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Hard Numbers: Najib pardon mulled, Angola counts votes, Taiwan ups defense budget, Sardinia woos you
Former Malaysian PM Najib Razak speaks to the media outside a court in Putrajaya.
REUTERS/Lai Seng Sin
12: Malaysia's highly influential ex-PM Mahathir Mohamed says the king will likely pardon Najib Razak, the disgraced former prime minister who this week began serving a 12-year prison term over corruption related to the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal. Not good when you're trying to show you're serious about punishing graft.
51: With almost all ballots counted, the ruling MPLA party has won 51% of the vote in Angola's most competitive election since independence. That's a seven-point lead over the opposition UNITA party, which is crying fraud and will likely contest the result in court.
19.41 billion: Taiwan plans to boost defense spending by 13.9% next year to a record $19.41 billion. China is getting increasingly bold in its military moves to intimidate the self-governing island following US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's recent trip to Taipei.
15,000: Sardinia is offering 15,000 euros ($14,960) for people to move to the sun-soaked Italian island, famous for its pristine coastline, donkeys, and breads. But there's a catch: you'll have to live in a small town, use half of the money to buy or renovate a home, and become a full-time resident. Totally worth it, if you ask this Signalista.A 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck Colombia yesterday – at least 160 people have died, though officials expect the toll to rise as rescue efforts continue.
Roughly 11% of American adults now say they are taking GLP-1s for weight loss, up from just 3% in 2024.
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