Zambian police disperse more than 25,000 illegal gold miners in northwest
Zambian authorities have cleared over 25,000 illegal miners from a gold-rich area in Mufumbwe District, northwest Zambia....
Israel’s security cabinet has approved a plan to designate 13 Jewish settlements in the West Bank as independent entities, separating them from their parent communities, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced on Sunday.
The move follows recent approvals for tens of thousands of new housing units across the region and comes amid heightened security concerns following the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack.
Smotrich, posting on X, hailed the decision as a step toward “actual sovereignty in Judea and Samaria,” the term Israel uses for the West Bank. “We continue to lead a revolution of normalisation and regulation in the settlements. Instead of hiding and apologising – we raise the flag, build and settle,” he said, arguing that recognizing each settlement as independent will resolve longstanding management challenges.
The decision has deepened tensions in a region already marked by conflict. The Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned the separation as a disregard for international legitimacy and resolutions. Hamas, the militant group that governs Gaza, denounced the move as a “desperate attempt to impose realities on the ground and consolidate colonial occupation on Palestinian lands.”
Israeli officials have cited security concerns as a key factor in the decision. In recent weeks, Israel has intensified counter-terrorism operations in the West Bank, targeting suspected militants in response to fears of further attacks similar to those on October 7, 2023.
Around 700,000 Israeli settlers now live among 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and east Jerusalem—territory captured by Israel in 1967 during the six-day war. While most of the international community considers these settlements illegal under international law, Israel disputes this, citing historical and biblical ties to the land.
The move has been welcomed by pro-settler politicians, with Smotrich—a prominent figure in the far-right Religious Zionism party and a key coalition partner of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—asserting that the new status will facilitate the settlements’ growth and development. Critics, however, warn that such unilateral actions could further complicate the already fraught prospects for a lasting peace in the region.
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck off Japan’s Tokara Islands on Wednesday, with no tsunami warning issued but residents advised to remain vigilant.
The United States has rescinded licensing restrictions on ethane exports to China, allowing shipments to resume after a temporary halt and signalling progress in efforts to ease recent trade tensions.
Italy plans to grant approximately 500,000 work visas to non-EU nationals between 2026 and 2028, as announced in a cabinet statement. The initiative aims to address labor shortages by expanding legal immigration pathways
Following a deadly glacier collapse in Blatten, near the Swiss Alpine village of Kandersteg, the town is on high alert as melting permafrost and shifting rock threaten another potential disaster after it was buried a month ago.
Australian researchers have pioneered a low-cost and scalable plasma-based method to produce ammonia gas directly from air, offering a green alternative to the traditional fossil fuel-dependent Haber-Bosch process.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy described his latest phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump as the most productive yet, focusing on air defence and future cooperation.
The U-20 European Wrestling Championship in Caorle, Italy, is nearing its end, with Azerbaijan’s Vasif Baghirov securing a hard-earned victory in the 57 kg final against Georgia’s Nika Zangaladze.
ADY Chairman Rovshan Rustamov met with Afghanistan's Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, Abdul Ghani Baradar, at the Baku Sea Port.
Armenia’s Foreign Ministry has reaffirmed that the country’s territory cannot be used by any third party to carry out military operations against neighbouring states.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan says the country needs a new constitution that reflects its current realities and has a clear purpose.
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