NEW YORK, US – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 July 2026 – On July 15 (EDT, GMT-4), the second semi-final of the 2026 FIFA World Cup took place in Atlanta. Meanwhile, outside New York New Jersey Stadium, the host venue for this year’s World Cup Final, Mengniu, as an Official Sponsor of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, unveiled a 400-square-meter Chinese Culture Pavilion created in collaboration with multiple partners. Using football as its bridge, the brand as its platform, and Chinese culture as its heart, the immersive pavilion seamlessly blended the passion of the beautiful game with the elegance of traditional Chinese aesthetics, presenting China’s stories to a global audience on one of the world’s greatest sporting stages.

Mengniu’s Chinese Culture Pavilion Debuts at the FIFA World Cup, Showcasing Chinese Culture to the World

On the pitch, a single football captures the attention of billions. Beyond the stadium, civilizations come together through cultural exchange.

The Mengniu Chinese Culture Pavilion marks the first comprehensive international presentation of Beijing Central Axis since its inscription as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and debuts at one of the world’s premier sporting events. Inspired by the architectural aesthetics of traditional Chinese architecture and the spatial order of Beijing Central Axis, the pavilion follows a symmetrical layout centered on a principal axis. At its entrance stands the monumental painting Magnificent Central Axis, offering a panoramic bird’s-eye view of Beijing’s historic Central Axis while conveying, through artistic expression, the Eastern philosophy and cultural values it embodies. As visitors explore the pavilion, football fans from around the world pause to experience its interactive exhibits, immersing themselves in the richness of Chinese traditional culture. Standing outside New York New Jersey Stadium, the pavilion continues to tell vivid, contemporary stories of China to a global audience.

Beyond Football: Mengniu Elevates Cultural Exchange on the World Cup Stage

For Mengniu, building a Chinese Culture Pavilion at this FIFA World Cup reflects a deeper understanding of the powerful connection between sport and cultural exchange. Mengniu believes that the FIFA World Cup is not only the pinnacle of football competition but also a global platform where diverse civilizations meet, connect, and learn from one another. As an Official Sponsor of the 2026 FIFA World Cup from China, Mengniu sees it as both an opportunity and a responsibility to share China’s stories and showcase the richness of Chinese civilization with audiences worldwide. This commitment extends beyond football. During the Paris Summer Olympic Games and the Milan Winter Olympic Games, Mengniu, as a Worldwide Olympic Partner (TOP), continuously hosted its signature “China Night” events, integrating Chinese culture into the narrative of the world’s most prestigious sporting competitions.

Beyond a Pavilion: Mengniu’s Multi-Dimensional Presence at the FIFA World Cup

As an Official Sponsor of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Mengniu’s presence extends far beyond traditional brand visibility. Its participation represents a comprehensive global strategy that integrates products, brand values, and corporate social responsibility.

On the product front, Mengniu Ice Cream has officially become the Official Ice Cream of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Mengniu Ice Cream is available at all tournament venues and has simultaneously expanded into 11 major U.S. cities, including Los Angeles and New York. By bringing world-class-quality products to international consumers, Mengniu continues to strengthen the commercial foundation for its global growth.

At the brand level, together with global brand ambassadors Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, and Lamine Yamal, Mengniu brings its corporate spirit, “Born for Greatness,” to life on football’s biggest stage. The company has also partnered with Hisense to launch a series of coordinated Chinese-character pitch-side advertising campaigns during the tournament. Moving beyond individual brand promotion, the two companies present a united expression of Chinese brands, confidently demonstrating the growing global influence of Chinese enterprises.

In terms of corporate social responsibility, Mengniu not only brings Chinese culture to the international stage but also demonstrates the commitment of a responsible Chinese enterprise through meaningful public initiatives. At the opening match of this year’s FIFA World Cup, six teenage footballers from Inner Mongolia were selected by Mengniu to escort the FIFA flag onto the field, creating an inspiring example of how businesses can promote youth football development while fulfilling their social responsibilities.

From a glass of milk on store shelves to a cultural journey within the pavilion, Mengniu’s World Cup presence reflects the remarkable evolution of Chinese enterprises on the global stage. Looking ahead, Mengniu will continue to leverage the world’s premier sporting events to advance health, boost brand power, strengthen global presence, and fulfill social responsibilities, contributing the strength of China’s dairy industry to sharing China’s stories and showcasing the enduring appeal of Chinese civilization with the world.

Hashtag: #Mengniu

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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A single country raising tariffs dents that country’s exporters. Sixty countries absorbing new US duties on the same day is a different animal entirely, and currency and bond markets have far more reason to be nervous about it than most equity investors currently seem to grasp.

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The festival’s 23rd edition will be presented under the theme “The Wisdom of Culture”, with performances staged at Etihad Arena, Louvre Abu Dhabi, Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental, the Cultural Foundation, Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi and The Arts Center at NYU Abu Dhabi.

The UAE National Orchestra will open the programme at Etihad Arena on October 10 under conductor François López-Ferrer, winner of the 2024 Sir Georg Solti Conducting Award. Georgian pianist David Khrikuli will join the orchestra for Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No 2.

The opening concert will also feature Franz von Suppé’s overture to Light Cavalry and Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No 8. The programme places the newly established national ensemble at the centre of one of Abu Dhabi’s biggest annual cultural events.

Opera soprano Sondra Radvanovsky will perform at the Red Theater at NYU Abu Dhabi on October 17, accompanied by pianist Vincenzo Scalera. Her recital will combine Italian opera and art songs with Russian and German repertoire.

The programme includes music by Bellini, Verdi and Puccini, alongside songs by Rachmaninoff and Richard Strauss. Radvanovsky will also perform the Letter Scene from Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin.

Film composer Hans Zimmer will bring his “The Next Level” production to Etihad Arena on November 13. The concert will present reworked versions of music from films including The Lion King, Gladiator, Inception, Interstellar and Dune.

The production combines orchestral and electronic elements with large-scale lighting and visual effects. Zimmer’s appearance is expected to be among the festival’s biggest commercial draws, reflecting the growing crossover between symphonic performance, cinema and arena entertainment.

American Ballet Theatre will appear at Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental on November 21. Its programme will move between classical and contemporary ballet, demonstrating the company’s range through works associated with Frederick Ashton, Jiří Kylián, Brady Farrar and Marius Petipa.

The evening will feature Ashton’s Birthday Offering, Kylián’s Nuages and Farrar’s Trio Élégiaque. It will close with Paquita, staged by Natalia Makarova after Petipa and set to music by Ludwig Minkus.

Algarabía will make its Arab world premiere on November 26 following its sold-out world premiere in Pamplona in March. The multidisciplinary production combines Spanish flamenco with Arabic music, poetry and contemporary theatrical elements.

The work was co-produced by the Abu Dhabi Music & Arts Foundation, Museo Universidad de Navarra and Khawla Art & Culture. Its score includes music by Manuel Masaedo, Ihab Darwish and Manuel de Falla, creating a dialogue between Arab and Spanish artistic traditions.

A gala marking the 125th anniversary of Giuseppe Verdi’s death will be held at Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental on November 29. The Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra will perform under conductor David Crescenzi, with soprano Maria Agresta and tenor Giorgio Berrugi.

The programme will draw from operas including Nabucco, I vespri siciliani, Otello and La traviata, combining overtures, arias and duets. The event will examine Verdi’s continuing influence on opera and orchestral music rather than presenting a single staged production.

Violinist Lisa Batiashvili and pianist Giorgi Gigashvili will perform at the Cultural Foundation on December 10. Their recital will include works by Beethoven, Bartók, César Franck and Georgian composer Josef Bardanashvili.

South Korean pianist Minsoo Sohn will perform Book One of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier at Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi’s Zayed Theatre on December 11. The work contains 24 preludes and fugues covering every major and minor key.

The festival will close at Louvre Abu Dhabi on December 19 with Tunisian oud player and vocalist Dhafer Youssef and his quintet. Youssef’s music blends jazz improvisation with Arab and North African traditions, European classical influences, Turkish music and elements drawn from South Asia.

The closing concert will include material from Shiraz, continuing Youssef’s exploration of the oud within contemporary jazz settings. The outdoor Auditorium Plaza at Louvre Abu Dhabi will provide the setting for the final performance.

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By Nitya Chakraborty

India is hosting the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on September 12 and 13 this year which carries unusual significance in the present changing landscape of the geopolitics in the Indo-Pacific as also in other parts of the world. Most importantly, Chinese President Xi Jinping and the Russian President Vladimir Putin are expected to atte3nd apart from the heads of the other member nations.

BRICS originally started with Brazil, Russia, India and China, then South Africa joined. Now BRICS have eleven members. Apart from the big five, other countries include Indonesia, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia and UAE. Among the members right now, Iran is involved in a war with the USA and Israel while Russia has been in war with Ukraine for more than five years.

Though India has put the official theme as Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability, the global affairs including the war in West Asia is certainly going to dominate. On this Gulf war issue, the victim Iran has differences with UAE and Saudi Arabia. India’s efforts will be contain the outburst of the differences on West Asian war and focus more on the developmental issues including strengthening of local currency trade, AI governance and possibilities of furthering economic collaboration between the member nations.

India as a leading economically strong developing nation is playing a major role in reorienting the nature of financial and technical collaboration between the BRICS members. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is leading technical coordination for the implementation of BRICS Pay and the interoperability of central bank digital currencies like the e-rupee and digital yuan.. Further, India is championing the cause of digital infrastructure by using platforms like UPI as a model. Indian officials are expected to take important part in discussions on ethical AI governance and knowledge sharing.

India are championing Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) by using platforms like India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) as a model. The bloc is also prioritizing the development of ethical AI governance and knowledge sharing..Energy transition is one key area which India will focus. Many members of BRICS are big oil producers. So the discussions will have relevance in the context of the current problems being faced by the oil importing nations including India.

While, the economic and energy issues will form the part of the developmental agenda at the BRICS Summit, the members will closely follow the political message which the BRICS Summit hosted by India gives to the other members. Most of the members have misgivings about pro-US tilt of the Indian Prime Minister after coming to power in 2014. But this was more evident in Trump years, especially after he took over power for the second time on January 20, 2025.

For the first six months, of 2025, PM was under the spell of Trump. After the tariff war and Trump’s continuous threat to India on oil purchases from Russia, Narendra Modi got some mojo and joined the Brazil summit of BRICS in July 2025 where he took a strong position on the issues of global South. But basically, India’s foreign policy was still stuck with the US strategy without any strategic autonomy for India. India tried to woo Trump in many ways but the Trump administration has been continuing with new tariffs including the latest 200 per cent on generics affecting India.

But a new development concerning the US strategy on Indo-Pacific in the wake of Trump-Xi Jinping summit in May this year has given a wake up call to Indian foreign policy officials. The US has devalued India’s role in Indo-Pacific and in US strategy, India has lost its earlier relevance as an important ally in its containment policy against China. This may be a temporary phase as it depends on the nature of US-China relations. But the Indian foreign ministry has been compelled to give a look at the possibility of reshaping its maritime security policy also. Indian PM’s recent visit to Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand is a positive development from this aspect.

PM Narendra Modi earlier gave more emphasis on US sponsored QUAD as against BRICS. But since Trump himself is not interested in holding the QUAD summit which was scheduled to be held in India in 2026, Indian foreign office has to focus more on BRICS, though the option of QUAD still remains but in a weaker form. Foreign Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar has recently attended the QUAD foreign ministers meeting and discussed issues with the U.S. secretary of state Marco Rubio as usual, but the earlier warmth was missing. The U.S. seeks to make use of India only when it suits the Trump administration.

Experts in Washington have noted that Trump administration is more interested in cultivating Pakistan these days even at the cost of friendship with India. Pakistan has been gaining more diplomatic ground with both USA and China and that is strengthening Pakistan economically and politically. All these have been taking place in a geopolitical environment where India have been left with very few real friends.

At the BRICS meet, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has to take a firm stand in favour of the issues that help Global South. India, presently the World’s largest populated country with the possibility of emerging as the third largest economy by the end of the decade, should stick to a firm independent foreign policy. PM Modi’s tilt towards Trump at the cost of Global South has been annoying most of the BRICS members. Now, in the new situation, India can reshape its policy on the basis of strategic autonomy in its relations with all three countries, USA, China and Russia. Narendra Modi has a golden opportunity in September to emerge as a real leader of Global South. Will he do it, that is the big question. (IPA Service)

The article Narendra Modi Has A Golden Opportunity To Lead Global South At BRICS Summit appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).

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With a combined footprint of over 9,000 hectares, the twin developments, Vinhomes Green Paradise in the south and Vinhomes Global Gate Ha Long in the north, position Vietnam’s real estate sector at the forefront of next-generation ESG++ urbanism, where nature regeneration, smart governance and human-centric design converge at unprecedented scale.

HO CHI MINH CITY / QUANG NINH, VIETNAM – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 July 2026 – Vinhomes, Vietnam’s leading residential developer, is advancing a new generation of sustainable urban development with two landmark mega-projects located at the country’s northern and southern gateways.

Spanning a combined area exceeding 9,000 hectares, Vinhomes Green Paradise (2,870 hectares) in Can Gio, Ho Chi Minh City, and Vinhomes Global Gate Ha Long (6,200 hectares) in Quang Ninh province embody the company’s ESG++ philosophy, an approach that extends beyond conventional sustainability to actively regenerate nature while integrating smart urban governance and human-centered design.

A New Generation of Cities Where Growth and Nature Advance Together

As Vietnam strengthens its position as one of Asia’s fastest-growing investment destinations, attracting record levels of foreign direct investment and a new generation of international professionals, Vinhomes is pioneering an urban development model that positions nature restoration as the foundation of long-term economic resilience and social prosperity.

According to the World Economic Forum, resilient, nature-positive cities are becoming essential to long-term economic competitiveness as climate resilience, public health and quality of life increasingly influence investment decisions. The Urban Land Institute’s Emerging Trends in Real Estate reports consistently identify sustainability, wellness and resilient mixed-use communities as among the strongest drivers of real estate value creation worldwide.

