Browsing: National
This photo taken on December 2, 2025 shows Tokyo Electric Power Company’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant Unit 6 in Kashiwazaki, Niigata Prefecture. The world’s biggest nuclear…
Cebu City truly earns its title as the “Queen City of the South,” showcasing breathtaking sights and a rich, vibrant culture. Cebu, known as the Queen City of the South, is set to take centre stage in regional tourism as the Philippines prepares to host the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2026 from January 28 to 30, 2026. The prestigious event will bring together tourism leaders, policymakers, and industry stakeholders from across Southeast Asia, reaffirming Cebu’s growing stature as a premier meetings and events destination. One of the key highlights of ATF 2026 will be the National Tourism Organisation (NTO) briefings, scheduled for January 28 and 29. These sessions will feature updates and strategic presentations from ASEAN member states, including Timor-Leste, the region’s newest member. Delegates can look forward to in-depth insights into new tourism developments, emerging destinations, and collaborative initiatives shaping the future of travel in Southeast Asia. The forum will also showcase a vibrant programme of high-level official functions and networking events. These include a Hosted Luncheon by Tourism Malaysia on January 28 at the Dusit Thani Mactan Cebu Resort, the ASEANTA Excellence Awards Night, and the ATF 2026 Opening Ceremony hosted by the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) Philippines. Other highlights include a Reception and Dinner hosted by the Singapore Tourism Board, welcoming delegates to ATF 2027, as well as the ASEAN Tourism Standard Awards and Closing Ceremony at the NUSTAR Convention Centre. “As a key meeting point for the travel industry in Southeast Asia, TRAVEX plays an important role in strengthening partnerships and driving growth,” said Maria Margarita Montemayor Nograles, Chief Operating Officer of the Tourism Promotions Board Philippines. “Hosting this event is a responsibility we value highly, and we are committed to creating a dynamic platform that highlights the depth, connectivity, and momentum of tourism across ASEAN.” With its forward-looking theme, state-of-the-art venues, and a robust programme of business, networking, and recognition events, ATF TRAVEX 2026 is poised to become a major milestone for ASEAN tourism. The event is expected to further strengthen regional collaboration and reinforce a shared vision as Southeast Asia navigates the future of sustainable and inclusive tourism. The ASEAN Tourism Forum is a long-standing cooperative initiative aimed at promoting ASEAN as a single tourism destination. Hosted on a rotational basis among member countries, ATF serves as a powerful platform for ASEAN nations to enhance their global tourism profile through meaningful collaboration, driving growth while preserving the region’s rich heritage, identity, and culture for future generations. Related Story Source link
A minibus carrying students to school collided with a truck south of Johannesburg yesterday, killing 13 pupils, South African police said. It was the latest in a string of deadly crashes in a country whose modern road network is undermined by rampant speeding, reckless driving and poorly maintained vehicles. The crash happened near the industrial city of Vanderbijlpark, about 60kms south of Johannesburg. Police said the driver of the minibus appeared to have lost control while attempting to overtake other vehicles. The toll rose to 13 after an injured child died of injuries, the provincial education department said in a statement. Several children were also badly hurt. Authorities did not immediately release the ages of the children but provincial education minister Matome Chiloane said they were from primary schools, where pupils are aged from six years. Source link
Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani has died, his foundation said yesterday. Usually known only by his first name, Valentino was 93, and had retired in 2008. Founder of the eponymous brand, Valentino scaled the heights of haute couture, created a business empire and introduced a new colour to the fashion world, the so-called ‘Valentino Red’. “Valentino Garavani passed away at his Roman residence, surrounded by his loved ones,” the foundation said on Instagram. The lying in state will be tomorrow and Thursday, while the funeral will take place in Rome on Friday at 11am (1000 GMT), it added. Source link
Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos yesterday said a “significant” discovery of natural gas had been made near the country’s sole producing offshore site. About 98bn cubic feet (2.8bn cubic metres) of natural gas – enough to provide power to 5.7mn homes for a year – has been found east of the Malampaya Field near the island of Palawan, Marcos said. The Philippines has some of the region’s highest energy costs and faces a looming crisis as the Malampaya gas field, which supplies about 40% of power to the archipelago’s main island, Luzon, is expected to run dry within a few years. The discovery – 5kms east of the Malampaya Field – is the first in more than a decade and suggested the potential to produce even more, Marcos said. “This helps Malampaya’s contribution and strengthens our domestic gas supply for many years to come. Initial testing showed that the well flowed at 60mn cubic feet per day,” Marcos said in a statement. Source link
US President Donald Trump has linked his drive to take control of Greenland to his failure to win the Nobel Peace Prize, saying he no longer thought “purely of Peace” as the row over the island threatened to reignite a trade war with Europe. Asked by NBC News in a brief telephone interview yesterday if he would use force to seize Greenland, Trump said “No comment,” adding he would “100%” follow through on plans to hit European nations with tariffs without a Greenland deal. Trump has intensified his push to wrest sovereignty over Greenland from fellow Nato member Denmark, prompting the European Union to weigh hitting back with its own measures. The dispute is threatening to upend the Nato alliance that has underpinned Western security for decades and which was already under strain over the war in Ukraine and Trump’s refusal to protect allies which do not spend enough on defence. Trump’s threat has rattled European industry and sent shockwaves through financial markets amid fears of a return to the volatility of 2025’s trade war, which only eased when the sides reached tariff deals in the middle of the year. In a text message on Sunday to Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, Trump said: “Considering your country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America.” Norway’s government released the messages yesterday under the country’s freedom of information act. Stoere had sent an initial message on behalf of himself and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, calling for de-escalation of tensions and suggesting a call, eliciting a response from Trump less than half an hour later. The Norwegian Nobel Committee annoyed Trump by awarding the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize not to him but to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado. In his message, Trump also repeated his accusation that Denmark cannot protect Greenland from Russia or China.