KOUROU, March 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) – Europe’s new heavy-lift rocket, Ariane 6, is set to carry out its first commercial mission today, as European nations aim to secure independent access to space amid a surprising thaw in relations between Moscow and Washington. This high-profile launch comes at a time when French President Emmanuel Macron is […]

MANILA, March 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) – Soaring temperatures caused the closure of schools in nearly half of the Philippine capital on Monday, local officials confirmed, as the sweltering dry season commenced in the tropical Southeast Asian nation. A national weather service advisory warned that the heat index, which measures both air temperature and relative humidity, […]

WASHINGTON, March 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) – US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, a well-known vaccine critic, expressed support for the measles vaccine on Sunday as a deadly outbreak of the disease spreads through the southwestern United States. An unvaccinated child tragically died in late February in Texas, marking the first US fatality from the […]

WASHINGTON, March 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) – US President Donald Trump responded to growing criticism on Sunday regarding his increasingly close relationship with Russia over the Ukraine conflict, asserting that the United States should be less focused on Vladimir Putin. “We should spend less time worrying about Putin, and more time worrying about migrant rape gangs, […]

PHNOM PENH, March 3, 2025 (BSS/XINHUA) – Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni, accompanied by his mother, former Queen Norodom Monineath Sihanouk, departed Phnom Penh on Monday for Beijing, China, to undergo a regular medical checkup and treatment. At Phnom Penh International Airport, the royal family was seen off by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, Chinese Ambassador […]

WASHINGTON, March 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) – US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered a halt to all cyber operations targeting Russia, including offensive measures, according to multiple reports from US media on Sunday. The directive forms part of a broader reassessment of US operations against Moscow, with the specific duration or scope of the pause […]

LONDON, March 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) – European leaders united on Sunday at a summit in London, reaffirming their support for Ukraine amid the ongoing conflict with Russia, and pledging to increase security spending while forming a coalition to defend any potential ceasefire. French President Emmanuel Macron, speaking on his return from the summit, revealed that […]

DAMASCUS, March 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) – Syrian forces were deployed in a Damascus suburb on Sunday following fatal clashes with Druze gunmen, state media reported, amid rising tensions over Israeli demands for protection of the Druze minority group. The suburb of Jaramana, predominantly inhabited by Druze and Christians, witnessed a deadly shooting at a checkpoint […]

LONDON, March 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Sunday that he would meet with King Charles III to discuss the defence of Canada’s sovereignty, following repeated remarks by former US President Donald Trump suggesting that Canada should become the 51st state of the United States. Trump’s comments have sparked widespread outrage […]

TOKYO, March 3, 2025 (BSS/AFP) – Nearly 1,700 firefighters are currently battling Japan’s largest forest fire in three decades, as authorities continue efforts to contain the blaze in the northern Iwate region. As of Monday, around 4,600 residents remain under evacuation advisories. The fire, which has been raging since Thursday near the city of Ofunato, […]