India ed-tech firm Byju’s founder faces reckoning as startup implodes
NEW DELHI — Byju Raveendran, an Indian mathematics whiz who soared from teacher to startup billionaire before his education-technology company imploded this year, now faces his biggest test.
The future of Raveendran’s eponymous Byju’s online coaching firm rests with India’s courts after the country’s biggest startup, once loved by global investors who valued it at $22 billion, crashed below $2 billion in valuation.
The 44-year-old founder last week lost control of the company as a tribunal kick-started an insolvency process.
Accused of “financial mismanagement and compliance issues,” the son of a family of teachers from a small village in south India faces a reckoning that will test the ingenuity that made him a poster child for India’s startups.
His formerly high-flying company was eventually brought low when it could not pay $19 million in sponsorship dues to India’s cricket federation, prompting a tribunal to suspend Byju’s board and make Raveendran report to a court-appointed restructuring expert.
An appeals tribunal is expected to hold a hearing on Monday on whether Byju’s insolvency process should be quashed after the former billionaire argued in court his company is solvent and that insolvency could shut it down and cost the jobs of 27,000 staff, including teachers. Insolvency also would not bode well for Byju’s backers, such as Dutch technology investor Prosus.
Raveendran denies the allegations of mismanagement and wrongdoing at his firm, which has in recent months faced lawsuits over unpaid loans and boardroom battles with foreign investors that went public.
Potential insolvency is a dramatic turn of events for an entrepreneur described by one person who has worked with him as an extremely passionate and goal-oriented person who might adopt “an abrasive approach” in a crisis.
Raveendran presented a “suave, nice and polished” image, appearing to heed advice, but “eventually there was a trust deficit,” said another executive who quit last year as a Byju’s senior vice president.
“He said things are improving, don’t worry, we have the money,” the former executive said.
Raveendran and a Byju’s spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment.
Byju’s downfall: ‘Our fair share of mistakes’
An engineer by training, he started Byju’s in 2011 with physical classes after friends urged him to go into teaching.
Raveendran, who aced a premier Indian management exam “with a score of 100 percentile, not once but twice,” according to the company website, started what would become his empire with his wife Divya Gokulnath, 38, a former student of his.
In education-obsessed India, Raveendran hit gold by offering online teaching programs priced from $100 to $300. He got a mammoth boost when the COVID-19 pandemic sent students indoors. At the height of his fame in 2021, he and his wife had a net worth of $4 billion, Forbes reckoned.
Now all that is in tatters.
Behind the reversal of Byju’s meteoric success, say executives and advisers who worked with Raveendran, is that he overruled associates and expanded the business through expensive acquisitions, splurging on marketing and being slow to address problems such as sales agents adopting aggressive tactics to mis-sell courses that damaged the company’s reputation.
With the backing of investors like General Atlantic, Prosus and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s philanthropy venture, Raveendran spent millions on acquisitions, and the company says it has 150 million students in over 100 countries.
“While growing fast, as I’ve accepted multiple times, we’ve made our fair share of mistakes,” Raveendran told an interviewer last year at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As he battled crises, the CEO also said decisions to lay off some of its then-50,000 employees and slash branding expenses would help strengthen loss-making Byju’s and turn its cashflow positive.
“Every country needs a Byju’s,” he said.
…
India’s battery storage industry grows
BENGALURU, India — At a Coca-Cola factory on the outskirts of Chennai in southern India, a giant battery powers machinery day and night, replacing a diesel-spewing generator. It’s one of just a handful of sites in India powered by electricity stored in batteries, a key component to fast-tracking India’s energy transition away from dirty fuels.
The country’s lithium ion battery storage industry — which can store electricity generated by wind turbines or solar panels for when the sun isn’t shining or the wind isn’t blowing — makes up just 0.1% of global battery storage systems. But battery storage is growing fast, with around a third of India’s total battery infrastructure coming online just this year.
“Our orders are growing exponentially,” said Ayush Misra, CEO of Amperehour Energy, the company that installed the batteries at the Chennai factory. “It’s a really exciting time to be a battery storage provider.”
Businesses invest in industry
India currently has around 100 megawatts of storage capacity from batteries, with another 3.3 gigawatts of clean energy storage coming from hydropower. The Indian government estimates that the country will need about 74 gigawatts of energy storage from batteries, hydropower and nuclear energy by 2032, but experts think the country actually needs closer to double that amount to meet the country’s energy needs.
Some customers are still wary of using battery technology for storage, and the storage systems can be seen as more expensive than the more commonly used coal. The supply chain of batteries is also concentrated in China, meaning the sector is vulnerable to geopolitical volatility.
But markets don’t think customers will be hesitant about batteries for long, with major Indian businesses announcing significant investments in the industry.
In January this year, energy giant Reliance Industries said it will build a 5,000-acre factory in Jamnagar, Gujarat. And in March, Goodenough Energy said it will spend $53 million by 2027 to set up a 20 million kilowatt-hour battery factory in the northern region of Jammu and Kashmir.
Alexander Hogeveen Rutter, an independent energy analyst based in Bengaluru, said upping storage capacity should be done alongside ramping up renewables.
“Clean energy combined with adequate storage can be an alternative to coal. Not in the future but right now,” he said. He added that it’s a “myth” that clean energy is more expensive than coal, as current prices of renewable energy combined with storage is cheaper than new coal.
Global battery costs are declining faster than expected, and experts say that if costs continue to plummet, energy storage systems can better compete with both coal and clean energy sources like hydropower and nuclear energy that can also control their supply to meet demand.
“Battery storage is now the largest resource to meet California’s evening peak electricity requirements. It’s more than gas, nuclear or coal,” he said. This is being replicated in the U.K., China and even smaller nations like Tonga. “There’s no reason why this can’t happen in India too,” he said.
India’s energy needs grow
One of India’s unique challenges is that energy needs are growing more rapidly than most nations: the population is increasing and extreme heat fueled by climate change means more and more people are using energy-guzzling air conditioning. India’s electricity demand grew by 7% last year and is expected to grow by at least 6% every year for the next three years, according to the International Energy Agency.
“The country needs to quadruple its renewable energy deployment just to meet demand growth,” said Hogeveen Rutter.
Ankit Mittal, co-founder of Sheru, a software company that offers energy storage and management solutions, said that making battery storage sites more flexible can help the industry ramp up quickly.
Mittal said battery storage sites should be more accessible to the national energy grid, so they can provide electricity to whichever regions need the extra boost of energy most. Currently, battery storage sites in India only power up more local sites.
To encourage further growth of the battery sector, the Indian government announced last year a $452 million effort to support an additional four gigawatts of battery storage by 2031. But the government also provides subsidies for coal plants, making the electricity generated there a cheaper bet for some utility companies.
Future government policy could level the playing field. The country is set to announce a new national budget later in July that industry leaders hope will contain incentives for clean energy storage.
