Suicide bomber kills 12 at mosque in Pakistan's capital, police say

ISLAMABAD, Feb 6 - A suicide bomber killed at least 12 people during Friday prayers in a Shi'ite Muslim mosque in Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad, two police officials said.

Bitcoin: Failure to Reclaim Key Level Keeps Price Locked in Sell-the-Rally Phase

Indonesian comedian Pandji Pragiwaksono summoned by police over Netflix show

Best Coast’s Bethany Cosentino Calls on Casey Wasserman to Step Down From Agency Over Emails in Epstein Files: ‘Pretending This Isn’t a Big Deal Is Not an Option’

Bethany Cosentino, the frontwoman of L.A. band Best Coast, has called on Casey Wasserman — the founder and CEO of her agency, Wasserman Music — to step down over his appearance in the Epstein files. In an open letter posted to Instagram on Thursday night, Cosentino — who has

Several killed in Islamabad mosque explosion, say police

ISLAMABAD, Feb 6 - An explosion ripped through a Shi'ite Muslim mosque in Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad on Friday killing several worshippers, police said.

'Lack of political will' leaves Bosnian river choking on garbage year after year

Seasonal rains sweep garbage from illegal dumps into the Drina River, where it accumulates behind a hydroelectric plant’s fence.

Only seven new petrol-powered cars sold in Norway in January

Data shows 29 hybrid and 98 diesel cars also sold, while the figure for battery electric vehicles was more than 2,000 Just seven new petrol cars were sold in Norway last month, data shows. The country, which is the frontrunner in the uptake of electric vehicles, shifted a

From Mamdani to Farage: AI-generated images spread after Epstein file release

The latest tranche of files related to the investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has set the internet ablaze with AI and manipulated images supposedly depicting him with politicians. Not all are real.

Goldman Sachs is tapping Anthropic’s AI model to automate accounting, compliance roles

Goldman Sachs is building AI agents with Anthropic’s Claude to automate trade accounting and client onboarding, aiming to speed work and boost efficiency.

UN Security Council to exempt sanctions on humanitarian aid for North Korea, source says

SEOUL, Feb 6 - A United Nations committee has approved exemptions from wide-reaching sanctions against North Korea to allow fresh humanitarian aid to reach the country, a diplomatic source said on Friday, amid a push by Seoul and Washington to engage Pyongyang.

Indonesian comedian summoned by police over Netflix show

JAKARTA, Feb 6 - A prominent Indonesian comedian who became the first from his country to air a special on Netflix was summoned by police on Friday over what they called public complaints about the material he used in his stand-up act.

Survival Drama ‘The Wild Between Us,’ Starring ‘Nuremberg’ Actor Andreas Pietschmann, Boarded by France TV Distribution (EXCLUSIVE)

France TV Distribution has boarded François Busnel’s “The Wild Between Us,” a survival drama starring Andreas Pietschmann (“Nuremberg,” “Dark”), in the run up to the European Film Market in Berlin. Set in the wilderness, “The Wild Between Us” follows Liam (Pietschmann) and Ava,

New START’s expiration invites new nuclear arms race

The New START treaty, the last remaining agreement constraining Russian and US nuclear weapons, lapsed on February 4. There are no negotiations to extend the terms of the treaty, either. As US President Donald Trump said dismissively in a recent interview, “if it expires, it

Gas-filled balloons explode inside Mumbai lift, injuring delivery worker and student

The woman had just arrived in Mumbai to visit a relative when the balloons were being delivered for a birthday celebration in the same building.

Voluntary stories

The narrative we run in our head is a choice. It might or might not be based on objective reality and verified history. Doesn’t matter, it’s still a choice. There are millions of ways we can remind ourselves about the events of our lives and the systems we live in. But in this

Kremlin says it hopes US-Iran talks in Oman will yield results

MOSCOW, Feb 6 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Friday that it hoped that negotiations between Iran and the United States in Oman would yield results and lead to a de-escalation and urged all sides to show restraint in the meantime. Iran and the United States started high-stakes

Epstein built ties to Russians and sought to meet Putin, files show

Justice Department files show that Jeffrey Epstein sought help from a Russian official after claiming a woman from Moscow was blackmailing “powerful businessmen” in New York.

Young people in China have a new alternative to marriage and babies: AI pets

Cute fluffy AI-powered “pets” are providing emotional companionship to an increasing number of lonely, tired Chinese — and a digital ear for tech giants.

Discover Khipu, the Ancient Incan Record & Writing System Made Entirely of Knots

Khipus, the portable information archives created by the Inca, may stir up memories of 1970s macrame with their long strands of intricately knotted, earth-toned fibers, but their function more closely resembled that of a densely plotted computerized spreadsheet. As Cecilia

Trump Press Sec Snaps at Media as Spin on Threat to Rig 2026 Goes Awry

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt lost her temper with a reporter who asked if Donald Trump intends to flood polling places with ICE agents during the midterms. She called the question “silly” and “hypothetical” and “disingenuous,” even though Steve Bannon, who’s

The Top 5 Longreads of the Week

In this edition: Bezos, paper, scissors; feast or famine; one reason to stay here; any way you slice it; the real Winter Olympics, and more.

Hong Kong’s tolerance for shortcuts has turned deadly

Hong Kong prides itself on being a first world city. So how did such a thing like the Tai Po fire happen?

Trump has been clear on wanting new nuclear arms control treaty, says US official

GENEVA, Feb 6 - The U.S. on Friday called for a new arms control agreement after the treaty that set caps on Russia and the U.S.'s strategic nuclear weapons deployments for more than two decades expired on Thursday.

