World

The death toll from Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in seven decades climbed to more than 100 on Friday as the government announced a three-day official mourning period from Saturday for victims of the blaze. National and Hong Kong flags at all its buildings and facilities will fly at half-mast until Monday, with officials cancelling all non-essential public engagements and government-endorsed …

In the weeks since the announcement, the U.S. Army has shared details on how it will reform its service-level acquisition process. Part of the change involves consolidating the service’s program executive offices (PEOs), which are responsible for buying new weapons, into six new offices called “portfolio acquisition executives” (PAEs). Plans also include the creation of a new office to rapidly …

Donald Trump is showing signs of age-related “cognitive decline”, a top doctor has claimed. Dr Vin Gupta said the US President is slowing down and “something” was happening to Mr Trump’s mental capabilities. The doctor’s claims came after analysis published by the New York Times showed Mr Trump, 79, carried out fewer engagements in the first 10 months of his …

Surging computing costs could keep the maker of ChatGPT scrambling for fresh cash, a bank research report has estimated OpenAI, the owner of ChatGPT, may need to raise more than $200 billion by 2030 in order to continue operating, according to HSBC research cited by several media outlets.  The company needs the funding to continue expansion as computing costs climb …

EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — In January of 2018, I was involved in organizing and supporting the visit of General Aleksandr Bortnikov, and Sergey Naryshkin, the heads of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) and Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), respectively, to Washington D.C. to discuss counterterrorism cooperation. Interestingly, Bortnikov and Naryshkin did not travel at the same time, indicating to me that …

Russia is preparing another massive drone and missile attack on Ukraine, according to a pro-Kyiv military blogger. It comes amid US reports that the Kremlin is stockpiling ballistic missiles, as production at Russian armament factories accelerates. Ukraine has been battered by Russian aerial bombardments, that have killed thousands of civilians and caused extensive damage to cities and towns across the …

A pregnant mum died in a “profoundly stupid” freak accident after her four-year-old daughter found a loaded homemade gun in the family sofa, landing the dad in jail. Kiara Ferguson, 27, was six months pregnant when her little girl discovered the firearm hidden in the cushions. The mum took the gun and marched over to the bathroom to confront the …

A mass murderer serving life behind bars has been throwing tantrums about the fruit he has been given. Bryan Kohberger, who killed four University of Idaho students, has reportedly filed complaints about the types of bananas he’s received. The quadruple killer pleaded guilty to killing Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle in their off-campus home. While he’s …

A Russian tourist was apparently confronted by an angry shopkeeper, who chased her out of his shop, as he shouted “Glory Ukraine“. The incident appeared to take place in Tbilisi in Georgia, a country that is a popular holiday destination for Russians. Georgia suffered a similar fate to Ukraine, when the country was invaded by Russia troops in a short …

Jeanine Pirro, the US lawyer for the District of Columbia, said the suspected gunman in the shooting of two National Guard members will be charged with first-degree murder following the death of a guardsman. “There are certainly many more charges to come, but we are upgrading the initial charges of assault to murder in the first degree,” Pirro said in …