“… And why do they have a ‘right of ownership’ anyway?” he wrote, adding: “The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland.” Trump vowed on Saturday to implement a wave of increasing tariffs from February 1 on EU members Denmark, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Finland, along with Britain and Norway, until the US is allowed to buy Greenland, home to only 57,000 people. “We are living in 2026, you can trade with people, but you don’t trade people,” Denmark’s Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said during a visit to London yesterday.In a post on Facebook, Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said the territory should be allowed to decide its own fate. “We will not let ourselves be pressured. We stand firm on dialogue, on respect and on international law,” he said. Denmark’s military said planes carrying Danish soldiers and army commander Peter Boysen would land in Kangerlussuaq, western Greenland, describing it as a “substantial contribution” to the Arctic Endurance military exercise. Norway’s Stoere amended his schedule, announcing that he would attend the World Economic Forum in Davos tomorrow and Thursday, overlapping with Trump’s planned appearance at the annual gathering of the global political and business elite. Trump is expected to deliver a keynote address tomorrow in his first appearance at the conference in six years. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he too would try to meet Trump tomorrow, adding that a trade dispute was not wanted. “But if we are confronted with tariffs that we consider unreasonable, then we are capable of responding,” Merz said. Source link
UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan walks with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi upon his arrival at the airport in New Delhi, India, yesterday. India yesterday signed a $3bn deal to buy liquefied natural gas from the United Arab Emirates, making it the UAE’s top customer, as the leaders of both countries held talks to strengthen trade and defence ties. The agreement was signed during a very brief two-hour visit to India by UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan for talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. They pledged to double bilateral trade to $200bn in six years and form a strategic defence partnership. Abu Dhabi state firm ADNOC Gas will supply 0.5mn metric tonnes of LNG a year to India’s Hindustan Petroleum Corporation for 10 years, the companies said. ADNOC Gas said the agreement brings the total value of its contracts with India to over $20bn. “India is now the UAE’s largest customer and a very important part of ADNOC Gas’ LNG strategy,” the company said.The United Arab Emirates is India’s third largest trading partner and Sheikh Mohammed was accompanied by a government delegation that included his defence and foreign ministers. The two sides signed a letter of intent to work towards forming a strategic defence partnership, India’s foreign secretary Vikram Misri told reporters. …
A shark mauled a surfer off an ocean beach in Sydney yesterday in the Australian city’s third shark attack in two days, authorities said. The surfer, believed to be in his 20s, was in a critical condition in hospital with serious leg injuries after the attack at a northern Sydney beach, police said. All of Sydney’s northern beaches were closed until further notice. The attack at North Steyne Beach in the suburb of Manly came hours after a shark bit a large chunk out of a young surfer’s board about 4kms north along the coast at Dee Why Point. That surfer was uninjured Source link
Smoke and flames billow from a burning house and a vehicle during a wildfire in Concepcion, Chile. – AFP Wildfires raging in southern Chile have killed at least 16 people and forced more than 50,000 to evacuate, the government said Sunday.Security Minister Luis Cordero gave the tolls for the blazes burning for two days now in the Nuble and Biobio regions about 500km (300 miles) south of Santiago.He told reporters Sunday morning that 15 deaths had been confirmed in the Biobio, bringing the total death toll to 16 after the government confirmed a death in Nuble on Saturday.President Gabriel Boric earlier declared a state of emergency as crews battled flames fueled by gusting winds and hot weather in the southern hemisphere summer.Nearly two dozen blazes are burning across the country, many of them in Nuble and Biobio.”We face a complicated situation,” Interior Minister Alvaro Elizalde said.The president announced the state of emergency in Nuble and Biobio in a post on the social media platform X.”All resources are available,” Boric wrote.Among other things, the declaration means the armed forces will now get involved.Alicia Cebrian, the director of the National Service for Disaster Prevention and Response, said most of the evacuations were in the Biobio cities of Penco and Lirquen, which have a combined population of around 60,000 people.Images broadcast by local television showed the flames in both cities, with charred cars in the streets.Wildfires have severely impacted south-central Chile in recent years.In February 2024, several fires broke out simultaneously near the city of Vina del Mar, northwest of Santiago, resulting in 138 deaths, according to the public prosecutor’s office.About 16,000 people were affected by those fires, authorities said.Authorities say adverse conditions like strong winds and high temperatures helped wildfires spread and complicated firefighters’ abilities to control the fires.Much of Chile is under extreme heat alerts, with temperatures expected to reach up to 38° Celsius (100° Fahrenheit) from Santiago to Biobio Sunday and Monday.Both Chile and Argentina have experienced extreme temperatures and heatwaves since the beginning of the year, with devastating wildfires breaking out in Argentina’s Patagonia earlier this month. Related Story Source link
Onlookers make their way through large chunks of ice and ice floes washed up along the banks of the Elbe river near Geesthacht, northern Germany, on…