Recognizing this shift, Vinhomes has embraced a philosophy that extends beyond conventional ESG implementation. The company believes sustainable prosperity requires continuously regenerating nature rather than simply preserving what already exists, a vision that has evolved into what it calls an ESG++ approach, combining environmental restoration, smart urban governance and human-centered development at an unprecedented scale.

Vinhomes Green Paradise: A Coastal Urban Wonder in the South

Situated beside the UNESCO-recognised 75,000-hectare Can Gio Mangrove Biosphere Reserve, Vinhomes Green Paradise became the first Official Participant recognised by New7Wonders for the global campaign “7 Wonders of Future Cities.” The 2,870-hectare development maintains an exceptionally low construction density of just 16%, allowing the majority of the masterplan to remain dedicated to greenery and water.

An 800-hectare natural seawater lagoon forms the ecological heart of the development, while its 121-kilometre shoreline creates one of the world’s most distinctive coastal urban landscapes. IoT, artificial intelligence and big data are embedded throughout governance, environmental monitoring and city operations to optimise sustainability and improve everyday urban management. The project integrates internationally benchmarked healthcare, education, senior living, culture, sports and entertainment into a comprehensive ecosystem designed to support every stage of life.

Vinhomes Global Gate Ha Long: A Waterfront Megacity in the North

Hundreds of kilometres to the north, Vinhomes is advancing the same philosophy at an even larger scale. Officially breaking ground in April 2026, Vinhomes Global Gate Ha Long spans more than 6,200 hectares, making it one of the largest coastal urban developments in Asia. Positioned directly alongside UNESCO World Heritage-listed Ha Long Bay, the project occupies one of the most extraordinary waterfront locations anywhere in the world.

Rather than maximising built density, the masterplan emphasises ecological regeneration. More than 2,500 hectares are dedicated to forests, wetlands and water landscapes, including 680 hectares of naturally filtered sea, 200 kilometres of white-sand coastline, and over 660 hectares of Globe Ha Long Forest Park, creating a vast regenerative ecosystem that complements the surrounding World Heritage environment.

The development is also envisioned to pursue the newly introduced ISO 37125 standard for sustainable urban development, reflecting an ambition to align with an emerging international benchmark for future ESG cities.

The project features a comprehensive “all-in-one” urban ecosystem: six residential districts, including exclusive island communities surrounded entirely by the sea, are complemented by seven globally benchmarked ecosystem clusters spanning culture, hospitality, retail, healthcare, education, sports and financial services.

Large-scale amenities include a 60,000-seat waterfront performance arena, the Wonder Theatre, an international convention centre, extensive hospitality facilities, international-standard golf courses, a world-class marina, an integrated shopping mall, professional sports facilities, Vinmec healthcare services, international education institutions, and a new central business district designed to attract global talent and investment.

The same integrated philosophy underpins Vinhomes Green Paradise, where ecological preservation, advanced technology and community wellbeing are designed to reinforce one another within a highly resilient coastal environment.

Collectively, these two mega-projects demonstrate how ESG can evolve beyond regulatory compliance to become a comprehensive framework for urban development, one capable of strengthening Vietnam’s international competitiveness not only as one of Asia’s fastest-growing economies but also as a destination for sustainable living and long-term investment. Instead of viewing environmental protection as a constraint on growth, Vinhomes positions nature restoration as the foundation of long-term economic resilience, social prosperity and global appeal.

Hashtag: #Vinhomes

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Vinhomes

Vinhomes is Vietnam’s largest residential real estate and integrated township developer. The company pioneers the development of synchronized, modern large-scale townships, delivering premium living standards and unlocking sustainable investment opportunities for domestic and international clients.

The article Vinhomes Advances Two ESG++ Mega-Projects, Shaping Sustainable Urban Development From North To South Vietnam appeared first on Arabian Post.

The campaign uses GitHub-hosted computing systems as disposable machines for scanning the internet, exploiting vulnerable hosting platforms and transmitting stolen information to attacker-controlled infrastructure. Security researchers linked the activity to malicious workflow files planted in thousands of repositories.

The investigation began with suspicious development versions of 10 PHP packages on Packagist, a repository used by developers working with the Composer dependency manager. The packages belonged to a legitimate PHP and DevOps developer whose associated GitHub repositories had been compromised.

Between July 12 and 13, attacker-controlled changes were automatically synchronised from GitHub to the packages’ development branches. Analysts found 583 malicious GitHub Actions workflow files across the 10 versions, with each package containing between 55 and 62 files.

The underlying PHP libraries did not contain malicious installation scripts or code designed to run on users’ computers. Instead, the attack instructions were concealed within the repositories’. github/workflows directories, which control automated development and deployment tasks.

Installing the affected packages through Packagist would not ordinarily activate the malicious files because GitHub does not execute workflow definitions nested inside a project’s dependency directory. The workflows were triggered when changes were pushed to the compromised source repositories or when an attacker launched them manually.

Each workflow instructed GitHub to create a temporary Ubuntu-based runner. These virtual machines, normally used to test software or automate releases, were converted into short-lived attack nodes with internet access.

The workflows identified the processor architecture of each runner and downloaded a matching Linux executable from an external server. Separate payloads were available for 32-bit and 64-bit x86 systems, as well as ARM and ARM64 environments.

Once launched, the software scanned internet-facing systems on ports commonly used by websites and hosting control panels. Its main target was CVE-2026-41940, an authentication bypass vulnerability affecting cPanel and WHM deployments.

cPanel allows customers to manage websites, databases, email accounts and configuration files. WHM gives hosting administrators broader control over servers and multiple cPanel accounts. A successful WHM compromise can therefore expose numerous websites and customer environments through a single intrusion.

The payload searched breached servers for Amazon Web Services keys, GitHub and GitLab access tokens, database passwords, SSH credentials and environment files. It also sought OpenAI and Google API credentials, Stripe payment keys and tokens linked to email services such as SendGrid and Mailgun.

Stolen source-control credentials could allow the attackers to enter more repositories, implant additional workflows and expand the operation. This creates a self-reinforcing supply-chain threat in which credentials obtained from hosting servers can be used to compromise development infrastructure.

The workflows maintained constant contact with the command-and-control server. A heartbeat mechanism reported their status every 30 seconds, identifying the repository and sending the latest scanning activity to the operators.

Collected data was uploaded in batches through repeated web requests. The system tracked which information had already been transmitted, allowing it to send new credentials and exploitation results without duplicating earlier material. A final collection process operated even when the scanner stopped unexpectedly.

Researchers identified a distinctive DNS callback used to verify that commands had executed. Searches for that marker found about 6,100 matching workflow files across unrelated GitHub repositories. Broader searches involving the payload server, scanning instructions and data-exfiltration code returned between 15,000 and 16,000 matching files.

Those figures do not represent an equal number of confirmed victims. A repository can contain several copies of the workflow, while some accounts may have been created or controlled directly by the attackers. The repeated code across projects with unrelated development histories nevertheless indicates a campaign extending well beyond the original PHP packages.

GitHub suspended the account linked to the Packagist packages, disrupting one route used by the operators. Matching workflows may still remain in forks, mirrors, cached repositories and other compromised accounts, while exposed servers and stolen credentials could continue to support further attacks.

Repository owners have been urged to inspect workflow directories, disable unauthorised automation and preserve GitHub Actions logs for investigation. Credentials, access tokens and application secrets connected to affected systems should be replaced.

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The campaign has been linked to UAC-0099, a threat cluster known for targeting government bodies, defence organisations and strategically important enterprises in Ukraine. The revised infection chain, detected from mid-July, deploys two newly identified tools called LUNCHPOKE and BURNYBEAR, followed by an updated version of the MATCHBOIL malware loader.

The operation does not involve a confirmed compromise of Notepad++ itself or its official software distribution infrastructure. Instead, attackers package a genuine version of the application alongside malicious files and persuade victims to open the bundle. The technique is designed to make the infection appear less suspicious because trusted software executes the rogue component.

Victims initially receive a compressed archive containing a Visual Basic Script file disguised as a PDF document. Windows systems that hide known file extensions can make such files appear more convincing, increasing the likelihood that a recipient will launch the script.

Once executed, the script downloads another archive named Evernote. zip. That package contains Notepad++ version 8.8.3, the legitimate WinRAR utility, a password-protected archive called updater. rar and a malicious file named NppExport. dll.

The script creates a randomly named directory, places the files inside it and launches Notepad++. The application then loads NppExport. dll through its standard plugin mechanism. The rogue dynamic-link library is the malware identified as LUNCHPOKE.

LUNCHPOKE establishes persistence by creating a scheduled task, enabling the malicious process to return after a system restart or at a predetermined time. It also extracts the contents of updater. rar, including files named RemoteLibUpdater. exe and InitTest. dll.

RemoteLibUpdater. exe is the BURNYBEAR component. It launches InitTest. dll, which contains the updated MATCHBOIL. V2 loader. This layered approach separates the infection into several stages, making analysis harder and reducing the chance that a single security control will detect the complete operation.

BURNYBEAR includes a destructive fallback function. If it cannot launch its intended executable, the malware can consume large amounts of processor and memory resources. Such activity may slow the infected machine, interrupt normal work or cause applications to stop responding.

MATCHBOIL. V2 creates another scheduled task and maintains configuration data for command-and-control communications. It can update the address of the attackers’ server and use WinRAR to extract additional programs downloaded to the computer.

The final payload used in the July campaign has not been publicly identified. Investigators have also not disclosed the affected organisations or confirmed whether the attackers were seeking intelligence, credentials, documents or broader access to internal networks.

Earlier UAC-0099 operations relied heavily on phishing emails carrying links to file-sharing platforms. Messages were sometimes presented as court notices and directed recipients to double-compressed archives containing malicious HTML Application files. Those attacks deployed the MATCHBOIL loader, MATCHWOK backdoor and DRAGSTARE information-stealing malware.

The group has operated against Ukrainian targets for several years and has repeatedly changed its delivery methods, file formats and execution tools. Its campaigns commonly use legitimate Windows utilities, scheduled tasks, scripting engines and compressed archives to conceal malicious activity among ordinary administrative processes.

UAC-0099 has also been associated with gaining initial access that could support operations by more advanced threat actors. However, attribution in cyber operations remains complex because infrastructure, malware and access can be shared, sold or transferred between groups.

The Notepad++ technique highlights the security risks created when trusted applications automatically load components from nearby directories. Attackers frequently exploit this behaviour through DLL sideloading or plugin abuse, placing a malicious library where a legitimate program expects to find an authorised file.

The disputed vulnerability record CVE-2025-56383 describes DLL-loading behaviour affecting Notepad++ 8.8.3. The project’s developers have challenged its classification as a software vulnerability, arguing that loading plugins from the application’s plugin directory is an intended feature rather than a security defect.

That distinction does not prevent attackers from abusing the feature after persuading a victim to run a prepared software package. The attack therefore depends on social engineering and malicious file distribution rather than remote exploitation of a standard Notepad++ installation.

The article Notepad++ plugin trick delivers new malware loaders appeared first on Arabian Post.

The European Commission imposed two penalties under the Digital Markets Act, marking the first sanctions against Google under the bloc’s flagship legislation aimed at curbing the power of dominant technology platforms.

A €460 million fine covers Google’s treatment of competing services in search results. Regulators found that the company displayed its own shopping, hotel, transport and sports products more prominently than comparable offerings operated by third parties.

A separate €430 million penalty targets conditions imposed through Google Play. The Commission said the company prevented app developers from freely informing customers about alternative offers available through websites, rival app stores or other distribution channels.

Google, owned by Alphabet, has been ordered to end both practices and has 60 days to comply. Failure to implement sufficient changes could expose the company to additional penalties, although regulators acknowledged that talks with Google had produced substantial progress.

The decisions deepen the European Union’s campaign to make online markets more contestable and reduce the ability of large platforms to use control over search engines, operating systems and app stores to disadvantage competitors.

Under the Digital Markets Act, designated “gatekeepers” must treat their own services and those of competitors fairly. The law also requires app stores to allow developers to tell users about outside purchasing options without charging excessive fees or imposing restrictive conditions.

The Commission concluded that Google’s search presentation gave its services an advantage through prominent positions, enhanced visuals and specialised filters that were not equally available to third-party operators. The practices affected services ranging from price comparison and hotel booking to travel and sporting information.

On Google Play, the dispute centred on “steering”, the ability of developers to guide customers towards offers outside the platform. Such alternatives may carry lower prices because developers can avoid some commissions charged for transactions conducted through an app store.

Regulators accepted that Google may charge a fee when its platform helps an app developer acquire a customer. However, they determined that the size of Google’s steering-related charges and the period during which those fees applied exceeded what was permitted under the legislation.

Google criticised the findings and indicated that it could challenge the decisions in court. Kent Walker, the company’s president of global affairs, said the measures demanded by Brussels would remove popular real-time search functions and weaken safety protections within Google Play.

Walker argued that European consumers could lose direct information on hotel, flight and restaurant prices, while businesses could face a poorer product environment. Google maintains that many integrated search features improve convenience rather than suppress competition.

The Commission rejected that assessment, saying products should succeed on quality rather than because they are owned by the company controlling the main route through which consumers find them.

Teresa Ribera, the European Union’s competition chief, said the bloc had a duty to ensure its laws were fully respected. Technology commissioner Henna Virkkunen said the decisions were intended to establish fair competition and preserve consumer choice.

The penalties are nevertheless small compared with Alphabet’s scale. The company generated revenue of about $403 billion in 2025, supported by advertising, cloud computing, subscriptions and its expanding artificial intelligence operations.

Google has already proposed changes to the display of shopping, hotel and flight services. It has also started testing revisions involving shopping advertisements, sports information and other specialised content.

The Commission said the principles established by the search decision could also apply to AI Overviews and AI Mode, which increasingly place machine-generated answers above traditional website links. Discussions will continue over how rival services and publishers should be treated as artificial intelligence becomes more prominent within search.

