit group Gun Violence Archive. The group defines a mass shooting as any incident in which four or more people a

May 11, 2023

AI could replace 80% of jobs in few years

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Artificial intelligence could replace 80 percent of human jobs in the coming years -- but that's a good thing, says US-Brazilian researcher Ben Goertzel, a leading AI guru. Mathematician, cognitive scientist and famed robot-creator Goertzel, 56, is founder and chief executive of SingularityNET, a research group he launched to create "Artificial General Intelligence," or AGI -- artificial intelligence with human cognitive abilities. With his long hair and leopard-

May 10, 2023

[Graphic News] Biden trails Trump as his approval rating hits low: poll

President Joe Biden’s approval rating slid to a career low in the latest opinion poll for ABC News and the Washington Post that also showed the US leader lagging predecessor Donald Trump in early voter preferences for the 2024 election. The percentage of those approving of Biden’s performance fell to 36 percent, six points lower than in February and a point off his previous low in early 2022, according to the survey conducted for the news organizations by Langer Research Associates.

May 10, 2023

14 million watched coronation of King Charles III: BBC

LONDON (AFP) -- More than 14 million people tuned in to watch King Charles III's coronation on BBC television, the corporation said on Sunday. At its peak, 13.4 million watched on the main BBC One channel, with an average of 11.9 million watching Saturday's coverage of the ceremony. A signed version on BBC Two peaked at 1.7 million, averaging at 1.4 million, a statement from the public broadcaster read. Saturday's coronation -- the first to be held in Britain in 70 years -- was on

May 7, 2023