Global Pulse

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  • Formula One makes rule changes after drivers’ criticism

    Formula One makes rule changes after drivers’ criticism

    In a decisive move responding to weeks of fierce backlash from top drivers including four-time world champion Max Verstappen, Formula One governing bodies and team principals have unanimously agreed to targeted rule changes that will take effect as early as next month’s Miami Grand Prix. The 2025 season’s sweeping regulatory overhaul, which introduced a revised hybrid power unit system with strict battery management requirements, sparked unprecedented public criticism that even put Verstappen’s long-term future in the sport in question.

    Under the original rules, drivers were forced to conserve battery charge throughout qualifying laps, forcing them to lift off the throttle and slow down artificially to manage energy reserves, while a manual boost button granted extra power for overtaking maneuvers. After the Chinese Grand Prix, Verstappen delivered a scathing rebuke of the new racing format, calling it “a joke” and hinting he would step away from F1 when his current contract ends in 2027 if meaningful adjustments were not made. The Red Bull driver’s criticism was echoed by multiple other competitors on the grid, while fans across the globe voiced frustration that the regulations had diluted the on-track spectacle that defines top-tier open-wheel racing.

    Held via online call on Monday, the meeting brought together Formula One management, the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), and all team principals to hash out adjustments. Stakeholders finalised a set of targeted tweaks that will roll out for the Miami Grand Prix scheduled for May 3. This race will mark the end of a five-week enforced break in the 2025 calendar, which came after the cancellation of the opening Bahrain and Saudi Arabian rounds due to ongoing armed conflict in the Middle East.

    The most impactful changes center on the hybrid power system that drew the most driver complaints. Energy harvesting capacity, which controls how much kinetic energy drivers can recover to charge the on-board battery during a race, will be lowered from eight megajoules to seven megajoules. Meanwhile, the maximum power output of the hybrid power unit will be increased from 250 kilowatts to 350 kilowatts. The FIA says the combination of these two adjustments will allow drivers to push at full speed for longer stretches during qualifying sessions, eliminating the need for artificial slowing to save battery.

    A second key change addresses safety concerns related to the boost button, which came under scrutiny after British rookie Ollie Bearman’s high-speed crash during the most recent round in Japan. Investigators partially attributed the incident to dangerous differences in closing speeds caused by drivers activating their boost buttons at different times. Going forward, the maximum power output from the boost button will be capped at 150 kilowatts, a change the FIA says will “limit sudden performance differentials” that create unsafe on-track conditions.

    Not all stakeholders are pushing for dramatic, wholesale changes to the rulebook, however. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, whose drivers Kimi Antonelli and George Russell have gotten off to a strong start to the 2025 season with Antonelli holding a nine-point lead over Russell in the driver standings after three completed races, advocated for incremental, careful adjustments rather than sweeping overhauls.

    Speaking ahead of Monday’s vote, Wolff noted that ongoing discussions between drivers, the FIA, F1 management and team principals had remained constructive, with all parties aligned on the core goal of improving the racing product. “It’s how can we improve the product, make it out-and-out racing, and look at what can improve in terms of safety, but act with a scalpel and not with a baseball bat,” Wolff said. He added that the sport would benefit from testing small adjustments after just three completed races, rather than making rash, far-reaching changes that could create new unforeseen problems. “We are custodians of the sport and we have many hundreds of thousands of fans that love F1,” he said. “In order to protect this huge opportunity that the sport gives us, we shouldn’t badmouth in public our own sport.”

    Further negotiations and reviews of the 2025 rules are scheduled to take place after the Miami Grand Prix as stakeholders continue to refine the regulations for future races.