Proposed amendments to Google Play’s steering rules also received a cautious welcome from regulators. Those changes will be examined against the formal order requiring the company to stop its unlawful conduct.

The enforcement action could add to trade friction between Brussels and Washington. President Donald Trump’s administration has repeatedly accused European regulators of discriminating against successful US companies and has threatened tariffs in response to digital regulation and taxation.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Europe’s technology actions were creating uncertainty for American exports of goods and services. He accused the bloc of targeting highly competitive US businesses, though he announced no immediate retaliatory measures.

European officials insist that the rules apply regardless of where a company is based. Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, ByteDance, Meta and Microsoft are among the businesses designated as gatekeepers because of their size and their control over important digital platforms.

The article EU fines Google €890 million over market abuses appeared first on Arabian Post.

The updated alert says attackers have gained access to programmable logic controllers, or PLCs, which manage physical processes inside critical infrastructure. Intruders have downloaded malicious project files, altered control logic and manipulated information shown on operator displays, creating risks of disruption, financial losses and unsafe operating conditions.

Investigators identified attacks involving Siemens S7-1200 series controllers, Schneider Electric Modicon M340 devices and Rockwell Automation CompactLogix and Micro850 systems. Equipment produced by other manufacturers may also face exposure where controllers are connected directly to the internet or protected by weak authentication.

PLCs are specialised computers that operate pumps, valves, motors, alarms and automated production systems. They are widely deployed in water treatment facilities, power networks, factories, pipelines and transport infrastructure. A successful intrusion can therefore move beyond stolen data and affect machinery, essential services or industrial safety.

One compromised US infrastructure operator was found to have a malicious project file installed through legitimate configuration software. The file preserved enough normal logic to keep downstream functions working, while adding instructions that overrode controls designed to maintain safe operating limits.

The changes disabled shutdown processes and alarm functions, allowing equipment to enter unsafe states without warning staff through normal monitoring screens. Attackers also altered data presented through human-machine interfaces and supervisory control and data acquisition systems, potentially giving operators a misleading picture of plant conditions.

The hackers targeted commonly used communications ports, including 44818, 2222, 102, 502 and 22. They connected through manufacturer programming tools and infrastructure rented from third-party hosting providers, a method that can make malicious traffic resemble legitimate remote engineering activity.

Software involved in the intrusions included Siemens TIA Portal, Schneider Electric EcoStruxure Control Expert and Rockwell Automation Studio 5000 Logix Designer. These platforms are routinely used by engineers to configure controllers, upload operational logic and maintain industrial processes.

The campaign marks an expansion from earlier attacks centred on Allen-Bradley equipment. The inclusion of Siemens and Schneider Electric shows that the activity is not tied to a single product weakness. Instead, the attackers appear to be searching broadly for exposed industrial devices, insecure remote access and poorly separated operational networks.

US authorities assess that the activity is intended to cause disruptive effects rather than conduct conventional espionage alone. The warning comes amid military confrontation involving Iran, the United States and Israel, raising concern that cyber operations could be used as an asymmetric response against civilian infrastructure.

Iranian cyber operations have often combined state-directed activity with hacktivist branding, proxy groups and criminal-style tactics. That structure can complicate attribution while allowing Tehran-linked operators to deny direct responsibility. Groups using names such as CyberAv3ngers and Handala have previously claimed attacks against industrial, transport, healthcare and water organisations.

CyberAv3ngers drew attention for intrusions involving internet-facing water control equipment, including systems linked to Israeli technology. Handala has claimed destructive and data-theft operations against US organisations, although some of its assertions about access to operational networks have not been independently demonstrated.

The widening focus on control systems reflects a broader shift in cyber conflict. Industrial networks were once isolated from public communications infrastructure, but remote maintenance, cloud monitoring, cellular connections and digital transformation have increased their exposure. Ageing equipment and operational demands can also make patching difficult because controllers often run continuously for years.

Operators have been urged to remove direct internet access, identify every externally reachable device and place industrial systems behind properly configured firewalls. Remote access should require multifactor authentication, encrypted connections and tightly controlled engineering accounts.

Defenders are also being advised to preserve trusted copies of controller logic, compare running programmes with approved versions and monitor unexplained changes to project files, alarm settings and display data. Network traffic involving engineering software should be reviewed for connections to unfamiliar hosting providers or unusual access outside maintenance periods.

Facilities must also separate business networks from operational technology environments so that a compromise of email, office systems or remote user credentials cannot easily reach industrial equipment. Default passwords should be replaced, unused services disabled and access limited to authorised personnel and designated management stations.

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Bitcoin was trading near $65,400 on Friday, July 24, after reaching an intraday high of about $65,750 and falling as low as $64,636. A decline to $58,200 would therefore amount to a drop of roughly 11% from prevailing levels.

Liquidation heatmap estimates circulating among traders indicate that such a move could expose more than $4.38 billion in leveraged Bitcoin long positions to forced closure. The figure is not a forecast of actual losses but an estimate of positions that could become vulnerable as prices approach the specified zone.

The corresponding Ether claim requires greater caution. Ether was trading near $1,625, already below the cited $1,700 threshold. It is therefore inaccurate, under current conditions, to describe a move to $1,700 as a sharp fall capable of liquidating long positions. The estimate of more than $2.72 billion may have been generated when Ether was trading at a substantially higher price or may refer to a different heatmap interval.

Liquidation maps change continuously as traders open positions, reduce leverage, add collateral or move their stop-loss orders. Their projected totals also vary by exchange coverage, leverage assumptions, observation period and the methodology used to estimate unseen liquidation prices.

The Bitcoin estimate nevertheless highlights the risks created by increasingly crowded long positions. Traders have become more optimistic after the cryptocurrency recovered from levels below $59,000 at the beginning of July and moved above $66,000 during the week.

Demand for spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds has helped support the rebound. The funds recorded about $203 million of net inflows during one session this week, extending their run of positive daily flows to six consecutive trading days. Those additions followed heavy withdrawals during May and June, when combined outflows reached roughly $6.9 billion.

The improvement has encouraged leveraged traders to increase exposure through perpetual futures, contracts that have no expiry date and use periodic funding payments to keep their prices aligned with the underlying cryptocurrency. When demand for long positions is strong, long traders generally pay funding to participants holding short positions.

Open interest across cryptocurrency derivatives was about $116.6 billion on Friday, while 24-hour trading volume stood near $156.5 billion. Liquidations over the same period were approaching $190 million, underlining the speed at which leveraged positions can be removed even without a major market-wide collapse.

Perpetual futures allow traders to control positions many times larger than the capital deposited as collateral. Some platforms offer leverage of up to 40 times, meaning a relatively small adverse movement may erase the trader’s margin and trigger automatic selling.

Those forced sales can amplify a decline. When Bitcoin moves through a price zone containing a large concentration of leveraged longs, exchanges close positions by selling into a weakening market. The additional supply can push prices lower, activate another layer of liquidations and create a cascade across exchanges.

Ether’s position remains weaker than Bitcoin’s despite signs of institutional demand returning to cryptocurrency products. Ether has struggled to regain the $1,700 level after falling below it, and its lower market liquidity makes it more sensitive to large derivatives orders.

The divergence also reflects different investment narratives. Bitcoin has benefited from its status as the largest cryptocurrency and the primary asset used by institutions seeking direct digital-asset exposure. Ether’s valuation remains tied more closely to activity on the Ethereum network, competition from rival blockchains, staking demand and the health of decentralised finance markets.

Macroeconomic uncertainty is limiting the broader recovery. Traders are awaiting the US Federal Reserve’s July 28-29 policy meeting, while concerns about inflation, geopolitical tensions and heavy spending on artificial-intelligence infrastructure have restrained demand for risk assets.

US regulatory developments have supplied some support. Debate over legislation intended to define the supervisory framework for cryptocurrency trading has strengthened expectations that digital assets will become more closely integrated with conventional finance, although the timing and final scope of the rules remain uncertain.

Arabian Post – Crypto News Network

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Mariya Dangote, a board member and executive director responsible for the group’s cement and food businesses, said the company had considered a secondary listing in Dubai but concluded that completing the process there could take several years.

“It’s compatible with our business,” she said in Lagos on Thursday, referring to London. “We thought of the secondary listing in Dubai,” but the required timetable made the UK exchange more attractive.

The comments provide the clearest explanation yet of why Africa’s largest cement producer has revived a long-running ambition to trade its shares in London. The company is already listed on the Nigerian Exchange and is examining a secondary quotation that could widen its shareholder base without abandoning Lagos as its primary market.

Dangote Cement confirmed in May that preliminary discussions were under way for a London Stock Exchange listing. The company cautioned at the time that the transaction remained subject to corporate and regulatory approvals, favourable market conditions and agreement on its final structure.

Shareholders subsequently approved the proposed international listing at the company’s annual general meeting in Lagos. The group has been working with financial advisers as it assesses investor demand, valuation and the proportion of shares that could be offered.

The transaction has been discussed as a potential sale of about 10 per cent of the company to outside investors. September has emerged as a possible target, though executives have stressed that the timetable could shift depending on financial-market conditions.

Dangote Cement has a market value of about $13 billion and operates across more than 10 African countries. Its manufacturing network spans Nigeria, Cameroon, Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia, giving the group a broader geographic profile than many companies listed only on regional exchanges.

The group has production capacity of roughly 55 million to 60 million tonnes a year and is seeking to increase output to 100 million tonnes by 2030. Planned investment includes additional capacity in Nigeria and projects aimed at supplying export markets across West and Central Africa.

A London quotation could give international fund managers easier access to the company’s shares while improving trading liquidity and price discovery. Many institutional investors face internal restrictions when purchasing securities traded solely on frontier or smaller emerging-market exchanges.

London also offers a large pool of investors familiar with mining, energy, construction materials and other capital-intensive businesses operating across Africa. Dangote Cement believes that compatibility could allow the group to sell shares more quickly and secure broader analyst coverage.

Dubai had been examined because of its growing role as a financial centre connecting Africa, Asia and the Middle East. The emirate has attracted companies, family offices and investment funds seeking exposure to fast-growing economies, while its exchanges have expanded efforts to draw international issuers.

However, Dangote’s comments suggest that procedural timelines outweighed Dubai’s strategic advantages. A prolonged listing process could expose the company to changes in valuations, interest rates and investor sentiment before shares are placed.

The London plan also reflects regulatory changes designed to revive the UK’s equity market. Listing rules have been simplified to make the exchange more competitive after London lost several high-profile offerings to New York and other financial centres.

Dangote Cement previously explored a London listing in 2018, but the plan did not proceed. Regulatory requirements were more demanding at the time, while the wider Dangote group was concentrating financial and managerial resources on building its $20 billion oil refinery near Lagos.

The refinery is now operating, allowing the conglomerate to return to capital-market plans covering several of its largest businesses. The group is also preparing potential listings involving its refining and fertiliser operations as it seeks capital for expansion across the continent.

Dangote Cement recorded a strong start to 2026, supported by price adjustments, higher sales and improved performance outside Nigeria. Profit before tax reached about 421 billion naira during the first quarter, strengthening the company’s position as it approaches overseas investors.

Shareholders approved a dividend payment of approximately 754 billion naira, equivalent to 45 naira per share, based on its 2025 performance. The payout underlined the company’s cash-generating capacity, although investors continue to watch currency volatility, energy costs, infrastructure constraints and uneven construction activity across its markets.

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A survey of 279 enterprise technology, security, infrastructure and compliance leaders found that 66% had paused or abandoned rollout plans because of concerns over data that Copilot could retrieve through SharePoint. Nearly three-quarters, or 73%, feared AI tools were already surfacing sensitive material internally.

The findings underscore a widening gap between corporate enthusiasm for generative AI and the ability of organisations to control the information fed into such systems. Microsoft 365 Copilot can search emails, documents, meetings, chats and other workplace data that an employee is authorised to access, enabling it to draft content, summarise discussions and answer questions.

That capability can also make forgotten or misconfigured files easier to find. Information that was technically accessible but buried inside sprawling document libraries can be identified through a simple natural-language request, increasing the consequences of outdated permissions, anonymous links and excessive access rights.

Concern was strongest among senior decision-makers. Three-quarters of C-suite executives and vice-presidents said their organisations had delayed or cancelled deployment, compared with 60% of managers. Directors reported a figure of about 70%.

The caution reflects the potential exposure of board documents, legal correspondence, financial forecasts, redundancy plans, salary records and other confidential material. Such information may have remained largely unnoticed for years despite being available to employees who did not require it for their work.

SharePoint sharing practices emerged as a central problem. Organisations that had postponed Copilot were more than three times as likely to express serious concern about anonymous SharePoint links as those that had proceeded with deployment. The respective figures were 48% and 14%.

The security risk does not necessarily arise from Copilot bypassing established access controls. Microsoft says the service respects existing Microsoft 365 permissions and retrieves information available to the individual user. The difficulty is that those underlying permissions may already be too broad, poorly documented or no longer appropriate.

Many organisations have accumulated years of shared folders, inherited access rights, abandoned collaboration sites and links created for contractors or former employees. Rapid business expansion, acquisitions and hybrid working have added further complexity to corporate Microsoft 365 environments.

The survey indicated that 73% of organisations experienced growth in SharePoint storage during the past year. At the same time, 63% deferred or restricted user access reviews because the process required too much time, while 46% struggled to persuade employees to complete them.

Security confidence also appeared to exceed operational readiness. Although 62% of respondents described their Microsoft 365 security posture as established or advanced, 54% of that group lacked at least one fundamental control. The missing safeguards included mandatory multi-factor authentication for administrators, privileged access management and systems capable of detecting configuration tampering.

Administrator accounts were less consistently protected than ordinary employee accounts. Full multi-factor authentication was enforced for 55% of administrators, compared with 62% of standard users. Almost one-fifth of organisations applied weaker authentication requirements to accounts capable of altering security settings, granting permissions or accessing extensive corporate records.

