World

The four astronauts of NASA’s Artemis II mission cruised on Monday to the deepest point in space reached by any human, following the tug of lunar gravitational force en route to a rare crewed flyby over the shadowed far side of the moon.

As the climactic six-hour flyby of Earth’s only natural satellite got underway, some two dozen lunar scientists packed a room adjacent to mission control at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston to record the astronauts’ first observations of the moon’s surface in real time.

The Artemis II crew, riding in their Orion capsule since launching from Florida last week, began their sixth day of spaceflight as they awoke at around 10:50 a.m. ET (1450 GMT) to a pre-recorded message from the late NASA astronaut Jim Lovell, who flew aboard the Cold War-era Apollo 8 and Apollo 13 moon missions.

‘‘Welcome to my old neighborhood,’‘ said Lovell, who died last year at age 97. 

‘‘It’s a historic day, and I know how busy you’ll be, but don’t forget to enjoy the view... good luck and Godspeed."

The four ⁠Artemis astronauts set a new spaceflight record on Monday as they exceeded the maximum 248,000-mile (400,000 km) distance from Earth reached in 1970 by Apollo 13 after a nearly catastrophic spacecraft malfunction cut short that mission, forcing Lovell and his two crewmates to use the moon’s gravity to help return them safely to Earth.

Later on Monday, the Artemis crew of U.S. astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen were due to reach their own farthest distance from Earth - 252,755 miles, some 4,117 miles beyond the record held by the Apollo 13 crew for nearly 56 years.

NAMING CRATERS

Along the way, the Artemis crew members spent some time assigning provisional new names to lunar features that previously lacked official designations.

In a radio message to mission control in Houston, Hansen suggested one crater be dubbed Integrity, after the name given to the crew’s Orion capsule, and that another crater sometimes visible from Earth on the cusp between the far and near sides of the moon be named in honor of Wiseman’s late wife, Carroll, who died of cancer in 2020.

‘‘A number of years ago we started this journey, our close-knit astronaut family, and we lost a loved one,’‘ Hansen said of the mission commander’s late spouse, his voice choking with emotion as he described the position of her lunar namesake.
 
‘‘It’s a bright spot on the ⁠Moon, and we would like to call that Carroll."

As the Orion sailed around the moon’s far side, the crew was expected witness its surface from as close as roughly 4,000 miles above its darkened surface as it eclipsed what would appear to be a basketball-sized Earth in the distant background.

Because the moon rotates at the same speed as it revolves around the Earth, its far side always faces away from our planet, so that few human beings - only members of the Apollo crews who orbited the moon during their missions - have ever gazed directly on its surface.

The milestone marked a major high point of the nearly 10-day Artemis II mission, the first crewed test flight of NASA’s Artemis program, successor to NASA’s 1960s-1970s Apollo ⁠project, and the world’s first voyage to send humans in the vicinity of the moon in more than half a century.

RARE DETAILED PHOTOS

The planned multibillion-dollar series of Artemis missions aims to return astronauts to the moon’s surface by 2028, ahead of China, and establish a long-term U.S. presence there over the next decade, building a moon base that would serve as a proving ground for potential future missions to Mars.

The last time astronauts walked on the moon - a feat so far achieved only ⁠by the United States - was the final Apollo mission in 1972.

Monday’s lunar flyby plunged the crew into darkness and a brief communications blackout as the moon blocked them from NASA’s Deep Space Network, a global array of massive radio communications antennas the agency has been using to talk to the crew.

For the flyby, the astronauts were equipped with professional cameras to take 
detailed photos of the moon through Orion’s window, showing a rare and scientifically ⁠valuable vantage point of sunlight filtering around its edges.

The crew will also have the chance to photograph a rare moment in which their home planet, dwarfed by their record-breaking distance in space, will set and rise with the lunar horizon as they swing around, presenting a celestial remix of the moonrise typically seen from Earth.

Source: Reuters

President Donald Trump announced on his proprietary social media platform Tuesday that the U.S. military could help shipping vessels travel through an embattled sea passage as the war against Iran rages on.

In a Truth Social post, Trump offered the possibility of naval assistance and called upon the United States Development Finance Corporation to provide risk insurance that would guarantee the financial security of maritime trade operating near the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman.

“If necessary, the United States Navy will begin escorting tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, as soon as possible,” Trump said.

A high-ranking member of Iran’s primary military branch, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, warned that any vessels travelling through the 100-mile-long sea passage would be targeted and met with lethal force, according to Iranian media.