Akshat Singhal, co-founder of the Bengaluru-based battery tech startup Log 9 Materials, thinks that better government support can help the country meet growing energy demands “the right way,” with clean energy.
“One significant policy change can kickstart the entire ecosystem,” he said.
…
Australia warns of ‘malicious websites’ after cyber outage
sydney — Australia’s cyber intelligence agency said on Saturday that “malicious websites and unofficial code” were being released online claiming to aid recovery from Friday’s global digital outage, which hit media, retailers, banks and airlines.
Australia was one of many countries affected by the outage that caused havoc worldwide after a botched software update from CrowdStrike.
On Saturday, the Australian Signals Directorate — the country’s cyber intelligence agency — said “a number of malicious websites and unofficial code are being released claiming to help entities recover from the widespread outages caused by the CrowdStrike technical incident.”
On its website, the agency said its cyber security center “strongly encourages all consumers to source their technical information and updates from official CrowdStrike sources only.”
Cyber Security Minister Clare O’Neil said on social media platform X on Saturday that Australians should “be on the lookout for possible scams and phishing attempts.”
CrowdStrike — which previously reached a market cap of about $83 billion — is a major cybersecurity provider, with close to 30,000 subscribers globally.
…
How to handle deli meats as CDC investigates listeria outbreak in the US
new york — As U.S. health officials investigate a fatal outbreak of listeria food poisoning, they’re advising people who are pregnant, elderly or have compromised immune systems to avoid eating sliced deli meat unless it’s recooked at home to be steaming hot.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention didn’t mandate a food recall as of early Saturday, because it remains unclear what specific products have been contaminated with the bacteria now blamed for two deaths and 28 hospitalizations across 12 states. This means the contaminated food may still be in circulation, and consumers should consider their personal risk level when consuming deli meats.
Federal health officials warned Friday that the number of illnesses is likely an undercount, because people who recover at home aren’t likely to be tested. For the same reason, the outbreak may have spread wider than the states where listeria infections have been reported, mostly in the Midwest and along the U.S. eastern coast.
The largest number known to get sick — seven — were in New York, according to the CDC. The people who died were from Illinois and New Jersey.
What investigators have learned
Of the people investigators have been able to interview, “89% reported eating meats sliced at a deli, most commonly deli-sliced turkey, liverwurst and ham. Meats were sliced at a variety of supermarket and grocery store delis,” the CDC said.
And samples collected from victims from May 29 to July 5 show the bacteria is closely related genetically.
“This information suggests that meats sliced at the deli are a likely source of this outbreak. However, at this time CDC doesn’t have enough information to say which deli meats are the source of this outbreak,” the agency said in a statement published on its website Friday.
What to expect if you’re infected
Listeria infections typically cause fever, muscle aches and tiredness and may cause stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and convulsions. Symptoms can occur quickly or to up to 10 weeks after eating contaminated food.
It can be diagnosed by testing bodily fluids, usually blood, and sometimes urine or spinal fluid, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Listeria infections are especially dangerous for people older than 65 and those with weakened immune systems, according to the CDC. Victims of this outbreak ranged in age from 32 to 94, with a median age of 75.
For pregnant people, listeria can increase the risk of miscarriages. One of the victims of the current outbreak was pregnant, but did not have a miscarriage, officials said.
Infections confined to the gut — intestinal listeriosis — can often be treated without antibiotics according to the CDC. For example, people might need extra fluids while experiencing diarrhea.
But when the infection spreads beyond the gut — invasive listeriosis — it’s extremely dangerous and is often treated with antibiotics to mitigate the risk of blood infections and brain inflammation, according to the Mayo Clinic.
What about the meat in your fridge
So far there’s no sign that people are getting sick from prepackaged deli meats. And for at-risk people who already have deli slices in their refrigerator, they can be sanitized by being recooked.
“Refrigeration does not kill Listeria, but reheating before eating will kill any germs that may be on these meats,” the CDC says.
…
Malaysia honors new king in coronation marked by pomp
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Traditional pomp and cannon fire Saturday marked the coronation of Malaysia’s billionaire King Sultan Ibrahim Iskandar, who pledged to govern fairly during the five-year term he will serve under a unique rotating monarchy system.
Ibrahim, 65, was sworn in on January 31. Saturday’s coronation at the national palace formalized his role as Malaysia’s 17th king in a ceremony steeped in Malay culture and pageantry.
Nine ethnic Malay state rulers take turns as Malaysia’s king for five-year terms under the country’s rotating monarchy, which began when Malaysia gained independence from Britain in 1957. Malaysia has 13 states but only nine have royal families, some which trace their roots to centuries-old Malay kingdoms that were independent states until they were brought together by the British.
Donned in black and gold traditional ceremonial outfit and headgear, Ibrahim and Queen Raja Zarith Sofiah were greeted by military salute before they proceeded to the throne. The heads of the other royal families, Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah and Bahrain King Hamad Isa al Khalifa were seated on a stage beside the throne.
At the start of the proceedings, a copy of the Quran was presented to Ibrahim, who kissed it. The monarch received a gold dagger, a symbol of power. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim then pledged his government’s loyalty and said the royal institution was a pillar of strength for the nation. He then proclaimed Ibrahim as Malaysia’s new king.
“God willing, I will discharge my duties faithfully and honestly, and to rule fairly,” Ibrahim said in his coronation speech. He also urged Anwar’s government to step up efforts to improve the livelihood of the people and bolster the nation’s development. After the sultan took his oath, guests in the hall chanted “Long live the king” three times.
Ibrahim, from southern Johor state bordering Singapore, is one of the country’s richest men, with a business empire spanning from telecoms to real estate. He is known for his collection of luxury cars and motorbikes and is the only state ruler with a small private army — a concession granted to his state when it joined modern-day Malaysia.
He is vocal about Malaysian politics and has spoken out about corruption and racial discrimination.
Known as the Yang Di-Pertuan Agong, or He Who Is Made Lord, the king plays a largely ceremonial role, with administrative power vested in the prime minister and Parliament. The monarch is the nominal head of the government and armed forces and is regarded as the protector of Islam and Malay tradition.
All laws, Cabinet appointments and the dissolution of Parliament for general elections require his formal assent. The king has the power to proclaim an emergency and pardon criminals.
…
Airlines resume services after global IT crash wreaks havoc
Paris — Airlines were gradually coming back online Saturday after global carriers, banks and financial institutions were thrown into turmoil by one of the biggest IT crashes in recent years, caused by an update to an antivirus program.
Passenger crowds had swelled at airports Friday to wait for news as dozens of flights were canceled and operators struggled to keep services on track, after an update to a program operating on Microsoft Windows crashed systems worldwide.
Multiple U.S. airlines and airports across Asia said they were now resuming operations, with check-in services restored in Hong Kong, South Korea and Thailand, and mostly back to normal in India and Indonesia and at Singapore’s Changi Airport as of Saturday afternoon.
