The UN children’s agency said on Tuesday that over 100 children have been killed in Gaza since the October ceasefire, including victims of drone and quadcopter attacks.
“More than 100 children have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire of early October,” Unicef spokesperson James Elder told reporters at a UN briefing by video link from Gaza.
“Survival remains conditional; while the bombings and the shootings have slowed and have reduced during the ceasefire, they have not stopped.” Reuters
Malaysia to sue X over sexualised AI images concerns
Kuala Lumpur — Malaysia’s communications regulator said on Tuesday it will take legal action against social media platform X due to concerns over user safety in relation to the AI feature Grok.
The generative AI chatbot Grok has sparked a global backlash by allowing users to create and publish sexualised images, prompting authorities around the world to take action against xAI, the Elon Musk-led firm behind the chatbot.
Malaysia and Indonesia temporarily blocked Grok over the weekend, while Britain’s media regulator launched an investigation into Musk’s X, and French officials have reported the social media firm to prosecutors and regulators. Reuters
Germany’s SPD seeks inheritance tax reform amid coalition clash
Berlin — Germany’s Social Democrats published plans on Tuesday to reform inheritance tax to improve fairness in Europe’s biggest economy, putting the SPD on a collision course with its conservative coalition partner before regional elections this year.
Under the SPD plans for inheritance tax, currently subject to piecemeal rules now under Constitutional Court scrutiny, large estates would face higher tax bills, while relief would be offered to smaller inheritances.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservative bloc and the centre-left SPD agree on wanting to speed up tax relief to revitalise Germany’s sluggish economy but are at odds on how. Reuters
Denmark and Greenland to discuss Arctic control with US
Copenhagen — The foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland will meet US vice-president JD Vance and secretary of state Marco Rubio on Wednesday, the Danish foreign minister said on Tuesday, amid President Donald Trump’s push to take control of the Arctic island. Reuters
DP World continues Berbera operations amid Somalia-UAE tensions
Dubai — Dubai-owned ports and logistics company DP World said on Tuesday its operations at Berbera port in Somalia’s breakaway region of Somaliland were continuing under existing agreements, amid regional tensions following an escalation in nearby Yemen.
Somalia’s government said on Monday it was annulling all agreements with the UAE, including port deals and defence and security co-operation, accusing the Gulf country of undermining its national sovereignty.
The move followed an investigation that Mogadishu launched last week after a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, where tensions between global oil heavyweights Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been running high, said the UAE had spirited a separatist leader out of Yemen via Somalia. Reuters
Norway awards 57 offshore oil and gas exploration licences
Sandefjord, Norway — Norway on Tuesday awarded stakes in 57 offshore oil and gas exploration licences to 19 companies in its annual licensing round, the country’s energy minister told an industry conference.
The allocation for mature areas rose from 53 licences awarded one year ago, while the number of oil and gas firms receiving the permits decreased from 20.
The annual predefined area (APA) rounds of new offshore exploration acreage are central to Norway’s strategy of extending oil and gas production for decades to come, although activity is set to decrease in the coming years.
Reuters
