Dutch coach, Eric Ten Hag was eventually booted out of Manchester United 30 months after his appointment in May 2022. The former Ajax gaffer didn’t quite succeed with the Red Devils in terms of quality, squad depth and results but he was able to deliver two trophies( Carabao, FA Cup) in his two years in […]

The post For Manchester United, hiring Ruben Amorim could be a big mistake first appeared on Business Hallmark.

The naira on Tuesday continued to depreciate against the dollar at both official and parallel foreign exchange markets. According to data from FMDQ, the local currency fell to N1689.88 per dollar on Tuesday from N1681.42 exchanged on Monday, recording N8.42 depreciation. Similarly, at the black market, the naira lost N5 to close at N1740 on […]

The post Naira slumps further across FX markets first appeared on Business Hallmark.

The newly sworn-in governor of Edo State, Monday Okpebholo,  is set to probe the administration of his predecessor, Godwin Obaseki. Okpebholo announced he will set up a panel of inquiry to investigate the past administration’s refusal to inaugurate 14 elected lawmakers of the State House of Assembly in 2019. The 14 lawmakers elected on the […]

The post Edo: Okpebholo to probe Obaseki’s govt first appeared on Business Hallmark.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has ordered the Nigerian Stock Exchange to suspend trading on the shares of Oando Plc. The commission said in a circular yesterday it had carried out a comprehensive review of the petitions by Alhaji Dahiru Barau Mangal and Ansbury Incorporated and made the following findings amongst others; Breach of the […]

SEC suspends Oando shares from stock market

The House of Representatives yesterday waded into the ongoing controversy between the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) and Intels Nigeria Limited. The House, while adopting a motion by Rep Diri Douye (PDP, Bayelsa), resolved to constitute an ad hoc panel to probe the circumstances that led to NPA’s decision to terminate an existing contract between it […]

Reps ask NPA to reverse termination of agreement with Intels

On June 25, 2018 I woke up to yet another social media trend – a news story with the bold and quite salacious headline “How Safe Are Customer Deposits At FCMB?” had taken over the digital airwaves. Between the shares and likes and comments, a storm in a cup had brewed to great proportions in […]

The Worrisome Trend of Sensational Social Media “Journalism” and the Impact On Legitimate Business Concerns: Recent Travails of FCMB, GTBank and First Bank

FCMB Bank (UK) Limited, an independently incorporated subsidiary of First City Monument Bank Limited (which is a member of FCMB Group Plc), has introduced its Personal and Business banking proposition in London, United Kingdom and Lagos, Nigeria at an impressive ceremony attended by the top echelon of the business community within and from outside the […]

FCMB Bank (UK) Limited Launches Personal and Business Banking Proposition to Deepen Inclusiveness

For many soldiers on the front lines, the trauma of war can be as hard to fight as the war itself. To help, the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID, has created a program to support Ukrainian women veterans, the families of internally displaced persons, and military relatives. The program is part of the USAID Self-Reliance Learning Agenda. Anna Kosstutschenko has the story.

LISBON, PORTUGAL — Lisbon will this week play host to Europe’s biggest annual tech conference, Web Summit, where industry leaders and lawmakers will weigh the pros and cons of Donald Trump’s return to the White House. Senior executives from firms such as Apple, Microsoft, and Meta will join high-ranking officials from Europe for debates about the future of artificial intelligence, social media regulation, and the impact a second Trump presidency may have on the continent. Trump has previously promised he could end the war between Ukraine and Russia within 24 hours of taking office. Days after Trump's re-election, two senior Ukrainian government officials, Alex Bornyakov and Mykhailo Fedorov, will take to the stage to discuss how the country has continued innovating in the face of conflict. John Adam, chief revenue officer at software development firm Aimsoftpro, is among those attending. About 70% of the company’s workforce is still based in Ukraine, with the rest having relocated around Europe after the war’s outbreak in 2022. “There’s mixed feelings because the Trump approach looks like it’s more geared towards the present lines of conflict, which is not an ideal scenario for Ukraine, and there’s a reluctance to accept that. At the same time, we would like this to have an endpoint,” he said. The X factor While not expected to attend, tech billionaire and vocal Trump supporter Elon Musk will be a recurring theme, from his role in Ukraine via satellite service Starlink to his success with space exploration firm SpaceX and controversial stewardship of social media platform X, formerly Twitter. One panel will debate how Europe might develop a homegrown rival to SpaceX; another whether Musk “destroyed Twitter." Joe Benarroch, who quit his role as X’s de facto spokesperson and head of business operations in June, will join a panel titled “What to do about social media.” While the EU has tried forcing online platforms to clamp down on harmful content, Trump’s election may lead to them reducing moderation efforts, according to Mark Weinstein, founder of privacy-focused social media platform MeWe, who will share the stage with Benarroch on Wednesday. “Historically, Trump has been highly critical of online moderation,” he said. “To avoid political retribution, major social networks are likely to continue the trend of becoming significantly more permissive with content they allow on their platforms.”

