UK threatens to ban Eritreans over returns policy
The Guardian •

UK threatens to ban Eritreans over returns policy

Move comes after east African country abruptly withdrew returns cooperation earlier this yearUK politics live – latest updatesEritreans could be stopped from coming to the UK unless the country agrees to accept more rejected asylum seekers and criminals, Shabana Mahmood has warned.VIPs and officials from the east African country have already been stripped of fast-track access to UK visas after the...

Indonesians urge Singapore, Malaysia to sue Jakarta as haze blankets region

Indonesians urge Singapore, Malaysia to sue Jakarta as haze blankets region

SCMP •

Every time Kristaen Albert returns home, he reaches for one of the dozen cans of oxygen on a table by the entrance of his house in Central Kalimantan. The air in his neighbourhood has turned dusty amber, with air quality far exceeding hazardous levels. “My breathing is noticeably heavier whenever I step outside. It’s hard to concentrate and stay focused, and it is really affecting my work,” Albert...

Tech market sell-off deepens amid fears over US inflation and AI debt

Tech market sell-off deepens amid fears over US inflation and AI debt

The Guardian •

Chip makers and tech investors such as Samsung and SoftBank plunge as global investors fret over potential interest rate hikesBusiness news – live updatesLarry Elliott: the global economy is muddling through. But a storm is comingAn accelerating sell-off of AI-linked shares has hit global markets, as fears over rising inflation and future interest rate hikes spooked traders already wary of the hea...

Charity watchdog to criticise ‘intimidation’ after Farage calls for prosecution of groups helping asylum seekers – UK politics live

Charity watchdog to criticise ‘intimidation’ after Farage calls for prosecution of groups helping asylum seekers – UK politics live

The Guardian •

Charity commissioner to use speech to say there is a difference between ‘heated discussion’ and harassment or abuseDame Julia Unwin, chairwoman of the Charity Commission, is expected to deliver the following remarks at the AGM today in central London, condemning the harassment and abuse of RNLI rescuers. “I want to use this opportunity to condemn in the strongest terms the thuggery and intimidatio...

HSBC to double Hong Kong AI team to 300, outpacing Singapore plan

HSBC to double Hong Kong AI team to 300, outpacing Singapore plan

SCMP •

HSBC, Hong Kong’s biggest lender, said on Thursday it would double its artificial intelligence specialist team in the city to 300, a figure much larger than the workforce planned for its recently announced AI centre in Singapore. The announcement comes after Hong Kong’s regulators were reported to have raised concerns about the Singapore hub. The bank would double its AI specialist headcount in Ho...

Pakistan school roof collapse kills at least 34 children and teacher

Pakistan school roof collapse kills at least 34 children and teacher

The Guardian •

Another three pupils from al-Khair school in Peshawar in critical condition after search for survivorsAt least 34 schoolchildren and a female teacher have died after the roof of a school collapsed during morning classes in the northern Pakistani city ⁠of Peshawar.As panicked parents ​and relatives thronged the site of the privately run al-Khair school to search for their loved ones, rescue workers...

33 dead, mostly pupils, in Pakistan after school roof collapse

33 dead, mostly pupils, in Pakistan after school roof collapse

SCMP •

The roof of a school collapsed in Pakistan’s northwestern city of Peshawar, killing a teacher and 32 students, mostly aged under 14, health officials said on Thursday, as residents and rescuers scrambled to pull children from the rubble. Twenty more students were taken to hospital after the collapse, which authorities blamed on “weak infrastructure”. Others in the densely populated neighbourhood d...

28 dead, mostly pupils, in Pakistan after school roof collapses

28 dead, mostly pupils, in Pakistan after school roof collapses

SCMP •

Twenty-seven pupils and a teacher were killed on Thursday after a roof collapsed at a school in the northwest Pakistani city of Peshawar, a hospital official said. Asim Khan from Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital confirmed the toll, adding that over 30 people were injured, with six believed to be in a critical condition. A spokesman for the emergency rescue service in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province sa...