Japan 's official cherry blossom spotters on Monday confirmed the first blooming of the country's favorite flower, declaring the official start of the festive season in the Japanese capital. An official from the Japan Meteorological Agency carefully examined the specimen tree of Somei Yoshino variety at Tokyo's Yasukuni shrine and announced that more than five blossoms — the minimum required for the announcement — were flowering on it. The opening matched the average year and was five days earlier than last year, according to the JMA.
A year after Baltimore's deadly bridge collapse, a new study shows such incidents remain likely because of larger ships and increased traffic.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court is set on Monday to hear a bid by Louisiana officials and civil rights groups to preserve an electoral map that raised the number of Black-majority congressional districts in the state and prompted a challenge by non-Black voters. State officials and advocacy groups have appealed a lower court's ruling that found the map laying out Louisiana's six U.S. House of Representatives districts - with two Black-majority districts, up from one previously - violated the U.S. Constitution's promise of equal protection. Black people comprise nearly a third of Louisiana's population.
The Kremlin said on Monday that a Russian moratorium on striking energy infrastructure in Ukraine remained in place despite reports of continued Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy infrastructure targets. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Russia was monitoring the situation and that the United States was able to do the same and come to its own conclusions. Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed in a call with his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump on Tuesday last week to observe a 30-day ceasefire on Ukrainian energy targets.
Austrian authorities said Monday that they uncovered a Russian-steered campaign aimed at spreading disinformation about Ukraine following the detention in December of a Bulgarian woman accused of spying for Russia. Austria's domestic intelligence agency unearthed evidence of the operation as it analyzed devices found in a search of the woman's home, the Interior Ministry said in a statement. It said the investigation showed that a few weeks after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, a cell working for Russian intelligence was set up and planned a large-scale disinformation campaign in German-speaking countries, particularly Austria.
DBS Group's incoming CEO Tan Su Shan is eyeing "bolt-on" acquisitions that align with the Singaporean lender's digital and AI-driven priorities, while focusing on boosting high-return businesses such as wealth and transaction banking. Tan, 57 and currently deputy CEO, will become DBS' first female CEO and also the first to be appointed from within the ranks of the bank on March 28. A Singaporean and an Oxford University graduate, Tan will take up the top job against the backdrop of the bank posting record annual revenue and profits, although in the near-term she will have to deal with global economic and markets volatility.
High temperatures, strong winds and low humidity are causing a group of wildfires to spread rapidly through western North Carolina, risking further damage to areas already ravaged by Hurricane Helene.
Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra on Monday faced a no-confidence motion in parliament as the opposition alleged she was being unduly influenced by her father, a former prime minister, and is mismanaging the country. Paetongtarn, who took office last year, is expected to survive her first no-confidence vote on Wednesday with the backing of her ruling coalition that makes up the majority of the House of Representatives. The head of the opposition in parliament, Natthaphong Ruengpanyawut, said Paetongtarn had failed to address many of the country’s chronic problems including the slumping economy, air pollution, crimes and corruption.
Mozambican President Daniel Chapo met main opposition figure Venancio Mondlane for talks in an effort to ease tensions, following months of violent clashes between protesters and security forces, the president's office said late on Sunday. Chapo and Mondlane met in the capital, Maputo, to "discuss solutions to the challenges facing the country", the presidency said.
In late February, representatives of a Thai Muslim organization brought a reassuring message to 40 Uyghur men terrified they were going to be sent back to China: The government had no immediate plans to deport them. Less than 72 hours later, the men were on a plane bound for China’s far west Xinjiang region, where U.N. experts say they could face torture or other punishment. Thailand decided to deport the men more than a month earlier, while denying plans to do so to the public, lawmakers and Muslim religious leaders until almost the very end, according to testimony from parliamentary inquiries, interviews, meeting notes and voice messages.
The Government Accountability Office's decision came at the request of Democratic lawmakers led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
Israeli military strikes across the Gaza Strip killed at least 21 Palestinians, local health authorities said on Monday, as Israeli forces operated in Rafah near the border with Egypt, escalating a new week-long aerial and ground offensive. Health officials said Israel has killed nearly 700 Palestinians since it resumed attacks on Gaza last Tuesday, ending weeks of relative calm after a ceasefire in January. Islamist group Hamas said several of its senior political and security officials had also been killed.
Danish police sent extra personnel and sniffer dogs to Greenland as the icy island steps up security measures ahead of a planned visit this week by second lady Usha Vance, the chief spokesman for Denmark's national police said. René Gyldensten said Monday the extra officers, deployed the day before, were part of regular steps taken during visits by dignitaries to Greenland, a self-governing, mineral-rich territory of American ally Denmark.
Reps. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., and Brittany Pettersen, D-Colo., came together on an initiative to let new parents vote by proxy in Congress.
The ethnic Tutsi-led M23 escalated their long-standing rebellion this year, seizing east Congo's two biggest cities since January and encroaching into territory rich in minerals such as gold and tantalum. As the current rotating African Union (AU) Chairperson, Angola's President Joao Lourenco had been trying to mediate a lasting ceasefire and lower tensions between Congo and neighbouring Rwanda, which has been accused of backing M23. Rwanda denies this.
As the nation’s largest single employer, the federal government has been welcoming to Black workers than the private sector.
U.S. retailers Walmart and Target are bickering behind the scenes with their suppliers over proposed price hikes on everything from cake pans, tote bags and toys to other merchandise. The outcome of their talks will determine when and by how much merchandise prices rise - and even which products retailers will keep on store shelves. Major retailers say they can't just raise retail prices without losing market share and alienating American shoppers.
The Supreme Court will hear arguments Monday in a years-old, messy legal battle over Louisiana’s congressional districts that could have nationwide implications for how states consider race as they draw new lines.
POLITICO rode along with Khanna on a swing through battleground California districts as he mused about dejected Democrats from the front seat of an SUV.
MoveOn's members say they are deeply frustrated with the party's current approach to the president.
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