  • Gun battle traps more than 200 tourists at Rio viewpoint

    Gun battle traps more than 200 tourists at Rio viewpoint

    On a bustling Monday morning at one of Rio de Janeiro’s most photographed scenic overlooks, a sudden outbreak of armed conflict between Brazilian law enforcement and a major criminal gang left more than 200 tourists stranded for hours, in an incident that has raised fresh concerns about safety for the city’s vital tourism industry.\n\nThe incident unfolded at Morro Dois Irmaos, a 533-meter (1,750-foot) hill that draws thousands of weekly visitors with its sweeping panoramic views of Rio’s world-famous Ipanema and Leblon beaches. As crowds of sightseers explored the hilltop, a gunfight erupted between police officers and members of Comando Vermelho, one of Brazil’s largest and most well-established drug trafficking organizations, on the lower slopes of the hill adjacent to the Vidigal favela.\n\nTour operator Renan Monteiro, whose company Favela Turismo organized many of the tours on the hill that morning, confirmed that more than 200 people were caught in the lockdown, with around 70% of those trapped being international visitors. For roughly two hours, visitors were confined to the hilltop as shooting raged in the area below, before police secured the zone and gave the all-clear for groups to descend safely.\n\nIn an official statement, police noted that officers came under immediate gunfire from drug traffickers when they entered the Vidigal favela as part of the operation. By the end of the security action, three suspects were taken into custody, and no injuries were reported among either tourists, officers, or local residents.\n\nThe incident comes at a time when Rio’s tourism sector is celebrating a major post-pandemic recovery milestone: official data shows the city welcomed more than 2.1 million international visitors in 2025, hitting an all-time record for inbound tourism. Monteiro, however, warned that high-profile incidents of gang-related violence close to major tourist attractions risk undermining that progress. “Incidents like this erode visitor confidence, and that damage can take years to reverse,” he said in comments to Agence France-Presse.

  • Canadian tourist killed in Mexico archaeological site shooting

    Canadian tourist killed in Mexico archaeological site shooting

    On a Monday at one of Mexico’s most visited cultural landmarks, the ancient Teotihuacan archaeological site, a deadly shooting left one Canadian woman dead and five other people wounded, according to official Mexican authorities. The gunman responsible for the attack took his own life immediately after opening fire at the pre-Aztecan pyramid complex, confirmed Cristobal Castañeda, security secretary for Mexico State, where the UNESCO-recognized site is located.

    Unverified social media footage circulating after the incident shows the gunman firing repeated shots from a handgun from a position halfway up the Pyramid of the Moon, one of the site’s largest and most famous structures. In the footage, tourists can be seen scrambling for cover behind stone staircases or fleeing the area in panic, with one visitor’s voice captured shouting, “A person is opening fire on us, take care friends, send security.”

    Responding state law enforcement secured the scene, seizing a pistol, a knife, and unused ammunition, before coordinating a full evacuation of all visitors from the archaeological park. Many tourists and vendors on site told reporters they did not immediately grasp the severity of the emergency. Anna Durmont, a 37-year-old American art historian on vacation, told AFP she was walking toward the pyramid when she encountered a wall of emergency vehicles and police officers. “It actually felt extremely calm,” Durmont said. “It was very measured. The park is full of souvenir sellers and they hadn’t left. It wasn’t clear to us until we got closer that there was a serious emergency.”

    Mexico’s national health institute reported that seven people were ultimately transported to nearby hospitals for care. Four patients were treated for direct gunshot wounds, while others were admitted for anxiety attacks or injuries sustained while falling down the Pyramid of the Moon’s steep 47-step staircase during the chaotic evacuation. Among the injured are two Colombians, a second Canadian citizen, and one Russian national, including one minor, Castañeda confirmed.

    Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum quickly issued a public statement on her X social media account confirming that combined federal and state security forces had been deployed to the site, and that her administration had established communication with Canadian government officials to coordinate support. “What happened today in Teotihuacan hurts us deeply,” Sheinbaum wrote. “I express my sincerest solidarity to the people affected and their families.”

    While Mexico has long faced persistent challenges with organized crime and drug-related violence, large-scale indiscriminate attacks on public tourist sites remain relatively rare, especially when compared to gun violence rates in the neighboring United States. After the shooting, local journalists shared footage of a cordoned-off crime scene, where forensic investigators in protective suits worked atop the empty pyramid to collect evidence.

    Teotihuacan, a 2,000-year-old abandoned pyramid city, is counted among Mexico’s most significant archaeological treasures and draws millions of international visitors annually, with tourism officials reporting more than 1.8 million visits to the site in 2025. The attack comes at a sensitive time for Mexico’s tourism sector: the country is preparing to co-host the 2026 FIFA World Cup alongside the United States and Canada this June, with officials projecting more than 5.5 million international visitors will travel to Mexico for the global tournament.

