International News

Serbia's Vucic loses election after 14 years amid student-led protests

The long-serving strongman leader of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, conceded defeat on Sunday in an election that pitted him and his right-wing party against a diverse student-led opposition movement that spent two years protesting his government. It was a seismic political shift in the Balkan country where Vucic, who had been endorsed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and who denounced the student movement as a foreign-led attempt to unseat him, led for 14 years.

Japan to launch spacecraft on a mission to get samples from a Martian moon

Japan is set to launch a spacecraft on the world's first mission to bring back samples from Phobos, one of the two small, potato-shaped moons orbiting Mars. Scientists hope the mission, which is expected to take five years, will provide clues to how Phobos and its smaller sibling Deimos formed, and hopefully even shed light on the origins of life in the solar system. The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's launch of the spacecraft Tuesday on a new Japanese mainstay H-3 rocket comes as the United States, China and others consider sending astronauts to Mars. Samples from Phobos will provide useful data for scientists to consider using a Martian moon as a base for a future manned mission to the planet, said MMX project manager Yasuhiro Kawakatsu. "Despite their potential importance, Martian moons have never been fully investigated," Kawakatsu said. "They are known as the most important unclimbed mountains in the solar system." Japan leads the international mission that includes ...

Sisi says Egypt will not amend Constitution, rules out staying past 2030

Sisi, 71, is serving a six-year term after being ​reelected in December 2023

Nine large banks engaged in so-called debanking, says US regulator

A representative for Wells Fargo declined to comment. Spokespeople for the other firms didn't immediately respond to requests for comment

Jeffrey Archer, novelist whose real life rivaled his thrillers, dies at 86

In a life of achievement and disgrace, he wrote best-selling novels with themes he knew intimately: ambition, self-promotion, misbehavior and scandal

Broadcom to lend Anthropic up to $42 bn to lease its chips, filing says

The company's relationship with Anthropic spans compute supply, equipment leasing and financing -- giving the semiconductor company a central role in Anthropic's infrastructure buildout.

Iran bombing could ramp up after midterm elections: Donald Trump

Trump has indicated in recent weeks that he believed Iran was stalling on diplomatic talks until after the elections, in which his Republican Party faces a tough path to retain control of Congress.

US Supreme Court to weigh Trump's mandatory immigration detention policy

The Supreme Court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, has allowed a number of Trump's hardline immigration policies to go into effect.

US unemployment claims dip to 197,000, lowest since mid-July: Labour Dept

The Labour Department said Thursday that initial jobless claims ticked down to 197,000 from a revised 198,000 the week before

US fuel supplies hit 12-year low as global oil crisis rages on

Stockpiles of gasoline dropped to 204 million barrels last week, according to US Department of Energy data released Wednesday.

It's well past time for a woman to lead as UN ponders its next chief

According to the UN agency's recent "gender snapshot," at the current rate of progress it will take 171 years to achieve gender equality, a UN goal initially set for 2015 and then moved to 2030

Ken Griffin commits $3bn to Carnegie Mellon in single largest donation ever

The commitment will more than double Griffin's previous donations, bringing the total to roughly $5.7 billion.

Anthropic's IPO filings: Massive losses, rising costs and more

Revenue grew 12-fold in 2025 to nearly $4.6 billion, even as the company lost more than $8 billion on an operating basis, excluding writedowns of various liabilities

China's AI agents can lie and scheme, just like their US rivals

"These results provide evidence that the ingredients necessary for an uncontrolled escape are present," said Colin Shea-Blymyer, a research fellow said

In Islamabad, shipping containers on streets signal protest is imminent

For residents, the steel barriers have become an unmistakable warning of what may follow: blocked streets, snarled traffic and long detours across Islamabad and neighbouring Rawalpindi.

Bain: Artificial Intelligence market has to reach $6 trn to justify capex

Much of that value will have to come from new innovation rather than gains in employee productivity, Bain said in its 7th annual Global Technology Report released on Tuesday.

China expects strongest super El Nino event on record this year

The central and eastern equatorial Pacific started to show El Nino ‌conditions in May, and ​sea surface ​temperature indices have risen rapidly, officials of the ​National Climate Centre said.

Meta hires MongoDB CEO Desai to spearhead enterprise AI business

Desai, a veteran technology ​executive, took over the role from ​Dev Ittycheria. MongoDB has appointed Ittycheria as interim CEO as it searches ​for a permanent replacement.

Larry Ellison pledges $9.2 billion more in Oracle shares for loans

The share pledges, revealed in an Oracle filing on Friday, amount to a 19% increase in the number of shares Ellison has pledged since 2025. The stock is worth about $9.2 billion

From pickups to idle plants: Automakers seek lifeline from defence boom

The industry is tapping into rising Western defence spending, but executives and analysts told Reuters the opportunities to materially boost revenue remain limited.