“The check-in systems have come back to normal [at Thailand’s five major airports]. There are no long queues at the airports as we experienced yesterday,” Airports of Thailand President Keerati Kitmanawat told reporters at Don Mueang airport in Bangkok.
Microsoft said the issue began at 1900 GMT on Thursday, affecting Windows users running the CrowdStrike Falcon cybersecurity software.
CrowdStrike said it had rolled out a fix for the problem, and the company’s boss, George Kurtz, told U.S. news channel CNBC he wanted to “personally apologize to every organization, every group and every person who has been impacted.”
It also said it could take a few days to return to normal.
U.S. President Joe Biden’s team was talking to CrowdStrike and those affected by the glitch “and is standing by to provide assistance as needed,” the White House said in a statement.
“Our understanding is that flight operations have resumed across the country, although some congestion remains,” a senior US administration official said.
Other industries
Reports from the Netherlands and Britain suggested health services might have been affected by the disruption, meaning the full impact might not yet be known.
Media companies were also hit, with Britain’s Sky News saying the glitch had ended its Friday morning news broadcasts, and Australia’s ABC similarly reporting major difficulties.
By Saturday, services in Australia had mostly returned to normal, but Sydney Airport was still reporting flight delays.
Australian authorities warned of an increase in scam and phishing attempts following the outage, including people offering to help reboot computers and asking for personal information or credit card details.
Banks in Kenya and Ukraine reported issues with their digital services, while some mobile phone carriers were disrupted and customer services in a number of companies went down.
“The scale of this outage is unprecedented and will no doubt go down in history,” said Junade Ali of Britain’s Institution of Engineering and Technology, adding that the last incident approaching the same scale was in 2017.
Flight chaos
While some airports halted all flights, in others airline staff resorted to manual check-ins for passengers, leading to long lines and frustrated travelers.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration initially ordered all flights grounded “regardless of destination,” although airlines later said they were reestablishing their services and working through the backlog.
India’s largest airline, Indigo, said operations had been “resolved,” in a statement posted on social media platform X.
“While the outage has been resolved and our systems are back online, we are diligently working to resume normal operations, and we expect this process to extend into the weekend,” the carrier said Saturday.
A passenger told AFP that the situation was returning to normal at Delhi Airport by midnight on Saturday with only slight delays in international flights.
Low-cost carrier AirAsia said it was still trying to get back online and had been “working around the clock toward recovering its departure control systems” after the global outage. It recommended passengers arrive early at airports and be ready for “manual check-in” at airline counters.
Chinese state media said Beijing’s airports had not been affected.
In Europe, major airports, including Berlin’s, which had suspended all flights earlier on Friday, said departures and arrivals were resuming.
‘Common cause’
Companies were left patching up their systems and trying to assess the damage, even as officials tried to tamp down panic by ruling out foul play.
CrowdStrike’s Kurtz said in a statement his teams were “fully mobilized” to help affected customers and “a fix has been deployed.”
But Oli Buckley, a professor at Britain’s Loughborough University, was one of many experts who questioned the ease of rolling out a proper fix.
“While experienced users can implement the workaround, expecting millions to do so is impractical,” he said.
Other experts said the incident should prompt a widespread reconsideration of how reliant societies are on a handful of tech companies for such an array of services.
“We need to be aware that such software can be a common cause of failure for multiple systems at the same time,” said John McDermid, a professor at York University in Britain.
He said infrastructure should be designed “to be resilient against such common cause problems.”
…
Back to the Moon – Part 2
After the Apollo program ended, the US took a long hiatus from lunar exploration. What happened during this time, and what has NASA been doing? This documentary by the Voice of America’s Russian service focuses on the details of the NASA’s Artemis program and plans to further explore the Moon and Mars.
…
Microsoft users worldwide report widespread outages affecting banks, airlines, broadcasters
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Microsoft users worldwide, including banks and airlines, reported widespread outages on Friday, hours after the technology company said it was gradually fixing an issue affecting access to Microsoft 365 apps and services.
The cause, exact nature and scale of the outage was unclear. Microsoft appeared to suggest in its X posts that the situation was improving but escalating outages were still being reported around the world hours later.
The website DownDectector, which tracks user-reported internet outages, recorded growing outages in services at Visa, ADT security and Amazon, and airlines including American Airlines and Delta.
News outlets in Australia reported that airlines, telecommunications providers and banks, and media broadcasters were disrupted as they lost access to computer systems. Some New Zealand banks said they were also offline.
Microsoft 365 posted on X that the company was “working on rerouting the impacted traffic to alternate systems to alleviate impact in a more expedient fashion” and that they were “observing a positive trend in service availability.”
The company did not respond to a request for comment. It did not explain the cause of the outage further.
Australian outages reported on the site included the banks NAB, Commonwealth and Bendigo, and the airlines Virgin Australia and Qantas, as well as internet and phone providers such as Telstra.
News outlets in Australia — including the ABC and Sky News — were unable to broadcast on their TV and radio channels, and reported sudden shutdowns of Windows-based computers.
An X user posted a screenshot of an alert from the company Crowdstrike that said the company was aware of “reports of crashes on Windows hosts” related to its Falcon Sensor platform. The alert was posted on a password-protected Crowdstrike site and could not be verified. Crowdstrike did not respond to a request for comment.
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Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6
Your self-expression tool, Galaxy Z Flip6, is more compact and eye-catching, with Galaxy AI and a pro-level 50MP camera.