While Ukraine was on high alert for air attacks on Monday, the country’s top military commander said tens of thousands of Russian troops were ready to advance on the Kursk region. "Following the order of their military leadership, they are trying to dislodge our troops and advance deep into the territory we control," Ukraine’s General Oleksandr Syrskyi wrote on the Telegram messaging app. Ukraine launched an incursion into Kursk in August, taking control of a number of towns and villages in the border region. Meanwhile, at least six people were killed in air attacks in southern Ukraine – five in Mykolaiv and one in Zaporizhzhia, where a residential building was destroyed, regional governors reported. At least a dozen people were injured in Zaporizhzhia, including five children between the ages of 4 and 17. Earlier, the Ukrainian air force put the nation on high alert for a large-scale missile attack, reporting that a large number of bombers were taking off from Russia and heading to Ukraine. "The air alert is related to the launch of cruise missiles from Tu-95MS strategic bombers," the air force said on its Telegram channels. Power was cut to prevent further damage from attacks, and people were encouraged to seek shelter – including in Kyiv’s metro stations. But by 0630 GMT the missiles had not arrived. According to some Ukrainian military bloggers, the Russian bombers performed flights imitating the launch of missiles, Reuters reported. Report: Trump urges Putin not to escalate The Washington Post and Reuters reported that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump spoke to Russian leader Vladimir Putin and urged him not to escalate the war in Ukraine. Trump, calling from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Thursday, reminded Putin of America's sizable military presence in Europe, the Washington Post reported. Sources familiar with the call told the newspaper Trump expressed an interest in further conversations to discuss "the resolution of Ukraine's war soon." Steven Cheung, Trump's communications director, did not confirm the exchange, saying in a written statement to AFP that "we do not comment on private calls between President Trump and other world leaders." The Kremlin on Monday denied that the conversation took place, and said Putin had no concrete plans to speak to Trump. "This is completely untrue. This is pure fiction, it's just false information," Reuters reported Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "There was no conversation." Information from Reuters and Agence France-Presse was included in this report.  

London — A British soldier accused of passing sensitive information to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps pleaded guilty Monday to escaping from prison while awaiting trial. Daniel Abed Khalife is on trial at London's Woolwich Crown Court, accused of collecting sensitive information between May 2019 and January 2022. Khalife, who is no longer a member of the British armed forces, also denies leaving a fake bomb on a desk and absconding from his barracks in 2023. Prosecutors had also alleged Khalife escaped from London's Wandsworth prison in September 2023 by tying himself to the bottom of a delivery van, sparking a brief nationwide manhunt. The 23-year-old had originally pleaded not guilty to escaping from lawful custody but changed his plea to guilty Monday after having given evidence for several days earlier this month. Khalife is also charged with gathering information that might be useful to an enemy, namely Iran, obtaining information likely to be useful for terrorism and perpetrating a bomb hoax. He still denies those three charges and his trial continues.

BAKU, Azerbaijan — World leaders are converging Tuesday at the United Nations annual climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan although the big names and powerful countries are noticeably absent, unlike past climate talks which had the star power of a soccer World Cup. But 2024's climate talks are more like the International Chess Federation world championship, lacking recognizable names but big on nerd power and strategy. The top leaders of the 13 largest carbon dioxide-polluting countries will not appear. Their nations are responsible for more than 70% of 2023's heat-trapping gases. The world's biggest polluters and strongest economies — China and the United States — aren't sending their No. 1s. India and Indonesia's heads of state are also not in attendance, meaning the four most populous nations with more than 42% of all the world's population aren't having leaders speak. “It’s symptomatic of the lack of political will to act. There’s no sense of urgency,” said climate scientist Bill Hare, CEO of Climate Analytics. He said this explains “the absolute mess we’re finding ourselves in.” Transition to clean energy The world has witnessed the hottest day, months and year on record “and a master class in climate destruction,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the world leaders who did show up. But Guterres held out hope, saying, in a veiled reference to Donald Trump's re-election in the United States, that the “clean energy revolution is here. No group, no business, no government can stop it.” United Nations officials said in 2016, when Trump was first elected, there were 180 gigawatts of clean energy and 700,000 electric vehicles in the world. Now there are 600 gigawatts of clean energy and 14 million electric vehicles. Host Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev kicked off two scheduled days of world leaders' speeches by lambasting Armenia, western news media, climate activists and critics who highlighted his country's rich oil and gas history and trade, calling them hypocritical since the United States is the world's biggest oil producer. He said it was “not fair” to call Azerbaijan a “petrostate” because it produces less than 1% of the world's oil and gas. Oil and gas are “a gift of the God” just like the sun, wind and minerals, Aliyev said. “Countries should not be blamed for having them. And should not be blamed for bringing these resources to the market because the market needs them.” As the host and president of the climate talks, called COP29, Aliyev said his country will push hard for a green transition away from fossil fuels, “but at the same time, we must be realistic.” Lack of star power Aliyev, United Kingdom’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are the headliners of around 50 leaders set to speak on Tuesday. There'll also be a strong showing from the leaders of some of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries. Several small island nations presidents and over a dozen leaders from countries across Africa are set to speak over the two-day World Leaders’ Summit at COP29. As a sense of how the bar for celebrity has lowered, on Tuesday morning photographers and video cameras ran alongside one leader walking through the halls of the meeting. It was the emergency management minister for host country Azerbaijan. United Nations officials downplayed the lack of head of state star power, saying that every country is represented and active in the climate talks. One logistical issue is that next week, the leaders of the most powerful countries have to be half a world away in Brazil for the G20 meetings. The United States recent election, Germany's government collapse, natural disasters and personal illnesses also have kept some leaders away. The major focus of the negotiations is climate finance, which is rich nations trying to help poor countries pay for transitioning their economies away from fossil fuels, coping with climate change's upcoming harms and compensating for damages from weather extremes. Nations are negotiating over huge amounts of money, anywhere from $100 billion a year to $1.3 trillion a year. That money “is not charity, it's an investment,” Guterres said. “Developing countries must not leave Baku empty-handed,” Guterres said. “A deal is a must.”

