How South Korea’s brief martial law upended lives

When South Korea’s leader declared martial law a year ago, one young woman blocked a tank, a civil servant resigned in protest and a lawmaker switched sides to remove him from office. They are among the many South Koreans whose lives were transformed on December 3, 2024. That wintry night, then-president Yoon Suk Yeol interrupted […]

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VR headsets take war-scarred children to world away from Gaza

Children scarred by the war in Gaza are undergoing a therapy programme using virtual reality headsets that transport the youngsters to a world far away from the destruction around them. The VR therapy is aimed at improving the children’s psychological wellbeing, with operators saying it can achieve results more quickly than traditional therapy sessions. Inside […]

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White House confirms admiral ordered 2nd strike on alleged drug boat

A US admiral acting under the authority of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered a “double-tap” military operation that targeted survivors of an initial attack on an alleged drug smuggling boat, the White House said Monday. The legality of the Trump administration’s deadly strikes against suspected drug traffickers in the Caribbean and Pacific has already been questioned, […]

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US envoy to meet Russia’s Putin for talks on ending Ukraine war

US envoy Steve Witkoff and Russian President Vladimir Putin are expected to hold talks in Moscow on Tuesday to discuss the Trump administration’s controversial proposal to end the war in Ukraine. The meeting comes after Washington said it was feeling confident about the plan, following talks with Ukrainian negotiators in Florida.”I think the administration feels […]

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Pacific island office enabling sanctions-busting ‘shadow fleets’

Dozens of oil tankers suspected of smuggling contraband crude for Russia and Iran have been using a beachside office in the tropical South Pacific to cover their tracks, an AFP analysis of sanctions data has revealed. Nestled next to a pizza shop in the far-flung Cook Islands is the modest headquarters of one of the […]

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Son of Mexican crime lord ‘El Chapo’ pleads guilty in drug case

A son of the infamous Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman pleaded guilty Monday in a Chicago court to drug trafficking charges in a deal that would see him cooperate with US prosecutors for a reduced sentence. Joaquin Guzman Lopez, one of four sons of the jailed Sinaloa cartel leader, pleaded guilty to drug […]

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White House gets scaled-down Christmas display amid ballroom work

US First Lady Melania Trump unveiled this year’s White House Christmas decorations on Monday — in a reduced space after President Donald Trump demolished part of the historic building for a new ballroom. The 55-year-old’s theme for the season was “Home is Where the Heart Is,” despite the fact that she spends relatively little time […]

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Russland meldet Eroberung von strategisch wichtiger Stadt Pokrowsk in Ostukraine

Russland hat die Eroberung der strategisch wichtigen Stadt Pokrowsk im Osten der Ukraine gemeldet. Die russische Armee habe zudem die Stadt Wowtschansk unter ihre Kontrolle gebracht, teilte der Kreml am Montag mit. Der russische Generalstabschef Waleri Gerassimow habe Kreml-Chef Wladimir Putin offiziell über die “Befreiung” der beiden Städte informiert, hieß es in einer Erklärung im […]

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From Honduras to Poland, Trump meddles in elections as never before

The United States has meddled for decades in elections around the world. But no modern president has done so as brazenly as Donald Trump. Forget shady CIA-hatched plots or surreptitious media campaigns. Trump has openly called on other countries’ electorates to vote for his right-wing friends, often deploying his favorite tool of social media. Most recently, […]

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