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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 event reinforces facilitates the transfer of falconry expertise to new generations - SPA

Third Most Expensive Falcon Sold for SAR351,000 at Saudi Club Auction

A falcon was sold for SAR351,000 at the 25th session of the Saudi Falcons Club Auction, making it the third most expensive falcon sold to date at this year's…

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Varieties The Archeologia Arborea foundation saves fruit varieties to restore biodiversity and build resilience against climate change. Tiziana FABI / AFP

Italian Fruit Detective Racing to Save Forgotten Varieties

Isabella Dalla Ragione hunts in abandoned gardens and orchards for forgotten fruits, preserving Italy's agricultural heritage and saving varieties which could…

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Varieties FILE - Chinese astronaut for the Shenzhou 20 mission, Chen Dong, center, speaks next to his comrades Chen Zhongrui, right, and Wang Jie as they attend a send-off ceremony for their manned space mission at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China, Thursday, April 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andy Wong, file)

Chinese Astronauts Return to Earth after Vessel Damaged by Space Debris

Three Chinese astronauts whose return to Earth was delayed by space debris hitting their vessel last week landed in China on Friday afternoon, according to…

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Varieties Couples had to spend four days in a cabin and not make noise over 45 decibels. Camille BAS-WOHLERT / AFP

Sweden Sees Silent Forests as Sanctuaries from a Noisy World

In a cottage nestled deep in a Swedish forest, three couples recently spent four days whispering and without phones as part of a campaign about the dangers of…

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Varieties (FILES) This photograph shows elephant seals on the Possession Island, part of the Crozet Islands which are a sub-Antarctic archipelago of small islands in the southern Indian Ocean, on December 21, 2022. (Photo by Patrick HERTZOG / AFP)

Scientists: 'Bleak' Future for Seals Decimated by Bird Flu

The world's largest species of seal has been devastated by bird flu, which has wiped out half of all breeding females at a key wildlife haven near Antarctica,…

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Varieties A Blue Origin New Glenn rocket is fueled for launch with NASA's EscaPADE mission, carrying two satellites to orbit Mars, from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, US, November 9, 2025. REUTERS/Joe Skipper

Solar Storms Delay the Launch of Blue Origin's Big New Rocket with Mars Orbiters for NASA

Intense solar storms responsible for breathtaking auroras across the US delayed the launch of Blue Origin’s big new rocket Wednesday. Already grounded by…

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Varieties An artist's impression shows a star exploding at the end of its lifecycle, called a supernova, in this handout image released by the European Southern Observatory on November 12, 2025. The star is located about 22 million light-years away from Earth in the galaxy NGC 3621. ESO/L. Calcada/Handout via REUTERS

For First Time, Scientists See the Very Early Stages of a Supernova

The explosive death of a star - a supernova - is among the most violent cosmic events, but precisely how this cataclysm looks as it unfolds has remained…

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Varieties Ivana Karlic Ban digs for truffles in the woods near Buzet, Croatia, November 11, 2025. REUTERS/Antonio Bronic

Croatia's Truffle Hunters Pursue One of World's Priciest Delicacies

It is white truffle season and Ivana Karlic Ban and her two dogs cruise the autumn-colored forests of Croatia's northwestern Istria region in hunt of one of…

Varieties The Zanzibar sponge cooperative has offered a new and lucrative source of income for locals. MARCO LONGARI / AFP

Zanzibar Women Turn to Sponge Farming as Oceans Heat Up

Around 10 in the morning each day, women in headscarves and loose long dresses wade through Zanzibar's turquoise shallow tides to tend their sponge farms --…

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Varieties A woman picks walnuts in walnut forests in Arslanbap in Kyrgyzstan's Jalal-Abad region, some 700kms from the capital Bishkek, on October 21, 2025. (Photo by VYACHESLAV OSELEDKO / AFP)

In Kyrgyzstan, World's Largest Natural Walnut Forest Thins Away

Rustling through fallen golden leaves, locals in a forest outside Arslanbob in the Kyrgyz mountains were scurrying for walnuts -- an ancient pastime and…

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Varieties Police officers members of the ‘Bear Control Task Force’ stand as they attend a send-off ceremony at Akita Prefectural Police headquarters in Akita, Akita prefecture, northeastern Japan, 13 November 2025. EPA/FRANCK ROBICHON

Japan Police Can Use Rifles Against Bears

Police in Japan can from Thursday use rifles to shoot bears after strict gun laws were revised to help authorities battle a spate of fatal attacks that also…

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Varieties The recognition coincided with the Global Observance of World Cities Day 2025 in Bogotá - SPA 

Madinah Wins the 2025 Shanghai Global Award for Sustainable Development in Cities

Madinah won the 2025 Shanghai Global Award for Sustainable Development in Cities in its third cycle, recognizing progress in urban innovation, sustainability,…