The Strait of Hormuz is a pivotal choke point for oil transit located between Oman and Iran. In 2022, 21 million barrels of oil per day were transported through the strait, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

“The strait is closed, and whoever wants to cross, our heroes in the navy of the IRGC and army will set those ships on fire,” said Ebrahim Jabari, a senior adviser to the Revolutionary Guard’s commander-in-chief.

After the U.S. military struck Iran on Feb. 28, maritime traffic in the strait dropped 70%, according to MarineTraffic, a ship tracking service. As tankers became stranded in the Persian Gulf, gas prices jumped an average of 11 cents Tuesday in the U.S., according to the AAA motor club.

 (Source:newswire.lk)

Dubai-based airline Emirates’ website said on Wednesday that Iranian nationals were not allowed to enter or ⁠transit the United Arab Emirates.

The website of another carrier, Flydubai, said Iranian nationals holding a UAE “Golden ⁠Visa” were exempt and permitted to enter and ⁠transit the country.

The restrictions come amid ⁠heightened tensions between Iran ⁠and Gulf states.

Source: Reuters

A tram derailed Friday and slammed into a building in the heart of Milan, killing two people and injuring more than two-dozen others, officials said.

The incident, along the central Vittorio Veneto avenue, came as the Italian business capital is hosting its seasonal fashion shows and is in the interim between hosting the Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games.

The No. 9 tram runs through the heart of Italy’s financial capital. It was supposed to have continued straight along Vittorio Veneto and was going at a high speed. But it suddenly swerved at a switch track that is used by another tram line and went off its usual course, according to video of the crash broadcast by Sky TG24.

The video shows the tram nearly flipping onto its side as it takes the curve before slamming to a stop in a building.

Milan Mayor Beppe Sala suggested human error was to blame, saying the driver had apparently failed to switch the tracks to keep the tram going straight. Sala described the driver as a seasoned employee who had only been on his shift for an hour. But he said he had skipped a prior stop before the crash occurred, and would be questioned from the hospital where he was being treated for his injuries.

Sala confirmed two people had been killed — one passenger on the tram and one on the street. He said none of the other injured was in life-threatening condition.

Dozens of ambulances, fire trucks and police cars responded to the crash, with crews escorting passengers in thermal blankets away from the scene.

ATM, the Milan public transport company, said it was cooperating with prosecutors “to precisely establish the cause and dynamic of the incident.”

Source: AP

The Oscars will leave Hollywood after celebrating their centenary, organizers said Thursday, as they announced a long-term deal to hold the gala in downtown Los Angeles.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said the ceremony, the most important night of the year for the global film industry, would leave the Dolby Theatre on the Hollywood Walk of Fame after 2028.

The 2029 edition will instead be held at The Peacock Theater, part of the vast LA LIVE complex, next to the Crypto.com Arena, home to the Los Angeles Lakers.

“For the 101st Oscars and beyond, the Academy looks forward to closely collaborating with (owners) AEG to make LA LIVE the perfect backdrop for our global celebration of cinema, both for our live in-theater audience and for film fans around the world,” Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Lynette Howell Taylor said.

Source: AP

All seven people on board an air ambulance were killed when the aircraft crashed near Simaria in Jharkhand’s Chatra district on Monday evening. The flight was en route from Ranchi to Delhi when the accident occurred, a top state government official said.

“All seven on board the air ambulance were killed in the crash. The plane was on the way to Delhi from Ranchi,” Chatra Deputy Commissioner Keerthishree G told news agency PTI.

The aircraft, operated by Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd, took off from Ranchi airport at 7:11 pm. According to Chatra Deputy Commissioner Keerthishree G, the plane went missing around 7:30 pm and later crashed in the Bariatu Panchayat area of Simaria, a densely forested region.

Victims Identified

Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Shubham Khandelwal confirmed to PTI that all seven bodies had been recovered. The victims were identified as:

• Captain Vivek Vikas Bhagat
• Captain Savrajdeep Singh
• Sanjay Kumar
• Dr Vikas Kumar Gupta
• Sachin Kumar Mishra
• Archana Devi
• Dhuru Kumar

Patient Was Being Shifted For Better Treatment

According to Anant Sinha, CEO of Devkamal Hospital in Ranchi, the air ambulance had been arranged for Sanjay Kumar (41), a resident of Latehar district. He had been admitted on February 16 with 65% burn injuries and was under treatment at the hospital.

