While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Aug 9
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Mr Muhammad Yunus signing the oath book, as the new head of Bangladesh’s interim government, on Aug 8.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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Nobel laureate Yunus takes charge of Bangladesh
Nobel Peace laureate Muhammad Yunus took charge of Bangladesh’s caretaker government on Aug 8, hoping to help heal the country that was convulsed by weeks of violence, forcing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to quit and flee to neighbouring India.
Known as the “banker to the poor”, Dr Yunus is the pioneer of the global microcredit movement. The Grameen Bank he founded won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for helping lift millions from poverty by providing tiny loans to the rural poor who are too impoverished to gain attention from traditional banks.
As chief adviser of the caretaker government, he is, however, tasked with bringing stability back to the country which witnessed some of its worst violence in decades and then hold fresh parliamentary elections.
“The brutal, autocratic regime is gone,” Dr Yunus said, in a televised address to the nation after taking charge. “Tomorrow, with the rising sun, democracy, justice, human rights, and full freedom of fearless expression will be enjoyed by all, regardless of party affiliation. That is our goal.”
Kamala Harris leads Trump by 5 points in Ipsos poll
AFP
Democrat Kamala Harris leads Republican Donald Trump 42 per cent to 37 per cent in the race for the Nov 5 US presidential election, according to an Ipsos poll published on Aug 8.
The poll found Harris had widened her lead since a July 22-23 Reuters/Ipsos survey, which found her up 37 per cent to 34 per cent over Trump.
The nationwide poll of 2,045 US adults, conducted Aug 2-7, found 4 per cent of those surveyed backed independent candidate Robert Kennedy Jr, down from 10 per cent in July.
Ukraine’s Zelensky says Russia must feel the war
AFP
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Aug 8 that Russia needed to “feel” the consequences of its war, as a major Ukrainian incursion across the Russian border stretched into a third day.
Pro-Kyiv forces stormed into Russia’s southwestern Kursk region on Aug 6 morning, deploying around 1,000 troops and more than two dozen armoured vehicles and tanks, according to the Russian army.
It appears to be the most significant Ukrainian attack into Russia since the war began, with independent analysts suggesting Kyiv’s troops had advanced up to 10km into Russia.
British Airways to suspend London-Beijing direct flights
The Straits Times
British Airways announced on Aug 8 it will be “pausing” direct flights between London and the Chinese capital Beijing from late October, the latest Western airline to curb routes to China.
The move comes as airlines struggle with an airspace ban over Russia, introduced after Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine prompted the EU to shut its airspace to Russian flights.
The ban means flights to and from Europe to China must take longer and more costly routes to avoid Russian airspace.
Wait for an Olympic medal goes on for Maximilian Maeder
The Straits Times
The Paris Olympics have been a test of skills, tactics and most importantly, patience for Singaporean kitefoiler Maximilian Maeder.
The 17-year-old was made to wait another day to fight for a spot on the podium after light winds resulted in the postponement of the Formula Kite final. Only one race out of up to a maximum of six was held at the Marseille Marina on Aug 8.
But the two-time world champion noted that waiting was a normal part of the sport, saying: “You come to kiting and sometimes the weather doesn’t play ball, and sometimes it just doesn’t work out.
