WORLD NEWS
1. In Sri Lanka, polling for Parliamentary elections concluded with a reported turnout of around 65%. Counting of votes is currently underway.
2. A court in Pakistan rejected former Prime Minister Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi’s acquittal requests in the Toshakhana-II case.
3. The 🇵🇭Philippines raised its highest storm alert, evacuating thousands of people as Super Typhoon Usagi barrelled towards already disaster-ravaged northern part of the country with the force of a Category 4 storm. It is the fifth major storm to hit the country in the past three weeks. The authorities have warned that the storm could cause widespread flooding and landslides in the north of the country.
4. 🇺🇸United States, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mike Johnson has won Republican nomination to remain in the position. It comes after US President-elect Donald Trump appeared to have backed him during a meeting with House Republicans.
5. US President-elect Donald Trump has named a former Democrat Tulsi Gabbard to his Cabinet as Director of National Intelligence. A four-term Congresswoman and 2020 presidential candidate, Colonel Gabbard is a veteran with three deployments to war zones in West Asia and Africa. She recently moved from being a Democrat to a Republican member.
6. The Nepali U-19 women’s cricket team has qualified for the ICC T20 Women’s U-19 World Cup 2025. Nepal qualified for the World Cup to be held in Malaysia next year after defeating the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by 8 wickets in the final match of the Asia Qualifiers held in the 🇦🇪UAE.
7. Bangladesh top official calls for removing ‘secular’ from Constitution, citing 90% Muslim population: The Attorney General of Bangladesh, Md Asaduzzaman, has advocated for substantial Constitutional changes, including the removal of the term “secular,” given that “90% of the country’s population was Muslim.
The Attorney General further argued that several constitutional amendments, including designating Sheikh Mujibur Rahman as the “Father of the Nation,” contribute to national division and limit freedom of speech. He acknowledged, “Honouring the contributions of Sheikh Mujib is vital,” but cautioned, “enforcing it by law creates division.”
8. Israeli Air Force jets struck Damascus, targeting Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s headquarters and military buildings on Thursday, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) confirmed.