A family member of the patient said they had chosen an air ambulance because his condition was too serious for a road journey. Vijay Kumar, a relative, said that the doctor had warned them that the patient might not survive a trip by road.

“We tried to take him (the patient) by road, but the doctor said we couldn’t. He told us the patient might collapse on the way,” Vijay Kumar told reporters. “The doctor said that if we could arrange an air ambulance, then we could take him. So we decided to take him by air ambulance.”

“Later, we saw on the news that the plane had crashed,” he added.

Severe Weather Reported At The Time Of Crash

Local residents reported that at the time of the crash, the area was experiencing strong winds, heavy rain, lightning, and loud thunder. They said the plane crashed with a loud sound during the stormy weather.

Ranchi airport director Vinod Kumar said the aircraft lost contact with air traffic control roughly 20 minutes after takeoff. While bad weather might have contributed to the crash, he emphasized that the exact cause will be known only after a full investigation.

“Inclement weather could be a reason behind the crash, but the actual cause will be ascertained only after a probe,” he told PTI.

A Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) statement confirmed that the Redbird Airways Beechcraft C90 aircraft (VT-AJV), operating a medical evacuation flight, lost communication and radar contact with Kolkata after 7:34 pm, around 100 nautical miles southeast of Varanasi.

“On 23.02.2026 Redbird Airways Pvt Ltd Beechcraft C90 aircraft VT-AJV operating medical evacuation (Air Ambulance) flight on sector Ranchi-Delhi crashed in Kasaria Panchayat of Chatra district, in Jharkhand. There were seven people on board, including two crew members. The aircraft was airborne from Ranchi at 19:11 IST. After establishing contact with Kolkata at 19:34 IST, aircraft lost communication and RADAR contact with Kolkata at approximately 100 NM South-East of Varanasi,” DGCA said.

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) team will arrive in Chatra at 1:00 pm to investigate the plane crash. The black box is expected to reveal the cause of the incident. All the bodies of the victims have been recovered and sent to hospital for post-mortem.

Redbird Airways, owned by Akshay Yadav, was established in 2018 and received its permit to serve non-scheduled flights in 2019, according to its website. It has six planes in the fleet, including the one which crashed on Monday evening, as per the DGCA website.

 (Source:newswire.lk)

“Spider-Man: Brand New Day” is already web-slinging its way to history. The Sony Pictures trailer, released on Wednesday morning, has become the biggest trailer of all time with 718.6 million views in 24 hours.

The Spidey trailer broke the previous record held by “Deadpool and Wolverine,” which had 365 million views. 

In just eight hours, the “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” trailer had 373 million views — already breaking the record by “Deadpool 3,” which dropped during the 2024 Super Bowl. Coincidentally, “Deadpool 3” had jumped the 2021 “Spider-Man: No Way Home” trailer, which had 355.5 million views in 24 hours, to put itself in the record books.

Not only does “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” have the biggest movie trailer in history, it’s the biggest trailer, period. 

It surpasses last year’s trailer for the hotly anticipated video game “Grand Theft Auto VI,” which pulled in 475 million views in 24 hours to become the biggest video trailer ever — until now. 

To build excitement for the “Brand New Day” trailer, Sony released tiny snippets one day in advance showing moments from the full video.

“Brand New Day” is the first time Tom Holland has suited up as Spidey since “No Way Home,” which united past wall-crawlers Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield for a universe-crossing blockbuster. “No Way Home” went on to gross $1.9 billion at the global box office.

“Four years have passed since the events of ‘No Way Home,’ and Peter is now an adult living entirely alone, having voluntarily erased himself from the lives and memories of those he loves,” the logline for “Brand New Day” teases. 

“Crime-fighting in a New York that no longer knows his name, he’s devoted himself entirely to protecting his city — a full-time Spider-Man — but as the demands on him intensify, the pressure sparks a surprising physical evolution that threatens his existence, even as a strange new pattern of crimes gives rise to one of the most powerful threats he has ever faced.”

The cast includes Holland, Zendaya, Sadie Sink, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Tramell Tillman, Michael Mando and Mark Ruffalo. It’s directed by Destin Daniel Cretton and written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. Producers include Kevin Feige, Amy Pascal, Avi Arad and Rachel O’Connor, plus executive producers Louis D’Esposito and David Cain.

Source: Variety

The European Commission on Sunday demanded that the United States respect the terms of a trade deal reached last July.

The call from Brussels comes after US President Donald Trump said he was raising a global 10% tariff to 15% in response to the US Supreme Court blocking many of his emergency tariffs.

