Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 337

North Korea fires missiles again amid unusual flurry of tests

North Korea has fired two short-range ballistic missiles into waters off the coast of Japan, the latest in an unusual flurry of tests. The missiles were reportedly launched from an airport near Pyongyang early on Monday, said South Korea's military. Japan also confirmed the test. It is North Korea's fourth missile launch in two weeks.The UN prohibits North Korea from ballistic and nuclear weapons

China cuts interest rates as economic growth slows

China has unexpectedly cut a key interest rate for the first time in almost two years as official figures showed its economic growth had slowed. Gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 4% for the last three months of 2021 from a year earlier, the National Bureau of Statistics said. That was better than most economists had predicted but was a lot slower than the previous quarter. In another sign of

India's Hindu extremists are calling for genocide against Muslims. Why is little being done to stop them?

At a conference in India last month, a Hindu extremist dressed head-to-toe in the religion's holy color, saffron, called on her supporters to kill Muslims and "protect" the country. "If 100 of us become soldiers and are prepared to kill 2 million (Muslims), then we will win ... protect India, and make it a Hindu nation," said Pooja Shakun Pandey, a senior member of the right-wing Hindu Mahasabha

Why satellites are key to understanding Pacific volcano

When an enormous underwater volcanic eruption occurred in the South Pacific near Tonga on Saturday, satellites were in position to capture what had happened. That's because there's a large and growing fleet of Earth observation spacecraft overhead. Some have constant eyes on particular regions of the Earth, meaning their data is immediately available to study, while others are tasked with making

A massive volcanic eruption and tsunami hit Tonga and the Pacific. Here's what we know

An underwater volcano near Tonga has erupted for the third time in four days, potentially threatening the ability of surveillance flights to assess the damage to the Pacific island nation following Saturday's massive eruption and tsunami.Australia's meteorological service said a "large eruption" took place at the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano on Monday, but no tsunami warnings have been

Clap, don’t chant: China aims for ‘Zero COVID’ Olympics

Athletes will need to be vaccinated — or face a long quarantine — take tests daily and wear masks when not competing or training. Clapping is OK to cheer on teammates, not chanting. Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 will be sent into isolation and unable to compete until cleared for discharge. Welcome to the Beijing Olympics, where strict containment measures will aim to create a virus-proof

Anti-coronavirus measures tightened across China

China further tightened its anti-pandemic measures in Beijing and across the country on Friday as scattered outbreaks continued ahead of the opening of the Winter Olympics in a little over two weeks. The actions appear to reflect nervousness about a possible surge in cases ahead of the Beijing Games.Beijing has ordered children at international schools to be tested starting next week and is

Hong Kong police switch to goose-stepping ‘to show patriotism’

Hong Kong’s entire police force will switch from colonial-era British marching drills to the goose-stepping style seen on the Chinese mainland, the city’s force said Friday, citing the need to show officers’ “patriotism.” The stiff-legged marching technique was first publicly demonstrated by Hong Kong officers on April 15 during National Security Education Day — designated to mark a

British Intelligence Shines Light On Chinese Spy ‘Hiding In Plain Sight’

Britain’s domestic intelligence agency, MI5, is coming under political pressure to explain why it did not alert lawmakers sooner about the activities of a suspected Chinese spy, who the security service now say was “knowingly engaged in political interference in the U.K.” The British security agencies have been warning in recent months about China increasing espionage activity in the country, but

Covid global report: Omicron alert in southern Chinese city bordering Macau

The southern Chinese city of Zhuhai has suspended public bus routes after announcing it had detected at least seven cases of the highly transmissible Omicron coronavirus variant there and warning residents not to leave the city. The coastal city, which borders the gambling hub Macau, said late on Friday that Omicron had been detected in one mildly ill and six asymptomatic patients, after mass