Adoption of privileged access management has nevertheless increased. About 73% of organisations now use Microsoft Entra Privileged Identity Management or another privileged access system, up from 50% a year earlier. Administrative workload and the difficulty of designing restricted roles remain significant obstacles.

Configuration protection presents another weakness. Only 17% of organisations said they backed up their own Microsoft 365 configurations, while 37% believed Microsoft handled that task automatically. Data backups may preserve files and emails, but they do not always restore the permissions, policies and tenant settings that govern how information is accessed.

Microsoft has promoted data classification, sensitivity labels, information protection and data-loss prevention policies as foundations for secure Copilot adoption. Its Purview tools can identify sensitive content, monitor AI interactions and restrict the handling of regulated or confidential data.

The company maintains that prompts, responses and business information used by Microsoft 365 Copilot are covered by enterprise data-protection commitments and are not used to train the underlying foundation models. Organisations, however, remain responsible for deciding which users can access particular records and for correcting excessive permissions.

The deployment delays are therefore shifting corporate AI programmes towards phased adoption. Businesses are increasingly testing Copilot with limited user groups, excluding highly sensitive departments and auditing SharePoint estates before extending access across the workforce.

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September-loading cargoes of ESPO Blend, Russia’s flagship Far Eastern crude grade, have attracted brisk demand from state-owned and independent refiners despite shrinking discounts. Buyers that would normally enter the market closer to loading dates are moving early to lock in supplies and reduce exposure to possible shipping delays across the Gulf and Red Sea.

ESPO cargoes delivered to China are being offered at discounts of roughly $1 to $3 a barrel against benchmark Brent prices. That compares with discounts near $4 for some August supplies, indicating that demand has strengthened even as the crude becomes less attractive on price.

The buying surge reflects growing concern over the reliability of Middle Eastern flows. Disruption around the Strait of Hormuz, combined with threats to shipping near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, has complicated routes used by Gulf producers to reach Asian customers.

Saudi Arabia has relied more heavily on its East-West pipeline to move crude from production centres near the Gulf to the Red Sea port of Yanbu. That option reduces dependence on Hormuz but leaves shipments exposed to security risks near Yemen and the southern entrance to the Red Sea.

China, the world’s largest crude importer, depends heavily on Middle Eastern producers. Russia offers an alternative supply line that avoids both maritime chokepoints. ESPO is particularly valuable because cargoes are shipped from Kozmino, near the Pacific coast, and can reach northern Chinese ports within days.

The short voyage lowers freight costs, reduces transit risk and gives refiners greater flexibility than crude shipped from the Gulf, Atlantic Basin or western Russian ports. ESPO is also a light, low-sulphur grade that produces relatively high volumes of petrol and diesel, making it suitable for many Chinese refining configurations.

Russia’s seaborne deliveries to China have increasingly centred on Far Eastern supply. ESPO represented about 62 per cent of China’s seaborne Russian crude imports in June, while overall Russian seaborne volumes rose by nearly 9 per cent from the previous month.

Purchases are being supported by competition from buyers elsewhere in Asia. Strong demand from India has helped prevent Russian exporters from offering the wide discounts seen earlier in the year. ESPO cargoes had traded as much as $9 to $10 below Brent for some February loadings before the market tightened.

The latest deals show how geopolitical risk can outweigh concerns surrounding sanctions and payment arrangements. Western measures against Russia have forced traders to rely on alternative shipping, insurance and financial networks, but established routes between Kozmino and China have continued to operate.

Chinese refiners are also examining fresh purchases of Iranian crude, which remains heavily discounted because of sanctions and transport risks. Independent processors concentrated in Shandong province have held talks over Pars and Iran Light cargoes as sellers seek buyers for barrels already moving towards Asia or held in floating storage.

Iranian grades have become cheaper relative to ESPO, although refiners must weigh the discount against possible delays, tanker availability and tighter enforcement. High international prices also restrict the amount smaller plants can purchase, particularly when domestic fuel demand and refining margins are uncertain.

Several independent refiners bought about 20 million barrels of crude from Iraq, the UAE and Qatar for July and August loading when Middle Eastern supplies briefly became cheaper. Some companies are now exploring the resale of those cargoes at higher prices to refiners in Taiwan and South Korea as regional availability tightens.

That shift illustrates the speed with which China’s private refining sector responds to changes in freight, sanctions and physical supply. The plants, often described as teapot refiners, can switch among Russian, Iranian and non-sanctioned Middle Eastern grades depending on margins and import quotas.

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The Helios system, unveiled at AMD’s Advancing AI event at San Francisco’s Moscone Center, is now in full production and is scheduled to begin shipping before the end of the third quarter of 2026. It marks AMD’s most ambitious effort to sell complete computing systems rather than individual chips to data centre operators.

Helios combines 72 Instinct MI455X graphics processing units with sixth-generation EPYC processors, codenamed Venice, and AMD’s Pensando networking technology. The design allows thousands of accelerators to work together on the training and operation of large artificial intelligence models.

AMD said the platform could deliver as much as 30 per cent more inference performance per dollar than Nvidia’s competing Vera Rubin NVL72 system under selected workloads. Such comparisons depend heavily on software, power, model size and deployment configuration, making independent testing important once commercial systems become available.

Chief executive Lisa Su described rack-scale computing as the central battleground for the next phase of artificial intelligence. Data centre customers are increasingly buying integrated clusters containing processors, accelerators, memory, networking equipment and software rather than selecting each component separately.

The shift has favoured Nvidia, whose tightly connected hardware and CUDA software ecosystem became the industry standard for training foundation models. AMD is seeking to counter that advantage with an open architecture supporting established programming frameworks and networking standards.

OpenAI plans to deploy Helios systems at scale during 2026 and 2027, providing AMD with a prominent customer capable of validating the platform under demanding workloads. Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Oracle and several cloud infrastructure operators have also expanded their use of AMD accelerators.

Anthropic has agreed to deploy up to two gigawatts of AMD’s MI450-generation computing capacity, starting with one gigawatt during the first half of 2027. AMD could invest as much as $5 billion in the artificial intelligence company as deployment targets are met.

The agreement includes joint engineering work aimed at optimising Anthropic’s Claude models for AMD hardware. Such partnerships can help chipmakers improve software performance while giving AI developers additional sources of computing capacity.

AMD also announced a partnership with Cerebras Systems to support disaggregated inference, an approach that assigns different stages of an AI workload to specialised processors. Helios systems would handle high-throughput processing, while Cerebras hardware could accelerate latency-sensitive generation tasks.

The joint service is expected to become available through Cerebras Cloud later this year. Splitting workloads across platforms could reduce costs, though it creates technical challenges involving data movement, scheduling and communication between chips from different suppliers.

The MI455X accelerator is manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and supports high-bandwidth memory designed to handle large AI models. Venice processors use AMD’s Zen 6 architecture and are intended to improve the number of simultaneous tasks that can be completed within each server rack.

AMD is positioning the processor as a throughput-focused alternative to Nvidia’s Arm-based Vera central processing unit. Nvidia has emphasised faster single-threaded performance and lower latency, while AMD is promoting the ability of its x86 chips to handle larger numbers of parallel requests.

Su expects the global computing market to approach $2 trillion by 2030 as artificial intelligence spreads across cloud services, robotics, industrial systems and autonomous software. AMD separately estimates that the market for AI accelerators could reach about $1.4 trillion by the end of the decade.

The company’s roadmap includes annual updates to its rack-scale products, with newer Instinct accelerators and server processors planned for each generation. Florence processors are expected in 2028, followed by the Ravenna family around 2030.

AMD’s challenge extends beyond hardware performance. Nvidia’s CUDA platform has been used by developers for nearly two decades and is supported by a broad library of tools, applications and trained engineers. Moving workloads to another platform can require extensive software changes and testing.

AMD has accelerated development of its ROCm software stack, improving support for popular AI frameworks and large language models. The company has also acquired specialised software and infrastructure businesses to strengthen its ability to deliver complete systems.

Its $4.9 billion acquisition of ZT Systems added server design and data centre integration expertise. Other purchases have expanded AMD’s capabilities in networking, compilers and artificial intelligence software.

Nvidia remains the dominant supplier of advanced AI accelerators and continues to introduce new systems on a rapid schedule. Its scale, software advantage and relationships with major cloud providers present formidable barriers for challengers.

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The Xin Long Yang and Cosnew Lake completed the passage on Thursday after sailing south along Yemen’s coast. Their movement provided an important test of whether Saudi Arabia can continue using its Red Sea export route while traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains severely disrupted.

Both very large crude carriers loaded about two million barrels each at Yanbu Industrial Port on Saudi Arabia’s western coast. The Singapore-flagged Xin Long Yang is heading towards Qinzhou in China’s Guangxi region, while the Hong Kong-flagged Cosnew Lake is sailing towards Huizhou in Guangdong.

The two vessels are managed by units linked to state-owned shipping group Cosco. Shipping data showed that their automatic identification system messages highlighted their Chinese ownership and crew, a step interpreted as an attempt to reduce the likelihood of being targeted while passing through waters controlled by Yemen’s Houthi movement.

Xin Long Yang had initially reversed course and paused in the central Red Sea after the Houthis threatened to prevent ships from using Saudi ports. It resumed its southbound journey late on Wednesday. Cosnew Lake followed the same route and cleared the narrow passage later on Thursday.

The successful crossings came despite attacks on Saudi-linked vessels and warnings that the Houthis would enforce restrictions on maritime traffic connected to the kingdom. The group has widened its campaign as the conflict involving Iran, the United States and regional allies places pressure on two of the world’s most important energy corridors.

One tanker, Encelia, caught fire after being struck in the Red Sea, although its crew escaped injury. Other ships carrying Saudi crude towards China and India had changed direction earlier in the week, either heading north towards the Suez Canal or pausing while operators assessed security conditions.

The reversals raised concern that Bab el-Mandeb could become a second major obstacle to oil movements, alongside the Strait of Hormuz. Before the escalation, Hormuz handled about 20 million barrels of crude oil and petroleum products each day, equivalent to roughly one-fifth of global consumption.

Tanker crossings through Hormuz have since fallen sharply. Only one oil tanker passed through the strait on Thursday, the lowest daily total in more than two months. The New Giant, carrying about two million barrels of Iraqi Basrah crude, was heading towards Rizhao in China.

Traffic through Bab el-Mandeb remained more resilient. Thirty-two tankers crossed the southern entrance to the Red Sea on Thursday, with 18 exiting towards the Gulf of Aden and 14 moving north. Nine were carrying crude, including the two China-linked supertankers.

The contrast underscores the growing importance of Yanbu as Saudi Arabia diverts crude away from terminals in the Gulf. Oil can be transported across the kingdom through the East-West Pipeline before being loaded at the Red Sea port, allowing exports to bypass Hormuz.

Saudi Arabia has been shipping about four million barrels a day through Yanbu as it seeks to maintain deliveries to customers in Asia and Europe. Around 2.5 million barrels a day have been moving south through Bab el-Mandeb towards destinations including China and India.

The disruption has pushed up oil prices and tanker costs. Brent crude briefly climbed above $100 a barrel on Thursday as traders assessed the possibility that both maritime chokepoints could face prolonged restrictions. Freight rates and war-risk insurance premiums have also risen as shipowners demand higher payments for entering exposed waters.

A direct voyage from Yanbu to East Asia through Bab el-Mandeb can take about 19 days. Avoiding the strait by sailing north through the Suez Canal and Mediterranean, or travelling around the Cape of Good Hope, can add several weeks and as much as $2.5 million to the cost of a tanker journey.

Fully laden supertankers also face limits when using the Suez Canal because of their deep draught. Operators may need to reduce cargoes, transfer oil to smaller vessels or use Egypt’s SUMED pipeline, lowering efficiency and tightening the available tanker fleet.

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A limited collection of eight beachfront townhomes offers a rare opportunity to own directly on Bang Tao Beach.

PHUKET, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 July 2026 – Banyan Group Residences has unveiled Banyan Tree Beach Residences Varuna, a collection of just eight beachfront townhomes within Laguna Phuket. Positioned directly on Bang Tao Beach, the development offers a rare opportunity to own a branded residence on one of Phuket’s most sought-after stretches of coastline.

Inspired by a “Coastal Biophilia” design philosophy, the architecture connects each residence closely to its beachfront setting. Curved building lines echo wave motion, while slatted timber cladding and trellis screening reference sand and shifting coastal light. Floor-to-ceiling glazing along ocean-facing elevations frames sweeping Andaman Sea views, and each residence’s private rooftop infinity pool and terrace are oriented west to capture the sunset.

Each four-bedroom, four-level townhome draws on Southern Thailand’s traditional architecture, with layered thresholds and vertical timber lines. The principal living and dining spaces occupy the upper level behind full-height glazing which opens out fully to allow breathtaking seaviews.

A private lift connects all floors, and each unit includes a ground-floor garden terrace. The master suite occupies its own floor, with a walk-in closet, reading room and ensuite bathroom opening to a private courtyard, finished throughout with premium appliances.

Bang Tao Beach: An Absolute Beachfront Address

Varuna sits directly on Bang Tao Beach on one of the few remaining absolute beachfront sites within Laguna Phuket.

Laguna Phuket spans over 1,000 acres of parkland, lagoons and five kilometres of coastline. Residents have access to the Laguna Golf Phuket 18-hole course, several spas, extensive dining and the new RAVA Beach Club, with Phuket International Airport nearby.

Ownership Benefits

Ownership unlocks membership of The Sanctuary Club, Banyan Group’s owner programme offering discounts across its properties worldwide, plus complimentary RAVA Beach Club membership with priority facility access, dining discounts and marine sports.

Additional benefits include Laguna Golf membership, 24-hour concierge and professional property management. Through the Laguna Advantage programme, owners also receive one year’s complimentary property management and insurance, one year’s free enrolment at Laguna Phuket’s onsite preschool, discounted fees at selected international schools, and access to medical and wellness benefits.