North Korea troops have begun fighting alongside Russians, a U.S. State Department spokesman said during a briefing on Tuesday. "Over 10,000 DPRK (North Korean) soldiers have been sent to eastern Russia, and most of them have moved to the far western Kursk Oblast, where they have begun engaging in combat operations with Russian forces," spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters. A day earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukrainian troops were facing 50,000 troops, including 11,000 North Korean troops deployed by Russia to its Kursk region, although Moscow will neither confirm nor deny their involvement. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke Tuesday with his Ukrainian counterpart Rustem Umerov “to discuss battlefield dynamics and provide an update on U.S. security assistance” for the Eastern European country, according to Pentagon press secretary Major General Pat Ryder. Ryder said, "the secretary reaffirmed President [Joe] Biden's commitment to surge security assistance to Ukraine." The Pentagon also clarified the amount of money that remains available for Ukraine's military assistance. There is about $7.1 billion left in the Presidential Drawdown Authority, which includes $4.3 billion approved by Congress in April, plus $2.8 billion that became available after recalculations. Additionally, there is about $2.2 billion available under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative program. Ryder again underscored that the U.S. would rush aid to Ukraine and use all available funds. Ryder said the two defense leaders also talked about the implications of the thousands of North Korean troops now assessed to be mostly in western Kursk Oblast. Airstrike kills mother, children A Russia airstrike on Ukrainian President Zelenskyy’s hometown killed a mother and her three children and left 14 people wounded, officials said Tuesday. Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said rescue and recovery operations were complete after the residential building in Kryvyi Rig was hit a day earlier. The office of the prosecutor general said a 32-year-old woman and children who were 10 years, 2 years and 2 months old were killed. In Russia’s Belgorod region, a Ukrainian drone attack started a fire at an oil depot, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov posted on the Telegram messaging app. He said a tank caught fire and 10 fire crews responded in the Starkooskolsky District near the Ukrainian border. The Russian defense ministry also said 13 Ukrainian drones were destroyed overnight, all in regions bordering Ukraine. Ukraine’s air force said it shot down 46 Russian drones overnight. In addition, Ukrainian’s military was “holding back a fairly large grouping of Russian troops – 50,000 of the occupier’s army personnel,” in the Kursk region, Zelenskyy said in his address to the nation Monday. “Our forces' strikes on Russian arsenals have reduced the amount of artillery used by the occupier, and this is noticeable at the front. That is why we need decisions from our partners – America, Britain, Germany – on long-range capabilities,” Zelenskyy said. “This is vital. The further our missiles and drones can hit, the less real combat capability Russia will have.” North Korea defense pact The forces in Kursk include 11,000 North Korean troops deployed by Russia to Kursk, Zelenskyy has said, although Moscow will neither confirm nor deny their involvement. State media in North Korea reported that country ratified a defense agreement with Russia on Tuesday, formalizing months of deepening security ties. The deal "was ratified as a decree" of leader Kim Jong Un, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said Tuesday. The notice comes after Russian lawmakers voted unanimously last week to ratify the deal, which President Vladimir Putin later signed. "The treaty will take effect from the day when both sides exchanged the ratification instruments," KCNA said. Putin and Kim signed the strategic pact in June, during Putin’s visit to North Korea. Material from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse was used in this report.