  • Israel PM vows ‘harsh action’ against soldier vandalising Jesus statue in Lebanon

    Israel PM vows ‘harsh action’ against soldier vandalising Jesus statue in Lebanon

    A fresh controversy has erupted amid the fragile recent ceasefire between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, after an image of an Israeli soldier destroying a Christian statue of Jesus Christ in southern Lebanon spread widely across social media. The incident, which has drawn sharp condemnation from religious leaders and top Israeli officials alike, has inflamed religious tensions in an already war-torn region.

    On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly addressed the incident, vowing that the soldier responsible would face stiff consequences. The verified image shows a uniformed IDF soldier using a sledgehammer to repeatedly strike the decapitated head of a crucified Jesus statue, which stood in the majority-Christian border village of Debl in southern Lebanon. Both the Israeli military and independent verification by Agence France-Presse (AFP) have confirmed the photograph’s authenticity, though multiple edited versions of the image have circulated online. Local municipal officials in Debl confirmed the statue was located in their village, but have not been able to fully assess the extent of damage due to restricted access to the area, which remains under Israeli military presence following the recent escalation of conflict.

    In a post to the social platform X, Netanyahu stated, “I was stunned and saddened to learn that an IDF soldier damaged a Catholic religious icon in southern Lebanon. I condemn the act in the strongest terms. Military authorities are conducting a criminal probe of the matter and will take appropriately harsh disciplinary action against the offender.”

    The context of this incident is rooted in the latest round of the decades-long Israeli-Lebanese conflict. On March 2, Hezbollah entered the broader ongoing Middle East war in support of its primary backer Iran, launching cross-border attacks that prompted massive Israeli retaliation: widespread airstrikes across Lebanon and a ground incursion into southern Lebanon. Before a ceasefire took effect last week, the fighting had killed nearly 2,300 people across Lebanon, displaced more than 1 million Lebanese civilians, and claimed the lives of 15 Israeli soldiers. Despite the ceasefire agreement, Israeli troops still maintain a presence in large swathes of southern Lebanon.

    Following the spread of the image, the IDF released an official statement echoing Netanyahu’s condemnation, noting that the incident was viewed with “great severity” and that the soldier’s actions are “wholly inconsistent with the values expected of its troops.” The military confirmed that it would take unspecified “appropriate measures” against those involved, and added that it is collaborating with local Christian communities to restore the damaged statue to its original location.

    Christian religious authorities have issued scathing condemnation of the act. The Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land, in a statement released by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, expressed “its profound indignation and unreserved condemnation.” The group emphasized that this act is not an isolated incident, noting that it “constitutes a grave affront to the Christian faith and adds to other reported incidents of desecration of Christian symbols by IDF soldiers in southern Lebanon.” The Assembly called for immediate, decisive disciplinary action, formal accountability for the incident, and guarantees that such vandalism will not occur again. It also used the moment to renew its urgent call for an end to the war that has devastated the region for months.

    Top Israeli political figures have joined in condemning the soldier’s actions. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar labeled the conduct “shameful and disgraceful” in his own X post, writing, “I am confident that necessary severe measures will be taken against whoever committed this ugly act. We apologise for this incident and to every Christian whose feelings were hurt.”

    This controversy comes just one month after Netanyahu was already engulfed in a separate public row over religious commentary, when he drew widespread backlash for claiming that Jesus Christ held “no advantage” over Mongolian conqueror Genghis Khan, forcing him to defend his remarks amid global outcry from Christian leaders.