Processor:
CPU Speed 3.39GHz, 3.1GHz, 2.9GHz, 2.2GHz, CPU Type: Octa-Core;
Display:
Size (Main_Display): 170.3mm (6.7″ full rectangle) / 166.4mm (6.6″ rounded corners)
Resolution (Main Display): 2640 x 1080 (FHD+); Technology (Main Display): Dynamic AMOLED 2X;
Color Depth (Main Display): 16M; Max Refresh Rate (Main Display): 120 Hz; Size (Sub_Display):
86.1mm (3.4″ full rectangle) / 83.2mm (3.3″ rounded corners); Resolution (Sub Display): 720 x 748
Technology (Sub Display): Super AMOLED; Color Depth (Sub Display): 16M;
Camera:
Rear Camera – Resolution (Multiple): 50.0 MP + 12.0 MP, Rear Camera – F Number (Multiple):
F1.8 , F2.2, Rear Camera – Auto Focus: Yes, Rear Camera – OIS: Yes, Rear Camera – Zoom,
Optical quality Zoom 2x (Enabled by Adaptive Pixel sensor) , Digital Zoom up to 10x, Front Camera – Resolution: 10.0 MP, Front Camera – F Number: F2.2, Front Camera – Auto Focus: No, Rear Camera – Flash:
Yes, Video Recording Resolution: UHD 4K (3840 x 2160)@60fps, Slow Motion: 240fps @FHD, 120fps @FHD;
Storage/Memory:
Memory_(GB): 12, Storage (GB): 256, Available Storage (GB): 227.7;
Network/Bearer:
Number of SIM: Dual-SIM, SIM Slot Type: SIM 1 + eSIM / Dual eSIM, Infra: 2G GSM, 3G WCDMA, 4G LTE FDD, 4G LTE TDD, 5G Sub6 FDD, 5G Sub6 TDD, 5G Sub6 SDL, 2G GSM GSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900 3G UMTS
B1(2100), B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B8(900) 4G FDD LTE B1(2100), B2(1900), B3(1800), B4(AWS), B5(850), B7(2600), B8(900), B12(700), B13(700), B17(700), B18(800), B19(800), B20(800), B25(1900), B26(850), B28(700), B32(1500), B66(AWS-3) 4G TDD LTE B38(2600), B39(1900), B40(2300), B41(2500)
5G FDD Sub6 N1(2100), N2(1900), N3(1800), N5(850), N7(2600), N8(900), N12(700), N20(800), N25(1900), N26(850), N28(700), N66(AWS-3) 5G TDD Sub6 N38(2600), N40(2300), N41(2500), N77(3700), N78(3500)
5G SDL Sub6 N75(1500+)
Connectivity:
USB Interface, USB Type-C, USB Version, USB 3.2 Gen 1, Location Technology: GPS, Glonass, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS; Earjack: USB Type-C, MHL: No, Wi-Fi: 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax 2.4GHz+5GHz+6GHz, HE160, MIMO, 1024-QAM, Wi-Fi Direct: Yes, Bluetooth Version: Bluetooth v5.3, NFC: Yes, PC Sync. Smart Switch (PC version);
OS: Android;
General Information: Form Factor Flip;
Sensors:
Accelerometer, Barometer, Fingerprint Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Geomagnetic Sensor, Hall Sensor, Light Sensor, Proximity Sensor;
Physical specification:
Dimension (HxWxD, mm): 165.1 x 71.9 x 6.9, Dimension when folded (HxWxD, mm): 85.1 x 71.9 x 14.9,
Weight (g): 187;
Battery:
Internet Usage Time(LTE) (Hours): Up to 19, Internet Usage Time(Wi-Fi) (Hours): Up to 20,
Video Playback Time (Hours, Wireless): Up to 23, Battery Capacity (mAh, Typical): 4000, Removable: No,
Audio Playback Time (Hours, Wireless): Up to 68;
Audio and Video:
Stereo Support: Yes, Video Playing Format: MP4, M4V, 3GP, 3G2, AVI, FLV, MKV, WEBM,
Video Playing Resolution: UHD 8K (7680 x 4320)@60fps, Audio Playing Format: MP3, M4A, 3GA, AAC, OGG, OGA, WAV, AMR, AWB, FLAC, MID, MIDI, XMF, MXMF, IMY, RTTTL, RTX, OTA, DFF, DSF, APE;
Services and Applications:
Gear Support: Galaxy Ring, Galaxy Buds3 Pro, Galaxy Buds2 Pro, Galaxy Buds Pro, Galaxy Buds Live, Galaxy Buds+, Galaxy Buds3, Galaxy Buds2, Galaxy Buds, Galaxy Buds FE, Galaxy Fit3, Galaxy Fit2, Galaxy Fit e, Galaxy Fit, Galaxy Watch FE, Galaxy Watch Ultra, Galaxy Watch7, Galaxy Watch6, Galaxy Watch5, Galaxy Watch4, Galaxy Watch3, Galaxy Watch, Galaxy Watch Active2, Galaxy Watch Active
Samsung DeX Support: No
Bluetooth® Hearing Aid Support: Android Audio Streaming for Hearing Aid(ASHA)
SmartThings Support: Yes
Mobile TV: No
More information here
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Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6
Your self-expression tool, Galaxy Z Flip6, is more compact and eye-catching, with Galaxy AI and a pro-level 50MP camera.
Processor:
CPU Speed 3.39GHz, 3.1GHz, 2.9GHz, 2.2GHz, CPU Type: Octa-Core;
Display:
Size (Main_Display): 170.3mm (6.7″ full rectangle) / 166.4mm (6.6″ rounded corners)
Resolution (Main Display): 2640 x 1080 (FHD+); Technology (Main Display): Dynamic AMOLED 2X;
Color Depth (Main Display): 16M; Max Refresh Rate (Main Display): 120 Hz; Size (Sub_Display):
86.1mm (3.4″ full rectangle) / 83.2mm (3.3″ rounded corners); Resolution (Sub Display): 720 x 748
Technology (Sub Display): Super AMOLED; Color Depth (Sub Display): 16M;
Camera:
Rear Camera – Resolution (Multiple): 50.0 MP + 12.0 MP, Rear Camera – F Number (Multiple):
F1.8 , F2.2, Rear Camera – Auto Focus: Yes, Rear Camera – OIS: Yes, Rear Camera – Zoom,
Optical quality Zoom 2x (Enabled by Adaptive Pixel sensor) , Digital Zoom up to 10x, Front Camera – Resolution: 10.0 MP, Front Camera – F Number: F2.2, Front Camera – Auto Focus: No, Rear Camera – Flash:
Yes, Video Recording Resolution: UHD 4K (3840 x 2160)@60fps, Slow Motion: 240fps @FHD, 120fps @FHD;
Storage/Memory:
Memory_(GB): 12, Storage (GB): 256, Available Storage (GB): 227.7;
Network/Bearer:
Number of SIM: Dual-SIM, SIM Slot Type: SIM 1 + eSIM / Dual eSIM, Infra: 2G GSM, 3G WCDMA, 4G LTE FDD, 4G LTE TDD, 5G Sub6 FDD, 5G Sub6 TDD, 5G Sub6 SDL, 2G GSM GSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900 3G UMTS
B1(2100), B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B8(900) 4G FDD LTE B1(2100), B2(1900), B3(1800), B4(AWS), B5(850), B7(2600), B8(900), B12(700), B13(700), B17(700), B18(800), B19(800), B20(800), B25(1900), B26(850), B28(700), B32(1500), B66(AWS-3) 4G TDD LTE B38(2600), B39(1900), B40(2300), B41(2500)
5G FDD Sub6 N1(2100), N2(1900), N3(1800), N5(850), N7(2600), N8(900), N12(700), N20(800), N25(1900), N26(850), N28(700), N66(AWS-3) 5G TDD Sub6 N38(2600), N40(2300), N41(2500), N77(3700), N78(3500)
5G SDL Sub6 N75(1500+)
Connectivity:
USB Interface, USB Type-C, USB Version, USB 3.2 Gen 1, Location Technology: GPS, Glonass, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS; Earjack: USB Type-C, MHL: No, Wi-Fi: 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax 2.4GHz+5GHz+6GHz, HE160, MIMO, 1024-QAM, Wi-Fi Direct: Yes, Bluetooth Version: Bluetooth v5.3, NFC: Yes, PC Sync. Smart Switch (PC version);
OS: Android;
General Information: Form Factor Flip;
Sensors:
Accelerometer, Barometer, Fingerprint Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Geomagnetic Sensor, Hall Sensor, Light Sensor, Proximity Sensor;
Physical specification:
Dimension (HxWxD, mm): 165.1 x 71.9 x 6.9, Dimension when folded (HxWxD, mm): 85.1 x 71.9 x 14.9,
Weight (g): 187;
Battery:
Internet Usage Time(LTE) (Hours): Up to 19, Internet Usage Time(Wi-Fi) (Hours): Up to 20,
Video Playback Time (Hours, Wireless): Up to 23, Battery Capacity (mAh, Typical): 4000, Removable: No,
Audio Playback Time (Hours, Wireless): Up to 68;
Audio and Video:
Stereo Support: Yes, Video Playing Format: MP4, M4V, 3GP, 3G2, AVI, FLV, MKV, WEBM,
Video Playing Resolution: UHD 8K (7680 x 4320)@60fps, Audio Playing Format: MP3, M4A, 3GA, AAC, OGG, OGA, WAV, AMR, AWB, FLAC, MID, MIDI, XMF, MXMF, IMY, RTTTL, RTX, OTA, DFF, DSF, APE;
Services and Applications:
Gear Support: Galaxy Ring, Galaxy Buds3 Pro, Galaxy Buds2 Pro, Galaxy Buds Pro, Galaxy Buds Live, Galaxy Buds+, Galaxy Buds3, Galaxy Buds2, Galaxy Buds, Galaxy Buds FE, Galaxy Fit3, Galaxy Fit2, Galaxy Fit e, Galaxy Fit, Galaxy Watch FE, Galaxy Watch Ultra, Galaxy Watch7, Galaxy Watch6, Galaxy Watch5, Galaxy Watch4, Galaxy Watch3, Galaxy Watch, Galaxy Watch Active2, Galaxy Watch Active
Samsung DeX Support: No
Bluetooth® Hearing Aid Support: Android Audio Streaming for Hearing Aid(ASHA)
SmartThings Support: Yes
Mobile TV: No
More information here
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Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6
Put PC-like power in your pocket, Galaxy Z Fold6. More powerful than ever with its super-slim, productive, super-charged with Galaxy AI on foldables.
Specification:
Colours: Silver Shadow, Pink, Navy, Crafted Black, White;
Processor: CPU Speed: 3.39GHz, 3.1GHz, 2.9GHz, 2.2GHz, CPU Type: Octa-Core;
Display:
Size (Main_Display): 193.2mm (7.6″ full rectangle) / 192.5mm (7.6″ rounded corners), Resolution (Main Display): 2160 x 1856 (QXGA+), Technology (Main Display): Dynamic AMOLED 2X, Color Depth (Main Display):
16M, Max Refresh Rate (Main Display): 120 Hz, Size (Sub_Display): 158.9mm (6.3″ full rectangle) / 158.1mm (6.2″ rounded corners), Resolution (Sub Display): 968 x 2376 (HD+), Technology (Sub Display): Dynamic AMOLED 2X, Color Depth (Sub Display): 16M;
S Pen Support: Yes;
Camera:
Rear Camera – Resolution (Multiple): 50.0 MP + 12.0 MP + 10.0 MP, Rear Camera – F Number (Multiple):
F1.8 , F2.2 , F2.4, Rear Camera – Auto Focus: Yes, Rear Camera – OIS: Yes, Rear Camera – Zoom,
Optical Zoom 3x, Optical quality Zoom 2x (Enabled by Adaptive Pixel sensor) , Digital Zoom up to 30x
Under Display Camera – Resolution: 4.0 MP, Under Display Camera – F Number: F1.8, Under Display Camera – Auto Focus: No, Under Display Camera – OIS: No, Rear Camera – Flash: Yes, Cover Camera – Resolution:
10.0 MP, Cover Camera – F Number: F2.2, Cover Camera – Auto Focus: No, Video Recording Resolution: UHD 8K (7680 x 4320)@30fps, Slow Motion: 240fps @FHD, 120fps @FHD, 120fps @UHD;
Storage/Memory:
Memory_(GB): 12, Storage (GB): 256, Available Storage (GB): 229.2;
Network/Bearer:
Number of SIM: Dual-SIM, SIM size: Nano-SIM (4FF), Embedded-SIM, SIM Slot Type: SIM 1 + SIM 2 / SIM 1 + eSIM / Dual eSIM, Infra: 2G GSM, 3G WCDMA, 4G LTE FDD, 4G LTE TDD, 5G Sub6 FDD, 5G Sub6 TDD, 5G Sub6 SDL
2G GSM, GSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900, 3G UMTS: B1(2100), B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B8(900)
4G FDD LTE, B1(2100), B2(1900), B3(1800), B4(AWS), B5(850), B7(2600), B8(900), B12(700), B13(700), B17(700), B18(800), B19(800), B20(800), B25(1900), B26(850), B28(700), B32(1500), B66(AWS-3)
4G TDD LTE, B38(2600), B39(1900), B40(2300), B41(2500), 5G FDD Sub6, N1(2100), N2(1900), N3(1800), N5(850), N7(2600), N8(900), N12(700), N20(800), N25(1900), N26(850), N28(700), N66(AWS-3), 5G TDD Sub6
N38(2600), N40(2300), N41(2500), N77(3700), N78(3500), 5G SDL Sub6, N75(1500+);
Connectivity:
USB Interface: USB Type-C, USB Version: USB 3.2 Gen 1, Location Technology: GPS, Glonass, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS, Earjack: USB Type-C, MHL: No, Wi-Fi: 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax 2.4GHz+5GHz+6GHz, HE160, MIMO, 1024-QAM, Wi-Fi Direct: Yes, Bluetooth Version: Bluetooth v5.3, NFC: Yes, UWB (Ultra-Wideband): Yes,
PC Sync.: Smart Switch (PC version);
OS: Android;
General Information: Form Factor: Folder;
Sensors:
Accelerometer, Barometer, Fingerprint Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Geomagnetic Sensor, Hall Sensor, Light Sensor, Proximity Sensor;
Physical specification:
Dimension (HxWxD, mm): 153.5 x 132.6 x 5.6, Dimension when folded (HxWxD, mm): 153.5 x 68.1 x 12.1,
Weight (g): 239;
Battery:
Internet Usage Time(LTE) (Hours): Up to 18, Internet Usage Time(Wi-Fi) (Hours): Up to 18, Video Playback Time (Hours, Wireless): Up to 23, Battery Capacity (mAh, Typical): 4400, Removable: No, Audio Playback Time (Hours, Wireless): Up to 77;
Audio and Video:
Stereo Support: Yes, Video Playing Format: MP4, M4V, 3GP, 3G2, AVI, FLV, MKV, WEBM, Video Playing Resolution: UHD 8K (7680 x 4320)@60fps, Audio Playing Format: MP3, M4A, 3GA, AAC, OGG, OGA, WAV, AMR, AWB, FLAC, MID, MIDI, XMF, MXMF, IMY, RTTTL, RTX, OTA, DFF, DSF, APE;
Services and Applications:
Gear Support: Galaxy Ring, Galaxy Buds3 Pro, Galaxy Buds2 Pro, Galaxy Buds Pro, Galaxy Buds Live, Galaxy Buds+, Galaxy Buds3, Galaxy Buds2, Galaxy Buds, Galaxy Buds FE, Galaxy Fit3, Galaxy Fit2, Galaxy Fit e, Galaxy Fit, Galaxy Watch FE, Galaxy Watch Ultra, Galaxy Watch7, Galaxy Watch6, Galaxy Watch5, Galaxy Watch4, Galaxy Watch3, Galaxy Watch, Galaxy Watch Active2, Galaxy Watch Active,
Samsung DeX Support: Yes, Bluetooth® Hearing Aid Support: Android Audio Streaming for Hearing Aid(ASHA)
SmartThings Support: Yes, Mobile TV: No.