CATARROJA, Spain — Thousands of students in Spain's eastern Valencia region returned to classes on Monday, two weeks after floods killed over 200 people and devastated towns in the area. Controversy over the regional government's handling of the floods still rages, and a teachers' union accused it of exaggerating the number returning and leaving the clean-up to teachers and pupils. Twenty-three people remain missing in the Valencia region after heavy rains caused rivers to overflow, sending tides of muddy water through densely populated city suburbs, drowning people in cars and underground car parks, and collapsing homes. A total of 47 schools in 14 affected municipalities reopened to more than 22,000 children on Monday, the region's education department said. Last week, it said it expected around 70% of students in the worst-affected areas to return this week. "The schools that have opened their doors today have followed cleaning and disinfection protocols to ensure maximum safety for students, teachers and staff," it added. But the regional teachers' union STEPV said it believed that the numbers returning on Monday were lower, without providing an alternative figure. Spokesperson Marc Candela said many schools were not ready to resume lessons, adding: "Teachers and parents are cleaning the schools with their own materials such as brooms." Educators wanted professional cleaning crews to sanitize facilities, as was done during the COVID-19 pandemic, he said. Parents are also worried about their children's emotional states, said Ruben Pacheco, head of the regional federation of parents' associations, FAMPA: "Families are exhausted, suffering psychologically, and nothing should be decided without consulting them so as not to generate more discomfort than they've already suffered." Candela said the department had held an online course for teachers last week with recommendations for psychological care, but had not dispatched additional counselors. Carolina Marti, head teacher at a school in Castellar-Oliveral, said it had received 60 children from neighboring towns, while five teachers were on medical leave. She said children and teachers were struggling to reach the school as many roads remained impassable.

Germany's main political parties have agreed to hold a general election in February, following the collapse of the ruling coalition government earlier this month. As Henry Ridgwell reports, the vote could have big implications for Ukrainian military aid — just as Europe prepares for U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's second term.

LONDON — British writer Samantha Harvey won the Booker Prize for fiction on Tuesday with "Orbital," a short, wonder-filled novel set aboard the International Space Station that ponders the beauty and fragility of the Earth. Harvey was awarded the 50,000-pound ($64,000) prize for what she has called a "space pastoral" about six orbiting astronauts, which she began writing during COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. The confined characters loop through 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets over the course of a day, trapped in one another's company and transfixed by the globe's ever-changing vistas. "To look at the Earth from space is like a child looking into a mirror and realizing for the first time that the person in the mirror is herself," said Harvey, who researched her novel by reading books by astronauts and watching the space station's live camera. "What we do to the Earth we do to ourselves." She said the novel "is not exactly about climate change, but implied in the view of the Earth is the fact of human-made climate change." She dedicated the prize to everyone who speaks "for and not against the Earth, for and not against the dignity of other humans, other life." "All the people who speak for and call for and work for peace — this is for you," she said. Writer and artist Edmund de Waal, who chaired the five-member judging panel, called "Orbital" a "miraculous novel" that "makes our world strange and new for us." Gaby Wood, chief executive of the Booker Prize Foundation, noted that "in a year of geopolitical crisis, likely to be the warmest year in recorded history," the winning book was "hopeful, timely and timeless." Harvey, who has written four previous novels and a memoir about insomnia, is the first British writer since 2020 to win the Booker. The prize is open to English-language writers of any nationality and has a reputation for transforming writers' careers. Previous winners include Ian McEwan, Margaret Atwood, Salman Rushdie and Hilary Mantel. De Waal praised the "crystalline" writing and "capaciousness" of Harvey's succinct novel — at 136 pages in its U.K. paperback edition, one of the shortest-ever Booker winners. "This is a book that repays slow reading," he said. He said the judges spent a full day picking their winner and came to a unanimous conclusion. Harvey beat five other finalists from Canada, the United States, Australia and the Netherlands, chosen from among 156 novels submitted by publishers. American writer Percival Everett had been the bookies' favorite to win with "James," which reimagines Mark Twain's "Huckleberry Finn" from the point of view of its main Black character, the enslaved man Jim. The other finalists were American writer Rachel Kushner's spy story "Creation Lake"; Canadian Anne Michaels' poetic novel "Held"; Charlotte Wood's Australian saga "Stone Yard Devotional"; and "The Safekeep" by Yael van der Wouden, the first Dutch author to be shortlisted for the Booker. Harvey is the first female Booker winner since 2019, though one of five women on this year's shortlist, the largest number in the prize's 55-year history. De Waal said issues such as the gender or nationality of the authors were "background noise" that did not influence the judges. "There was absolutely no question of box ticking or of agendas or of anything else. It was simply about the novel," he said before the awards ceremony at Old Billingsgate, a grand former Victorian fish market in central London. Founded in 1969, the Booker Prize is open to novels originally written in English published in the U.K. or Ireland. Last year's winner was Irish writer Paul Lynch for post-democratic dystopia "Prophet Song." Lynch handed Harvey her Booker trophy at the ceremony, warning her that her life was about to change dramatically because of the Booker publicity boost. Harvey said she was "overwhelmed" but remained down-to-earth about spending her prize money. She said she'd disburse "some of it on tax. I want to buy a new bike. And then the rest — I want to go to Japan."

Responding to the World Cup disappointment in India, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) named former all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez as the team director on Wednesday. In an official statement on X, the PCB disclosed the restructuring of the coaching staff’s portfolio, emphasizing that “all coaches will continue to work in the National Cricket Academy while PCB ... Read more

The post Pakistan Cricket Board Appoints Mohammad Hafeez as Team Director appeared first on Pakistan Tribune.