  • ‘I don’t know how many more years I’ve got’: Kurt Mann keen to sign new Bulldogs deal

    ‘I don’t know how many more years I’ve got’: Kurt Mann keen to sign new Bulldogs deal

    As the Canterbury Bulldogs enter a critical off-season period that will force the club’s leadership to make several high-stakes decisions about player contracts, 33-year-old utility Kurt Mann has left no ambiguity about his next goal: he wants to extend his tenure at the Belmore-based club beyond the 2026 NRL season. A well-traveled veteran closing out a 13-year top-flight career that has included stints at the Melbourne Storm, St George Illawarra Dragons, and Newcastle Knights before joining the Bulldogs, Mann has established a reputation as one of the league’s most versatile and reliable role players — a trait that has already drawn quiet interest from other Sydney-based clubs should a new deal with the Bulldogs not come to fruition. A move to a Western Australian franchise has been ruled out as a potential option for the experienced playmaker. Mann’s current contract, a one-year extension signed in March 2025, is set to expire at the end of the upcoming season, leaving his playing future after that point still unconfirmed. In a recent press interview, the veteran opened up about his approach to contract talks and his desire to remain in blue and white. “I haven’t really looked into it too much,” Mann said. “I’m 33 this year, so I’m sort of just playing it by ear and really focusing on how I’m playing at the moment. The rest of that will take care of itself. I’d love to stay at the Dogs, or if that doesn’t eventuate then I don’t know how many more years I’ve got left in me at the moment. I’m really enjoying playing footy at the moment and I’m still loving it. I’m still competing, so I’m still really enjoying it.” Mann’s on-field form this season has backed up his claim that he still has plenty to offer at the top level, with a recent standout play against the Parramatta Eels — where he outran young Eels fullback Joash Papalii to secure a kick — serving as proof he can still match the pace of the league’s younger generation. Now, Mann and the Bulldogs are looking to rebound from an unexpected upset loss to the Eels this weekend, when they face off against an injury-depleted Brisbane Broncos squad on Friday night. Beyond his club commitments, Mann is also quietly gunning for a second call-up to Queensland’s State of Origin side, after a dream debut run in 2024 helped the Maroons pull off a stunning series comeback from a 1-0 deficit to claim the Origin shield. Mann came off the interchange bench in games two and three of last year’s series, and the introduction of new expanded six-man benches for 2025 makes his versatility as a utility an even more ideal fit for the Maroons’ game plan. He already met with Queensland head coach Billy Slater earlier this year at a Maroons training camp, and remains a leading contender to retain his spot in the squad when selections are announced. “He keeps his cards pretty close to his chest until it gets pretty close to selection time, so you never hear too much from him until then,” Mann said of Slater. “Any time you get the chance to pull on the Maroons jersey, you grab it with both hands. It’s something you dream of as a little kid and you get to represent your family, your community where you’re from, and everyone in Queensland. It’s a lifetime memory I’ll have now. I thought all that sort of stuff was past me at my age, and to get the call-up was definitely a dream come true.”

  • ‘Every parent’s nightmare’ – What we learned from the charges against D4vd

    ‘Every parent’s nightmare’ – What we learned from the charges against D4vd

    The brutal, unthinkable tragedy that has shaken communities across Southern California unfolded in a Los Angeles courtroom this week, when emerging independent singer David Burke, professionally known as D4vd, pleaded not guilty to a single charge of first-degree murder in the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. The case has sent shockwaves through both the local community and the global music industry, as it confronts the public with every parent’s worst nightmare: the violent, premature death of a young person with their entire life ahead of them.

    BBC correspondent Shaimaa Khalil reported live from the Los Angeles courthouse, where brief arraignment proceedings played out before a packed gallery of supporters from both sides. According to court documents filed ahead of the hearing, Burke stands accused of killing Hernandez in an incident that occurred earlier this year, though specific details surrounding the alleged crime, including motive and the circumstances of the teenager’s death, have not been released to the public due to ongoing investigative proceedings and the minor status of the victim.

    For the local community where both Burke and Hernandez lived, the case has been a devastating blow. Neighbors and classmates of Hernandez have described her as a bright, energetic teen who was active in her school’s art program and dreamed of becoming a wildlife biologist. Vigils have been held across the city in her honor, with hundreds of community members gathering to leave flowers, candles, and handwritten notes at memorial sites outside her school and the park where she was last seen alive.

