Ayoola Atitebi

Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to an "immediate and unconditional ceasefire" following five days of border fighting that killed at least 33 people and displaced tens of thousands. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced the agreement alongside his Thai and Cambodian counterparts, declaring it "a vital first step to a de-escalation and a restoration of peace and security." The ceasefire took effect at midnight. Thailand initially rejected Malaysia's mediation offer but agreed after US President Donald Trump threatened that tariff negotiations would halt until "fighting STOPS." The century-old border dispute escalated in May after a Cambodian soldier was killed in a clash. Thailand restricted cross-border movement for citizens and tourists, while Cambodia banned Thai imports, including fruits, power, and internet services. Local Cambodian media reported hundreds of thousands of workers returned from Thailand since May. Tensions peaked last week when […]

Greece continues battling five major wildfires across the country as a severe heatwave brings extreme temperatures expected to persist through the weekend. Temperatures are forecast to reach 44C (111.2F) on Sunday, with firefighters concentrating efforts on two significant blazes affecting the islands of Kythira and Evia. Fire brigade spokesman Vasilios Vathrakogiannis reported that conditions had improved following an "all night battle," but cautioned that Sunday's fire risk remained "extremely dangerous." Turkey has also experienced unprecedented heat, recording its highest temperature as multiple fires burn across several regions. Turkey's forestry minister Ibrahim Yumakli stated Sunday that fire-affected areas were "going through risky times" and predicted several days before full containment. On Saturday, Turkey's environment ministry announced meteorologists recorded 50.5C in the southeastern city of Silopi, exceeding the previous heat record of 49.5C. Firefighters have battled a four-day fire in northern Karabuk […]

Israel has introduced new humanitarian measures following sustained international criticism regarding starvation conditions in Gaza. The Israel Defence Forces announced these steps would "improve the humanitarian response." The measures include allowing aid airdrops, with Israel conducting its first overnight operation and permitting UAE air force deliveries on Sunday. The IDF also announced "tactical pauses in military activity" in certain areas and established "designated humanitarian corridors" to address what it calls "false claims on intentional starvation." Hamas denounced these moves as "deception," claiming Israel was "whitewashing its image before the world." During one tactical pause, Israel conducted an airstrike that reportedly killed Wafaa Harara and her four children - Sara, Areej, Judy and Iyad. While Israel maintains it doesn't restrict Gaza aid entry or cause the humanitarian crisis, these claims face rejection from European allies, the United Nations, and active agencies […]

South Park co-creator Trey Parker delivered a tongue-in-cheek apology to President Donald Trump following controversy over the animated show's season 27 premiere. The episode, which aired Wednesday, featured the president in a compromising scene with recurring character Satan. When asked about audience reactions during a Comic-Con International panel in San Diego, Parker responded with mock seriousness: "We're terribly sorry." The White House issued a sharp response to the episode, stating: "This show hasn't been relevant for over 20 years and is hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention." The statement continued: "President Trump has delivered on more promises in just six months than any other president in our country's history - and no fourth-rate show can derail President Trump's hot streak." Parker participated in the panel alongside co-creator Matt Stone, Beavis and Butt-Head […]

SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service experienced a significant global outage Thursday, affecting tens of thousands of users and prompting apologies from company executives including Elon Musk. The disruption lasted approximately two hours and 30 minutes, according to Michael Nicolls, Starlink's vice president of engineering, who posted details on X. Starlink operates across roughly 140 countries and territories with more than six million users. Users first reported problems around 3pm Eastern Time Thursday, with Downdetector recording as many as 61,000 user complaints during the outage period. The incident represented an unusual disruption for SpaceX's most commercially important business unit. "The outage was due to failure of key internal software services that operate the core network," Nicolls explained in his social media post. He added that the company apologized "for the temporary disruption in our service" and committed to identifying the root […]

Columbia University has agreed to pay $221 million to settle claims by the Trump administration that it failed to address anti-Semitism on campus. The settlement, announced Wednesday, will restore the "vast majority" of $400 million in federal grants that the Trump administration had frozen, the New York-based institution stated. Columbia will also regain access to billions of dollars in current and future federal funding. The university said the agreement formalizes reforms announced in March to address harassment against Jews, including hiring additional public safety personnel, modifying disciplinary processes, and promoting "an inclusive and respectful learning environment." The settlement also requires Columbia to maintain merit-based admissions and discontinue programs that promote "unlawful efforts to achieve race-based outcomes, quotas [and] diversity targets." Columbia will pay the federal government $200 million over three years, plus $21 million to settle Equal Employment Opportunity Commission […]