More information here
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Actor Bob Newhart, famous for deadpan humor, dies at 94
LOS ANGELES — Bob Newhart, who fled the tedium of an accounting job to become a master of stammering, deadpan humor as a standup comedian and later as a U.S. television sitcom star, died on Thursday at the age of 94, his publicist said.
Newhart died at his home in Los Angeles after a series of short illnesses, said his longtime publicist, Jerry Digney.
Newhart had two hit shows — first playing a psychologist on “The Bob Newhart Show” from 1972 to 1978, and then portraying a Vermont innkeeper on “Newhart” from 1982 through 1990. In both shows he relied on a bland, cardigan-clad everyman character who is confounded by the oddball people around him.
Newhart was nominated for Emmy Awards nine times, beginning in 1962 for writing on his short-lived variety show, but he did not win until 2013 when he was given the award for a guest appearance on “The Big Bang Theory.”
Newhart’s career began in the late 1950s, with a comedy routine in which he played straight man to an unheard voice on the other end of a telephone call. Tommy Smothers of the Smothers Brothers duo called Newhart “a one-man comedy team” because of his dialogues with invisible partners.
His 1960 live album, “The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart,” was a big hit that was also highly influential. It became the first comedy album to top the charts and earned him three Grammy awards.
Newhart’s characters had a trademark stammer, which he said was not an act but the way he really talked. He said a TV producer once asked him to cut down on the stammer because it was making the shows run too long.
“‘No,’ I told him. ‘That stammer bought me a house in Beverly Hills,'” Newhart wrote in his memoir, “I Shouldn’t Even Be Doing This!”
He ended his “Newhart” show in 1990 with an episode regarded as one of the most unique in the annals of U.S. television. In the last scene of the series, he awakens in bed with his wife from the first series after “dreaming” his life in the second series.
Newhart sprung from an era of angry, edgy standup comics such as Lenny Bruce, Shelley Berman and Mort Sahl, but his act was subtly subversive, without the profanity or shock used by his contemporaries.
He exploited his hesitant, bashful ordinariness to skewer society in his own fashion — including sketches about how a publicity agent would “handle” Abraham Lincoln or one featuring an inept official on the phone with a frantic man trying to defuse a bomb.
In the late 1950s, Newhart had a boring accounting job — in which he claimed that his credo was “that’s close enough” — and began writing comedy sketches with a colleague as a diversion.
Those led to radio performances and eventually a record deal with Warner Bros.
“Probably the best advice I ever got in my life was from the head of the accounting department, Mr. Hutchinson, I believe, at the Glidden Company in Chicago, and he told me, ‘You really aren’t cut out for accounting,'” Newhart told an interviewer.
Before winning an Emmy in 2013, Newhart had been nominated three times for his acting on “Newhart,” once for writing on his 1961 variety show and twice for appearances on other shows. He also was a frequent guest on variety shows and talk shows.
He appeared in several movies, including “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever,” “Catch-22” and “Elf.”
In 2002, he was awarded the Kennedy Center’s Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Asked by the New York Times in 2019 whether he felt 90 years old, Newhart said, “My mind doesn’t. I can’t turn it off.”
Newhart was introduced by comedian Buddy Hackett to his future wife, Virginia, whom he married in 1964. The Newharts had four children.
…
Actor Bob Newhart, famous for deadpan humor, dies at 94
LOS ANGELES — Bob Newhart, who fled the tedium of an accounting job to become a master of stammering, deadpan humor as a standup comedian and later as a U.S. television sitcom star, died on Thursday at the age of 94, his publicist said.
Newhart died at his home in Los Angeles after a series of short illnesses, said his longtime publicist, Jerry Digney.
Newhart had two hit shows — first playing a psychologist on “The Bob Newhart Show” from 1972 to 1978, and then portraying a Vermont innkeeper on “Newhart” from 1982 through 1990. In both shows he relied on a bland, cardigan-clad everyman character who is confounded by the oddball people around him.
Newhart was nominated for Emmy Awards nine times, beginning in 1962 for writing on his short-lived variety show, but he did not win until 2013 when he was given the award for a guest appearance on “The Big Bang Theory.”
Newhart’s career began in the late 1950s, with a comedy routine in which he played straight man to an unheard voice on the other end of a telephone call. Tommy Smothers of the Smothers Brothers duo called Newhart “a one-man comedy team” because of his dialogues with invisible partners.
His 1960 live album, “The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart,” was a big hit that was also highly influential. It became the first comedy album to top the charts and earned him three Grammy awards.
Newhart’s characters had a trademark stammer, which he said was not an act but the way he really talked. He said a TV producer once asked him to cut down on the stammer because it was making the shows run too long.
“‘No,’ I told him. ‘That stammer bought me a house in Beverly Hills,'” Newhart wrote in his memoir, “I Shouldn’t Even Be Doing This!”
He ended his “Newhart” show in 1990 with an episode regarded as one of the most unique in the annals of U.S. television. In the last scene of the series, he awakens in bed with his wife from the first series after “dreaming” his life in the second series.
Newhart sprung from an era of angry, edgy standup comics such as Lenny Bruce, Shelley Berman and Mort Sahl, but his act was subtly subversive, without the profanity or shock used by his contemporaries.
He exploited his hesitant, bashful ordinariness to skewer society in his own fashion — including sketches about how a publicity agent would “handle” Abraham Lincoln or one featuring an inept official on the phone with a frantic man trying to defuse a bomb.
In the late 1950s, Newhart had a boring accounting job — in which he claimed that his credo was “that’s close enough” — and began writing comedy sketches with a colleague as a diversion.
Those led to radio performances and eventually a record deal with Warner Bros.
“Probably the best advice I ever got in my life was from the head of the accounting department, Mr. Hutchinson, I believe, at the Glidden Company in Chicago, and he told me, ‘You really aren’t cut out for accounting,'” Newhart told an interviewer.