    Meanwhile, fans of D4vd, who built a massive grassroots following on social media platforms like TikTok in the early 2020s before releasing his debut EP, have expressed widespread shock and disbelief at the charges. The young singer had been on the cusp of a major mainstream breakthrough, with multiple tracks charting on Billboard’s Alternative Airplay rankings and a national tour scheduled to kick off next month. That tour has since been canceled, and his label has paused all upcoming promotional activities in light of the legal proceedings.

    Legal experts note that the case will likely move through the California court system over the next 12 to 18 months, as both prosecution and defense teams collect evidence, interview witnesses, and prepare for trial. Burke has been remanded in custody without bail ahead of his next court hearing, scheduled for three weeks from now. As the investigation continues, the core question hanging over the case remains: what led to the violent death of a 14-year-old girl, and will justice be served for her and her family?

  • First National Reading Week launched

    First National Reading Week launched

    China’s journey to cultivate a national reading culture reached a new milestone this week, as the fifth National Conference on Reading opened in Nanchang, the capital of east China’s Jiangxi Province, on Monday. The three-day gathering also formally inaugurates the country’s first-ever National Reading Week, a nationwide initiative designed to embed regular reading into public life and strengthen cultural development across the nation.

    Attendees of the conference emphasized that reading forms the foundational bedrock of cultural advancement, and called for scaled-up efforts to popularize reading and build a society that values literary engagement. They underlined that expanding nationwide reading programs is a critical component of China’s broader push to build itself into a leading cultural power. Li Shulei, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, attended the opening ceremony and delivered a keynote address.

    The establishment of National Reading Week follows a national regulation released by the State Council that entered into force on February 1 this year, which formalized the designation of the fourth week of April annually as the national event. The regulation’s core goals are to lift the intellectual, moral, scientific, and cultural standards of the Chinese public, and to boost overall social civility. The inaugural week will feature hundreds of localized events across the country aimed at sparking public enthusiasm for reading.

    To align with the launch of National Reading Week, the Nanchang conference has organized a diverse lineup of targeted forums tailored to different demographic groups and sectors, covering topics including youth reading, family and parent-child reading, public library services, rural reading expansion, reading for senior citizens, reading rights protection, and the fast-growing digital reading sector.

    One of the standout attractions of this year’s conference is a comprehensive showcase of Jiangxi’s deep-rooted traditional cultural heritage. A major exhibition focused on ancient Chinese academy culture offers visitors an immersive experience, recreating the lively scholarly atmosphere of iconic Jiangxi institutions such as the centuries-old Bailudong Academy, one of the most famous centers of learning in imperial China. Other special cultural activities include an exhibition of classical works from the Jiangxi School of Poetry and the Tengwang Pavilion Book Fair, held at the city’s iconic historic landmark. Ahead of the conference, students dressed in traditional Chinese costumes gathered in front of Tengwang Pavilion to recite *Preface to the Pavilion of Prince Teng*, the celebrated 7th-century literary classic by Tang Dynasty poet Wang Bo.

    Two key industry reports released at the conference reveal encouraging trends in Chinese reading habits. The 23rd National Reading Survey found that 82.3 percent of Chinese adults reported reading regularly in 2025. On average, each adult read 8.39 combined paper and digital books last year, representing a steady increase from 2024 figures. Among minors aged 0 to 17, 86.7 percent engaged in book reading, and 75.9 percent participated in digital reading — both metrics also saw year-on-year growth.

    The separate National Digital Reading Report added further context to the sector’s rapid expansion. By the end of 2025, the total number of digital reading works available in China hit 70.5592 million, an 11.87 percent increase from 2024, pointing to a robust and growing supply of digital content. Exports of Chinese digital content also saw strong growth, with the total number of digital works released overseas — including translated Chinese works, original foreign-language content from Chinese creators, and exported e-books — reaching 949,200, a 17.42 percent rise year-on-year. The total number of digital reading users in China reached 689 million in 2025, marking a 2.95 percent annual increase.

    The conference also brought together prominent figures from across the cultural and literary sectors to share their perspectives on reading. At a special event focused on “red classic” literature organized by the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, veteran pingshu (Chinese traditional storytelling) performing artist Liu Lanfang, who has 67 years of experience in the art form, shared her lifelong love of reading. Even now, Liu spends several hours daily reading on her mobile device, and noted, “One should always read. Reading expands knowledge, and that’s how people can keep improving.”