Banyan Living: A Rental Management Solution

Owners are automatically enrolled in Banyan Living, Banyan Group’s rental management platform, which supports property care, guest servicing and rental distribution while giving owners flexibility in how they use their residence.

With its limited collection of eight townhomes, direct beachfront setting and access to Laguna Phuket’s amenities, Banyan Tree Beach Residences Varuna marks a distinctive addition to Phuket’s luxury residential landscape.

Hashtag: #BanyanGroupResidences #LagunaPhuket

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Laguna Phuket

Laguna Phuket is Asia’s premier integrated resort destination, set against the stunning backdrop of the Andaman Sea. Spanning over 1,000 acres, the resort features six luxury hotels, an award-winning 18-hole golf course, fine dining, luxury spas, and branded residences.

Guests benefit from complimentary shuttle services, a cashless payment system, and access to world-class recreational and wellness facilities. The property division offers a range of residences, apartments, and villas, perfect for those seeking permanent homes or investment opportunities.

About Banyan Group Residences

Banyan Group Residences is the property development arm of Banyan Group, a global leader in luxury hospitality and sustainable development. With over 35 years of experience, Banyan Group Residences has redefined tropical living with iconic residential developments across Thailand and beyond. Its projects seamlessly blend contemporary design, cultural heritage, and a commitment to sustainability, setting a global benchmark for luxury living.

Ownership privileges, memberships and services are subject to applicable terms and conditions, availability, programme rules and change from time to time. Rental participation is optional and no rental return is guaranteed.

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HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 24 July 2026 – As the media industry becomes increasingly global and interconnected, students are seeking education that spans cultures and markets. For Jose Manuel Cervantes Sanchez, a scholarship recipient from Mexico, The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) offers a platform to do exactly that.

Hong Kong: A Strategic Hub for Global Media

Currently enrolled in CUHK’s Global Communication programme, Jose is part of a growing wave of international students choosing Hong Kong for its strategic role as a cultural and commercial gateway between East and West. Long fascinated by Asian culture and influenced by family ties to the city, he was drawn to its unique position as a bridge between cultures. “I wanted to become a local with time and create bridges between Mexico and Hong Kong,” he said.

A school adviser first introduced him to CUHK as a strong option, and while he also considered universities in Canada and the United Kingdom, Hong Kong remained his first choice. Receiving the CUHK University Admission Scholarship confirmed his decision.

Academic Excellence and Creative Exploration

Jose’s experience in the Global Communication programme has met his expectations and more. What stands out most to him are the creative courses, which give students hands-on access to professional media equipment and the freedom to experiment. “Being encouraged to explore creativity by some professors has led me to discover new sides of myself,” he noted.

Outside the classroom, Jose has embraced life in Hong Kong with enthusiasm. From cultural events and student society gatherings to exploring local food streets, he has found the city lively and inspiring. The campus MTR station also makes it easy to travel to Shatin, Hong Kong Island, and even the Shenzhen border, adding to the convenience of student life.

A Creative Career Taking Shape in Hong Kong

Looking ahead, Jose hopes to take part in a semester exchange and a media production internship to further strengthen his practical skills. His post-graduation plans remain open, with possibilities in both Mexico’s rapidly growing entertainment industry and Hong Kong’s dynamic market.

For international students considering their options, Jose’s message is clear: CUHK offers academic quality, financial support, and a valuable foothold in one of the world’s most dynamic cities.

CUHK’s Global Communication Programme

CUHK’s Global Communication programme prepares students for an evolving media landscape by combining communication studies with a guaranteed overseas exchange and a curriculum built around real-world experience.

• Cutting-Edge Facilities: Access to a 4K-UHD Virtual Set Studio, Digital Radio Studio, and VR Lab.
• Guaranteed Global Exchange: One semester at a partner university in Asia, Europe, or North America.
• Hands-On Learning: Real-world experience through journalism projects and overseas study tours.
• International Classroom: A 1:1 ratio of international to local students with all courses taught in English.

For more information about CUHK’s Global Communication programme, visit https://admission.cuhk.edu.hk/programme/gcomn/
Hashtag: #CUHK

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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The Change. org campaign crossed 61,000 signatures within days of the July 19 final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Support continued to grow on Thursday, with separate live counts showing the total moving well beyond the figure that first drew international attention.

The petition was started by Gisela Sánchez, who accused Slovenian referee Slavko Vinčić of making decisions that unfairly influenced the contest. It calls for the match to be staged again under a different referee and urges FIFA to examine the officiating.

Spain secured its second World Cup title through Ferran Torres, who scored the decisive goal during extra time. Argentina, the defending champion, had been attempting to retain the trophy won in Qatar in 2022 and add a fourth world crown to its record.

Supporters behind the campaign have highlighted several disputed incidents, including challenges that they believe warranted stronger disciplinary action. They have also questioned the referee’s handling of physical confrontations and stoppages during a tense match.

No evidence has emerged that FIFA is considering a replay. The governing body has not indicated that the official result is under review, and the trophy presentation proceeded after the final whistle.

Change. org petitions have no regulatory authority over FIFA or its competitions. The platform allows users to demonstrate public support for a demand, but it cannot compel a sports organisation to investigate a match, overturn a decision or arrange another fixture.

Football results are generally treated as final once a match has been completed. Refereeing judgements involving fouls, cards, penalties and video reviews are not normally grounds for replaying a fixture, even when those decisions generate widespread criticism.

A replay would require exceptional circumstances, such as a serious misapplication of the laws of the game, an eligibility breach or a formal ruling by the competition’s governing authorities. Disagreement with a referee’s interpretation of an incident is usually insufficient.

The distinction has limited the prospects of comparable campaigns. French supporters collected more than 200,000 signatures after Argentina defeated France in the 2022 World Cup final, alleging irregularities surrounding Argentina’s third goal and the penalty shootout. FIFA did not reconsider the result.

Another petition during the 2026 tournament sought a replay of the semi-final between France and Spain after complaints about an incident preceding a penalty. It attracted more than 82,000 signatures without affecting the competition schedule or Spain’s place in the final.

The Argentine campaign has nevertheless become a focus for anger over refereeing and video assistant referee decisions during the expanded 48-team tournament. Several matches triggered allegations of inconsistency, while misleading clips, altered images and unsupported conspiracy theories circulated widely across social media.

The debate intensified after disorder followed the final whistle. Players and staff from both teams became involved in confrontations as emotions spilled over. Argentina assistant coach Roberto Ayala later apologised for his conduct during an incident involving Spain midfielder Dani Olmo, saying his behaviour was inappropriate.

FIFA is separately examining conduct connected to the post-match scenes. Any disciplinary process would concern individual actions and possible sanctions rather than the validity of Spain’s victory.

The Argentine Football Association has not adopted the petition as an official protest. A formal challenge would have to follow FIFA’s competition procedures and strict filing deadlines, while identifying a rule-based basis for intervention.

The demand has also produced a backlash. A separate campaign calling for Argentina to be excluded from future World Cups attracted millions of signatures before closing. That petition alleged favourable treatment towards Argentina and Lionel Messi, but it similarly carried no legal or sporting force.

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The attack targeted infrastructure operated by Wanchain rather than the Cardano or Midnight blockchains. Midnight Foundation said its network, validators and consensus system remained secure, seeking to contain concern that the breach had compromised the underlying privacy-focused protocol.

The stolen tokens were removed from a treasury address supporting NIGHT transfers across the bridge. Estimates of the loss ranged from $9 million to more than $13 million because the token’s price fell sharply during and after the attack, altering the dollar value of the assets as investigators tracked their movement.

NIGHT dropped by more than 30% during the sell-off and touched a record low near $0.015. The token later recovered part of its losses as exchanges and ecosystem participants moved to restrict the attacker’s ability to deposit, trade or convert the stolen assets.

Blockchain investigators traced the incident to a flaw in the way the bridge encoded data before transactions were authorised. The affected validator contract reportedly combined 14 variable-length fields into a single message without adequate separators or fixed boundaries.

That design allowed different sets of transaction data to produce the same encoded message. Attackers could therefore reuse a valid cryptographic signature while changing critical information, including the number of tokens being redeemed.

A legitimate signature associated with a transfer of about 3,110 NIGHT was allegedly manipulated to approve withdrawals exceeding 200 million tokens in one operation. Further transactions brought the total removed from the treasury to about 515 million NIGHT.

The process unfolded within minutes, highlighting the speed at which automated transactions can empty bridge reserves once verification controls are bypassed. Wanchain halted the relevant bridge service after the abnormal activity was detected and began working with security specialists, exchanges and the Midnight team.

Several large cryptocurrency exchanges restricted NIGHT deposits and withdrawals or blocked addresses linked to the stolen funds. The measures were intended to prevent the attacker from converting the assets through centralised trading platforms, although tokens can also be exchanged through decentralised venues that lack central account controls.

Some of the stolen NIGHT was moved through Cardano-based decentralised exchanges, adding selling pressure and contributing to the price decline. Investigators continued to follow the assets across wallets while attempting to identify destinations that could be frozen or flagged.

The incident exposed a mismatch between Wanchain’s established operating history and the vulnerabilities that can emerge when new assets and chains are added to cross-chain systems. Founded in 2017, Wanchain has positioned itself as a decentralised interoperability network connecting dozens of blockchain platforms, including both Ethereum-compatible and non-Ethereum networks.

Cross-chain bridges lock tokens on one network and issue equivalent assets on another, enabling users to move value between otherwise separate blockchains. The design places substantial assets in bridge contracts and treasury addresses, making them attractive targets for hackers.

Bridge security depends not only on the blockchains being connected but also on smart contracts, validators, signing procedures, message formats and off-chain services. A weakness in any one component can allow attackers to create tokens without proper backing or withdraw assets that were deposited by legitimate users.

The Wanchain breach did not represent an attack on Cardano’s consensus mechanism. Cardano continued processing transactions normally, while Midnight’s core infrastructure also remained operational. The distinction is important because assets carrying a blockchain’s name can be affected by third-party applications without the base network being penetrated.

Midnight is a privacy-oriented blockchain developed with support from Input Output, the company behind Cardano. Its architecture is designed to let applications protect confidential information while providing selective disclosure and regulatory controls. NIGHT is used for network participation and supports the generation of DUST, a resource intended to pay for transactions without exposing users’ identities.

The exploit has renewed scrutiny of older bridge models that rely on trusted signers or complex message validation. Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson said the sector should move towards bridge designs based on zero-knowledge technology, which can verify transactions cryptographically while reducing dependence on operators and multisignature arrangements.

Security specialists have repeatedly warned that bridge contracts require strict data encoding, domain separation and safeguards against signature replay. Signed messages must bind every transaction field clearly to its type, length, destination chain and intended contract so that approval for one action cannot be applied to another.

Arabian Post – Crypto News Network

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Located in the Al Mushrif area, the free-entry park features more than 1,100 mature Ghaf trees, elevated walking trails, cycling routes, meditation decks and open lawns. Its centrepiece is an air-conditioned walkway extending about 700 metres, offering residents and visitors an exercise and leisure space protected from the capital’s intense summer temperatures.

The development reflects Abu Dhabi’s expanding focus on climate-conscious public spaces, where greenery, shaded infrastructure and cooled outdoor facilities are being integrated to make recreation more accessible during hotter months. The approach is especially significant in a city where high temperatures and humidity can limit outdoor activity for long periods.

Opened by the Department of Municipalities and Transport on December 16, 2025, the park was named after Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. Its inauguration coincided with Bahrain’s 54th National Day and was presented as a symbol of the close political, cultural and social relationship between the UAE and Bahrain.

The layout has been planned around the existing tree canopy, creating shaded pathways beneath the Ghaf trees rather than relying solely on enclosed buildings. Elevated tracks allow walkers to move through different levels of the landscape, while scenic trails provide quieter routes through the wooded sections.

The air-conditioned promenade provides an alternative for walking when outdoor conditions become uncomfortable. Its 700-metre length allows visitors to maintain a regular exercise routine without depending on shopping centres, gyms or fully enclosed sports facilities.

Cyclists are served by a dedicated path and a pump track, which uses slopes, bends and raised sections to create momentum without continuous pedalling. The facility is expected to appeal to younger riders and recreational cyclists while separating bicycle activity from pedestrian routes.

Open lawns provide space for families and informal gatherings. Yoga and meditation decks have also been positioned within the greener areas, using the tree canopy to create quieter settings away from surrounding traffic and buildings.

Children’s play areas cater to different age groups, while dedicated fitness zones have been designed for People of Determination and senior citizens and residents. The inclusive layout supports Abu Dhabi’s wider effort to ensure that public parks can be used by visitors with varying mobility and fitness requirements.

A café at the centre of the park includes a cooled outdoor terrace and an elevated viewing point overlooking the Ghaf canopy. Food trucks and drinking-water fountains add to the park’s visitor facilities, reducing the need for people to leave the grounds during longer visits.

The extensive use of Ghaf trees gives the park environmental as well as cultural significance. Prosopis cineraria, the scientific name of the Ghaf, is adapted to arid conditions and can survive with limited water. Its roots extend deep into the soil, allowing established trees to withstand prolonged heat and drought.

The Ghaf is the UAE’s national tree and has long provided shelter, food and gathering places in desert communities. Its broad canopy supports birds and other wildlife, while its resilience has made it an important species in urban landscaping and climate-adaptation projects.

Abu Dhabi City Municipality is separately planting 5,000 trees along approximately 24 kilometres of walkways, roads and public parks during 2026. The programme prioritises species suited to the local environment, including Ghaf, neem, cassia, ficus and pongamia, as authorities seek to expand tree cover and improve pedestrian comfort.

The emirate’s climate strategy targets a 22 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2027 compared with 2016 levels. It also places greater emphasis on adapting urban infrastructure to higher temperatures and strengthening the resilience of communities, transport networks and public spaces.

King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa Park demonstrates how these objectives can be incorporated into a neighbourhood recreation area. Natural shade reduces direct exposure to sunlight, while cooled pathways extend the hours during which residents can walk or exercise.