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Varieties The original Birkin, the first ever made by Hermes for Jane Birkin crafted in 1984 is displayed during the press preview of Sotheby’s Luxury Week Sale at Sotheby’s Auctions in New York City, US, June 6, 2025. (Reuters) 

Original Birkin Bag Unveiled in Japan After Record $10 Million Purchase 

The original bag custom-made for late actress Jane Birkin which became a design icon was revealed to media in Tokyo on Wednesday by the Japanese company that…

Varieties A woman takes a selfie during a pro-Beijing flash mob rally in Hong Kong on Oct. 1, 2019, to mark the 70th anniversary of communist China’s founding. (AFP via Getty Images)

More Sleep, Less Screen Time as China Aims to Reduce Student Stress 

Chinese authorities have announced measures to improve the mental health of primary and secondary school students by reducing academic pressure, cutting screen…

Varieties The plate - taken some time after 1908 - has now been returned to Gonville & Caius College (Caius College)

Stolen Cambridge University Plate Returned after 115 Years

A decorative plate stolen from a dining hall by a University of Cambridge student more than 100 years ago has finally been returned. It is believed Gordon…

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Varieties Zookeepers believe the flamingo seen in Brittany could be four-month-old Frankie, who took flight from Paradise Park near Hayle more than a week ago. (Paradise Park)

Flamingo Escapes from British Sanctuary to France Despite Having Feathers Clipped

“Regarde, un flamant rose!” (Look, a pink flamingo). The zookeepers of Paradise Park in Hayle, Cornwall may never have expected to learn the French word for…

Varieties The Aurora Australis, also known as the southern lights, glow on the horizon as seen from Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, May 10, 2024. (AFP)

Space Forecasters Say Severe Solar Storms Could Hit Earth and Trigger Auroras 

Space weather forecasters issued an alert on Tuesday for incoming severe solar storms that could produce colorful northern lights and temporarily disrupt…

Varieties Saudi Space Agency Wins Four Platinum MarCom Awards

Saudi Space Agency Wins Four Platinum MarCom Awards

The Saudi Space Agency achieved a distinguished international milestone by winning four Platinum Awards at the 2025 MarCom Awards, one of the world’s leading…

Varieties  A woman protects herself from the sun with a fan during a heat wave in Seville, Spain. (Getty Images/AFP)

Demand for Air Con Set to Triple by 2050, Warns UN

Global demand for air conditioning could more than triple by 2050, the United Nations warned on Tuesday, calling for more sustainable cooling solutions. The…

Varieties Archive - Bees from the apiary of the Universidad del Rosario raised for the research of the formula to protect the brain of bees and other pollinators affected by exposure to insecticides, which was patented in Britain under the leadership of researchers from the Faculty of Natural Sciences of the Universidad del Rosario, in alliance with the Department of Neuroscience of the University of Arizona - Reuters

Devil In The Beetails: Australian Scientists Discover New 'Lucifer' Bee

As if deadly snakes, spiders and sharks were not enough, Australia now has a new creepy critter: a "lucifer" bee with devil-like horns. The species -- dubbed…

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Varieties A car passes by a pine tree forest, where a pine crisis is unfolding, caused by an invasive insect that feeds on the cones that produce Lebanon's prized pine nuts, in Bkassine, Lebanon, October 21, 2025. (Reuters)

Lebanon’s Historic Pines Are Dying, One Cone at a Time 

In the heart of southern Lebanon, where pine trees once stood tall and abundant, a quiet crisis is unfolding. The cones are barren, the trees are drying and a…

Varieties A dolphin nicknamed 'Mimmo' jumps out of the water as people on a boat take pictures in the San Marco Basin, in Venice, Italy, November 8, 2025. REUTERS/Manuel Silvestri

'Mimmo' the Dolphin Delights Venice Tourists, Worries Experts

A wild dolphin, nicknamed "Mimmo" by the local press, has become a regular visitor in the waters off Venice's St. Mark's Square, captivating tourists but…

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Varieties The Saudi Ministry of Interior issued a special passport stamp for the fifth edition of the Hajj Conference and Exhibition. (SPA)

Saudi Interior Ministry Issues Special Passport Stamp for Hajj Conference and Exhibition 2025

The Saudi Ministry of Interior, represented by the General Directorate of Passports and in cooperation with the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, has issued a…

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Varieties People stand next to a centuries-old shipwreck uncovered in the aftermath of Typhoon Kalmaegi on a beach off the Hoi An coast in central Vietnam, on November 10, 2025. (Photo by Tam Xuan / AFP)

Typhoon Exposes Centuries-old Shipwreck Off Vietnam Port

Severe coastal erosion caused by Typhoon Kalmaegi exposed a centuries-old shipwreck in Vietnam, providing a narrow window to salvage what experts say could be…

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