Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

News

Hard Numbers: HK “protest,” Lebanese time warp, US Veep in Africa, Taiwan’s few friends, straight outta Helsinki

Protest against a land reclamation and waste transfer station project in Hong Kong.

Protest against a land reclamation and waste transfer station project in Hong Kong.

REUTERS/Tyrone Siu

80: That’s how many Hong Kongers joined the first authorized protest in the territory since China passed a sweeping national security law in 2020. Demonstrators were obliged to show numbered tags on lanyards and were not allowed to wear masks during the demonstration against a land reclamation and rubbish processing project, where attendance was restricted to 100 participants.


2: What’s the time in Beirut? Good question. Lebanese are confused following a sectarian spat between authorities over when to begin Daylight Savings Time. PM Najib Mikati, a Sunni Muslim, announced that clocks will go forward at the end of Ramadan in late April so Muslims can end the fast earlier, while the influential Christian Maronite Church wants to do it on the last Sunday of March.

3: US Vice President Kamala Harris on Sunday began a week-long tour of three African countries: Ghana, Tanzania, and Zambia. Harris, the highest-ranking Biden administration official so far to visit the continent, will focus on economic development, food security, and leveraging Africa’s youth population as the US president continues his efforts to win African hearts and minds amid China’s growing influence.

13: After Honduras established diplomatic ties with China and broke off relations with Taiwan, the self-ruled island’s international recognition has dwindled to only 13 countries. The shift demonstrates Beijing’s rising diplomatic clout in Central America on the heels of a visit to the region by Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen.

2: Two Finnish MPs are spinning rhymes as they battle for votes, releasing rap music videos ahead of the April 2 election. Johan Kvarnstrom, from the ruling center-left Social Democratic Party, and Coel Thomas from the Green Party have been winning rave reviews for their vids, done in collaboration with a local rapper.

More For You

Hard number: Seeking owners
Will Fitzpatrick
It’s not known whether these works were among the hundreds of thousands that the Nazis looted – especially from Jews – during their time in power, but in displaying these pieces, the museum hopes that the public can identify their original owners. Perhaps the most famous lost painting of this kind was Gustav Klimt’s “The Woman in Gold”, which was [...]
CIA Director John Ratcliffe meets with Cuban officials

CIA Director John Ratcliffe attends a meeting with Cuban officials at a location given as Havana, Cuba in this image released May 14, 2026.

CIA via X/Handout via REUTERS
Cuba has run out of fuel, and the CIA director is there for it.US spy chief John Ratcliffe traveled to Havana yesterday just hours after the communist-run island said it had run out of fuel due to the ongoing US energy blockade. Ratcliffe, the highest ranking Trump administration official to visit, went to reiterate his boss’s vision of a “deal”: [...]
Saudi Arabia's MBS shaking hands with the UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman receives UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in Saudi Arabia, on September 3, 2025.

IMAGO/APAimages via Reuters Connect
For many years, mutual concern about Iran helped to paper over deeper disagreements between Saudi Arabia and the UAE. The two powerful and ambitious Sunni Gulf monarchies have been on opposite sides of the civil wars in both Sudan and Yemen, as well as in fierce competition for regional dominance in AI. But two months into the so-far unresolved [...]
Chinese court compensates AI-replaced worker
A court in Hangzhou ruled that companies are not permitted to fire employees or reduce their salaries because their positions are being automated or replaced by AI. The case was brought by a worker who was initially offered a 40% pay cut and a demotion when his job as a quality assurance supervisor was automated. After he refused the reduced [...]