    At a separate children’s book sharing event held alongside the conference, popular children’s storyteller Wang Kai, widely known as Uncle Kai, highlighted the unique importance of reading for young people growing up in the age of artificial intelligence. “In the AI era, we need a broader perspective on reading,” Wang said. “Children need a solid foundation of common knowledge, and the best way to gain that is through reading.”

  • US-Iran ceasefire talks remain on shaky ground

    US-Iran ceasefire talks remain on shaky ground

    As a fragile two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran is set to expire this Wednesday, plans for a second round of peace negotiations in Islamabad, Pakistan remain clouded in uncertainty after a recent maritime confrontation reignited tensions between the two long-time adversaries.

    The Associated Press, citing two unnamed Pakistani officials, reported Monday that Iranian authorities have signaled willingness to dispatch a delegation to the upcoming talks, though details remain undisclosed for security reasons. The officials warned that the negotiation schedule is still fluid and called on media outlets to avoid unfounded speculation. US President Donald Trump announced Sunday that Washington’s negotiating team would arrive in Islamabad on Monday to meet with Iranian representatives, but Iranian officials have not issued a direct confirmation of Trump’s statement.

    Escalating tensions in recent days have thrown the diplomatic process into doubt. Last week, the US imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports, and on Sunday Trump confirmed that a US Navy guided-missile destroyer intercepted and seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship near the Strait of Hormuz after the vessel allegedly attempted to evade the blockade. This marked the first confirmed interception since the blockade was implemented.

    Iran condemned the seizure as an act of “armed piracy” and launched retaliatory drone strikes on US military vessels in the region. Esmail Baghaei, spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, accused Washington of acting in bad faith on the diplomatic track, noting that the blockade and ship seizure constitute blatant violations of the existing 14-day ceasefire agreement. While Baghaei stated Iran has no “immediate plans” to proceed with new talks, he did not explicitly rule out future diplomatic engagement.

    Pakistan, which is serving as the neutral host for the negotiations, has already stepped up preparatory work. On Monday, Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi held separate meetings with Iranian Ambassador Reza Amiri Moghaddam and US Charge d’Affaires Natalie Baker in Islamabad to brief both sides on logistical arrangements for the talks. Naqvi was part of a Pakistani delegation that traveled to Tehran last week to advance the peace initiative. A statement from the Pakistani interior ministry confirmed that all parties reaffirmed their commitment to pursuing a lasting peaceful resolution through diplomatic dialogue to ease regional tensions. To safeguard the negotiating venue and participants, Pakistan has deployed nearly 20,000 security personnel drawn from national police, paramilitary forces and the regular army, and placed the entire capital city of Islamabad on high security alert.

    Alongside the maritime confrontation, the standoff over the Strait of Hormuz has already sent shockwaves through global energy markets. On Monday, international oil prices rose more than 5% amid disrupted shipping activity through the strategic waterway, which carries roughly a fifth of global oil supplies. Benchmark Brent crude traded around $95 per barrel, representing a more than 30% price increase since late February when the current conflict between the US and Iran began.

    Iran’s First Vice-President Mohammad Reza Aref emphasized the critical importance of regional security for global energy markets in a social media post Monday. “The security of the Strait of Hormuz is not free. The choice is clear: either a free oil market for all, or the risk of significant costs for everyone,” Aref wrote, adding that stable global fuel prices can only be guaranteed by a permanent end to all economic and military pressure on Iran and its regional allies.

    Beyond the Strait of Hormuz dispute, the Iranian nuclear program remains a core sticking point between the two sides. Last week, Trump stated that Washington is seeking a deal that would see Iran remove all of its enriched uranium stockpiles from the country. CNN, citing unnamed informed sources, reported that the US has offered to unfreeze $20 billion in Iranian overseas assets in exchange for Tehran handing over its entire enriched uranium reserve. However, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh has already rejected the proposal as “impossible.”

