Author: ALJAZEERA

Sub-Saharan Africa to account for one in every two children born in 2100, Lancet study says.Fertility rates in nearly every country will be too low to sustain their populations by the end of this century, a major study has warned. By 2100, populations in 198 of 204 countries will be shrinking, with most births taking place in poor countries, the study published in the Lancet showed on Monday. Sub-Saharan Africa is expected to account for one in every two children born in 2100, with only Somalia, Tonga, Niger, Chad, Samoa and Tajikistan able to sustain their populations, according to the…

Washington, DC – Congressional leaders in the United States have proposed a spending bill that would avert a government shutdown but ban funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). Endorsed by the top Republican and Democratic legislators in the House and the Senate, the $1.2 trillion bill released Thursday morning would ensure continuous funding for large swaths of the US federal government, including the Departments of State and Defense. It is not uncommon for US legislators to use so-called “must pass” bills to advance their policy priorities and UNRWA has been in the crosshairs…

Video introduces 29-year-old man as first patient to use start-up’s brain-chip technology.Elon Musk’s brain-chip start-up, Neuralink, has livestreamed a patient appearing to play online chess using only his mind. In a video posted on the X social media platform on Wednesday, Neuralink introduced Noland Arbaugh, 29, as the first human patient to be implanted with its brain-computer interface technology. Arbaugh, who described becoming paralysed from the shoulders down in a diving accident, said that using Neuralink had become “intuitive” after practising imagining moving the cursor on the screen. “Basically, it was like using ‘the Force’ on the cursor, and I…

blinking-dotLive updatesLive updates, Top US diplomat Antony Blinken calls for ‘an enduring end’ to the war on Gaza with Israel’s regional integration and an independent Palestinian state. Source link

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Chinese tourists are returning to Malaysia en masse after the COVID-19 pandemic slump, industry figures say, amid expectations arrivals could reach pre-pandemic levels this year following the introduction of visa-free entry. Mint Leong, president of the Malaysian Inbound Tourism Association, estimated that arrivals rose to 60,000 in January, up from about 45,000 last year, and as high as 120,000 in February during the Lunar New Year period. “Chinese New Year will be the best arrivals post-COVID-19,” Leong told Al Jazeera. Leong said he expects Chinese arrivals to reach 3.5-4.5 million this year, with the average tourist…

Security Council expected to vote on Friday on US-drafted ceasefire resolution with talks to continue in Qatar.The United Nations Security Council is expected to vote as soon as Friday on a United States-drafted resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza as the European Union called for a “humanitarian pause”, adding to the pressure on Israel to end its five-month-long bombardment of the Palestinian territory. Washington, Israel’s staunchest ally, has been gradually hardening its tone following its early solid support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his war in Gaza. The latest draft resolution marks a further toughening of Washington’s…

San Francisco-based social media platform’s shares close at $50.44 in long-awaited initial public offering.Shares of Reddit soared nearly 50 percent as the social media platform made its long-awaited stock market debut. Investors pushed Reddit’s value close to $9bn after it began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, with the company’s share price peaking at $57.80 before closing at $50.44. Reddit, founded in 2005 by entrepreneurs Steve Huffman and Alexis Ohanian, had priced its initial public offering (IPO) at $34 a share. The strong market debut makes Reddit’s IPO one of the biggest by a social media company…

NewsFeedUS Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a ceasefire is the best way to increase the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza. He spoke in Cairo following a meeting with Arab leaders that focused on a truce deal between Israel and Hamas as well as the release of captives.Published On 21 Mar 202421 Mar 2024 Source link

Department of Justice is joined by 15 states and the District of Columbia in alleging that Apple stifles competition.The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a landmark civil antitrust lawsuit against the tech giant Apple, alleging that the company has stifled competition to boost its revenues and illegally monopolize the US smartphone market. The 88-page suit was filed Thursday in a New Jersey federal court with 16 state and district attorneys general joining the DOJ. At issue is Apple’s most popular product, the iPhone, which is the linchpin of the company’s $2.7 trillion valuation. With more than a…

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said that only the expansion of land crossings for aid deliveries into Gaza could help prevent famine in the densely populated Palestinian enclave. “Recent efforts to deliver food by air and sea are welcome, but only the expansion of land crossings will enable large scale deliveries to prevent famine,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Thursday. Children are dying from the effects of malnutrition and disease, and from a lack of adequate water and sanitation, Tedros said. “The future of an entire generation is in serious peril,” he said. “Once again,…