Before winning an Emmy in 2013, Newhart had been nominated three times for his acting on “Newhart,” once for writing on his 1961 variety show and twice for appearances on other shows. He also was a frequent guest on variety shows and talk shows.
He appeared in several movies, including “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever,” “Catch-22” and “Elf.”
In 2002, he was awarded the Kennedy Center’s Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Asked by the New York Times in 2019 whether he felt 90 years old, Newhart said, “My mind doesn’t. I can’t turn it off.”
Newhart was introduced by comedian Buddy Hackett to his future wife, Virginia, whom he married in 1964. The Newharts had four children.
…
Recent outages highlight need for stronger African internet
Nairobi, Kenya — Experts say Africa needs to invest in robust infrastructure if the continent is to have reliable internet after recent outages due to underwater cable failures highlighted the continent’s reliance on single-path connectivity.
Disruptions in March and May caused online banking problems and communication delays. Businesses experienced interruptions in many countries.
In March, on the Atlantic coast of West Africa, four submarine cables that deliver the internet to at least 17 countries went offline.
Less than two months later, Eastern and Southern Africa experienced outages after two undersea cables were damaged. In Tanzania, the U.S. Embassy in Dar es Salaam closed for two days due to the disruption.
Ben Gumo, a Kenyan who relies on the internet to sell clothes, shoes and children’s wares, said he lost business during the May disruption.
“Someone … puts stuff in the [online] basket, but because of the outage he cannot complete the sale, so he cancels,” Gumo said, adding that he couldn’t update his website with new products.
According to the telecommunications research company Telegeography, over 100 cable cuts occur globally each year. Experts blame undersea volcanic activity, rock falls, recent rainfall and currents in rivers that are much stronger than when some of the cables were built.
Manmade activities also cause disruptions. According to one report, a ship was attacked in the Red Sea and drifted, its anchor pulling up three underwater cables.
Mike Last works with the West Indian Ocean Cable Company, which operates in 20 African countries and has built 36 data centers. He said recent disruptions prompted government officials and businesspeople to recognize the need for better internet infrastructure.
“What it made people realize is that you have to invest in a reliable network, you have to invest in redundancy,” Last said, meaning that internet service is provided by more than one source. “We’ve seen a real boom in clients coming to us wanting connectivity on the new subsea systems.”
Some countries can stay online when one internet source is cut off, although service is often slow and not stable, because service providers and telecommunication carriers invested in more than one international connection.
According to the World Bank, sub-Saharan Africa’s digital infrastructure coverage, access and quality are far behind those of other regions.
However, Africa is embracing the digital future. According to the Submarine Cable Networks, 37 countries have at least one subsea cable connection, and 20 countries have more than two subsea cables.
Last said cables planned by Google and Meta will improve connectivity.
One of the new cables, he said, has a high capacity. Another new cable — named 2Africa and led by Meta, the parent company of Facebook — is being built all the way around Africa.
“It brings a lot of capacity to Africa, and that will help,” Last said.
Experts warn that disparities in connectivity across Africa are expected, but that the development of infrastructure, government policies and private sector investments can accelerate growth.
…
Russia, China taking space into dangerous territory, US says
Washington — Russia and China are edging ever closer to unleashing space-based weapons, a decision that could have far-reaching implications for America’s ability to defend itself, U.S. military and intelligence agencies warn.
Adding to the concern, they say, is what appears to be a growing willingness by both countries to set aside long-running suspicions and animosity in order to gain an edge over the United States.
“I would highlight … the increasing amount in intent to use counterspace capabilities,” said Lieutenant General Jeff Kruse, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency.
“Both Russia and China view the use of space early on, even ahead of conflict, as important capabilities to deter or to compel behaviors,” Kruse told the annual Aspen Security Forum on Wednesday. “We just need to be ready.”
Concerns about the safety of space surged earlier this year when House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner called for the declassification of “all information” related to what was described as a new Russian anti-satellite capability involving nuclear weapons.
More recently, Turner has warned that the U.S. is “sleepwalking” into a disaster, saying that Russia is on the verge of being able to detonate a nuclear weapon in space, which would impose high costs on the U.S. military and economy.
The White House has responded repeatedly that U.S. officials have been aware of the Russian plans, and that Moscow has not yet deployed a space-based nuclear capability.
It is a stance that Kruse reaffirmed Wednesday, with added caution.
“We have been tracking for almost a decade Russia’s intent to design the ability to put a nuclear weapon in space,” he said. “They have progressed down to a point where we think they’re getting close.”
The Russians “don’t intend to slow down, and until there’s repercussions, will not slow down,” he said.
Russian and Chinese officials have yet to respond to VOA’s requests for reaction to the latest U.S. accusations, but both countries have repeatedly denied U.S. criticisms of their space policies.
In May, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov dismissed U.S. concerns about Moscow trying to put nuclear weapons in space as “fake news.”
But the Chinese Embassy in Washington, while admitting there are some “difficulties” when it comes to China-U.S. relations in space, rejected any suggestion Beijing is acting belligerently in space.
“China always advocates the peaceful use of outer space, opposes weaponizing space or an arms race in space and works actively toward the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind in space,” spokesperson Liu Pengyu told VOA in an email.
“The U.S. has been weaving a narrative about the so-called threat posed by China in outer space in an attempt to justify its own military buildup to seek space hegemony,” Liu said. “It is just another illustration of how the U.S. clings on to the Cold War mentality and deflects responsibility.”
Despite Beijing’s public posture, the Defense Intelligence Agency’s Kruse suggested Wednesday that China’s rapid expansion into the space domain is just as worrisome.
“They’re in multiple orbits that they did not used to be before,” he told the audience in Aspen, Colorado, warning that Beijing has already invested heavily in directed energy weapons, electronic warfare capabilities and anti-satellite technology.
“China is the one country that more so even than the United States has a space doctrine, a space strategy, and they train and exercise the use of space and counterspace capabilities in a way that we just don’t see elsewhere,” he said.
The general in charge of U.S. Space Command described the Chinese threat in even starker terms.
“China is building a kill web, if you will, in space,” said General Stephen Whiting, speaking alongside Kruse at the Aspen conference.
“In the last six years, they’ve tripled the number of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance satellites they have on orbit — hundreds and hundreds of satellites, again, purpose built and designed to find, fix, track target and, yes, potentially engage U.S. and allied forces across the Indo-Pacific,” he said.
Whiting also raised concerns about the lack of clear military communication with China about space.
“We want to have a way to talk to them about space safety as they put more satellites on orbit,” he said, “so that we can operate effectively and don’t have any miscommunication or unintended actions that cause a misunderstanding.”
…
Iran’s Shiite Muslims mark Ashoura with mourning, processions
TEHRAN, Iran — Iranian Shiite Muslims on Tuesday commemorated Ashoura, a remembrance of the 7th century martyrdom of the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, Hussein, that gave birth to their faith.
