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Gabon coup leaders name General Brice Oligui Nguema as new leader
By George Wright BBC News Army officers who seized power in a coup in Gabon on Wednesday have named General Brice Oligui Nguema as the West African state’s transitional leader. Gen Nguema was earlier carried triumphally through the streets of the capital Libreville by his troops. The deposed President, Ali Bongo, has appeared in a…
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North Korea says it simulated nuclear strike on South
By George Wright BBC News North Korea says it has fired two short-range tactical ballistic missiles to simulate nuclear strikes on military targets in South Korea. State media said the tests had been conducted as a warning against the US deployment of strategic bombers to the region. South Korea reported two missiles landing in the…
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Beekeepers to the rescue after 5 million bees fall off truck in Canada
By Nadine Yousif BBC News, Toronto Beekeeper Michael Barber woke up on Wednesday morning to several calls from police looking for help after five million bees fell off a truck in Canada. The hives were being transported when the straps holding them in place came loose, allowing them to slip free. Mr Barber said he…
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Why there’s a rush to explore the Moon’s enigmatic South Pole
India’s Chandrayaan-3 mission is already revealing new insights about the Moon’s enigmatic South Pole. Future missions to this region are planned by the US, China and Russia, so what makes it so fascinating? It’s a place where no human-made object has trundled before. Last week, however, the diminutive Pragyaan rover slid down a ramp from…
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Nerves and patriotism in Moscow after 18 months of war
By Will Vernon BBC News, Moscow Russia’s imperial past looms large over Moscow. The Kremlin walls and towers make visitors feel like tiny specks on Red Square. Five miles away, I get a similar feeling when I go to Victory Park. It is a sprawling complex of museums and memorials built to commemorate the Soviet…
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Florida takes stock in Storm Idalia’s aftermath
By Mike Wendling & John Sudworth in Hudson, Florida When the rain started to get really bad, Brent Berzett and David Hickmon sought refuge on their houseboat. Their floating home in Hudson, about an hour north of Tampa, certainly wasn’t the worst place to wait out Idalia, a major hurricane that made landfall on Florida’s…
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Is India exporting food inflation to the world?
By Nikhil Inamdar BBC News, Mumbai Erratic climate conditions – including the driest August in more than a century – have sent food prices spiralling above 11% in India, which is a major player in global agri-trade. Just as tomato prices begin cooling down, onions have gotten dearer by a quarter since June in the…
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Is China’s economy ‘a ticking time bomb’?
By Nick Marsh Asia business correspondent The past six months has brought a stream of bad news for China’s economy: slow growth, record youth unemployment, low foreign investment, weak exports and currency, and a property sector in crisis. US President Joe Biden described the world’s second-largest economy as “a ticking time bomb”, predicting growing discontent…
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Nuclear weapons testing cause of radioactivity in wild boars, study says
A new study has found that nuclear weapons tests during the Cold War are a major cause of high levels of radioactivity in central Europe’s wild boar population. The radioactivity found in wild boars has previously been blamed on the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. But the new research concludes that earlier nuclear weapons testing in the…
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What’s it like to win a trip to space?
Even a decade ago, the concept might have sounded wildly futuristic – but, if recent events are anything to go by, space tourism is becoming the latest frontier of travel. In August 2023, Virgin Galactic launched its first space flight with tourists on board. For paying customers, it cost $450,000. But for a lucky a…