[Graphic News] Press freedom in South Korea worsened from last year

South Korea ranked 47th in the 2023 World Press Freedom Index, the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF) announced, falling by four places from last year. The index, based on an evaluation of the journalism environment in 180 countries and territories, is divided into four categories; “good,” “satisfactory,” “very serious,” “difficult,” and “problematic.” Korea was remarked as “satisfactory.” South Korea appreciates me

May 23, 2023

Rights groups urge World Expo organizers to rethink Riyadh bid

A dozen human rights advocacy groups led by the Switzerland-based MENA Rights Group have in an open letter called on World Expo organizers not to consider Riyadh as a potential host for the World Expo 2030. In the letter dated May 16, the groups cited concerns that the event could be used to "whitewash" the country's human rights record, which includes the continued use of the death penalty, crushing of human rights activism, silencing of women’s rights advocates and targeti

May 22, 2023

Tens of thousands of Moldovans rally for EU membership

CHISINAU (AFP) -- Tens of thousands of Moldovans rallied on Sunday to demand European Union membership for their country, whose bid to join the bloc has been accelerated by the war in neighboring Ukraine. The former Soviet republic of 2.6 million people applied last year to join the EU and in June 2022 became a candidate country, alongside Ukraine. More than 75,000 people participated in the demonstration in the center of the capital, Chisinau, according to initial police estimates. They waved E

May 21, 2023

Japanese PM faces dilemma at G7 as he balances anti-nuke goals with reality of threats

HIROSHIMA (AP) -- 8:15 on the morning of Aug. 6, 1945. It's a big reason leaders from the world's most powerful democracies descended on Hiroshima for this weekend's Group of Seven summit: Part commemoration, part effort to confront the continuing consequences of the moment a US B-29 Superfortress released what the Americans named “Little Boy” over the city in the first wartime use of a nuclear bomb. It also presents Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the driving

May 21, 2023

Zelenskyy denies Ukrainian city of Bakhmut occupied by Russian forces

HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that Russian forces weren't occupying Bakhmut, casting doubt on Moscow's claims that the eastern Ukrainian city had fallen. Responding to a reporter’s question about the status of the city at the Group of Seven meeting in Japan, Zelenskyy said: “Bakhmut is not occupied by the Russian Federation as of today.” The fog of war made it impossible to confirm the situation on the ground in the inv

May 21, 2023

Zelenskyy to attend G7 in Japan as bloc targets Russia 'war machine'

HIROSHIMA, Japan -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is poised for a first post-invasion trip to the Asia-Pacific, meeting allies at a G7 summit in Hiroshima as the bloc hit Russia's "war machine" with further sanctions. The previously unannounced visit was revealed by officials Friday -- a rare long-haul foray for the war-time president and an opportunity to huddle with leaders of seven wealthy democracies that bankroll his country's stoic defence. The visit comes at

May 19, 2023

[Graphic News] Prices for sugar spike to record high in 11 years

Global sugar prices have risen every month this year, the highest level in 11 1/2 years since October 2011. The global Sugar Price Index soared 27.9 percent from January, according to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization. The index rose every month from 116.8 in January to 125.2 in February, 127 in March, and 149.4 last month due to concerns about reduced global sugar production in India, China and other countries. For instance, increased rainfall in Brazil has trimmed the

May 19, 2023

Iran frees two jailed French citizens: Paris

PARIS -- Iran on Friday released two French citizens jailed in separate cases and they are both now returning to France, the French foreign minister said. Bernard Phelan, who also holds Irish nationality, and Benjamin Briere were freed from their prison in the northeastern city of Mashhad and are "on their way to France," Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said. The pair were among some two dozen foreigners jailed in Iran who campaigners see as hostages held in a deliberate strategy by

May 12, 2023

Hundreds of thousands to be evacuated as Bangladesh and Myanmar brace for severe cyclone

DHAKA, Bangladesh — Authorities in Bangladesh and Myanmar prepared to evacuate hundreds of thousands of people Friday, warning them to stay away from coastal areas as a severe cyclone churned in the Bay of Bengal. Cyclone Mocha is expected to hit land on Sunday with wind speeds of up to 160 kilometers (100 miles) per hour and gusts up to 175 kph (110 mph) between Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh and Kyaukpyu in Myanmar, India's Meteorological Department said. Bangladesh, a delta nati

May 12, 2023

Palestinian militants fire more rockets, Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza despite cease-fire efforts

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Palestinian militants fired rockets toward Jerusalem on Friday, further escalating the most violent confrontation in months between Israel and militants in the Gaza Strip despite efforts to broker a cease-fire. The burst of rocket fire from Gaza sent warning sirens wailing as far north as the contested capital of Jerusalem — about 48 miles (77 kilometers) from the Gaza border — breaking a 12-hour lull that had raised hopes that regional powers could soon

