Town Hall News

(Reuters) – The governing body of table tennis said it will follow the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) guidance on Russian and Belarusian players by allowing them to compete as neutrals. The IOC issued a set of recommendations on Tuesday for international sports federations that will allow athletes from the two countries to return since their ban last year following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which Belarus helped facilitate. The International Table […]

By Daina Beth Solomon and Raul Cortes MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Five people have been arrested for alleged roles in the deaths of 39 people after a fire at a Mexican migrant detention center this week, authorities said Thursday, as pressure mounts to understand why victims appeared to be left in their cells as the area filled with smoke. As part of the homicide investigation, Sara Irene Herrerias, head of the […]

By Xinghui Kok (Reuters) – Growth in the developing economies of East Asia and the Pacific will accelerate in 2023 thanks to China’s reopening and economic rebound, but high inflation and household debt will weigh on consumption in some countries, the World Bank said on Friday. The Washington-based lender in a report said it expected growth in the 23-nation region, which includes China, to pick up to 5.1%, up from […]

By Hussein Waaile, Michael Martina and Ben Blanchard NEW YORK/TAIPEI (Reuters) -Taiwan has remained calm in the face of China “deliberately” raising tensions, President Tsai Ing-wen told an event during a stopover in New York that so far, according to Taipei and Washington, has not triggered unusual military actions by China. Tsai arrived in New York on Wednesday on her way to Central America, and on her way back to […]

TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan’s government on Friday said it plans to restrict exports of 23 types of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, aligning its technology trade controls with a U.S. push to curb China’s ability to make advanced chips. The trade and industry minister in a press release said it will impose export controls on six categories of equipment used in chip manufacturing, including cleaning, deposition, lithography and etching. It did not specify […]

TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan’s government on Friday said it plans to restrict exports of 23 types of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, aligning its technology trade controls with a U.S. push to curb China’s ability to make advanced chips. The trade and industry minister in a press release said it will impose export controls on six categories of equipment used in chip manufacturing, including cleaning, deposition, lithography and etching. It did not specify […]

LUCKNOW, India (Reuters) – At least 35 people were killed and 16 were injured after the roof of a stepwell collapsed in central India, a local government official said on Friday. The incident occurred as devotees gathered at a temple in Indore to celebrate the Hindu festival of Ram Navami on Thursday, officials said. “We have rescued 18 people, 35 have been found dead and 16 are injured,” Ilayaraja T, […]

By Pavel Polityuk KYIV (Reuters) -Russia charged an American journalist with spying while NATO moved closer to adding Finland as a member, deepening Moscow’s tensions with the West as the war in Ukraine reached its 400th day on Friday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy spoke in his Thursday evening video address of the “tremendous path” his country had taken in 400 days of resistance since Russia’s invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. […]

By Ian Ransom MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Formula One world champion Max Verstappen topped the timesheets for Red Bull before taking a late spin at Albert Park in an eventful first free practice at the Australian Grand Prix on Friday. The Dutchman lapped the lakeside circuit in one minute, 18.790 seconds, nearly half a second quicker than second fastest Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes, as two red flags disrupted the session. Verstappen’s […]