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Food Industry Pushes Back on WHO Guidance for Products with Added Color, Sweeteners

Varieties Around 11 million deaths a year are linked to unhealthy diets, according to the agency, based on data from a global study. (Getty Images)

Food Industry Pushes Back on WHO Guidance for Products with Added Color, Sweeteners

Governments should consider regulating foods that include added colors, flavors or sweeteners designed to make the product more appealing to consumers,…

Varieties Dozens of Pakistani farmers are suing German firms RWE and Heidelberg Materials in a rare bid to make big polluters pay damages for climate impacts. Aamir QURESHI / AFP

Pakistan Farmers in Long Fight to Make German Firms Pay for Flood Damage

In a Pakistani village nestled in rice fields, Abdul Hafeez Khoso remembers the vast industrial zones he saw in Germany when he visited to file a pioneering…

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Varieties A tourist holds an umbrella to shelter from the sun while walking on a hot day in Tokyo on July 15, 2026. (AFP)

This Year Set to Be One of Four Hottest on Record, UN Report Says

This year is ‌on track to be one of the four hottest on record, driven by a powerful El Niño and perpetuating a warming streak of more than a decade, a UN…

Varieties A white-tailed eagle over the Isle of Mull in Scotland. (Natural Resources Wales)

Reintroduction of White-Tailed Eagles Puts Seabird Colonies at Risk of Wipeout

White-tailed eagles reintroduced into England and Wales imperil endangered seabird populations and risk wiping out some colonies, The Guardian reported quoting…

Varieties Residents extend a supply hose to fill a barrel with clean water from a tanker truck in Kavling Bakau Serip, amid local water shortages linked to data center developments in Batam. ANDARU / AFP

Can't Cook or Shower: Indonesians Take Aim at Data Centers

Cooking and bathing became difficult when taps ran dry in Batam, an Indonesian island where residents are protesting as data centers spring up to power the…

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Varieties The seal of the Central Intelligence Agency is displayed at CIA headquarters in Langley, Va., April 13, 2016. (AP)

US Arrests Ex-CIA Official with $40 Mn in Gold at Home

The United States has arrested a former senior CIA official after a search found $40 million worth of gold bars at his home. FBI officers also seized $2…

Varieties Over 5,000 schools around the world offer Cambridge International Education's AS and A-levels, in 138 countries. (Getty Images)

Thousands of Students Stunned After Their Exam Papers Are Voided for Being Leaked Online

A-level students in several countries, including the UK, have had their exam papers voided after it emerged they had been leaked online, according to BBC. …

Varieties (FILES) Smoke from illegal fires lit by farmers rises in Manaquiri, Amazonas state, on September 6, 2023. (Photo by MICHAEL DANTAS / AFP)

Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon Drops to Lowest Level Since 2019

Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon fell last year to its lowest level since 2019, according to a report published Wednesday that will be seen as good news…

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Varieties In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin meets with graduates of the "Time of Heroes" program, at the Kremlin in Moscow on May 22, 2026. (Photo by Alexey NIKOLSKY / POOL / AFP)

Putin Gifts 4 Amur Tigers to Kazakhstan Ahead of Visit

Russia has handed Kazakhstan four Amur tigers, two of them cubs, to help the country restore its numbers of the animals, President Vladimir Putin said in an…

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Varieties Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks as Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz, right, and Assistant Attorney General for the Fraud Division Colin McDonald listen during a press conference Thursday, May 21, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Glen Stubbe)

RFK Jr. Snatches Snakes in Viral Video, the Latest of his Many Animal Encounters

A video of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wrangling two snakes bare-handed captured the internet’s fascination Tuesday, the latest animal encounter the US health…

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Varieties Britain's King Charles III smiles as he visits a conservation initiative to humanely control grey squirrel numbers, at the Animal and Plant Health Agency, in Sand Hutton, North Yorkshire, north-east England, on May 26, 2026. (Photo by Dominic Lipinski / POOL / AFP)

King Charles Visits Grey Squirrel Contraceptive Project

King Charles III on Tuesday met conservationists seeking to reduce Britain's booming population of non-native grey squirrels humanely by feeding them oral…

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Varieties FILE PHOTO: Passengers board an easyJet aircraft at the Berlin Brandenburg Airport in Schoenefeld, Germany, April 21, 2026. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner/File Photo

EasyJet Flight Diverts to Rome Over Power Bank in Luggage

A UK-bound EasyJet flight was diverted to Rome after a power bank was found to be charging in a passenger's luggage, it has been revealed, according to BBC. …

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Varieties During the moment of alignment, shadows cast by vertical objects in Makkah’s surroundings nearly disappear as sunlight falls almost perpendicularly on the surface. (SPA)

Holy Kaaba Aligns with Sun in Rare Astronomical Event Over Makkah

The skies above Makkah witnessed on Tuesday the sun aligning directly over the Holy Kaaba at 12:18 PM Makkah time, an astronomical phenomenon used to determine…

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Varieties A woman shields herself from the sun with a newspaper as she crosses London Bridge during a heatwave in London, Britain, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Jack Taylor

More Climate Records Under Threat as Spring Heatwave Bakes Western Europe

Western Europe faced another day of record-breaking temperatures Tuesday as a heatwave pushed the mercury well above normal levels for May. A so-called "heat…

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Varieties (FILES) This photo illustration shows a mobile phone screen displaying the icons for the social networking apps Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, taken in Manchester on March 22, 2018. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP)

British Doctors: Social Media as Bad for Children as Smoking

Social media ranks alongside smoking as a danger to children, senior British doctors said on Tuesday, as they urged lawmakers to tackle the harm that they say…