Fifty groups present demand for a new approach to women’s health

Despite progress on gender equality, women across the European Union continue to live longer lives in worse health. According to a report ‘Towards an EU Strategy for Women’s Health’ presented in the European Parliament (4 February), women spend “approximately 25% more of their

UN to approve sanction exemptions on N. Korea aid projects: Sources

The move would the provision of aid such as medical equipment and water purification systems.

House Republicans prepare full-court press for voting restrictions

The SAVE America Act, up for a vote next week in the House, has been a rare rallying point for a divided GOP.

'Organized crime groups are subcontractors for the Netanyahu government's destruction of Israel's Arab society'

Pandora to switch from silver to platinum over price surge

The jeweller says it wants to reduce its exposure after the cost of the precious metal has risen.

China’s ‘Starlink killer’ new cutting edge of microwave weapons

China’s latest high-power microwave (HPM) breakthrough, a powerful truck-mountable system described by Chinese researchers and Chinese media as a potential counter to Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) constellations such as Starlink, signals a shift toward non-kinetic weapons designed to

US strike on alleged narco-trafficking ship near Colombia kills two

The US Southern Command confirmed a new lethal attack in international waters near Colombia, as part of its Operation Southern Lance against South American drug traffickers.

Giant snails and tiny insects threaten the South's rice and crawfish farms

Josh Courville has harvested crawfish his whole life, but these days, he's finding a less welcome catch in some of the fields he manages in southern Louisiana.

Cement truck plunges into Penang Hospital construction site, killing one

The incident occurred at 11.29am on Feb 6 and the Indonesian victim was pronounced dead at the scene.

Japan’s election tests its ability to navigate the Trump era

Subscribe now with a one-month trial for only $1, then enjoy the first year at an exclusive rate of just $99. Japan’s political equilibrium is on the ballotScott Foster reports that Japan’s February 8 election will decide whether the LDP regains one-party dominance or remains

Taiwan to seek extension of arms deals with US amid budget stand-off

Taiwan’s defence ministry has warned any delay could postpone much-needed weapons deliveries.

Meet the Viral “Sad Horse” Taking Over China’s Lunar New Year

A tearful horse toy is taking China by storm ahead of Lunar New Year. From error to Douyin fame, discover why everyone wants one.

Top Russian GRU general and cyber ops chief shot in Moscow attack

Vladimir Alekseyev has been under the EU sanctions for orchestrating the novichok poisoning attack in Salisbury in 2018 that targeted Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter.

Takaichi seeks voter blessing for a new fiscal blowout

TOKYO — Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s party looks set to strengthen its hold on parliament in Sunday’s election, which, if so, will free her to pump new waves of stimulus into Japan’s underperforming economy. Voters appear jazzed by the prospect of reopening those fiscal

Watch: Bad Bunny lookalikes compete ahead of Super Bowl

The Puerto Rican rapper, who won a Grammy for album of the year, will be the first artist to perform the half time show entirely in Spanish.

Fire near Hong Kong wholesale food market extinguished

Plumes of black smoke could be seen rising above the western part of the city's Kowloon peninsula.

The Largest Historical Dictionary of English Slang Now Free Online: Covers 500 Years of the “Vulgar Tongue”

“The three volumes of Green’s Dictionary of Slang demonstrate the sheer scope of a lifetime of research by Jonathon Green, the leading slang lexicographer of our time. A remarkable collection of this often reviled but endlessly fascinating area of the English language, it

Moving inductions to early morning could shorten labour by 6 hours

By matching uterine contractions up with the body’s natural circadian rhythms, inducing labour in the early morning is linked to shorter labour and fewer emergency c-sections

Iran, US hold talks in Oman after deadly protest crackdown

Iran and the United States began talks on Friday in Oman, with Washington refusing to rule out military action against the Islamic republic over its deadly crackdown on mass protests. Iran has insisted the Oman-mediated talks will be centred solely on its nuclear programme,

Iran, US hold talks in Oman

Iran and the United States began talks on Friday in Oman, with Washington refusing to rule out military action against its foe if diplomacy fails while the Islamic republic vowed to defend itself against "any excessive demands". Iran has insisted the Oman-mediated talks will be

The internet names a new deep-sea species of chiton

The Senckenberg Ocean Species Alliance (SOSA), in partnership with the scientific publisher Pensoft Publishers and science YouTuber Ze Frank, have let the internet name a newly discovered deep‑sea chiton (a type of marine mollusk). The formal description of the species is

‘Two Mountains Weighing Down My Chest’ Director on Her Feature Debut About Life Between Cultures and “Non-Judgment” (Exclusive Berlin Trailer)

Chinese creative Viv Li's doc, premiering in the Berlinale's Panorama Dokumente section, shows her in search of answers to the question of how to deal with your own culture after you have learnt another.

Why Claude Cowork is a math problem Indian IT can’t solve

As agentic AI automates the man-day billing model, the $300 billion outsourcing industry faces a brutal pivot.

Oman mediates Iran-US nuclear talks in Muscat as tensions remain high

The talks are the first diplomatic encounter between the United States and Iran since Washington joined Israel's conflict against the Islamic republic in June with strikes on nuclear sites.

China open to talks with Lithuania after apparent change in Taiwan stance

BEIJING, Feb 6 - China said on Friday it was open to dialogue with Lithuania after the Baltic nation's prime minister described as a \"mistake\" its 2021 decision to let Taiwan set up a de facto embassy in the capital of Vilnius.