Domestic air travel in Germany dropped by 50% compared to 2019: Study

Domestic flights in Germany are expected to stay significantly below pre-pandemic levels, as overall air traffic continues to decline, according to an analysis released Thursday by the aviation industry association BDL

Flight schedules through the first six months of 2025…[Read more]

USA Today: If Social Security falters, reverse mortgages could be worth a look

The outlet took a look at reverse mortgages as a potential path for retirees who have trouble making ends meet with Social Security alone.

Many retirees have said they rely largely — and sometimes entirely — on Social Security benefits as their primary income str…[Read more]

US job growth surprises in December as unemployment rate slips to 4.1%

U.S. hiring picked up unexpectedly in December as employers added a strong 256,000 jobs, while the unemployment rate fell to 4.1%, another sign of the economy’s resilience in the face of high interest rates.

Job growth rose 212,000 last month from November, the Labor…[Read more]

US, Arab mediators advance Gaza peace talks, but no deal yet: Sources

Delegations from Qatar, Egypt and the U.S. have made some headway in their efforts to secure a cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, but not sufficient to finalize an agreement, Palestinian sources said Thursday.

As talks continued in Qatar, the Israeli military…[Read more]

Erdoğan vows to make up for local vote mishap

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday promised to compensate for his ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) unprecedented losses in last year’s local elections.

“We will work wholeheartedly to make up for the road crash in the March 31 elections at the first possibility,” Erdoğan t…[Read more]

Türkiye’s AFAD provides crucial flour aid to Gaza amidst food crisis

The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) has reported that it has distributed flour to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which is experiencing a food crisis due to Israeli attacks.

AFAD, in collaboration with the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees…[Read more]

‘Türkiye won’t hesitate to protect itself against terrorists’

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Türkiye would not hesitate to take action against terrorists posing a threat to its national security.

Noting that Türkiye has shown its firm commitment to its survival and security time and again, Erdoğan told a news conference after a cabinet meet…[Read more]

Israel wipes out 2 Gazan families amid renewed push for cease-fire

At least 17 people from two families were among some 88 Palestinians killed by Israel in Gaza over the weekend, the territory’s health authorities confirmed Sunday.

Israel’s latest killings come amid as mediators launched a new cease-fire push to end its 15-month genocidal…[Read more]

Macron affirms Trump has ‘solid ally’ in France, urges realism from Ukraine over territory

French President Emmanuel Macron said his country was a “a solid ally” of President-elect Donald Trump on Monday as he outlined his vision for global diplomacy in 2025, while warning that France could lose the incoming U.S. leader’s respect by being “we…[Read more]

Former French president Sarkozy faces court over alleged €50 million Gaddafi pact

Former French President Nicholas Sarkozy goes on trial on Monday on charges he accepted some 50 million euros in illegal campaign financing from late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Sarkozy, who has been twice convicted for separate crimes since leaving office, h…[Read more]

Iran nuclear programme nearing ‘point of no return’, France’s Macron says

French president says Paris will engage with the incoming administration of US President-elect Donald Trump on the ‘Iranian question’.

French President Emmanuel Macron has called Iran the main “strategic and security challenge” for Europeans in the Middle East, raising…[Read more]

‘Out of kilter’: Indian migrants fuel surge as Labor struggles to rein in numbers

A massive surge in migrants from India is hampering efforts to rein in overall numbers, fuelled by a controversial pact signed by Anthony Albanese after Covid.

A massive surge in migrants from India that has continued since Covid is hampering the government’s effor…[Read more]

Relentless warming is driving the water cycle to new extremes, the 2024 global water report shows

Last year, Earth experienced its hottest year on record − for the fourth year in a row. Rising temperatures are changing the way water moves around our planet, wreaking havoc on the water cycle.

The 2024 Global Water Monitor Report released today s…[Read more]

Australia needs better ways of storing renewable electricity for later. That’s where ‘flow batteries’ can help

As more and more solar and wind energy enters Australia’s grid, we will need ways to store it for later.

We can store electricity in several different ways, from pumped hydroelectric systems to large lithium-ion battery systems. We can…[Read more]

USA: Jimmy Carter’s six-day state funeral begins

Six days of funeral events, observances and ceremonies are planned from Atlanta, Georgia, to Washington, DC, to reflect the life of former US President Jimmy Carter.

Six carefully choreographed days of funeral events in honor of former US President Jimmy Carter got underway on Saturday, starting…[Read more]

US cartoonist quits Washington Post over Trump, Bezos sketch

Illustrator Ann Telnaes has accused the Washington Post of censoring a cartoon in which she took aim at billionaire tech and media executives and their relationships with President-elect Donald Trump.

A Pulitzer Prize-winning American cartoonist has quit the Washington Post newspaper,…[Read more]

Trump must be sentenced in hush money case, judge signals no jail

President-elect Donald Trump will be sentenced on Jan. 10 in the criminal case in which he was convicted on charges involving hush money paid to a porn star, but is unlikely to face jail time or other penalties, a judge said on Friday.
Justice Juan Merchan’s ruling means Trump will…[Read more]

CDP chief Noda rejects grand coalition with LDP

Former Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda, leader of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, on Saturday rejected the idea of forming a grand coalition with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
“We want to focus on uniting the power of opposition parties to change the government,”…[Read more]

Biden blocks Japan’s Nippon Steel from buying US Steel

US President Joe Biden has blocked the takeover of US Steel by a bigger Japanese firm, delivering on a political promise despite fears the move could hurt Washington’s relations with Tokyo and scare off other foreign investors.

Biden cited threats to national security in rejecting the Nippon…[Read more]

World’s oldest person dies in Japan aged 116

Tomiko Itooka died on December 29 at a care home in Ashiya, Hyogo prefecture, in central Japan.

Tomiko Itooka, a Japanese woman who was the world’s oldest person according to Guinness World Records, has died at the age of 116.

Yoshitsugu Nagata, an official in charge of elderly policies, said Ito…[Read more]