Bushfires rage near two towns as temperatures soar
Uncontrolled fires burned through bushland in the Australian state of Victoria on Thursday, forcing communities to evacuate and authorities to warn of a “catastrophic” fire danger rating for Friday.
Amid temperatures that exceeded 40°C in parts of the state, two large bushfires were raging near the towns of Longwood and Walwa. The fires have destroyed at least two structures and are expected to continue to spread on Friday as heat and wind pick up, authorities said. Reuters
Syrian army targets Kurdish-led rebel areas
The Syrian army clashed with fighters from the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in parts of Aleppo on Thursday and ordered residents to evacuate, accusing the SDF of using Kurdish-majority areas to launch attacks, according to Syrian state media.
The army released more than seven maps identifying areas it said would be targeted in strikes, urging residents to leave immediately for their safety. Its operations command announced a curfew in the neighbourhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh from 2pm South African time.
The fighting, which erupted on Tuesday, has driven thousands of civilians from their homes and killed and wounded several people, state media reported. Reuters
Russia-bound tanker seeks help after drone attack
A Russia-bound oil tanker suffered a drone attack in the Black Sea that prompted it to request Turkish coastguard assistance and divert from its course, according to a notice by Lloyd’s List Intelligence and a separate maritime security source on Thursday.
Maritime data specialist Lloyd’s List Intelligence said the Palau-flagged Elbus vessel “experienced an unmanned marine-vehicle and drone attack” on Wednesday targeting its engine room. No injuries were reported among the 25 crew, nor any pollution, it added.
The security source described it as a drone attack, based on an assessment. It was unclear who or what was behind the incident. Reuters
EU deadline for Alphabet’s cybersecurity deal
EU antitrust regulators will decide by February 10 whether to clear Alphabet’s $32bn acquisition of cybersecurity company Wiz, its largest deal ever, according to a filing on the European Commission website.
Alphabet announced the deal in March last year as it doubles down on cybersecurity to sharpen its edge in the cloud-computing race against Amazon.com and Microsoft.
Tech deals have in recent years faced intense regulatory scrutiny on concerns that dominant companies may further boost their market power. Reuters
X under fire over images generated by its chatbot
The European Commission has ordered Elon Musk’s social media platform X to retain all internal documents and data relating to its built-in AI chatbot, Grok, until the end of 2026, a commission spokesperson said on Thursday.
The European Commission said on Monday that the images of undressed women and children being shared across X were unlawful and appalling, joining a growing chorus of officials across the world who have condemned the surge in nonconsensual imagery on the platform.
The commission has extended a retention order sent to X last year, which related to algorithms and dissemination of illegal content, spokesperson Thomas Regnier said. Reuters
Pope urges Catholics to come together
Pope Leo met the world’s Catholic cardinals on Thursday as part of a two-day summit, urging the senior clerics to shun divisions in the 1.4-billion-member church and focus on attracting new believers.
Leo also signalled a desire to press ahead with the reforms of the late Pope Francis, who battled with conservative cardinals while trying to make Catholicism more inclusive by welcoming gay Catholics and discussing women’s ordination.
The pope said the church would only grow if it could attract people with a message of God’s love for everyone, according to remarks released by the Vatican. Reuters
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