Daily Archives: October 7, 2022

Biden Order Promises EU Citizens Better Data Privacy 

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U.S. President Joe Biden signed an executive order Friday designed to allay European concerns that U.S. intelligence agencies are illegally spying on them. It promises strengthened safeguards against data collection abuses and creates a forum for legal challenges.  The order builds on a preliminary agreement Biden announced in March with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in a bid to end a yearslong battle over the safety of EU citizens’ data that tech companies store in the U.S. However, the European privacy campaigner who triggered the battle wasn’t satisfied …

K-pop Group BTS Members Face Possible Military Conscription

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South Korea’s military appears to want to conscript members of the K-pop supergroup BTS for mandatory military duties, as the public remains sharply divided over whether they should be given exemptions. Lee Ki Sik, commissioner of the Military Manpower Administration, told lawmakers on Friday that it’s “desirable” for BTS members to fulfill their military duties to ensure fairness in the country’s military service. Earlier this week, Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup made almost identical comments about BTS at a parliamentary committee meeting, and Culture Minister Park Bo Gyoon said his ministry …

Activists from Ukraine, Russia, Belarus Win Nobel Peace Prize

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This year’s Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to three recipients: Ales Bialiatski, one of the initiators of the democracy movement that emerged in Belarus in the mid-1980s; and two human rights groups – Memorial, a Russian organization, and the Center for Civil Liberties, a Ukrainian group. Last year’s Peace Prize was awarded to Maria Ressa of the Philippines and Dmitry Muratov, a Russian. The Nobel Committee said the two received the award “for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace.” The …

Fears of Quarantines, Lockdowns Mar Golden Week Festivities in China

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China’s annual Golden Week festivities wind down Friday under the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic with sharply reduced travel, frequent COVID testing and tight security in the capital ahead of this month’s 20th Communist Party Congress. As in the past two years, authorities have sought to discourage the popular practice of traveling to one’s hometown or village during the period surrounding the country’s national day in early October. At least 24 provinces and cities issued announcements urging people to “spend the holidays locally,” including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. The advice …

Australia Seeks to Grow Plants on Moon by 2025

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Australian scientists are trying to grow plants on the moon by 2025 in a new mission unveiled Friday that they said could help pave the way for a future colony. Plant biologist Brett Williams, from the Queensland University of Technology, said seeds would be carried by the Beresheet 2 spacecraft, a private Israeli moon mission. They would be watered inside the sealed chamber after landing and monitored for signs of germination and growth.  Plants will be chosen based on how well they cope in extreme conditions and how quickly they …

Lebanon Reports First Case of Cholera Since 1993 

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Lebanon reported its first case of cholera since 1993, Health Minister Firas Abiad said Thursday. The case, recorded Wednesday, was from the rural northern province of Akkar, Abiad said, adding the infected person was a Syrian national who was receiving treatment. Akkar province borders Syria, where a cholera outbreak has infected more than 10,000 people and killed at least 39, according to the Syrian Ministry of Health. The country declared an outbreak on September 10. Richard Brennan, regional emergency director of the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region, said, “Cross-border spread is …