Author: Starvision News Desk

Phnom Penh, Aug 22 (IANS) Khuon Sudary was elected on Tuesday as the president of Cambodia’s National Assembly, or Parliament, for a new five-year term, becoming the first woman in the country’s history to hold this top post.According to the state-run National Television of Cambodia (TVK), Sudary, 70, is currently a member of the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP)’s Standing Committee, and used to be the second vice-president of the National Assembly in the old term, report Xinhua news agency.She was elected after the CPP won a landslide victory in the July 23 general election, winning 120 out of 125…

Rome, Aug 22 (IANS) Italy is under the grip of a third major heatwave of this summer, as the hottest two-year period on record continues unabated.The Ministry of Health said on Monday that by mid-week, 17 of Italy’s 27 largest cities will be on “red alert” for heat, reports Xinhua news agency. A new record of 20 out of 27 cities was set in July.The cities currently set to be put on red alert by Wednesday include Bologna, Florence, Milan, Naples, Rome and Turin. A dozen cities were already on red alert as of Monday.Temperatures in cities across central and…

Washington, Aug 22 (IANS) Data from the US Forest Service has revealed a “significant increase” in wildfires caused by humans in National Forest lands in the states of Oregon and Washington this year.Between June 1 and July 28, 197 human-caused or undetermined-caused fire starts have been reported, Xinhua news agency reported citing the data. In 2022, 409 human-caused fires were reported. In 2021, 494 were reported in Oregon and Washington Forest Service land.”The reasons behind this increase are unknown, but human-caused fires are preventable,” the .S Forest Service said in a statement on Monday.In Seattle, the Seattle Fire Department responded…

Washington, Aug 22 (IANS) The US Department of State has approved the potential sale of Apache attack helicopters and related equipment to Poland for an estimated value of $12 billion, the Department of Defense saidThe Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA), an arm of the Pentagon responsible for providing military assistance to US allies, said in a statement that it “delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale” in light of the State Department’s determination, reports Xinhua news agency.According to the DSCA, Poland has requested 96 Apache attack helicopters and related equipment, including 1,844 Hellfire missiles and 508 Stinger…

Washington, Aug 22 (IANS) The US has fined top drug-making companies Teva Pharmaceuticals and Glenmark Pharmaceuticals a total of $255 million for price-fixing fixing medications, including a generic cholesterol drug that they will now divest. The Department of Justice (DoJ) announced that Teva will also make a $50 million drug donation to humanitarian organisations, along with a $225 million criminal penalty — the largest to date for a domestic antitrust cartel.Glenmark will pay $30 million to resolve charges alleging that it conspired with Teva to fix prices for that cholesterol drug, called pravastatin.Both companies will face prosecution if they violate…

New York, Aug 22 (IANS) An Indian national was shot dead and another injured after being ambushed and robbed by a group of bikers in Mexico City.Confirming the incident, which took place on August 19 in the capital city’s Algarin neighbourhood, the Indian Embassy in Mexico asked authorities to apprehend the culprits at the earliest. “In an extremely regrettable & heart-wrenching incident,an Indian national living in Mexico has been tragically shot dead,” the Embassy posted on X on Sunday. “Embassy & @IndianAssoMex are in touch with his family & extending all support. We’re demanding Mexican authorities to apprehend the culprits…

New Delhi, Aug 22 (IANS) The Union Health Ministry on Tuesday said the country registered 23 new Covid cases in the last 24 hours, which increased the total tally to 4,49,96,676.In its latest update, the Ministry said that 28 people recuperated from the disease also in the same period, taking the number of total recoveries to 4,44,63,280.While the recovery rate stands at 98.91 per cent, the active caseload stood at 1,470.According to the Ministry, the country has registered a total of 5,31,926 Covid deaths since the outbreak of the pandemic in early 2020.Meanwhile, over 220.67 crore doses of Covid-19 vaccine…

Seoul/Tokyo, Aug 22 (IANS) North Korea has notified Japan of its plan to launch a satellite between Thursday and August 31, as the country seeks to put a spy satellite into orbit following its failure in May, a media report said on Tuesday.The North informed Japan’s coast guard of its plan to designate three maritime danger zones — two of which are west of the Korean Peninsula and the other is to the east of the Philippines’ island of Luzon, Yonhap News Agency quoted the report by Japan’s Kyodo News.”The plan is believed to be a retry of a military…

Tokyo, Aug 22 (IANS) The Japanese government on Tuesday announced its decision to begin releasing nuclear-contaminated wastewater from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean on Thursday, weather conditions permitting.Despite raging opposition both at home and abroad, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced the controversial decision following a ministerial meeting held on Tuesday morning, reports Xinhua news agency.Last month, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) also gave its final approval to the discharge, saying Japan’s release plan met international standards.Representatives of the country’s fishing industry on Monday reiterated their firm opposition to the ocean discharge plan during Kishida’s…

New Delhi, Aug 21 (IANS) Union Minister for AYUSH Sarbananda Sonowal on Monday said the main outcomes of the global summit will be soon released by World Health Organisation (WHO) in the form of Gujarat declaration.The ever first global summit on traditional medicine organised by World Health Organisation and co-hosted by Ministry of Ayush was organised in Gujarat’s Gandhinagar from from August 17 to 18.“The main outcomes of the global summit will be soon released by World Health Organisation in the form of Gujarat declaration. In the summit, WHO also has shared the initial findings of the global survey on…