Browsing: News

MENA Newswire, OREGON: A strong offshore earthquake with a reported magnitude of 6.2 struck off the Oregon coast late Thursday, shaking parts of the Pacific Northwest but prompting no tsunami warnings and no immediate reports of serious damage or injuries. The quake occurred well out to sea in the eastern Pacific, and monitoring agencies said it was shallow, a factor that can increase shaking closer to an epicenter even when population centers are distant. U.S. monitoring networks and international seismological centers issued closely timed updates that differed slightly on the final magnitude, with some listing the event at 6.0 and others at 6.2. The National…

MENA Newswire, WASHINGTON: The United States will suspend the processing of immigrant visa applications for nationals of 75 countries starting Jan. 21, the State Department said, citing public assistance concerns under longstanding “public charge” standards used in immigration adjudications. The pause applies to immigrant visas issued through U.S. embassies and consulates abroad and affects applicants seeking lawful permanent residence. The department said the measure is part of a reassessment of procedures used to evaluate whether applicants are likely to rely on government funded benefits. A State Department spokesperson confirmed the change after reports that U.S. posts had been instructed to stop issuing immigrant visas for affected…

MENA Newswire, WASHINGTON: U.S. regulators have approved SpaceX to deploy an additional 7,500 Starlink satellites, expanding the company’s low Earth orbit broadband network under conditions set by the Federal Communications Commission. The decision increases the number of second generation Starlink satellites SpaceX is authorized to launch to 15,000 and marks a further step in the continued buildout of the largest satellite constellation currently operating. The Federal Communications Commission said the approval covers 7,500 satellites from SpaceX’s second generation Starlink system, known as Gen2. SpaceX had previously sought authorization for nearly 30,000 additional satellites, but the commission approved only part of that request. Consideration of the…

EuroWire, WASHINGTON: Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have successfully synthesised verticillin A, a complex fungal compound first identified more than 50 years ago and long recognised for its anti-cancer properties. The achievement marks the first laboratory synthesis of the compound and resolves a longstanding challenge in organic chemistry that had limited scientific study of the molecule since its discovery. Verticillin A was originally isolated from fungi in the early 1960s and drew attention due to its biological activity, including its ability to interfere with cancer cell growth. Despite this early promise, researchers were unable to reproduce the compound synthetically because of its highly intricate…

MENA Newswire,  NEW YORK: Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy is now available in an oral pill form in the United States, marking a major milestone in obesity treatment. The new tablet version, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in December 2025, contains the same active ingredient, semaglutide, as the injectable version that has gained widespread use among patients seeking medical support for weight management. This release makes Wegovy the first and only GLP-1 receptor agonist for chronic weight management to be offered as a once-daily pill. Wegovy, developed by the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk, works by mimicking the GLP-1 hormone that…

EuroWire, WASHINGTON: The White House confirmed that the United States is evaluating a range of options related to the potential acquisition of Greenland, including the possible involvement of the U.S. military, according to an official statement released Monday. The disclosure followed a briefing in which senior administration officials described the island as a matter of national security interest, citing its geographic position in the Arctic and existing U.S. defense installations on the territory. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that President Donald Trump has directed advisers to explore both diplomatic and strategic frameworks for potential U.S. engagement with Greenland. Leavitt said that the president…

MENA Newswire, NEW YORK: The United Nations General Assembly has approved a regular budget of $3.45 billion for 2026, concluding a series of intensive negotiations among the 193 Member States. The decision caps one of the most compressed budget cycles in the Organization’s history and aligns with the ongoing UN80 reform initiative, designed to modernize administrative and financial operations. The budget, adopted by consensus late Tuesday, will finance the UN’s three central pillars of activity: peace and security, sustainable development, and human rights. The approval underscores the Member States’ collective agreement on maintaining funding stability for the Organization’s core mandates amid global economic and…

Airlines cancelled more than 1,000 US flights as a powerful winter storm swept across the Great Lakes, Mid-Atlantic, and New England.

LOS ANGELES, December 26, 2025: Los Angeles was placed under a severe flash flood warning late Wednesday as a powerful Pacific storm brought heavy rainfall, widespread flooding, and mudslides across Southern California, severely disrupting Christmas Eve travel and prompting multiple emergency rescues. The National Weather Service issued multiple alerts across Los Angeles, Ventura, and Santa Barbara counties as the slow-moving system dumped several inches of rain within hours. Forecasters said up to eight inches of total rainfall could accumulate in some areas through the weekend, with conditions expected to remain hazardous due to saturated ground and continued runoff. Flooded roadways, overflowing storm drains,…

SEATTLE, December 24, 2025: Amazon has blocked more than 1,800 suspected job applications linked to North Korean operatives over the past 18 months, according to the company’s chief security officer, who detailed an escalating effort by the tech giant to counter foreign infiltration attempts targeting its global workforce. Stephen Schmidt, Amazon’s Chief Security Officer, said in a recent briefing that the company’s security division uncovered repeated attempts by individuals believed to be acting on behalf of North Korea to obtain employment through its remote hiring programs. The findings followed an extensive internal review that identified falsified credentials, stolen identities, and inconsistent digital…