VIETNAM’S National Assembly on Wednesday approved investment for the Lao CaiHanoi-Hai Phong railway project, Vietnam News Agency reported.
According to the proposal by the Vietnamese government, the main railway line will stretch approximately 390.9 km, with three branch lines totaling about 27.9 kilometres.
The railway will pass through seven provinces and two cities, namely Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Phu Tho, Vinh Phuc, Hanoi, Bac Ninh, Hung Yen, Hai Duong and Hai Phong.
It will be designed to have a speed of 80 kilometres to 160 kilometres per hour. The project aims to construct a modern, integrated rail line to meet both domestic and international transportation demands, particularly between Vietnam and China. — Xinhua

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday, during talks with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, that any deal on the future of war-torn Gaza must boost regional security, the US State Department said.
Rubio, who arrived from Israel accompanied by National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, met the de facto ruler ahead of talks expected on Tuesday with a Russian delegation in the Saudi capital.
But the 500-day-old Israel-Hamas war dominated discussions, according to a State Department statement.
Rubio and the crown prince “reaffirmed their commitment to implementing the ceasefire in Gaza and ensuring that Hamas releases all hostages, including American citizens”, the statement said.— AFP

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

THE needs in Gaza, where the ceasefire is holding, are overwhelming, humanitarians said on Monday, adding that continuing Israeli operations in the West Bank are still producing casualties.
“As the UN and its humanitarian partners continue to deliver life-saving assistance across the Gaza Strip, the scale of needs remains overwhelming, requiring urgent and sustained support,” the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.
OCHA said the Palestinian Ministry of Health reported that oxygen supplies are critically needed to keep emergency, surgical and intensive care services running at hospitals throughout Gaza, including Al Shifa and Al Rantisi in Gaza City. Health partners are engaging with the authorities to bring in generators, spare parts and equipment required to produce oxygen locally.
The office said that shelter partners distributed tarpaulins to more than 11,000 families in northern Gaza over the weekend. In Khan Younis, some 450 families received sealing-off kits, kitchen sets and hygiene kits at a displacement site in Al Mawasi.
OCHA said education activities are expanding, with its partners reporting that more than 250,000 people are enrolled in a distance learning programme produced by the UN’s relief agency for Palestinian refugees. Humanitarian partners reported that 95 percent of school buildings were damaged during the hostilities, forcing many students into makeshift tents and open spaces in winter temperatures. In the West Bank, OCHA said that since the Israeli military operations began on 21 January, the most extensive in two decades, 36 Palestinians reportedly were killed, 25 in Jenin and nearly a dozen in Tulkarm. The operation is causing high casualties and significant displacement, especially in refugee camps.
Critical infrastructure has also been severely damaged, driving humanitarian needs even higher. — Xinhua

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

A Delta Air Lines plane flipped upon arrival at Toronto’s Pearson Airport and ended up on its roof Monday, injuring 17 people.

The airport confirmed on X that an “incident” occurred with the Delta flight from Minneapolis and that 76 passengers and four crew are accounted for. The accident happened about 2.15pm and flights at the airport, which handles more passengers than any other Canadian airport, were grounded for around two and half hours. Two runways will remain closed during the investigation.

“We are very grateful there was no loss of life and relatively minor injuries,” Deborah Flint, CEO of Greater Toronto Airports Authority, told reporters.

The number of people injured was down from early reports from paramedics that 19 were hurt.

Video from the scene shows the Mitsubishi CRJ-900LR upside down on the snowy tarmac as emergency workers hose it down. The plane was somewhat obscured by snow from a winter storm that hit Toronto over the weekend.

Ornge air ambulance said it was transporting one paediatric patient to Toronto’s SickKids hospital and two adults with critical injuries to other hospitals in the city.

Source: https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3299060/8-injured-after-plane-flips-upside-down-crashes-toronto-airport?module=top_story&pgtype=homepage
 

INDONESIA welcomed 13.9 million foreign tourists in 2024, marking a significant increase from the 11.68 million visitors recorded in 2023, the Ministry of Tourism announced in a press release on Saturday. 

Tourism Minister Widiyanti Putri attributed this achievement to the effective policies implemented during President Prabowo Subianto’s first 100 days in office. “In the first 100 working days, the government has successfully maintained the growth in the number of foreign tourists, which continues to increase compared to the same period in 2023,” said Putri in the press release. She added that the stable political and social conditions in Indonesia, coupled with its diverse nature-based tourism offerings, have made the country a safe and attractive destination for international visitors. — Xinhua

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

KAZAKHSTAN is taking steps to enhance the safety and convenience of foreign tourists and has introduced a new initiative to provide every incoming traveller with a special QR code card linked to the SafeTravel.kz platform. 

This multilingual online resource offers essential safety information, emergency contacts, as well as travel recommendation. The Embassy of Kazakhstan in a press release stated, “At a recent expanded government meeting, the Head of State emphasized the strategic importance of tourism development and the creation of favourable conditions for foreign visitors.” 