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Mirae Asset Consulting became Korbit’s largest shareholder after completing regulatory and transaction procedures. The deal gives the group control of more than 90 per cent of the exchange, following an agreement valued at about 133.4 billion won, or roughly $96 million at current exchange rates.

The Korea Fair Trade Commission approved the transaction on 9 July after determining that the combination was unlikely to restrict competition. The approval cleared a major hurdle for an acquisition that represents the first controlling investment in a domestic cryptocurrency exchange by an affiliate of a large traditional financial group.

Korbit said its services would continue without interruption following the ownership change. Customer deposits, virtual assets, personal information and transaction records will remain protected under existing systems and South Korea’s Virtual Asset User Protection Act. Trading, deposits and withdrawals are expected to operate as normal.

Founded in 2013, Korbit was the country’s first platform to offer trading between bitcoin and the Korean won. It later became one of five exchanges permitted to provide won-based cryptocurrency markets under South Korea’s regulated banking and identity-verification system.

The exchange helped establish the country as one of Asia’s most active retail cryptocurrency markets, but it has lost market share to larger rivals. Upbit dominates domestic trading, followed by Bithumb, while Coinone and Korbit operate with significantly smaller volumes. GOPAX is the fifth platform with access to won-denominated trading.

Mirae Asset’s entry gives Korbit access to capital, financial infrastructure and a global distribution network that may help it compete more effectively. The group operates businesses spanning asset management, securities, insurance, venture capital and exchange-traded funds, with operations across major financial centres.

The acquisition also offers Mirae Asset a regulated base from which to expand into tokenised securities, blockchain-based settlement, stablecoins and digital investment products. Chairman Park Hyeon-joo has identified digital assets as part of the group’s next stage of development, presenting Korbit as more than a cryptocurrency trading venue.

The group is expected to connect Korbit with a broader digital finance strategy that combines traditional investments with blockchain infrastructure. Possible areas include tokenised funds, digital bonds, institutional custody, cross-border payments and platforms for trading claims on real-world assets.

Mirae Asset has used overseas acquisitions to build a large exchange-traded fund business, including its ownership of Global X in the United States. Its experience in packaging and distributing investment products could support Korbit’s expansion beyond retail cryptocurrency trading, although regulatory approval would be required for many new services.

The transaction follows a policy shift in Seoul towards greater institutional participation in digital assets. Authorities have been developing rules that would allow corporations and professional investors to engage more directly with cryptocurrencies while strengthening controls on market abuse, custody and consumer protection.

South Korea introduced its first comprehensive law protecting cryptocurrency users in July 2024. The legislation requires exchanges to segregate customer deposits, maintain reserves, store much of their digital holdings in offline wallets and monitor suspicious transactions. A second phase of regulation is expected to address market structure, stablecoins and the responsibilities of token issuers.

Traditional financial groups have moved cautiously because rules separating financial and non-financial businesses can limit ownership and operational integration. Mirae Asset structured the purchase through Mirae Asset Consulting, whose activities include investments outside the group’s core securities and asset-management operations.

The acquisition involved shares held by Korbit’s former major owners, including NXC, the holding company connected to game publisher Nexon, and SK Square. NXC gained control of Korbit in 2017, while SK Square later invested in the platform as part of its technology portfolio.

Korbit’s banking relationship is another important asset. Cryptocurrency exchanges offering won markets must work with authorised banks that provide customers with verified real-name accounts. Korbit has maintained a partnership with Shinhan Bank, giving it access to payment rails and compliance systems required for domestic currency trading.

Competition is likely to intensify as established financial companies seek positions in South Korea’s digital-asset market. Banks, securities firms and technology groups are preparing for a regulatory framework covering won-backed stablecoins, while cryptocurrency exchanges are exploring partnerships that could strengthen payments, custody and wealth-management services.

Arabian Post – Crypto News Network

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The largest loss was recorded by AFX Trade, a perpetual futures platform operating through an independently managed bridge on Arbitrum. Attackers removed about $24.15 million in USDC before transferring the assets from Arbitrum to Ethereum and exchanging them for roughly 12,467 ether.

B² Network, a Bitcoin scaling project, suffered a separate loss of about $3.86 million after an attacker gained unauthorised access to the upgrade authority controlling its token-staking contract. The intruder generated or obtained about 8.59 million B2 tokens, sold them through decentralised markets and moved the proceeds across several networks.

B² suspended its staking service after detecting the breach and said affected users would be fully compensated. The stolen B2 tokens were converted into more than 5,000 wrapped BNB, exchanged for about 1,128 ether and transferred using a cross-chain transaction system. The B2 token fell by more than 15 per cent as traders responded to the sudden increase in supply and uncertainty surrounding the contract.

Verus Protocol’s Ethereum bridge was also drained of approximately $7.54 million in ether, tokenised bitcoin and stablecoins. The assets included USDC, USDT, EURC, Maker and tokenised savings products held within the bridge’s reserves.

The Verus attacker used the bridge’s import function to authorise Ethereum-side payments that were not backed by equivalent funds deposited on the Verus blockchain. The contract accepted the cross-chain message and released genuine assets even though the underlying claim carried little or no value.

The incident was especially damaging because the same bridge contract, transaction path and category of validation failure were exploited in May. That attack caused an estimated loss of $11.58 million after a manipulated import message bypassed checks designed to confirm the value committed on the source network.

Most of the assets taken in May were returned after negotiations over a bounty. Verus placed recovered funds back into the bridge on July 8, but the contract remained exposed to a comparable method of attack. The renewed drain two weeks later raised questions about whether the bridge had undergone adequate testing and remediation before liquidity was restored.

Verus held close to $100 million in total value locked at the beginning of 2025. The amount had fallen to about $9 million by Thursday, reflecting withdrawals, earlier security losses and reduced confidence in the protocol.

The three attacks did not compromise Bitcoin, Ethereum or the cryptographic systems securing their blockchains. Instead, the losses arose from weaknesses in the infrastructure built around them, including bridge logic, private keys, upgrade permissions and validation processes.

Cross-chain bridges allow users to transfer value between otherwise incompatible blockchain networks. They normally lock an asset on one network and issue a corresponding token or claim on another. Their security therefore depends on accurately confirming that every issued token is backed by funds held elsewhere.

A flaw in that confirmation process can allow an attacker to create an apparently valid message and withdraw real assets without making the required deposit. Compromised administrative credentials present a different danger, as control over an upgrade key can permit an attacker to alter contract behaviour without defeating its original code.

Questions have also emerged over the controls used by AFX Trade. The affected bridge was not part of Arbitrum’s native bridging infrastructure and was operated independently by the platform. Arbitrum contributors said the underlying network and its official bridges were not compromised.

Security specialists reviewing an earlier audit of the AFX bridge identified limited test coverage and unresolved issues that had been acknowledged during the assessment. Parts of the code were also unavailable for a complete review, restricting the auditors’ ability to examine the entire system before funds were deposited.

The attacks extend a difficult year for decentralised finance infrastructure. Cross-chain bridges have lost more than $2.8 billion through exploits over their operating history, accounting for a substantial share of assets stolen from blockchain applications.

Large bridge failures have repeatedly involved mechanisms outside the core blockchain. Earlier cases included stolen validator credentials, forged transaction messages, faulty proof verification and administrative keys controlled by too few individuals.

Arabian Post – Crypto News Network

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By Asad Mirza

Washington and Riyadh have signed a civilian nuclear cooperation pact that could let Saudi Arabia enrich uranium on its own soil. Announced this week and now headed to Congress, the deal marks a historic shift in US nonproliferation policy, alarms Israel and threatens to reshape the regional balance of power just as the US and Iran remain locked in confrontation.

The latest US-Saudi Arabia nuclear agreement, formalised under Section 123 of the US Atomic Energy Act, gives American firms legal access to build out Saudi Arabia’s civilian nuclear programme, alongside separate bilateral safeguards accord signed by Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman.

The Department of Energy framed the agreement as a “decades-long, multi-billion-dollar partnership” that would create American jobs while strengthening ties with the kingdom.

Details emerging since the signing indicates the pact runs for roughly 30 years and, crucially, does not commit Riyadh to the so-called “gold standard” – the industry term for a blanket ban on uranium enrichment and spent-fuel reprocessing that the UAE accepted when it built its Barakah plant.

Instead, the two countries are expected to conduct a two-year study on whether an enrichment facility on Saudi territory would be commercially viable, rather than having Riyadh permanently rely on imported, US-supervised fuel.

US Administration officials insist the deal still upholds “the highest standards of nuclear safety and nonproliferation,” and note it does not itself hand over fuel-cycle technology – only a legal pathway for future cooperation. The US Congress now has a mandatory review window, reportedly around 90 days, during which lawmakers could try to block the pact, though doing so would require a two-thirds majority in both chambers – a high bar that makes rejection unlikely absent broad bipartisan revolt.

Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest oil exporter, yet burns huge volumes of crude and natural gas domestically for power and desalination plants- more than a million barrels a day at peak summer months, by some estimates.

Nuclear power, under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030 diversification plan, would free up that oil for export while cutting emissions. But energy economics is only part of the story. The crown prince has repeatedly said that if Iran ever builds a nuclear weapon, Saudi Arabia will match it, a declaration meant to pressure Tehran but one that has also deepened suspicion about Riyadh’s own long-term intentions.

Enrichment capability – even framed as civilian – gives the kingdom a technical foundation it did not previously have, along with negotiating leverage over Washington and a hedge against Iran and, increasingly, against uncertainty about US security guarantees generally.

The timing amplifies the stakes. The deal comes as the United States continues strikes against Iran aimed at forcing it to abandon its own nuclear ambitions, and lawmakers including Senator Chris Murphy warning publicly that rewarding Saudi Arabia with enrichment rights while bombing Iran removes any incentive for Tehran to curb its programme.

Non-proliferation specialists go further: Henry Sokolski of the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center has argued that wherever Saudi Arabia goes, the UAE, Turkey and Egypt are likely to follow, seeking equivalent arrangements rather than accept second-tier status.

Compounding the picture, Saudi Arabia signed a mutual defence pact with nuclear-armed Pakistan last year, after which Pakistan’s defence minister said its nuclear programme would be “made available” to Riyadh if needed – a statement widely read as a signal aimed at Israel.

Analysts at the Carnegie Endowment and elsewhere describe the cumulative effect as eroding, rather than reinforcing, the non-proliferation architecture the US has spent decades building in the Gulf.

Israel, long assumed to be the region’s only nuclear-armed state, has reacted with unusual public anxiety, even though the Netanyahu government has stayed largely silent through official channels.

Opposition figures have been blunt. Former prime minister Naftali Bennett called the emerging pact a “serious strategic failure” negotiated over Israel’s head, warning that enrichment on Saudi soil could produce a regional nuclear race and a dangerous loss of control.

Former defence ministers Benny Gantz and Avigdor Liberman echoed the warning, with Liberman predicting the civilian programme would eventually end in weapons capability and a frantic regional scramble. Israeli security officials, speaking privately, are reportedly worried less about Saudi intentions specifically than about setting a precedent: once Riyadh secures enrichment rights, it becomes far harder to deny the same to Ankara, Cairo or Abu Dhabi.

There is also a deeper strategic loss for Israel. Civilian nuclear cooperation was originally conceived, under the Biden administration, as an inducement to help broker Saudi-Israeli normalisation as part of a broader regional “grand bargain.” That leverage has effectively evaporated – Riyadh now appears set to receive the nuclear benefits without delivering normalisation in return, removing one of the few remaining incentives for a Saudi-Israeli thaw.

For Washington, the deal represents a genuine reversal of policy that it has held, with some exceptions, since the 1970s: sensitive fuel-cycle technology is not extended to new states, particularly in volatile regions, without ironclad restrictions.

Non-proliferation experts have not minced words. Carnegie’s James Acton has called the pact “tantamount to the United States giving up on non-proliferation,” while congressional Democrats, including Representative Gregory Meeks and Senator Edward Markey, argue it erodes standards the US itself insisted on elsewhere, including with the UAE.

The administration’s counterargument is that tight US involvement – potentially including a “black box” arrangement where American personnel control any enrichment facility – will prevent diversion, and that walking away simply cedes the contract, and the influence that comes with it, to Russia, China or France.

Whether that safeguard holds is precisely the unresolved question Congress must now weigh: some non-proliferation analysts warn Saudi Arabia could, in theory, nationalise a jointly built facility years down the line, forcing a future US administration into an impossible choice between accepting a fait accompli or confronting an ally militarily.

The US-Saudi nuclear pact is less a single transaction than a hinge point. It hands Riyadh a technical capability, financial partnership and geopolitical heft it has sought for years; it strips away a key normalisation incentive that once tied Saudi and Israeli interests together; and it signals to the rest of the region – and to Iran – that Washington’s non-proliferation red lines are negotiable.

With Congress unlikely to muster the votes to block it, the more consequential fight may not be in Washington at all, but in how Israel, Iran, UAE, Turkey and Egypt each recalibrate their own nuclear calculus in response. (IPA Service)

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The project will comprise 592 apartments spread across six mid-rise buildings, with sales scheduled to begin on July 29. Studios and one-, two- and three-bedroom homes will be offered in a park-centred setting designed to link private residences with landscaped outdoor areas and the wider waterfront.

The Canopies marks the opening residential phase of Yas Point, a 600,000-square-metre mixed-use destination planned to accommodate about 5,000 residents. The broader masterplan will include 1,600 homes, a five-star resort, branded residences, an international school, shops, restaurants, leisure facilities and public recreational spaces.

More than 10,000 square metres of The Canopies will be allocated to landscaped open space. The development will feature shaded walking routes, gardens, outdoor wellness areas and communal spaces intended to support a walkable neighbourhood.

Residents will also have access to two resort-style swimming pools with children’s splash pads, two fully equipped gyms and integrated retail and food and beverage outlets. Private outdoor areas and layouts intended to strengthen the connection between interiors and surrounding green spaces form part of the design.

