Philippines Mulls Pullout Of Syria Peacekeepers

China will raise the retirement age for the first time since 1978, a move likely to slow a decline in the labor force and support the economy. The country’s top lawmakers endorsed a plan to gradually delay retirement, the official Xinhua news agency reported Friday. Over the next 15 years, China will increase men’s retirement age to 63 from 60 and women’s up to 58, according to the report.

HANOI, Vietnam — The death toll in the aftermath of a typhoon in Vietnam climbed to 233 on Friday as rescue workers recovered more bodies from areas hit by landslides and flash floods, state media reported. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] State-run broadcaster VTV said emergency crews have now recovered 48 bodies from the area of Lang Nu, a small village in northern Lao Cai province that was swept away in a deluge of water, mud and debris from mountains on Tuesday.

Pravin Gordhan, who held three positions in South Africa’s cabinet and won plaudits for standing up to Jacob Zuma during his scandal-marred presidency, has died. He was 75. Gordhan died in hospital in the early hours of Friday morning after battling cancer, his family said in an emailed statement. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] A veteran anti-apartheid activist and high-ranking member of the African National Congress, Gordhan made a name for himself within government by leading an overhaul of the national tax agency years before serving under Zuma.

Every move she makes is closely watched, each new photo taken of her widely shared and fervently discussed. Her effortlessly dewy glow is the subject of envy and inspiration for fanart and makeup tutorials. Moo Deng, of Thailand, is not your typical A-list celebrity, but she’s certainly being treated like one. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Moo Deng STUNS in new photos https://t.co/Xmyp7cFhcp— Patrick Monahan (@pattymo) September 9, 2024 The unbearably adorable two-month-old baby pygmy hippopotamus at Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi Province has wriggled her way into the hearts and minds of millions on the internet with her seemingly feisty antics and petrified looks.

Tourists consider Dublin to be a lively, legendary cultural hub. But for its residents and business owners, getting anywhere can be a challenge. “Traffic in Dublin is absolutely appalling,” says Emma Gray, the co-founder of Gaillot et Gray, a cafe in one of the city’s busiest areas. Multiple studies rate Dublin’s traffic as the second-worst among major global cities, behind only London, whose population is nearly 20 times greater.

LONDON — Britain’s much-loved but overstretched health system is in critical condition and must “reform or die,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Thursday, claiming that years of neglect and botched restructuring had made the United Kingdom an increasingly unhealthy nation. Starmer promised a 10-year plan to fix the state-funded National Health Service, which in recent years had gone from a source of national pride to a symbol of a state and society under growing strain. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] “We are becoming a sicker society,” Starmer said during a speech in London, pinning blame on the Conservative Party that was in power for 14 years until July. “The last government broke the NHS,” he said. A national icon on life support Founded in 1948 in a country determined to build a fairer society out of the ruins of World War II, the NHS provides free health care to citizens and residents, funded through taxation. So critical to the national identity that its 75th birthday was marked with a thanksgiving service at London’s Westminster Abbey, it has been dubbed Britain’s secular religion — though one in which some people are losing faith. Even its most ardent supporters acknowledge the NHS is an unwieldy behemoth that has struggled for years to cope with an aging population and rising demand.