The court decision has cast uncertainty over the ratification of the deal, which had been put on hold and was to be approved by the European Parliament on Tuesday.

What did the EU Commission say about the terms of the US trade deal?

The Commission called for Washington to provide “full clarity” on the measures it plans to implement following the Supreme Court ruling.

“EU companies and exporters must have fair treatment, predictability and legal certainty,” the Commission said.

“The current situation is not conducive to delivering ‘fair, balanced, and mutually beneficial’ transatlantic trade and investment, as agreed to by both sides,” it said, pointing to the deal reached by the US and the EU last year. “A ​deal is a deal.”

“In particular, EU products must ​continue to benefit ⁠from the most competitive treatment, with no increases in tariffs beyond the clear and all-inclusive ⁠ceiling previously agreed,” it said.

In an earlier statement issued on Friday, the Commission said it was studying the potential effects of the court’s decision.

What was the trade deal between the US and the EU?

Trump imposed tariffs on multiple countries shortly after he took office in January 2025, in a bid to reduce the US trade deficit and boost manufacturing in the country.

In July 2025, Trump threatened to impose a 30% tariff on all EU goods.

After negotiations between Brussels and Washington, the two sides reached a deal setting tariffs of 15% on most EU exports to the US. It would also require the EU to buy $750 billion (€636.5 billion) of US energy products through 2028.

EU officials later put the ratification of the deal on hold in response to Trump’s push for the US to take over of Greenland, which is an autonomous territory of EU member state Denmark.

(Source:newswire.lk)

Two people have been killed in Oman after drones came down in the Sohar province, according to Oman’s state news agency, as Gulf nations remain caught in the crosshairs of the war the United States and Israel launched on Iran, sparking Tehran’s retaliation across the region.

The agency, quoting a security source, said on Friday morning that one of the drones hit the al-Awahi Industrial Area, killing two foreign nationals and injuring others.

The other one fell in an open area with no injuries recorded, the agency also said, adding that the authorities were investigating the incident.

On Wednesday, Oman’s state media reported that drones struck fuel tanks in the country’s Salalah port. Tehran denied a role in that attack.

Oman’s state news agency, quoting an energy ministry official, said that there had been no disruption to the continuity of oil supplies or petroleum derivatives in the country.

Private maritime security company Vanguard Tech reported the suspension of the port’s operations after the attack on its southern section.

Multiple attacks on Saudi Arabia

In the meantime, Saudi forces intercepted a drone on Friday targeting Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter, which houses foreign embassies, the Ministry of Defence said on Friday.

The “hostile drone” was downed “during an attempt to approach the Diplomatic Quarter”, the ministry posted on X.

Three more drones were intercepted elsewhere in Saudi Arabia at about the same time, the ministry said.

A ministry spokesperson said air defences had shot down eight more drones in the central and eastern regions of the country, as well as the al-Kharj governorate and west of the capital, Riyadh.

Earlier, the ministry reported 14 drones were intercepted and destroyed in waves of attempted attacks.

In Dubai, debris fell on the facade of a building in the city centre on Friday morning after an attack was intercepted by the air defences of the United Arab Emirates, according to the Dubai media office, which reported no injuries.

The region has been ignited by war since Israel and the US launched joint attacks on Iran on February 28, killing about 1,300 people and injuring more than 10,000, according to the Iranian authorities.

Tehran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and the Gulf countries hosting US military assets since then.

Lebanon has suffered greatly under relentless Israeli bombardment, which has killed nearly 700 people. 

(Al Jazeera)

The Mexican army on Sunday killed Mexican drug lord Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho.”

Oseguera headed the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

What do we know about the raid that killed Oseguera?

Oseguera was wounded during a raid in the town of Tapalpa in western Jalisco state and died while being flown to Mexico City, the Mexican army said in a statement.

It said four members of the cartel were killed in the raid and three more, including Oseguera, died of their wounds while being transferred to the Mexican capital.

Two more people were arrested. Armored vehicles, rocket launchers and other arms were seized.

Earlier on Sunday, armed men set cars and trucks on fire in Jalisco state to block the advance of security forces during the operation.

US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau welcomed the killing as a “great development for Mexico, ​US, Latin America, and the world.”

The US State Department warned US citizens in the states of Jalisco, Tamaulipas, Michoacan, Guerrero and Neuvo Leon to remain in safe places due to ongoing security operations.

The United States had offered a $15 million bounty for his capture.