A central amenity known as The Canopy Club will combine social, work and wellness facilities. It will include a private residents’ lounge, multipurpose rooms, co-working spaces, a gym, yoga and tai chi areas, an outdoor kitchen, barbecue facilities, a dining terrace and children’s play zones.

The development will sit within walking distance of a 700-metre waterfront promenade planned as one of Yas Point’s principal public attractions. The promenade will include beachside dining, retail outlets and spaces for water activities. Yas Point will also contain the first beach on the northern side of Yas Island.

The wider destination has been designed around a park-to-sea route connecting residential areas with the coastline. Three main public parks will anchor a network of pedestrian paths, cycling routes, neighbourhood gardens and waterfront walkways. The largest, Lea Park, will cover about 60,000 square metres.

Open-water activities such as kayaking and windsurfing are planned alongside quieter beach areas. Water taxi services are also included in the masterplan, reflecting a broader effort to improve movement between Yas Point and other parts of the island.

The Canopies will be located close to Yas Mall, SeaWorld Abu Dhabi, Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, Warner Bros. World Abu Dhabi, Yas Waterworld, Yas Links Abu Dhabi and Yas Marina Circuit. The planned Disney theme park and Sphere entertainment venue are expected to strengthen the island’s appeal to residents, tourists and property investors.

Road access will connect the community with Zayed International Airport, central Abu Dhabi and Dubai through the E11 motorway. Future transport infrastructure within Yas Island is also expected to support links between Yas Point, Yas Acres, Yas Riva and nearby attractions.

An international school capable of accommodating about 3,600 students will form part of the wider Yas Point project. Its inclusion signals Aldar’s intention to position the destination as a permanent family community rather than a development driven mainly by hospitality and short-term visitors.

The launch follows strong demand for Aldar’s other residential developments on Yas Island. Yas Park Place generated more than AED800 million after 80 per cent of the homes released during its initial sales phase were bought. Buyers living outside the UAE and expatriate residents accounted for 54 per cent of sales, while UAE nationals represented 46 per cent.

New customers made up 83 per cent of purchasers at Yas Park Place, while two-thirds of buyers were under the age of 45. The figures indicated that demand was extending beyond Aldar’s established customer base and attracting younger investors from markets including China, Taiwan, Jordan and the United Kingdom.

Another Yas Island development, The Orchids at Yas Acres, sold out during its launch and generated more than AED680 million. The performance has encouraged Aldar to expand the range of mid-rise apartments, villas and waterfront homes available across the island.

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Four nights of refined coastal gastronomy and creative collaborations will be staged from August 12-15, 2026, featuring highly acclaimed Michelin-starred chefs from Bo.lan, Andō, Maison Dunand and more.

PHUKET, THAILAND – Media OutReach Newswire – 23 July 2026 – Some of the deepest conversations happen over food – the kind that pull you in close and ensure you stay a little longer than planned. This August, these conversations will become even more meaningful at the “Luxury Dining Series, Across the Table” – a collection of immersive epicurean experiences unfolding across six extraordinary destinations in Asia.

One of these six destinations will be hosted from August 12-15, 2026, at The Naka Island, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Phuket, the five-star sanctuary nestled on an idyllic island in the Andaman Sea, where some of the region’s leading Michelin-starred chefs will join hands for four nights of culinary celebrations and collaborations.

A Gathering of Gastronomic Visionaries

The Luxury Dining Series brings together visionary guest chefs Duangporn “Bo” Songvisava and Dylan Jones from Bangkok’s iconic Bo.lan, Agustin Ferrando Balbi, chef-founder of Andō in Hong Kong, and Arnaud Dunand Sauthier, chef-founder of Maison Dunand in Bangkok, alongside mixology maestros Sudarat “Taln” Rojanavanich of Bar Us and Jane Kaew-Yod, co-founder of Lay Heritage Cocktails Space.

They will join The Naka Island, Phuket’s own highly acclaimed Chef Joseph William Talbot, Chef Ratchanee “Kob” Nu-On, and Mixologist Adi Sukasta, along with culinary artists and mixologists from across the Marriott portfolio—including Pastry Chef Sylvain Constans from The Ritz-Carlton, Bangkok, Chef Laongdao “Aong” Tohkhot of Phulay Bay, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, Krabi, and Mixologist Fransiska Siregar from The St. Regis Jakarta—for a series of mesmerizing, multi-hand dining and cocktail experiences spanning four engaging, interactive evenings.

Four Idyllic Evenings, Four Enchanting Chapters

• August 12 – “The Art of Culinary Discovery & Craft Brew Experience” will be hosted by chefs Agustin Ferrando Balbi and Joseph William Talbot at the resort’s Multi-Purpose Sala, with handcrafted pass-around bites and live stations inspired by island life, paired with Phuket’s finest craft beers.
• August 13 – “The Grand Banquet: Eight-Hand Dinner” will be staged on the Beach Lawn, as chefs Agustin Ferrando Balbi, Arnaud Dunand Sauthier, Joseph William Talbot, and Sylvain Constans come together for an exceptional, wine-paired menu that showcases the essence of Phuket beneath the Andaman sky.
• August 14 – “Chefs at the Table: Six-Hand Dinner” will see chefs Arnaud Dunand Sauthier, Joseph William Talbot, and Sylvain Constans present an elegant wine-paired menu at Veranda, balancing Alpine precision, Mediterranean warmth, and French artistry.
• August 15 – “Chefs at the Table: Eight-Hand Culinary Journey” will be a celebration of refined Thai cuisine at Aiyara, as chefs Duangporn “Bo” Songvisava, Dylan Jones, Laongdao “Aong” Tohkhot, and Ratchanee “Kob” Nu-On honor the kingdom’s gastronomic heritage, with cocktail pairings by Jane Kaew-Yod.

Beyond the Table: Uncover Phuket’s Culture and Crafts

Alongside these four epicurean evenings, guests are invited to a series of experiences that will connect them with the authentic essence of the island. A Gin Distillery Tour and hands-on Gin Making Workshop, a Dye Textile Workshop rooted in local artisan techniques, and a sunset catamaran excursion along the Andaman coast will highlight the natural, cultural and culinary wonders of Phuket. Every celebration extends into the evening with a curated line-up of cocktail experiences, including a bar takeover by Bar Us and a special cocktail collaboration with The St. Regis Jakarta, bringing fresh energy and creative pairings to The Naka Island, Phuket.

The Ultimate “Experience Dining Package”

Finally, guests staying from August 12-15, 2026, can reserve the “Experience Dining Package”, which includes daily breakfast and a set dinner for two people, with each evening thoughtfully elevated to reflect the spirit of “Across The Table”.

To reserve your place at the “Luxury Dining Series“, please visit luxurydiningseries.com/phuket, and to book the “Experience Dining Package”, please click here.

For more information about The Naka Island, a Luxury Collection Resort & Spa, Phuket, please connect with us via these channels:

Email: naka.reservations@luxurycollection.com
Website: www.marriott.com/en-us/hotels/pyxlc-the-naka-island-a-luxury-collection-resort-and-spa-phuket/overview
Facebook: www.facebook.com/thenakaisland

Instagram: www.instagram.com/nakaislandphuket

Line Official: lin.ee/6wOs1Rw

Hashtag: #TheLuxuryCollection #NakaIsland #Phuket

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About Marriott Bonvoy®

Marriott Bonvoy’s extraordinary portfolio offers renowned hospitality in the most memorable destinations in the world, with more than 30 brands that are tailored to every type of journey. From The Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis to W Hotels and more, Marriott Bonvoy has more luxury offerings than any other travel program. Members can earn points for stays at hotels and resorts, including all-inclusive resorts and premium home rentals, and through everyday purchases with co-branded credit cards. Members can redeem their points for experiences including future stays, Marriott Bonvoy Moments™, or through partners for luxurious products from Marriott Bonvoy Boutiques®. To enroll for free or for more information about Marriott Bonvoy, visit marriottbonvoy.com.

About The Luxury Collection® Hotels & Resorts

The Luxury Collection® is comprised of world-renowned hotels and resorts offering unique, authentic experiences that evoke lasting, treasured memories. For the global explorer, The Luxury Collection offers a gateway to the world’s most exciting and desirable destinations. Each hotel and resort are a unique and cherished expression of its location; a portal to the destination’s charms and treasures. Originated in 1906 under the CIGA® brand as a collection of Europe’s most celebrated and iconic properties, today The Luxury Collection brand is a glittering ensemble of over 130 of the world’s finest hotels and resorts in 42 countries and territories. All of these hotels, many of them centuries old, are internationally recognized as being among the world’s finest. For more information and new openings, visit theluxurycollection.com or follow Instagram and Facebook. The Luxury Collection is proud to participate in Marriott Bonvoy®, the global travel program from Marriott International. The program offers members an extraordinary portfolio of global brands, exclusive experiences on Marriott Bonvoy Moments and unparalleled benefits including free nights and Elite status recognition. To enroll for free or for more information about the program, visit marriottbonvoy.com.

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The IRGC said the attack destroyed what it called Amazon’s central data hub in Bahrain. Its statement presented the operation as retaliation for US military strikes on Iranian targets, including the Darkhovin nuclear power project in Khuzestan province.

Neither Amazon nor Bahraini authorities immediately confirmed that a cruise missile had directly hit an AWS site during the operation described by Tehran. The claim emerged while Bahrain and other Gulf states were responding to missile and drone threats linked to the widening confrontation between Iran and the United States.

AWS acknowledged that its Middle East region in Bahrain remained unavailable because of damage caused by the conflict. Its service dashboard advised affected customers to restore workloads in other regions, indicating that disruption extended across multiple cloud products and was not expected to be resolved quickly.

The available updates do not establish that the outage was caused by the specific strike announced by the IRGC. AWS infrastructure in Bahrain had already sustained conflict-related damage before Tehran issued its latest statement, complicating efforts to determine whether a fresh attack occurred or whether Iran was referring to an existing operational failure.

Iranian accounts said the missiles also targeted US air-defence equipment and radar installations around Muharraq and Riffa. Bahrain hosts the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet and has become an important logistical and communications centre for American military operations across the Arabian Gulf, Red Sea and north-western Indian Ocean.

Amazon opened the AWS Middle East region in Bahrain in 2019, its first cloud region in the Middle East. The system was designed around three separate availability zones, allowing organisations to distribute applications and data across physically distinct locations while remaining within the same national jurisdiction.

The Bahrain region serves government agencies, banks, telecommunications operators, start-ups and large companies seeking lower data-transfer delays and compliance with local data-residency requirements. Disruption can therefore affect far more than Amazon’s internal operations, potentially interrupting payment services, business software, mobile applications and digital government platforms.

Cloud providers ordinarily use redundancy to keep services operating when individual servers or buildings fail. Prolonged regional damage, however, can force customers to shift applications to facilities elsewhere, a process that may require additional technical work, regulatory approval and higher network costs. Organisations that stored essential systems in only one region face greater exposure.

The attack claim marks a further expansion of the types of infrastructure being identified as military targets. Data centres have traditionally been treated as commercial assets, but their role in government administration, artificial intelligence, intelligence analysis and military logistics has made them strategically significant during armed conflict.

Tehran has increasingly portrayed US technology companies as part of Washington’s security architecture. That approach raises questions about the protection afforded to privately operated digital infrastructure, particularly when the same cloud platforms support civilian businesses and public services alongside government customers.

Damage to cloud facilities also presents risks that differ from conventional attacks on energy or transport infrastructure. Service failures can spread across borders within seconds, while the physical location of affected customer data may be unclear to users. A disabled facility can disrupt companies operating hundreds or thousands of kilometres from the strike site.

Bahrain has strengthened civil-defence measures as hostilities have moved closer to Gulf population centres. Warning systems have been activated during suspected Iranian attacks, and authorities have urged residents to follow official instructions and avoid circulating unverified information.

The confrontation has already placed pressure on regional aviation, shipping, energy markets and telecommunications networks. Missile and drone activity has been reported across Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, while US forces have continued strikes against Iranian missile, drone, surveillance and air-defence sites.

For Amazon, the Bahrain disruption adds to the challenge of maintaining cloud availability during a conflict affecting several technology hubs. The company has directed customers towards recovery arrangements outside damaged regions, underlining the importance of geographically separated backups and tested continuity plans.

The article Iran claims strike on AWS hub in Bahrain appeared first on Arabian Post.

Built on Fedora Atomic Desktops, the open-source platform arrives with Steam installed and includes gaming-focused drivers, software and system adjustments. Its developers aim to reduce the configuration work traditionally associated with Linux gaming while giving users access to a full desktop environment for browsing, productivity, streaming and content creation.

Bazzite offers separate images tailored to different hardware and usage patterns. Standard desktop editions provide either KDE Plasma or GNOME, while Bazzite-Deck editions boot directly into Steam Gaming Mode. The latter approach resembles the interface used by Valve’s SteamOS, allowing games, settings and downloads to be managed primarily with a controller.

Users can leave Gaming Mode and enter a conventional desktop when they need applications that are not designed for a television or handheld interface. This dual structure is central to Bazzite’s appeal. A compact gaming device can function as a console when connected to a display, then become a general-purpose computer when paired with a keyboard and mouse.

The operating system supports a broad range of modern desktops, laptops and specialist handhelds. Compatibility documentation covers devices from Asus, Lenovo, GPD, Ayaneo, Ayn and OneXPlayer, alongside Valve’s Steam Deck and Framework computers. Hardware support varies, however, and some models may lack working audio, controls or power-management features because suitable Linux drivers are unavailable.

Bazzite’s stable branch received kernel 7.0.9 in June, together with Mesa 26.1 graphics components, updated open Nvidia drivers, Valve’s video-memory patches and fixes for Xbox controllers. The project’s rapid update cycle reflects its reliance on Fedora’s software base and the wider Linux graphics ecosystem.

Its atomic architecture is designed to make system maintenance more predictable. Core operating-system files are delivered as tested images rather than being altered through conventional package-by-package upgrades. Updates are downloaded in the background on desktop editions and become active after a reboot. Gaming Mode editions allow upgrades to be started manually through Steam’s settings.

