WORLD
Indian-American convicted of making illicit profits worth $7.3mn
Sivannarayana Barama, 48, and a co-defendant were charged with securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud by a superseding indictment in December 2019. The co-defendant pleaded guilty plea to related charges in 2019. Barama proceeded to jury trial, and the jury returned its verdicts against him on December 13.
US winter storm death toll reaches 62
Erie County in New York has reported the 37 deaths, the highest in the country as crews continue to clear roads and first responders are checking on people they couldn't reach days ago, reports CNN. The remaining 25 fatalities were reported across 11 states. "It's a horrible storm with too many deaths," Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz said at a news conference on Wednesday as he praised first responders, without whom "more people would have died". "We are fearful that there are individuals who may have perished living alone or people who were not doing well in an establishment, especially those that still don't have power," he added.
Pakistan's tryst with blasphemy laws
Some religions regard blasphemy as a religious crime, especially the Abrahamic religions, and have severe laws against it. Of the 71 countries that criminalise blasphemy, 32 are majority Muslim nations.
Japan's Kishida claims no plans for snap election 'for now' as public support wanes
Kishida's remarks on Wednesday come amid a slump in approval ratings for his cabinet triggered by a series of scandals and gaffes leading to the sacking of four ministers in two months, and ahead of unpopular planned tax hikes, Xinhua news agency reported. Japan's Kyodo News reported that while the Prime Minister added that "for now" he is not considering calling a snap election next year, a lower house election is "possible" before planned tax hikes in 2024
'Inside the secret world of Mrs Sunak'
The cover story is to be entitled: "No 10's Chatelaine: INSIDE THE SECRET WORLD OF MRS SUNAK". The edition - available from January 5 - will reportedly carry an extensive profile of Akshata, fashion designer and venture capitalist daughter of one of the founders of the Bengaluru-based Indian software giant Infosys, N.R. Narayana Murthy, and educationist and writer Sudha Murthy.
US reports nearly 48,000 weekly child Covid-19 cases
Nearly 15.2 million children in the country had tested positive for Covid-19 since the onset of the pandemic, Xinhua news agency reported. Nearly 165,000 of these cases had been added in the past four weeks, and the reported cases were likely a "substantial undercount" of Covid-19 cases among children, said the report.
Window for reviving nuclear deal not to open forever: Iranian FM
"The window for a nuclear agreement is open today, but ... if the other sides, especially the US, do not give up hypocrisy and the West does not act realistically," Amir-Abdollahian told IRNA in Muscat, capital of Oman, following meetings with Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tarik and other senior officials on Wednesday. Tehran will resort to other alternatives if the West continues its hypocrisy and interference, the Iranian Foreign Minister added.
Israel's new government puts West Bank settlement top priority
The policy document, a copy of which had been seen by Xinhua, on Wednesday states that the government, led by Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu, will "advance and develop the settlement in all parts of the land of Israel -- in the Galilee, Negev, Golan Heights, and Judea and Samaria," using the Biblical names for the West Bank.
US imposes mandatory Covid testing for visitors from China
In a statement on Wednesday, the Department of Health that from 12.01 a.m. on January 5, 2023, all passengers travelling from China, Hong Kong and Macau would need a negative Covid test to enter the country in order to "slow the spread" of the virus, reports the BBC. The tests can be either an RT-PCR or an antigen self-test administered through a telehealth service.
Australia to vote on Indigenous Voice to Parliament within 12 months: PM
Addressing the annual Woodford Folk Festival on Wednesday, Albanese told the crowd that the referendum will have been held by this time next year. The referendum will ask Australians if they support an alteration to the Constitution that would establish an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to act as an advisory body to Parliament, Xinhua news agency reported.
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