Mexico’s Embassy in Washington, DC, said that the United States had provided information that aided in the raid that led to Oseguera’s death.

“In ‌addition to ​central military intelligence efforts, complementary information was ​provided by U.S. authorities within the ⁠framework ​of ​bilateral coordination and ​cooperation with the ‌United States,” it said in a post on X.

Airlines cancel dozens of flights to Mexico

The killing of Oseguera sparked several hours of roadblocks and burning vehicles in Jalisco and other states. Cartels commonly use such tactics to block military operations.

The state of Jalisco canceled school for Monday. Governor Pablo Lemus also urged residents to stay home and suspended public transportation. An outbreak of violence also led to the suspension of multiple football games.

Meanwhile, US and Canadian airlines canceled dozens of flights to parts of Mexico following the killing of Oseguera and the subsequent violence.

US airlines Alaska, United, and Southwest, as well as Canadian airlines WestJet and Air Canada, announced the suspension of flights to destinations including Puerto Vallarta, Guadalajara, and Manzanillo.

In a post on X, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum urged citizens to remain calm, stating that the central government was coordinating with state authorities in response to the violence.

Who are ‘El Mencho’ and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel?

The US Justice Department considers the cartel, which was founded in 2009, to be one of Mexico’s most violent drug trafficking organizations.

It is one of the main suppliers of cocaine to the United States and also produces fentanyl and methamphetamines.

Oseguera was convicted of conspiracy to distribute heroin by a California court in 1994 and served a prison sentence of nearly three years. After his release from prison, he returned to Mexico and continued to engage in cartel activity.

He has been indicted several times in a District of Columbia court, including a 2022 indictment for conspiracy and distribution of controlled substances and use of firearms in connection with drug trafficking offenses.

Sheinbaum under pressure to deal with cartel crime

While Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has been critical of the “kingpin” strategy focused on killing cartel leaders in the past, she has been under increasing pressure to show results in the fight against drug trafficking since US President Donald Trump took office for his second term in January 2025.

Trump has vowed to “wage war” on Latin American drug cartels and has not ruled out carrying out US military strikes on targets in Mexico or deploying troops there.

Trump’s administration designated the Jalisco New Generation Cartel as a terrorist organization in February.

(Source:newswire.lk)

G7 nations have said they are ready to take "necessary measures" to support the global supply of energy after the US-Israel war with Iran sent oil prices surging.

However, a meeting of G7 finance ministers and the International Energy Agency (IEA) ended without an agreement to release strategic crude reserves.

The oil price reached nearly $120 a barrel on Monday, over fears of a lengthy disruption to supplies, before falling back sharply after President Trump raised hopes the war would soon end.

At the virtual meeting, the option of releasing oil from stockpiles was one of several discussed as Fatih Birol, head of the IEA, said global oil markets "have deteriorated in recent days".

|BBC

US President Donald Trump, citing “tremendous interest,” said he was directing the Pentagon and other government agencies to release files related to extraterrestrials and unidentified flying objects (UFOs).

He said the agencies should include “any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters.”

He made the announcement on social media on Thursday, hours after accusing former President Barack Obama of disclosing “classified information” when he suggested in a podcast interview that aliens were real.

“I don’t know if they’re real or not,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. When asked of Obama, he said: “I may get him out of trouble by declassifying.”

What did Obama say about aliens in the podcast?

In a podcast released last week, Obama said he believed aliens were real, but he had not seen any evidence of them during his presidency.

“They’re real, but I haven’t seen them and they’re not being kept in… Area 51,” he told host Brian Tyler Cohen, referring to the top-secret facility at the heart of many UFO conspiracies.

Once his comments quickly went viral, the ex-president took to clarify on Instagram.

“Statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there’s life out there,” he said. “But the distances between solar systems are so great that the chances we’ve been visited by aliens is low, and I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us. Really!”

Aliens and Area 51

Public interest in extraterrestrials, unidentified flying objects and unidentified aerial phenomena has prompted several conspiracy theories over the years.

Several internet chat rooms and social media accounts dedicate themselves to solving this mystery, and many insist the US government knows more than it lets on.

It is what gave birth to the “Storm Area 51” event, where about 100 people gathered at the entrance to the secretive US military base “to see them aliens.”

This interest was renewed in recent years as the US government investigated several reports of what appeared to be supernatural aircraft. However, in March 2024, the Pentagon released a report saying it had no proof the aerial phenomenon was alien technology.