May 12, 2023

Zelenskyy to meet Italian president in Rome Saturday

ROME -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected in Rome on Saturday for talks with his Italian counterpart, an official told AFP Friday, with a meeting with Pope Francis also possible. "We confirm that this meeting will take place tomorrow," a spokesperson for Italian President Sergio Mattarella said when asked about reports of a meeting with Zelenskyy. It would be the first visit by Zelenskyy to EU and NATO member Italy since Russia's invasion in February 2022. A Va

May 12, 2023

[Graphic News] Mass shootings in US

A gunman shot and killed eight people and injured several others at a busy mall north of Dallas on Saturday. A Korean American couple and their 3-year-old son were among those killed in Texas mall massacre. Another 6-year-old boy was wounded and hospitalized. The massacre is among the latest in at least 202 mass shootings recorded in the United States this year, according to the nonprofit group Gun Violence Archive. The group defines a mass shooting as any incident in which four or more people a

May 11, 2023

AI could replace 80% of jobs in few years

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Artificial intelligence could replace 80 percent of human jobs in the coming years -- but that's a good thing, says US-Brazilian researcher Ben Goertzel, a leading AI guru. Mathematician, cognitive scientist and famed robot-creator Goertzel, 56, is founder and chief executive of SingularityNET, a research group he launched to create "Artificial General Intelligence," or AGI -- artificial intelligence with human cognitive abilities. With his long hair and leopard-

May 10, 2023

[Graphic News] Biden trails Trump as his approval rating hits low: poll

President Joe Biden’s approval rating slid to a career low in the latest opinion poll for ABC News and the Washington Post that also showed the US leader lagging predecessor Donald Trump in early voter preferences for the 2024 election. The percentage of those approving of Biden’s performance fell to 36 percent, six points lower than in February and a point off his previous low in early 2022, according to the survey conducted for the news organizations by Langer Research Associates.

May 10, 2023

14 million watched coronation of King Charles III: BBC

LONDON (AFP) -- More than 14 million people tuned in to watch King Charles III's coronation on BBC television, the corporation said on Sunday. At its peak, 13.4 million watched on the main BBC One channel, with an average of 11.9 million watching Saturday's coverage of the ceremony. A signed version on BBC Two peaked at 1.7 million, averaging at 1.4 million, a statement from the public broadcaster read. Saturday's coronation -- the first to be held in Britain in 70 years -- was on

May 7, 2023

Charles III to be crowned king in first UK coronation since 1953

Charles III will be crowned king on Saturday in a solemn Christian ceremony steeped in 1,000 years of history and tradition, but adapted to reflect 21st-century Britain. St Edward's Crown -- a solid gold, sacred symbol of the monarch's authority used only once in their reign -- will be placed on Charles's head to cries of "God Save the King." Trumpet fanfares will sound through London's Westminster Abbey and ceremonial gun salutes will blast out across land and sea

May 6, 2023

Aftershocks shake Japan after quake kills one, destroys homes

Aftershocks shook Japan a day after a powerful earthquake left at least one person dead, with officials assessing damage Saturday from the jolt that destroyed several buildings. The 6.5 magnitude quake hit the central Ishikawa region mid-afternoon on Friday at a depth of 12 kilometers, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency. Around 55 aftershocks, some of them strong, had occurred by Saturday morning, the agency said, as it warned that heavy rain could trigger landslides in the area. At le

May 6, 2023

[Graphic News] King Charles III’s coronation

King Charles III’s coronation will take place Saturday at Westminster Abbey in London. More than 2,200 people will attend the coronation, including international representatives from 203 countries as well as community and charity workers. During the ceremony, the king will be crowned alongside Camilla, the queen consort.

May 5, 2023

The need for a new US foreign policy

By Jeffrey D. Sachs US foreign policy is based on an inherent contradiction and fatal flaw. The aim of US foreign policy is a US-dominated world, in which the US writes the global trade and financial rules, controls advanced technologies, maintains militarily supremacy, and dominates all potential competitors. Unless US foreign policy is changed to recognize the need for a multipolar world, it will lead to more wars, and possibly World War III. The inherent contradiction in US foreign policy i

May 2, 2023

Russia says US-Korea nuclear deal could destabilize region

Russia's foreign ministry on Friday criticised a nuclear agreement between the United States and South Korea, saying it would destabilise the region and the wider world, and warned of a potential arms race as a result. The United States on Wednesday pledged to give South Korea more insight into its nuclear planning, while Seoul promised not to seek nuclear weapons itself in an agreement both sides said was aimed against North Korea. Russia has repeatedly railed against what it sees as the U

April 28, 2023