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Varieties During the moment of alignment, shadows cast by vertical objects in Makkah’s surroundings nearly disappear as sunlight falls almost perpendicularly on the surface. (SPA)

Holy Kaaba to Align with Sun on Thursday in Rare Astronomical Event

The skies above Makkah will witness the phenomenon of the sun aligning directly over the holy Kaaba on Thursday, at approximately 12:18 PM local time. Jeddah…

Varieties A drone view shows people using kayaks and paddle boards in the River Thames at Teddington Lock, London’s first official river bathing water site, as temperatures climb over the bank holiday weekend due to a heat dome spreading across the region, in London, Britain, May 24, 2026. (Reuters)

Heat Dome Over Europe Scorches UK, France, Spain

Temperatures hit record highs for May in the United Kingdom and France on Monday, as forecasters warned of a prolonged period of extreme heat across Europe…

Varieties A golden monkey is seen in Volcanoes National Park in Kinigi, Rwanda, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP)

How Collecting DNA Samples in the Wild Could Transform Conservation

A guide called out to endangered golden monkeys with grunts and clicks to signal he posed no threat, a familiar sound in the mist-covered forests of Rwanda ’s…

Varieties An undated handout picture released on May 22, 2026 by the Charles Darwin Foundation shows a newly discovered blue pygmy octopus off the Galapagos Islands. (Charles Darwin Foundation / AFP)

‘He’s Tiny! It’s Blue!’: Scientists Find New Deep-Sea Octopus

On the ocean floor near the Galapagos Islands, a submersible controlled by scientists came across a mysterious octopus as blue as the ocean and no bigger than…

Varieties Shuetsu Sato, a security guard whose handmade duct-tape signs have gained widespread recognition, poses with duct-tape signs which he made at a security company office where he works, in Tokyo, Japan, May 1, 2026. (Reuters)

Japanese Security Guard Finds Fame as Designer of Duct Tape Signs

One of Japan's most in-demand graphic designers is neither hip nor an artist by training: he’s a septuagenarian security guard who works the graveyard shift at…

Varieties Muslim pilgrims at the Grand Mosque complex, ahead of the annual hajj pilgrimage, in the holy city of Makkah, Saudi Arabia, May 22, 2026. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

Technology Powers Hajj Season as Advanced Digital Network Supports Millions of Pilgrims

As millions of pilgrims move between the holy sites in scenes of profound devotion and spirituality, a vast and sophisticated digital network operates quietly…

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Varieties A Long March 2F rocket carrying the Shenzhou-23 spacecraft with astronauts Zhu Yangzhu, Zhang Zhiyuan, and Lai Ka-ying, who is the first astronaut from Hong Kong, blasts off to China's Tiangong space station from the launchpad at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, near Jiuquan, Gansu province, China, May 24, 2026. (Reuters)

China Launches Three-Crew Space Flight as Part of Moon Ambitions

China launched its Shenzhou-23 mission on Sunday, which will see a Chinese astronaut spend a full year in orbit for the first time, a crucial step in Beijing's…

Varieties  Freeman K. Johnson, a 106-year-old Pearl Harbor survivor, holds up his dog tag, May 6, 2026, in Centerville, Mass. (AP)

Oldest Pearl Harbor Survivor Is Keeping Memory of the Surprise Bombing Alive at 106

On the day of the Pearl Harbor attack, the country's oldest living survivor of the Japanese bombing was far below deck helping repair one the boilers of the…

Varieties A woman attends the annual European Mullet Cup in Audregnies, southern Belgium, on May 23, 2026. (AFP)

‘Party in the Back’: Competitors Vie for European Mullet Crown

Hundreds of distinctively coiffured participants gathered this weekend in southern Belgium for the annual European Mullet Championship to celebrate the once…

Varieties In April, Dhaka police linked traffic cameras to artificial intelligence software designed to automatically detect violations. Munir UZ ZAMAN / AFP

Bangladesh Puts AI in Driving Seat to Tackle Terrible Traffic

Bangladesh's densely populated capital, infamous for grinding gridlock, has launched its first AI-powered traffic enforcement system in a bid to bring order to…

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Varieties A sign is seen at the site of a fatal shark attack at Dee Why Beach in Sydney, Australia, Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (AP)

Shark Kills Man in Australia’s Queensland State

A man has died after a shark attack in northern Queensland state in Australia, police said on Sunday. The 39-year-old died from his injuries at a boat ramp…

Varieties Fatbikes are seen by many as the scourge of the cycle path. Lina Selg / AFP

'Extremely Dangerous': Cycle-mad Amsterdam Slams Brakes on 'Fatbikes'

Fast, fashionable mode of transport for some, scourge of the cycle path for others: in bike-mad Amsterdam, complaints about "fatbikes" have driven authorities…

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Varieties Cincinnati Children's Hospital facility dog Grover plays in the grassy facility dog play area at Cincinnati Children's Hospital in Cincinnati, Monday, May 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

More Children’s Hospitals Turn to Furry Caregivers to Help Kids Heal

The first time 5-year-old Calvin Owens went outside in more than a month, he met up with his canine friend Hadley on a hospital patio. Despite being tethered…

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Varieties Small pockets of snow remain on the peaks of Colorado's Mosquito Range, towering over Montgomery Reservoir, near Alma, Colorado, on May 14, 2026. (Photo by Jason Connolly / AFP)

Climate Change Threatens Global Plant Species as Habitats Shrink

Some of the plants that make familiar landscapes recognizable may not survive by century's end as climate change becomes an increasingly important driver of…

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