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Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan said Friday they had agreed a ceasefire after shootouts at their contested border left two Tajik citizens dead. The violence that broke out Thursday evening and continued into the night was the bloodiest escalation between the countries since deadly clashes last year.
Source: france24.com
A rare Botticelli painting depicting Jesus Christ sold at auction for more than $45 million Thursday at Sotheby's in New York, a year after a record $92 million was paid for a work by the Italian Renaissance master. After a seven-minute bidding battle among three buyers via phone, the painting "The Man of Sorrows" sold for $39.3 million, plus fees and commissions, for a total of $45.41 million.
Source: france24.com
Sculptor Dan Medina took a statue of Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna to the site of their helicopter crash on the two-year anniversary of the tragedy. The 73kg bronze statue is temporary but Medina hopes a permanent version is sited in a prominent Los Angeles spot. He took the statue to the California site, where nine people died, from dawn to dusk on Wednesday.
Source: bbc.com
Denmark has said it will start pulling its troops out of Mali after the West African country’s transitional government this week insisted on an immediate withdrawal, a blow to France as its security operations in the Sahel region begin to unravel. The decision comes amid tensions between Mali and its international partners, including regional bodies and the European Union, that have sanctioned Mali after the military government failed to organise elections following two coups.
Source: aljazeera.com
Manchester United teenager Amad Diallo has joined Scottish champions Rangers on loan for the rest of the season. The highly rated 19-year-old winger joined United a year ago for a fee that could reach 41 million euros with add-ons.
Source: france24.com
Southern Africa has been hit by flooding that has left dozens dead across the region in the wake of Tropical Storm Ana. Madagascar has seen at least 41 deaths and 100,000 people have been forced to flee their homes to makeshift shelters. In Malawi, at least 19 people have died. The country has suffered a nationwide power cut and some areas have been declared disaster zones. Mozambique, meanwhile, reports more than a dozen deaths.
Source: bbc.com
Apple has once again become the top-selling smartphone brand in top market China, along with the rest of the world. That's according to findings from two separate research reports, which come just before the tech giant is set to release its earnings for the most recent quarter on Thursday. Apple's market share in China reached 23% in the last quarter of 2021, compared with 16% the same period the previous year. This surge came as total smartphone sales in China fell 9% year-on-year, according to Counterpoint.
Source: cnn.com
Spotify will remove singer-songwriter Neil Young‘s songs from the platform after he objected to being featured on the same platform as podcaster Joe Rogan, who has spread dubious claims about the coronavirus. In a statement on Wednesday, Spotify said it regretted Young’s decision to request the removal of his music “but hope to welcome him back soon”.
Source: aljazeera.com
When Jonathan the giant tortoise was born, Queen Victoria was just a teenager. While the British monarch died more than 120 years ago aged 81, Jonathan is still shuffling around planet Earth. Perhaps the most famous resident of St. Helena, one of the world's remotest islands, Jonathan is this year celebrating his 190th birthday -- making him the oldest tortoise ever to live. According to Guinness World Records, Jonathan is the oldest-ever chelonian -- a category that encompasses all turtles, terrapins and tortoises.
Source: cnn.com
The Jordanian troops have killed 27 suspected smugglers attempting to enter the country from neighbouring Syria, they said, adding that some others also carrying drugs fled back into Syria. A report on the Jordanian army’s website on Thursday said it thwarted several suspected attempts to smuggle drugs from Syria, and that large quantities of narcotics were seized in separate interventions where several people were wounded.
Source: aljazeera.com
Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, is expected to visit Turkey next month, the Turkish president has said, as the two countries move to heal rifts. In an interview with private NTV broadcaster late Wednesday, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his Israeli counterpart would visit in the first half of February. “With this visit, a new era can begin in the Israeli and Turkish relationship,” Erdogan said.
Source: apnews.com
A 12-year-old illustrator has signed a deal with Nike, his agency confirmed to CNN on Wednesday. Joe Whale, who goes by the name "The Doodle Boy" on social media, will be collaborating with the global sports brand "on some special projects."
A Ukrainian National Guard soldier opened fire on security guards at a military factory in central Ukraine for reasons unknown, killing five people and wounding five others before fleeing. The incident took place in the early hours of Thursday in Dnipro.
Source: aljazeera.com
Nuclear-armed North Korea fired what appeared to be two short-range ballistic missiles on Thursday, drawing condemnation from the United States for what would be the sixth round of missile tests this month. The series of tests is among the most missiles ever launched by North Korea in a month, analysts said, as it begins 2022 with a dizzying display of new and operational weapons.
Source: reuters.com
Italian lawmakers failed Wednesday to elect a new president in a third round of voting, as bickering party leaders blamed each other for pushing the country towards a political crisis. Prime Minister Mario Draghi, who was the frontrunner for the post ahead of the election, pocketed just five votes as parties panicked at the idea of pulling him from his job.
Source: france24.com
after she sent him hundreds of 'threatening' messages The woman began harassing Tim Cook in October 2020 when she allegedly tweeted that they were married and he was the father of her twin children, a petition for the restraining order states. The temporary order, that demands the 45-year-old woman stop harassing, stalking, and contacting the tech firm's chief executive, was issued by a court on Friday.
Source: news.sky.com
A Kurdish-led militia alliance says it has regained full control of a prison in north-eastern Syria seized by the Islamic State (IS) group six days ago. A spokesman for the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) tweeted that "all Daesh terrorists" inside Hasaka's Ghwayran prison had surrendered. Several hundred child detainees were also trapped in the facility with them. At least 181 people have reportedly been killed in clashes since IS tried to stage a mass breakout on Thursday.
Source: bbc.com
France posted more thant 500,000 new cases of coronavirus for the past 24 hours on Tuesday, a new daily record and the first time the headline number has surpassed half a million. The country is currently recording the highest daily infection rates of any major European nation, with an average of more than 360,000 over the past week.
Source: france24.com
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