Myanmar's coup leader who set off a brutal civil war is set to become president
Just seven days after he made the fateful decision to launch his coup against the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi on 1 February 2021, General Min Aung Hlaing made a promise; to hold elections, and return to civilian rule, within a year, BBC reported.
It has taken him five years to fulfil that promise.
Today, the newly-elected parliament will choose him to be the next president.
Min Aung Hlaing has already stepped down as armed forces commander, as required by the constitution before he can take the post of president.
Quake hits Indonesia with 7.4 magnitude
A powerful 7.4 magnitude undersea earthquake struck northern Indonesia, damaging buildings, triggering a small tsunami, and killing at least one person on Thursday, AP reported.
According to the Disaster Management Agency to AP, Strong tremors of 10-20 seconds were felt in North Sulawesi and North Maluku, with reports of damaged homes and a church. A 70-year-old woman died in Manado, while several others were injured.
Tsunami waves up to 75cm were recorded along the Molucca Sea coast before warnings were lifted. Authorities are assessing damage as aftershocks continue including 6.2 magnitude.
NASA launches four astronauts on world's first crewed lunar mission in half a century
Four astronauts blasted off from Florida on Wednesday on NASA's Artemis II mission, a high-stakes voyage around the moon that marks the United States' boldest step yet toward returning humans to the lunar surface later this decade in a race with China, Reuters reported.
NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, topped with its Orion crew capsule, roared to life just before sunset at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, carrying its debut crew - three U.S. astronauts and a Canadian astronaut - into Earth orbit. The 32-story-tall space vehicle thundered into clear skies trailing a towering column of thick, white vapor.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the launch was an opening act for subsequent missions that would include construction of a moon base to support the "enduring presence we're trying to create on the surface."
Iranian president says in letter that Iran harbors no enmity towards ordinary Americans
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a letter addressed to the American people that his country harbors no enmity towards ordinary Americans, Press TV reported on Wednesday, Reuters reported.
He said in his letter that portraying Iran as a threat was "neither consistent with historical reality nor with present-day observable facts."