    Many regional analysts warn that a sweeping, quick resolution to the decades-long conflict is out of reach. Alex Vatanka, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington, told Al Jazeera that military force cannot permanently reopen the Strait of Hormuz or resolve US concerns over Iran’s nuclear activities. “The idea of a grand bargain in the short term is impossible to achieve,” Vatanka said. “The best you can do is reach some kind of an agreement of a basic framework. And then you have to go and quickly build on it. It will take at least months, if not years.”

    As of Monday, Iran has also released its first official death toll from the conflict that began on February 28. Iran’s forensic chief confirmed that at least 3,375 people have been killed since hostilities broke out, offering the most comprehensive public casualty count to date.

  • ‘Only incidental’: NRL provides clarity on high contact rulings following mixed messages from the Bunker

    ‘Only incidental’: NRL provides clarity on high contact rulings following mixed messages from the Bunker

    Rugby league fans, players and pundits are once again debating the consistency of officiating in the National Rugby League (NRL), after a contentious last-minute decision by the league’s video review system, the Bunker, triggered an official clarification on high contact rules that many are calling a potential defining moment for future officiating.

    The controversy unfolded during a tight clash between the Melbourne Storm and Canberra Raiders on Friday night. With just 66 seconds left on the clock, the Storm trailed by four points and held attacking position when winger Will Warbrick was struck across the face by Raiders halfback Ethan Sanders. No penalty was called by on-field officials, and Melbourne opted to use their captain’s challenge to overturn the call.

    However, Bunker official Liam Kennedy upheld the on-field decision, concluding the contact to Warbrick’s head was only incidental and dismissing the challenge. The ruling immediately sparked outrage, particularly when observers drew comparisons to a nearly identical incident just days earlier on Easter Monday, when Parramatta Eels captain Mitchell Moses secured a match-changing penalty after a successful challenge for a similar high contact.

    This inconsistent application of the high contact rule is far from an isolated case this season. Earlier in the year, Sydney Roosters captain James Tedesco successfully challenged for a penalty after a glancing high contact from Cronulla Sharks playmaker Braydon Trindall, resulting in a penalty that many argued was disproportionate given the minimal contact. Even more notably, two years ago, a high contact penalty against former Dolphins captain Jesse Bromwich for a hit on Manly Warringah Sea Eagles star Tom Trbojevic drew widespread public criticism over inconsistent officiating standards.

    Beyond the Warbrick incident, a second controversial call marred the closing stages of the Storm-Raiders clash. Melbourne fullback Sua Fa’alogo was forced off the field for a mandatory head injury assessment after a high hit from Raiders forward Hudson Young, yet Young was permitted to remain on the pitch for the rest of the match. The NRL later acknowledged that the officiating team made an error in not sin-binning Young, a mistake that cost the Storm a critical one-player advantage as they pushed for a game-winning try. Young was ultimately handed a two-match suspension for the hit.

    In response to the widespread backlash over the Warbrick decision, NRL officials have formally confirmed that Bunker officials retain discretionary authority to judge whether high contact warrants a penalty. Many in the rugby league community now view this clarification as a potential line-in-the-sand moment for officiating, setting a clear precedent that not all contact to the head will automatically result in a penalty. Supporters and players alike have stressed that their core demand moving forward is not stricter or more lenient calling, but consistent application of the rules, with officials weighing the force of contact rather than just penalizing every incidental touch to the head.

  • Renewable energies overtook global electricity demand last year, led by solar growth in China, India

    Renewable energies overtook global electricity demand last year, led by solar growth in China, India

    A landmark 2025 analysis from global energy think tank Ember has revealed a defining turning point in the world’s transition away from fossil fuels: for the first time in modern history, clean renewable energy sources accounted for more than one-third of the entire global electricity mix, and expanded fast enough to fully outpace total growth in worldwide electricity demand.

    Released after midnight London time on Tuesday, Ember’s report draws on aggregated electricity data from 215 countries, with verified 2025 data from 91 nations covering 93% of global electricity demand. According to the analysis, total clean power generation expanded by 887 terawatt-hours (TWh) in 2025, easily exceeding the 849 TWh rise in overall global electricity demand. When aggregated across solar, wind, hydropower and other zero-emission sources, total renewable generation hit 10,730 TWh last year, pushing its global market share to 33.8% – a historic first. In a parallel milestone, coal-fired power generation dropped enough to push its share of global electricity below one-third for the first time in modern history, falling 0.6 percentage points to 32.9% at 10,630 TWh.