It added, “In line with this directive, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs continues to enhance the safety of incoming tourists. Now, every foreign visitor entering Kazakhstan, including those passing through border control, can receive a special card with a QR code linking to the multilingual online platform SafeTravel.kz. This platform provides essential information and recommendations for a safe stay in Kazakhstan, along with links to download useful mobile applications.” — ANI

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

THOUSANDS of people were leaving the Greek island of Santorini by sea and air for a third day on Tuesday, as an unprecedented series of earthquakes shook the top travel destination.
Some 6,000 people have already left the island, known for its spectacular cliffside views and a dormant volcano, which has been hit by hundreds of tremors since last week, officials said.
A quake with a magnitude of 4.9 hit early on Tuesday morning amid other smaller tremors. No injuries or damage were reported on Santorini and the neighbouring islands of Anafi, Ios and Amorgos, which have also been affected by the seismic activity.
Experts say the region has not experienced seismic activity on this scale in recent history and do not know how long it will last.
“This is the first time this is happening, we have not seen it before,” Athanassios Ganas, research director at the national observatory’s institute of geodynamics, told state TV ERT.
He noted that the area had been hit with over 40 earthquakes with a magnitude of over 4.0 in the past 72 hours. Santorini lies atop a volcano which last erupted in 1950 — but an experts’ committee on Monday said the current phenomenon was “not linked to volcanic activity”.
According to the Greek coastguard, over 4,600 people have left the island by ferry since Sunday alone. — AFP

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

CHINA’S manned deep-sea submersible Jiaolong and research vessel Dayang Yihao (Ocean No 1) are set to complete major upgrades in preparation for deep-sea exploration missions this year, according to the country’s oceanic affairs administration.
Jiaolong, named after a mythical sea dragon, is capable of diving to depths exceeding 7,000 metres. The China-made underwater ship has explored waters in the Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean and Atlantic Ocean.
Its upgrades are currently in progress, and technicians have already completed major enhancements to its critical components, including the lithium battery system.
The sea dragon-inspired submersible is scheduled to undergo tank tests in February and sea trials in the South China Sea in March. Major upgrades on Ocean No 1 include the installation of remotely-operated underwater vehicles, which will enhance its capabilities and provide reliable support for future deep-sea resources survey and development, said the administration.
Ocean No 1 is China’s first modern comprehensive ocean-going scientific research vessel. With over four decades of service, it has conducted 27 oceanographic scientific expeditions. — Xinhua

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

Gaza   January 30
The landscape of Gaza City and the northern Gaza Strip lies in ruins, a stark reminder of the violence that has engulfed the region. For displaced Palestinians recently allowed to return, the remnants of their homes have shattered fragile hopes for a life reclaimed.
After years spent in southern Gaza, where they endured relentless Israeli bombardments even in areas designated as "safe," these returnees now sought solace in the familiar. Instead, they encountered a harsh reality that rendered their home unrecognizable.
"Even all the words in the Arabic dictionary cannot describe the horror of what we see," Mariam Abu Shahla, a resident of Tal al-Hawa in Gaza City, told Xinhua.
Upon returning, she found her neighborhood, once alive with memories after 25 years, reduced to rubble. "The rubble swallowed everything. The homes once filled with memories are now piles of stones and silence as if the earth itself had consumed them," she said, her voice cracking with grief.
Uncertain of where to find shelter, Abu Shahla described her return as "hell." The smell of gunpowder still hung in the air, a testament to the violence that had ravaged the area. Returnees walked through the debris, their faces etched with disbelief and pain, each step heavy with the weight of grief. The silence was punctuated only by crumbling concrete, echoing the stillness of a place that had once thrived. Xinhua

Source: Yadanarbon Newspaper

BIRD feathers and bloodstains were found in both engines of the Jeju Air plane that crashed in December, according to a preliminary investigation released Monday.
The Boeing 737-800 was flying from Thailand to Muan in South Korea on 29 December when it crash landed and exploded into a fireball after slamming into a concrete barrier. It was the worst aviation disaster on South Korean soil, killing 179 of the 181 passengers and crew.
South Korean and American investigators are still probing the cause of the disaster, with a bird strike, faulty landing gear and the runway barrier among the possible issues. Both engines recovered from the crash site were inspected, and bird bloodstains and feathers were “found on each”, the report said.
“The pilots identified a group of birds while approaching runway 01, and a security camera filmed HL8088 coming close to a group of birds during a go-around,” the report added, referring to the Jeju jet’s registration number.
It did not specify whether the engines had stopped working in the moments leading up to the crash.
DNA analysis identified the feathers and blood as coming from Baikal teals, migratory ducks which fly to Korea in winter from their breeding grounds in Siberia.
After the air traffic control tower cleared the jet to land, it advised the pilots to exercise caution against potential bird strikes at 8:58 am, the report said.
Just a minute later, both the voice and data recording systems stopped functioning. — AFP

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar