World News

Thailand releases 18 Cambodian prisoners of war as part of ceasefire pact

The repatriation of the 18 Cambodian soldiers was undertaken as a demonstration of goodwill and confidence-building, as well as in adherence to international humanitarian principles

Thieves rob a bank in Germany of €30 million in Ocean's Eleven-style

Police said the criminals drilled their way into the bank's underground vault from a nearby parking garage

Zohran Mamdani set to be sworn in as mayor as NYC rings in New Year

In a statement, Mamdani's office said the choice to be sworn in at the station reflected his commitment to the working people who keep our city running every day

OpenAI sets new record for highest employee pay in tech startup history

OpenAI's employee pay has hit historic highs, with average stock rewards of $1.5 million, as the company spends heavily to retain staff amid a fierce AI talent race

Asian shares set for strongest annual jump in eight years on AI bets

Gold firmed a bit and is on track for a 66 per cent surge in 2025 as the three-year rally shows no signs of stopping

Mali, Burkina Faso impose retaliatory travel ban on US national

The announcements, made in separate statements by the foreign ministers of the two West African countries, marked the latest twist in the frosty relationship

UAE to withdraw troops from Yemen following clash with Saudi Arabia

Abu Dhabi had earlier denied allegations by Riyadh that it's been directing a separatist group in the south of Yemen in a way that threatened the kingdom's border

China's factory activity rises in December, ending record 8-month slump

The official manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to 50.1 from 49.2 last month, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics

Trump admin freezes child care funds to Minnesota over fraud schemes

The announcement comes after years of investigation that began with the $300 million scheme at the nonprofit Feeding Our Future, for which 57 defendants in Minnesota have been convicted

Trump's covert Venezuela strike raises new questions on next steps

The attack is likely to inject additional energy into heated discussions in US Congress about the strategy toward Venezuela, and the debate about how far Trump can go without seeking authorisation

Elon Musk's xAI buys third building to expand 'Colossus' data centre

Musk has already built one data center in Memphis, known as Colossus, and is currently constructing a second nearby site dubbed Colossus 2

US commits $480 mn to Ivory Coast health sector under 'America First' pact

The signing in Ivory Coast's capital of Abidjan covers areas such as HIV, malaria, maternal and child health, and global health security

Thieves drill into German bank vault, steal property worth millions

Some 2,700 bank customers were affected by the theft in Gelsenkirchen, police and the Sparkasse bank said

Warner Bros likely to reject Paramount's $108.4 bn hostile bid: Report

Paramount had said that Ellison was open to personally guarantee equity financing backing the bid, a move aimed at easing doubts that had dogged its earlier proposal

Louis Gerstner, who steered IBM through historic turnaround, dies at 83

IBM chairman and CEO Arvind Krishna announced Gerstner's death in an email sent Sunday to employees, but did not provide a cause of death

Pentagon announces $8.6 billion Boeing contract for F-15 jets for Israel

The Pentagon said the contract involved foreign military sales to Israel. The U.S. has long been by far the largest arms supplier to its closest Middle East ally

China mandates chipmakers use 50% domestic equipment for new capacity

China's industry ministry did not respond to a request for comment. The sources did not wish to be identified as the measure is not public.

US clears Samsung, SK Hynix chip tool shipments to China for 2026

The approval is a temporary relief for the South Korean firms and follows a U.S. decision earlier this year to revoke licence waivers given to some tech companies

Protests spread across Iran with demands to overthrow the govt: Here's why

A sharp fall in the rial, soaring prices and economic uncertainty have sparked protests across Iran, with demonstrators in several cities calling for regime change

Europe to discuss US-led peace push as Ukraine-Russia tensions rise

Russia and Ukraine have throughout the war exchanged accusations about attacks that cannot be independently verified because of the fighting