The Apex Committee of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) met to evaluate advancements in fostering investments in Pakistan. Chaired by the caretaker prime minister, discussions encompassed strategies such as the privatization of financially struggling government institutions. In a separate interaction, the Army Chief reiterated the armed forces’ dedication to supporting the nation’s economic stability. ... Read more

The post Special Investment Facilitation Council Reviews Progress and Strategies for Economic Stability in Pakistan appeared first on Pakistan Tribune.

Amidst the celebrations following Australia’s triumphant win against India in the Cricket World Cup, a viral picture of Australian batsman Mitchell Marsh has stirred controversy on social media. The World Cup victory, marking Australia’s sixth title in cricket history, took place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, igniting fervent celebrations among the Kangaroos. Post-match ... Read more

The post Controversy Erupts as Mitchell Marsh’s Posture with World Cup Trophy Sparks Outcry appeared first on Pakistan Tribune.

Amid increasing speculation of King Charles III contemplating an early exit, Prince William, the current Prince of Wales and heir apparent, is on the verge of assuming the British throne. “Insights from a royal author suggest a carefully laid plan for King Charles III to abdicate to his eldest son, Prince William, potentially at the ... Read more

The post Royal Succession Speculation: Prince William Nears Throne Amidst King Charles III Abdication Plan appeared first on Pakistan Tribune.

In a tragic incident in Rawalpindi’s Shah Khalid Colony, three siblings, 2-year-old Zohan, 6-year-old Saira, and 7-year-old Faria, lost their lives after being confined in a box. The children were left alone at home, intensifying the sorrow of the situation. According to reports from a Rescue spokesperson, the parents, who were employed in different jobs—the ... Read more

The post Tragedy Strikes as Three Siblings Found Dead Locked in Box appeared first on Pakistan Tribune.

North Paw Grain Free cat food emerges as a noteworthy contender in the premium pet food market, particularly for those seeking high-quality, nutritious options for their feline friends. This review delves into the distinctive features and benefits of North Paw cat food, based on detailed analysis and user experiences, offering Pakistani pet owners a guide ... Read more

The post North Paw Cat Food Review: A Comprehensive Look for Pakistani Pet Owners appeared first on Pakistan Tribune.

“Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?” (1 Corinthians 1:20).

Knowing Christ makes the believer wiser than the world.

Lawrence Toombs, in his 1955 article “O.T. Theology and the Wisdom Literature,” said, “Wisdom is to be found with God and nowhere else. And unless the quest for wisdom brings a man to his knees in awe and reverence, knowing his own helplessness to make himself wise, wisdom remains for him a closed book” (The Journal of Bible and Religion, 23:3 [July 1955], 195). It’s wonderful to have the book of God’s wisdom opened to us as believers.

Through God’s book of wisdom it’s easy for any believer to analyze the world. People who have no biblical background find it difficult to resolve controversial issues like capital punishment, abortion, or homosexuality. But the Bible has clear answers for those seemingly complex issues: If you take a life, you should die (Gen. 9:6); the life within the womb is a person made by God (Ps. 139:13); and homosexuality is not an alternate lifestyle but a damning sexual sin like adultery or fornication (1 Cor. 6:9-10; Rom. 1:26-27).

As a Bible-believing Christian you may not be considered “noble” or “mighty” by the world’s standards (1 Cor. 1:26) and may be seen as the refuse of the world (1 Cor. 4:13); but you have the answers to the important questions. Because of God’s sovereign, gracious work, you’ve been ushered into the wisdom of God through fear of the Lord. The apostle Paul said, “You are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God” (1 Cor. 1:30). Once you fear God, His wisdom continually flows to you. Paul told the Colossians that in Christ dwells “all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (2:3). Since Christ dwells in you, you possess the very wisdom of God!

Suggestions for Prayer

• Praise the Lord for the privilege of knowing Him and His will through His Word and His Spirit.
• Pray that you might manifest the wisdom of the living God so that the world sees Christ in you.

For Further Study

Read 1 Corinthians 1:18-31. How does the apostle Paul contrast God’s wisdom with the world’s?

From Strength for Today by John MacArthur Copyright © 1997. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a division of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.com.

• The Study Bible (mobile app)
• Grace to You Sermons (mobile app)
• John MacArthur’s complete sermon archive
• The MacArthur Study Bible
• The complete MacArthur New Testament Commentary series

Canada announced Wednesday it won't block access to the popular video-sharing app TikTok but is ordering the dissolution of its Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind it. Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne said it is meant to address risks related to ByteDance Ltd.'s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc. "The government is not blocking Canadians' access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content. The decision to use a social media application or platform is a personal choice," Champagne said. Champagne said it is important for Canadians to adopt good cybersecurity practices, including protecting their personal information. He said the dissolution order was made in accordance with the Investment Canada Act, which allows for the review of foreign investments that may harm Canada's national security. He said the decision was based on information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada's security and intelligence community and other government partners. A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement that the shutdown of its Canadian offices will mean the loss of hundreds of local jobs. "We will challenge this order in court," the spokesperson said. "The TikTok platform will remain available for creators to find an audience, explore new interests and for businesses to thrive." TikTok is wildly popular with young people, but its Chinese ownership has raised fears that Beijing could use it to collect data on Western users or push pro-China narratives and misinformation. TikTok is owned by ByteDance, a Chinese company that moved its headquarters to Singapore in 2020. TikTok faces intensifying scrutiny from Europe and America over security and data privacy. It comes as China and the West are locked in a wider tug of war over technology ranging from spy balloons to computer chips. Canada previously banned TikTok from all government-issued mobile devices. TikTok has two offices in Canada, one in Toronto and one in Vancouver. Michael Geist, Canada research chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, said in a blog post that "banning the company rather than the app may actually make matters worse since the risks associated with the app will remain but the ability to hold the company accountable will be weakened." Canada's move comes a day after the election in the United States of Donald Trump. In June, Trump joined TikTok, a platform he once tried to ban while in the White House. It has about 170 million users in the U.S. Trump tried to ban TikTok through an executive order that said "the spread in the United States of mobile applications developed and owned" by Chinese companies was a national security threat. The courts blocked the action after TikTok sued. Both the U.S. FBI and the Federal Communications Commission have warned that ByteDance could share user data such as browsing history, location and biometric identifiers with China's government. TikTok said it has never done that and would not, if asked. Trump said earlier this year that he still believes TikTok posed a national security risk, but was opposed to banning it. U.S. President Joe Biden signed legislation in April that would force ByteDance to sell the app to a U.S. company within a year or face a national ban. It's not clear whether that law will survive a legal challenge filed by TikTok or that ByteDance would agree to sell.

Hurricane Rafael has knocked out Cuba’s electric service after hitting the island Wednesday as a Category 3 storm, blowing down trees and utility towers in an island nation still reeling from earlier storms and recent power failures. In its latest report Thursday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said the storm is 320 kilometers west-northwest of Havana and it had weakened to a Category 2 storm, with maximum sustained winds of about 155 km per hour. The storm is still expected to continue bringing heavy rains to the island Thursday, raising the threat of mudslides at higher elevations. The hurricane center said the storm made landfall in Cuba’s western Artemisa province Wednesday afternoon. More than 70,000 people were evacuated from their homes in Artemisa and neighboring Pinar del Rio province. State newspaper Granma said airports in the western part of the country, including in Havana and the resort town of Varadero, had been temporarily closed because of the storm. By Thursday morning, the newspaper reported power was being restored in the central and eastern parts of the country. Rafael was the latest blow to the communist-run country's already precarious electrical grid, which just two weeks ago collapsed multiple times, leaving many in the country without power for days. The Energy and Mines Ministry said it had already begun work to reconnect the national grid late Wednesday but warned that the process would be slower in western parts of the island, which were hardest hit by the storm. Rafael had knocked out power and dumped heavy rain on the Cayman Islands and Jamaica earlier in the week. Forecasters said Rafael is expected to move to the west later Thursday through the weekend. They said the storm should remain a hurricane for the next couple of days as it moves over the southern Gulf of Mexico and then weaken to a tropical storm by Saturday. No new watches or warnings have been posted for populated areas. Some information for this report was provided by The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.

BUENOS AIRES — Three people have been charged in connection with the death of Liam Payne, a former member of musical group One Direction who died after falling from the balcony of his hotel room in Buenos Aires last month, Argentine prosecutors said Thursday. Prosecutor Andrés Madrea charged the three suspects, whose identities were not revealed, with the crimes of "abandonment of a person followed by death" and "supplying and facilitating the use of narcotics," the prosecutor's office said. Madrea also requested their arrest to judge Laura Bruniard, who ruled the three cannot leave the country. Payne fell from his room's balcony on the third floor of his hotel in the upscale neighborhood of Palermo, in the Argentine capital. His autopsy said he died from multiple injuries and external bleeding. Prosecutors also said that Payne's toxicological exams showed that his body had "traces of alcohol, cocaine and a prescribed antidepressant" in the moments before his death. Investigators said hours after Payne's death that he was by himself when he fell. But the prosecutors' office said Thursday that one of the people charged was often with the singer during his time in Buenos Aires. The second is a hotel staffer who allegedly gave Payne cocaine during his stay between October 13 and 16. And the third is a drug dealer. The charges in Payne's case bear some resemblance to the U.S. cases stemming from the death of Friends star Matthew Perry a year ago. The actor's personal assistant and a longtime friend are among those charged with helping supply him with ketamine in the final months of his life, leading up to his overdose on the anesthetic. Three young men were similarly charged in the opioid-overdose death of rapper Mac Miller in 2018. Local authorities gathered, among other pieces of evidence, Payne's cellphone records, material for forensics and testimonies. They are yet to unlock the singer's personal computer – which is damaged – and other devices that were seized. Payne's autopsy showed his injuries were neither caused by self-harm nor by physical intervention of others. The document also said that he did not have the reflex of protecting himself in the fall, which suggests he might have been unconscious. Prosecutors in Argentina also ruled out the chances of Payne dying by suicide. One Direction was among the most successful boy bands of recent times. It announced an indefinite hiatus in 2016 and Payne — like his former bandmates Zayn Malik, Harry Styles, Niall Horan, and Louis Tomlinson — pursued a solo career. The singer had posted on his Snapchat account that he traveled to Argentina to attend Horan's concert in Buenos Aires on October 2. He shared videos of himself dancing with his girlfriend, American influencer Kate Cassidy, and singing along in the stands. Cassidy had left Argentina after the show, but Payne stayed behind. 