More than 1,340 years after Hussein’s death, Tehran and other cities across the country were adorned with symbols of Shiite piety and repentance. Red flags represented Hussein’s blood, black funeral tents and clothes indicated mourning, and processions of chest-beating and self-flagellating men expressed fervor. Some sprayed water over the mourners in the intense heat.
Iranian state TV reported that 6 million Iranian pilgrims traveled to the Iraqi city of Karbala, where Hussein is entombed in a gold-domed shrine, and broadcast live images of the procession.
Many Shiite Muslims across the Middle East commemorated Ashoura on Tuesday.
In the Omani capital of Muscat, a shooting at a Shiite mosque killed four people and wounded dozens on Tuesday. Iran’s foreign ministry condemned the attack.
Shiites represent more than 10% of the world’s 1.8 billion Muslims and view Hussein as the rightful successor to the Prophet Muhammad. Hussein’s death in battle at the hands of Sunnis at Karbala, south of Baghdad, ingrained a deep rift in Islam and continues to play a key role in shaping Shiite identity.
…
Germany says it saw fewer security problems than expected during Euro 2024
BERLIN — German authorities had fewer security problems and crimes to deal with than they expected at the European Championship, the country’s top security official said Monday.
The tournament ended on Sunday with Spain beating England 2-1 in the final in Berlin and no reports of serious disturbances. That capped a month-long event that mostly saw only isolated and relatively minor incidents, a contrast with violence at some past tournaments.
Germany’s Interior Ministry said that about 2.6 million people attended matches in the 10 host cities, and another 6 million watched games in the designated fan zones.
Over the course of the tournament, it said, there were a total of about 170 arrests and 320 temporary detentions. Police recorded about 2,340 offenses linked to the tournament, including some 700 involving bodily harm and 120 thefts. There were about 140 cases involving violence against police officers.
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the country had been “prepared for all conceivable dangers from Islamist terrorism, through hooligan violence to cyberattacks and dangerous drone flights.”
“There were significantly fewer security incidents and offenses than our security authorities had expected beforehand at an event with millions of people,” Faeser said in a statement. “Above all, the very high police presence across the country was decisive in this.”
Germany introduced temporary border controls at all its frontiers during Euro 2024, something that has become standard practice during such events in Europe’s nominally ID check-free travel zone, the Schengen area. Those are due to run through Friday.
They will then be dropped at the borders with Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. However, the government is ordering checks on the border with France before and during the upcoming Olympic Games, and longer-standing checks on the eastern and southern borders with Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria and Switzerland that were motivated by concerns about migration will be kept in place.
…
Malawi declares end of country’s deadliest cholera outbreak
Blantyre, Malawi — Malawi has declared the end of the country’s worst cholera outbreak, which began in March 2022 and killed nearly 2,000 people.
In a statement Monday, the Ministry of Health said the country had registered no cases or deaths from cholera in 26 of Malawi’s 29 health districts in the past four weeks. Some health experts, however, said the outbreak could resurface if the country failed to address sanitation problems that caused it.
Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera launched a national campaign to end the cholera outbreak in February 2023. The “Tithetse Kolera” or “Let’s End Cholera” campaign came three months after he declared the disease to be a public health emergency in Malawi.
The campaign aimed to interrupt cholera transmission in all districts and reduce the fatality rate from 3.2% to below 1%, which the World Health Organization considers a controlled cholera outbreak.
Dr. Wilfred Chalamira Nkhoma, co-chairperson for the presidential task force on COVID-19 and cholera in Malawi, told VOA the disease had now been defeated largely because of the campaign.
“By WHO definition, a country stands to end the transmission of cholera when they have gone at least four weeks without reporting a laboratory confirmed case of cholera,” he said. “So that is the case with Malawi right now. We haven’t had a confirmed case since 6th of June.”
Successful steps
Nkhoma attributed the development to several interventions Malawi conducted over the past two years. He said they involved educating people about transmission, prevention and control of cholera; increasing surveillance; and properly managing cholera cases.
“The key one — and that must remain the key one — is to increase access to safe water and also improve adequate sanitation,” he said. “The Ministry of Water and Sanitation was taking the lead in this, but they were supported very well by nongovernmental organizations that are working in the water and sanitation sector.”
Nkhoma said another measure was the oral cholera vaccination campaign, which began in December 2022.
“We were able as a country to access some doses from WHO,” he said. “We were able to administer not less than about 6 million doses of cholera vaccine focusing first and foremost in priority areas.”
The Ministry of Health said in its Monday statement that Malawi had registered 56,376 cases of cholera, with 1,772 deaths since March 2022.
Maziko Matemba, a national community health ambassador in Malawi, told VOA that Malawi seemed to have managed the cholera outbreak at the treatment and case-management levels, but added that sanitation problems remained a challenge.
“Because at the moment, if you go to villages, if you go to public places, people are not doing the sanitation issues properly,” Matemba said. “Even if you check in public toilets, even if you check how people are preparing food, you will find that we still have challenges as a country to contain disease like cholera.”
Nkhoma said the government would continue its effort to educate people about how cholera is transmitted, prevented and controlled to try to avoid further outbreaks.
…
Second malaria vaccine launched in Ivory Coast marks new milestone
LONDON — The world’s second vaccine against malaria was launched on Monday as Ivory Coast began a routine vaccine program using shots developed by the University of Oxford and the Serum Institute of India.
The introduction of the World Health Organization (WHO)-approved R21 vaccine comes six months after the first malaria vaccine, called RTS,S and developed by British drugmaker GSK, began being administered in a routine program in Cameroon.
Some 15 African countries plan to introduce one of the two malaria vaccines this year with support from the Gavi global vaccine alliance.
Ivory Coast has received a total of 656,600 doses of the Oxford and Serum shot, which will initially vaccinate 250,000 children aged between 0 and 23 months across the West African country. The vaccine has also been approved by Ghana, Nigeria, Burkina Faso and the Central African Republic.
The rollout of a second vaccine is the latest milestone in the global fight against malaria and should help address a problem that emerged well before either of the two shots was launched: demand for them is likely to far outstrip supply for several years.
Experts say having safe and effective malaria vaccines is important to meet demand. The shot is meant to work alongside existing tools — such as bed nets — to combat malaria, which in Africa kills nearly half a million children under the age of five each year.
The Serum Institute of India, which manufactures the vaccine, has produced 25 million doses for the initial rollout of the shot and “is committed to scaling up to 100 million doses annually,” the company said on Monday about the launch in Ivory Coast.
Serum said it is offering the vaccine for less than $4 per dose, in keeping with its aim to deliver low-cost vaccines at scale.
Results from a large trial in February showed the vaccine prevented around three-quarters of symptomatic malaria cases in young children the first year after they got the shots.
Experts told Reuters at that time that comparing the two malaria vaccines head-to-head was difficult because of the many variables involved in the trials, but overall their performance was similar — a conclusion endorsed by WHO.
…
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