    Record-breaking solar expansion, concentrated in China and India, was the single biggest driver of this shift. Solar generation grew 30% globally in 2025, enough to meet 75% of the entire net rise in global electricity demand on its own. When combined with wind power, the two renewable sources covered 99% of 2025’s new electricity demand. Last year also marked the first time solar overtook wind power in total global generation, and Ember projects both wind and solar will overtake nuclear generation in 2026.

    Parallel to the solar boom, global battery storage capacity expanded 46% in 2025, spurred by a 45% drop in battery costs. The think tank estimates that 2025’s new battery storage capacity is enough to shift 14% of the year’s new solar generation from peak midday output to other hours of the day, solving a key challenge of solar energy’s intermittent nature.

    For the first time this century, both China and India – the world’s two most populous nations and historically the largest growth markets for fossil fuel power – saw absolute declines in fossil fuel generation in 2025. China cut fossil generation by 0.9% (56 TWh), while India reduced fossil output by 3.3% (also 56 TWh). China led the global solar boom, accounting for more than half of all new solar capacity and generation added worldwide last year, and also contributed the largest share of global wind growth, adding 138 TWh of new wind generation. India posted record increases in both solar and wind generation alongside strong hydropower output, with slower-than-average demand growth reversing years of post-pandemic fossil fuel expansion.

    Across other major markets, the U.S. added 85 TWh of new solar generation and Europe added 60 TWh, despite small increases in U.S. fossil generation driven by the Trump administration’s policy push to expand coal, oil and gas production and roll back support for renewables. Even with policy headwinds in the U.S. and global energy market volatility exacerbated by the U.S.-Iran war, the global energy transition continues to advance, the report confirms.

    Fossil fuel generation overall stalled in 2025, falling by 0.2% or 38 TWh – one of only a handful of times this century that fossil output has not increased year-over-year. Nicolas Fulghum, senior data analyst at Ember and lead author of the report, noted that the 2025 results mark a stark break from decades of past trends. “We’re coming from a period over the last few decades where new electricity demand growth meant growth in fossil generation,” Fulghum explained. “We’re now moving into a world where that’s no longer the case.”

    While the historic milestones are cause for cautious optimism, Fulghum emphasized that the transition is still in its early stages. “Milestones like renewables overtaking coal mark an occasion, but they don’t tell us everything about the story in the power sector,” he said. The biggest shift from 10 or 15 years ago, he added, is that government pledges to build out renewables are now far more credible than they once were. Looking ahead, Fulghum argued that clean energy is now positioned to structurally meet growing demand from electrification trends, including the expansion of electric vehicles, heat pumps and industrial electrification. “Despite the accelerated growth and electricity demand that comes with added electric vehicle build out, of heat pumps, industrial sector electrification, clean power will be able to structurally meet that increase in demand going into the next few years, before then bending the curve and reducing the amount of fossil generation we’re using,” he said. “And that is a stark departure from the last few decades.”

    Alexis Abramson, dean of the Columbia University Climate School who was not involved in the study, noted that current volatile oil prices driven by the U.S.-Iran war have reinforced the national security case for accelerating renewable adoption. “As we’re seeing the cost of oil be incredibly volatile right now because of the war, I think more and more people are looking to that national security argument as a reason to think about how we electrify more and how we’re able to take advantage of additional solar and wind, which does not rely on other countries,” she said.

    Abramson called the 2025 results an important milestone for global climate action. “We’ve really crossed this important threshold that clean energy now can meet rising demand economically and at the same time really help address national security concerns,” she said. “The next challenge is really turning that into a steady decline of fossil fuel use as well. So it’s a great step in the right direction.”

    The report arrives as the world grapples with accelerating climate change driven by decades of fossil fuel combustion to power economic growth, population expansion and rising electrification. The findings offer cautious optimism that the global energy transition is now moving past the planning stage and delivering measurable, structural change to the world’s power sector.