Mexico City — Gunmen in a truck pulled up to a bar in central Mexico and opened fire, killing 10 people, authorities said, in an area that had been spared the worst of the country's raging criminal violence.  Security camera footage published by local media showed the perpetrators leaping from the vehicle and bursting into the venue as terrified customers fled or dived to the floor.   The attack late Saturday on Los Cantaritos bar in Queretaro's downtown district left 10 people dead and at least seven injured, according to the city's public security department chief Juan Luis Ferrusca.   "Emergency services arrived at the scene and confirmed that at least four people armed with long weapons had arrived on board a pickup truck," Ferrusca said in a video on social media.  One suspect was detained and the vehicle used in the attack was found abandoned and set on fire, he said.  The victims included three women, according to the Queretaro state prosecutor's office, which said forensic experts were examining the scene of the attack and the vehicle.  Queretaro, the capital of Queretaro state, is considered one of the safer cities in Mexico, which has been plagued by years of drug cartel-related violence.  "The entire security system of Queretaro is mobilized to find the criminals" behind the attack, state governor Mauricio Kuri said on social media platform X.  "We will continue to shield our borders and maintain the security of our state," he said, adding, "Those responsible for this brutal act will be punished."  Queretaro, a city known more for its colonial architecture than for its crime, is around 200 kilometers northwest of Mexico City.   Across Mexico, spiraling violence, much of it linked to drug trafficking and gangs, has seen more than 450,000 people murdered since 2006.   Tackling the murders and kidnappings that are a daily occurrence is among the major challenges facing President Claudia Sheinbaum.  The former Mexico City mayor, who became the country's first woman president on October 1, has ruled out declaring "war" on drug cartels.  Instead, she has pledged to continue her predecessor's strategy of using social policy to tackle crime at its roots, while also making better use of intelligence.   The northwestern cartel stronghold of Sinaloa has seen a surge in violence since the July arrest of drug lord Ismael Zambada in the United States unleashed a wave of gang infighting.   There has also been a spike in bloodshed in the southern state of Guerrero, the scene of long-running gang turf wars.   Authorities said Thursday that the bodies of 11 people, including two minors, were found abandoned in a pickup truck in the state capital Chilpancingo.  They were part of a group of 17 people -- reported to be traveling merchants -- who were declared missing last month.         

Havana — A 6.8 magnitude earthquake shook eastern Cuba on Sunday, after weeks of hurricanes and blackouts that have left many on the island reeling.  The epicenter of the quake was located approximately 40 km south of Bartolomé Masó, Cuba, according to a report by the United States Geological Survey.  The rumbling was felt across the eastern stretch of Cuba, including in bigger cities like Santiago de Cuba. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.  Residents in Santiago, Cuba's second largest city, were left shaken on Sunday. Yolanda Tabío, 76, said people in the city flocked to the streets and were still nervously sitting in their doorways. She said she felt at least two aftershocks following the quake, but that among friends and family she hadn't heard of any damages.  "You had to see how everything was moving, the walls, everything," she told The Associated Press.  The earthquake comes during another tough stretch for Cuba.  On Wednesday, Category 3 Hurricane Rafael ripped through western Cuba, with strong winds knocking out power island-wide, destroying hundreds of homes and forcing evacuations of hundreds of thousands of people. Days after, much of the island was still struggling without power.  Weeks before in October, the island was also hit by a one-two punch. First, it was hit by island-wide blackouts stretching on for days, a product of the island's energy crisis. Shortly after, it was slapped by a powerful hurricane that struck the eastern part of the island and killed at least six people.  The blackouts and wider discontent among many struggling to get by has stoked small protests across the island. 

Port-au-Prince, Haiti — A transitional council created to reestablish democratic order in Haiti signed a degree Sunday firing the country's interim Prime Minister Garry Conille and replacing him with Alix Didier Fils-Aime, a businessman who was previously considered for the job. The decree, set to be published on Monday, was provided to The Associated Press by a government source. It marks even more turmoil in an already rocky democratic transition process for Haiti, which hasn't held democratic elections in years in large part due to the soaring levels of gang violence plaguing the Caribbean nation. Fils-Aime, is the former president of Haiti's Chamber of Commerce and Industry and in 2015 ran an unsuccessful campaign for Senate. The businessman studied at Boston University and was previously considered for the position as a private sector candidate for the post before Conille took the seat. Conille, a longtime civil servant who has worked with the United Nations, served as prime minister for only six months. The transitional council was established in April, tasked with choosing Haiti's next prime minister and Cabinet with the hope that it would help quell turmoil Haiti. But the council has been plagued with politics and infighting and has long been at odds with Conille. Organizations like the Organization of American States tried and failed last week to mediate disagreements in an attempt to save the fragile transition, according to reporting from The Miami Herald. The process suffered another blow in October when three members on the council faced corruption accusations, from anti-corruption investigators alleging that they demanded $750,000 in bribes from a government bank director to secure his job. The report was a significant blow to the nine-member council and is expected to further erode people's trust in it. Those same members accused of bribery, Smith Augustin, Emmanuel Vertilaire and Louis Gerald Gilles, were among those to sign the decree. Only one member, Edgard Leblanc Fils, did not sign the order.

The United States recognized businessman Alix Didier Fils-Aime as the newly appointed prime minister of Haiti, a State Department spokesman said in a statement Tuesday.   Matthew Miller said the U.S. “looks forward to working with” Fils-Aime and the Transitional Presidential Council “to advance progress against urgent priorities in the coming months.”  Fils-Aime, the former chairman of the board of Haiti’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, was sworn in Monday, replacing Garry Conille, who served as the country’s prime minister for only six months.    Conille is a doctor who previously ran UNICEF’s Latin American regional office. The TPC and Conille had been at odds. Several organizations recently tried to mediate the disagreements, according to the Miami Herald.  The transitional council was created in April to choose the Caribbean country’s prime minister and Cabinet, paving the way to the restoration of the democratic process to the gang violence-plagued country.   Democratic elections have not been held in Haiti since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021.    “The United States welcomes the commitment of the TPC and the new prime minister to release a joint action plan that outlines their vision to improve security and governance, and to set a path toward free and fair elections,” Miller’s statement said.  “The United States views it as vital that they clearly delineate the roles and responsibilities of the TPC vis-à-vis the prime minister and include measures to hold one another accountable as appropriate while preventing further gridlock,” the spokesman said.  As Fils-Aime was being sworn in, gangs shot at a Spirit Airlines airplane as it was attempting to land at Toussaint L'Ouverture International Airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital. The flight was diverted to the Dominican Republic, where it landed.    The U.S. Embassy in Haiti said in an alert Monday that it was “aware of gang-led efforts to block travel to and from Port-au-Prince which may include armed violence, and disruptions to roads, ports and airports.”    The alert also said the U.S. Embassy was “aware of a temporary pause in operations at the Toussaint L'Ouverture airport.”    In addition to the gang violence that has clung to Haiti, the country has never fully recovered from a devastating earthquake in 2010.   Some information for this report was provided by The Associated Press. 

Developing countries will need trillions of dollars in the years ahead to deal with climate change -- but exactly how much is needed, and who is going to pay for it?

The recent summit underscored Hong Kong's position as a "super-connector" and "super value adder," solidifying its status as a premier regional business hub and a vital link to the global market, that could support the eight major steps announced by President Xi Jinping last year to enhance the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

North Korea confirmed that it has blown up sections of roads and railways leading to South Korea, calling it a "hostile state," North Korean state media reported Wednesday.

Around 500 participants took part, including representatives from ASEAN, the EU and its Member States, youth and individuals with special needs. The event took place along Jalan Sudirman, leading to Gelora Bung Karno, Senayan, Jakarta.

Joe Biden pledged a peaceful transfer of power Thursday after Donald Trump's decisive US election win, while the Republican showed his intent to ditch the outgoing president's policies by suggesting he would talk to Vladimir Putin.

Congressional Staff Program on Korea Application

2024 Cross-Border Reporting on Climate Change Workshop

US-Korea Commercial Relations Beyond Washington & Seoul Application

전문가 교류 및 공동연구 프로그램 - KIET Applicants

한국-미국 비즈니스 및 경제 관계 – 서울과 워싱턴 DC를 넘어서 (KITA applicants)

Next-Generation Vision Consortium on ROK-US and the Indo-Pacific Application

Summer Institute 2023: Modern China in Three Keys Application

Summer Institute 2024: Infusing Korean Studies in American Undergraduate Higher Education

US-ROK-Japan Trilateral Global Leadership Youth Summit

Asian Development Bank-Japan Scholarship Program

Several local government units have announced the suspension of classes on Wednesday, November 13, due to tropical cyclones "Ofel" (international name: Usagi) and "Nika" (international name: Toraji).

The promised global shift from fossil fuels remains unmet as fossil fuel continues to expand in Southeast Asia with the backing of international financiers, environmental groups said.

After postponing the eleventh hearing into the drug-related extrajudicial killings on November 11, the House Quad Committee proceeded as initially scheduled on Wednesday, November 13.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology raised on June 3 the status of Kanlaon Volcano on Negros Island to Alert Level 2 due to "increasing unrest."