Should an update cause serious problems, users can return to an earlier deployment through the boot menu or Bazzite’s rollback tools. Builds from the previous 90 days can also be selected. Personal files remain separate from the system image, reducing the risk that an operating-system rollback will erase user data.

Applications are generally installed through Flatpak packages and the Bazaar software centre. Additional development tools or traditional Linux applications can run inside containers. This model improves separation between the operating system and user-installed software, although it can be unfamiliar to people accustomed to directly modifying system files.

Gaming compatibility depends heavily on Proton, Valve’s translation technology for running Windows games on Linux. Thousands of titles can operate without native Linux editions, often with little intervention. Steam integration also allows cloud saves, controller profiles and library management to work in much the same way as they do on Windows.

Bazzite includes support for high dynamic range displays, variable refresh rates and performance-oriented CPU scheduling. It also provides access to launchers and tools for games purchased outside Steam, including software linked to Epic Games Store and GOG libraries. Emulation applications and streaming utilities can be added through the graphical software centre.

Linux gaming nevertheless retains important limitations. Games using unsupported kernel-level anti-cheat systems may refuse to launch. Publishers must actively enable compatible versions of technologies such as Easy Anti-Cheat or BattlEye, leaving players dependent on individual developers. Fortnite, Valorant and several competitive multiplayer titles remain difficult or impossible to run through standard Linux configurations.

Specialist applications, peripheral control suites and some subscription services may also require Windows. Nvidia hardware support has improved, but particular Gaming Mode and home theatre configurations continue to carry caveats. Secure Boot is available, although users must enrol the Universal Blue signing key during installation.

Interest in Bazzite has grown alongside the expansion of handheld gaming PCs and dissatisfaction among some users with Windows upgrade requirements. More than a petabyte of Bazzite installation images was distributed during one 30-day period in late 2025, indicating substantial demand despite Linux retaining a small share of the overall PC gaming market.

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All crew members aboard the Encelia were safe after the attack, the Transport General Authority said on Thursday. Emergency measures were taken to secure the vessel, contain the fire and prevent damage to the marine environment. The ship remained afloat, with no casualties reported.

Yemen’s Houthi movement claimed it had targeted the Encelia and another tanker, the Layla, using ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones. The group said both vessels had violated a naval blockade it had declared against Saudi ports and shipping.

The extent of any damage to the Layla could not immediately be confirmed. Maritime security alerts reported a vessel being hit in waters off Saudi Arabia’s south-western coast, followed by a fire on board. The Encelia had issued a distress call after being struck near the approaches to the Jizan region.

The attack marked a significant escalation in Houthi operations in the Red Sea. The group had threatened to stop vessels linked to Saudi Arabia as regional hostilities expanded and commercial shipping faced mounting pressure across the Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb passage.

The Encelia is a Saudi-flagged oil products tanker built in 2003. The vessel is about 250 metres long and is designed to transport refined petroleum products. Shipping databases identify it by International Maritime Organization number 9240172.

The Houthis said the strike was part of their effort to enforce a maritime blockade. They also claimed that several other vessels had altered course or withdrawn from the area after receiving warnings. Those claims could not be independently verified.

The incident is likely to reinforce caution among tanker operators, shipowners and insurers already dealing with higher security costs. War-risk premiums for vessels using the Red Sea can rise sharply after confirmed attacks, while crews may demand additional protection or compensation before entering high-risk waters.

Shipping companies could also reconsider routes through the Bab el-Mandeb, the narrow waterway linking the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. Rerouting vessels around the Cape of Good Hope adds thousands of nautical miles to journeys between Asia, the Middle East and Europe, increasing fuel consumption, freight rates and delivery times.

Saudi Arabia has relied on its Red Sea infrastructure to maintain oil exports when movement through the Strait of Hormuz becomes difficult. The East-West Pipeline carries crude from the kingdom’s eastern fields to Yanbu, allowing shipments to bypass the Gulf and load from terminals on the Red Sea coast.

That alternative route becomes less effective when vessels departing Yanbu face missile and drone threats farther south. Sustained disruption could complicate the kingdom’s ability to redirect exports and weaken one of the main contingency systems protecting global oil supplies.

Two large tankers carrying Saudi crude for China were continuing towards the Bab el-Mandeb on Thursday. Each was carrying about two million barrels loaded at Yanbu, illustrating the volume of energy trade exposed to worsening security conditions.

Oil prices rose after the attacks, with Brent crude moving above $95 a barrel during volatile trading. Markets were already assessing supply risks linked to wider hostilities, restricted tanker movements and uncertainty around key shipping lanes.

The Red Sea carries crude oil, refined fuels, liquefied natural gas and containerised goods between Asia and Europe. Even when physical supplies remain available, attacks can disrupt schedules, reduce vessel availability and push up insurance and chartering costs.

Houthi forces began sustained attacks on commercial shipping in late 2023, initially describing their campaign as support for Palestinians in Gaza. Missiles, drones and explosive boats were used against vessels passing Yemen, prompting multinational naval deployments and air strikes on Houthi-controlled territory.

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HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 23 July 2026 – Watsons, the flagship health and beauty brand of AS Watson, today announced the launch of Watsons Evergreen, as part of AS Watson’s 185^th anniversary celebrations. To elevate its significance and create a consistent and credible expression across markets, Watsons partnered with the Pantone Color Institute™, the world’s leading authority on colour. Combining Watsons’ rich heritage with Pantone’s expertise, the collaboration helped define and articulate a global brand asset that captures the essence of Watsons and its vision for the future.

A Colour That Brings the Brand to Life
Watsons Evergreen is a vibrant blue-green hue that symbolises everyday vitality, care and reassurance, reflecting Watsons’ purpose of helping customers LOOK GOOD, DO GOOD, FEEL GREAT every day. As a distinctive visual identity, it creates a shared language that connects Watsons markets worldwide.

From Watsons’ logo and store design to merchandising displays, digital channels and Own Brand products, Watsons Evergreen has long been a familiar presence across customer touchpoints. The Watsons Evergreen campaign will roll out across 16 markets, including Asia, Europe and the Middle-East, through a series of customer and community activations, as well as a curated range of products, reinforcing the brand’s long-standing connection with customers and communities around the world.

Celebrating a Heritage of Trusted Care
At the heart of the initiative is a simple belief: Watsons has always been there for customers and will continue to be for generations to come.

For 185 years, Watsons has supported customers in their everyday health needs, beauty routines and wellbeing moments, whether in-store or online. Watsons Evergreen reflects this enduring relationship, serving as a symbol of consistency, trust and care in an ever-evolving world.

Jared DeGuzman, Customer Director of Watsons International, said, “For 185 years, Watsons has helped customers feel healthier, happier and more confident in their daily lives. Watsons Evergreen captures that role in a simple yet powerful way. By partnering with Pantone, we’ve transformed our iconic brand colour into a global symbol of vitality, care and wellbeing that will connect customers across every Watsons market.”

Laurie Pressman, Vice President of the Pantone Color Institute™, added, “Watsons Evergreen captures the essence of a brand that has stood the test of time while continuing to grow and evolve. It is a colour that speaks of vitality and longevity, and of a deep, lasting connection to the customers and communities Watsons has served for generations.”

As Watsons marks this milestone anniversary, Watsons Evergreen stands as both a reflection of its rich heritage and a symbol of its forward-looking vision – uniting past and future in one distinctive expression of the brand.

Hashtag: #ASWatson

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

About Watsons

Watsons is the leading O+O (Offline plus Online) health and beauty retailer in Asia, currently operating 8,000 stores and more than 1,500 pharmacies in 16 Asian, European and Middle-East markets.

Watsons is named as the No.1 Personal Care and Beauty retailer in Asia*, providing personalised advice and counselling in health, beauty and personal care on top of its market-leading product range, making customers LOOK GOOD, DO GOOD, FEEL GREAT every day. Watsons is the flagship health and beauty brand of AS Watson Group.

Launched in 2019, Watsons’ Asia One Pass rewards our customers with local-member privileges and enables them earn points when they shop with Watsons in ten markets in Asia including Chinese Mainland, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Türkiye and the Philippines.

*Campaign Asia-Pacific’s Top 50 Brands survey with 10,000 respondents across 6 Asian countries

About AS Watson Group

Established in 1841, AS Watson Group is one of the world’s longest-standing and most recognised retail companies with roots in Asia. Today, the company operates over 17,000 stores across 12 retail brands in 31 markets, employing 130,000 people globally. This makes AS Watson Group the largest international health and beauty retailer in the world.

In the fiscal year 2025, AS Watson Group reported revenue of over US$26 billion. The company’s technology-enabled O+O (Offline plus Online) platforms serve over 6 billion shoppers annually, seamlessly integrating physical and digital retail experiences.

AS Watson Group supported over 180 charitable and non-profit organisations every year, dedicating over 40,000 hours of volunteer work to serve over 370,000 people in need in our operating markets.

AS Watson Group is also a member of the world-renowned multinational conglomerate CK Hutchison Holdings Limited, which has four core businesses – ports and related services, retail, infrastructure and telecommunications in over 50 countries.

Please visit www.aswatson.com/our-company/o-and-o-strategy/ for more information.

The article Watsons Unveils “Watsons Evergreen” with Pantone to Celebrate 185 Years of Trusted Care and Everyday Vitality appeared first on Arabian Post.

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The airlines signed a memorandum of understanding that establishes a framework for negotiating a future joint business agreement. The proposed arrangement would deepen their existing codeshare relationship and could allow closer coordination across schedules, sales, network planning and passenger services.

The partnership is expected to explore single-ticket journeys across the two carriers’ combined networks. Garuda Indonesia passengers could gain easier access to Saudia-operated destinations in the Middle East, Europe and Africa, while Saudia customers could connect through Garuda’s domestic network and services to Australia.

The carriers will examine coordinating flight schedules between Saudi Arabia and Indonesia to improve connection times and reduce lengthy transfers. They will also assess joint sales, marketing and distribution initiatives in markets where both airlines see opportunities for traffic growth.

Cooperation could extend to frequent-flyer programmes, airport services, technology systems and customer handling. The memorandum also places particular emphasis on services for Umrah and Hajj passengers travelling from Indonesia, one of the world’s largest markets for pilgrimage-related air travel.

Saudia Chief Commercial Officer Arved von zur Muehlen and Garuda Indonesia Director of Transformation Neil Raymond Mills signed the agreement. The ceremony was attended by Saudia Group Director General Ibrahim Al-Omar and Garuda Indonesia Vice President Director Thomas Sugiarto Oentoro.

Von zur Muehlen said the agreement reflected Saudia’s strategy of building commercial partnerships that strengthen its international network. He said the proposed cooperation would offer passengers greater flexibility between Indonesia, Australia and destinations served by Saudia across three regions.

Mills said the partnership carried strategic value beyond expanding flight networks. Improved access to the Middle East, Europe and Africa would support pilgrimage travel, family and community movement, business links and wider economic cooperation.

A joint business agreement would represent a deeper form of cooperation than a conventional codeshare. Codeshares allow airlines to sell seats on flights operated by a partner, while joint business structures can involve coordinated scheduling, pricing, sales and capacity planning, subject to regulatory approval.

Such arrangements allow airlines to extend their market reach without immediately adding aircraft or launching a large number of new routes. They can also improve aircraft utilisation and feed passenger traffic through major hubs. Regulators, however, generally examine these partnerships to ensure that closer coordination does not weaken competition or limit consumer choice.

The proposed partnership builds on the airlines’ membership of the SkyTeam alliance. Saudia joined SkyTeam in 2012, while Garuda Indonesia became a member in 2014. Alliance membership already supports shared passenger benefits, lounge access, priority services and frequent-flyer recognition across participating carriers.

Saudia operates from hubs including Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam and Medina, connecting Saudi Arabia with destinations across Asia, Africa, Europe and North America. Its Jeddah hub is particularly important for religious travel because of its proximity to Makkah and its role as a gateway for pilgrims.

Garuda Indonesia’s network is centred on Jakarta and Bali, with domestic services covering major commercial centres and tourism destinations across the archipelago. Its international operations connect Indonesia with markets in Asia, the Middle East and Australia.

The agreement comes as Garuda expands commercial cooperation with overseas airlines during its continuing operational and financial restructuring. The carrier launched a codeshare partnership with Scandinavian Airlines in June, offering connections between Indonesia and Copenhagen, Stockholm and Oslo through hubs including Amsterdam and Tokyo.

Greater cooperation with Saudia could strengthen Garuda’s access to markets that are difficult to serve economically with direct flights. The arrangement could also help generate connecting traffic for domestic destinations beyond Jakarta, including cities that supply significant numbers of Umrah and Hajj travellers.

Indonesia and Saudi Arabia have sought to expand economic and transport ties alongside their strong religious and cultural links. Agreements between companies from the two countries valued at about $27 billion were announced in 2025 across sectors including clean energy, petrochemicals and aviation fuel services.

The article Saudia and Garuda deepen partnership on global routes appeared first on Arabian Post.

The two decisions, adopted at the commission’s July 22 meeting, combine a tougher national security approach towards Chinese technology with an effort to accelerate 5G capacity and prepare networks for future 6G services. They could reshape electronics supply chains, mobile investment plans and competition for valuable mid-band airwaves.

The new equipment rule closes a regulatory gap that allowed products made by other companies to reach US shelves even when they contained chips or communications components supplied by businesses on the FCC’s Covered List. Huawei and ZTE are among the companies placed on that list because Washington considers their equipment a national security risk.

Since 2022, new models produced directly by covered manufacturers have been unable to obtain FCC authorisation. Products incorporating their components, however, could still qualify if the finished device carried another company’s brand. The revised policy prohibits authorisation of equipment containing Huawei-made logic-bearing hardware, extending scrutiny from the identity of the final manufacturer to the origin of critical internal parts.

Logic-bearing hardware can include semiconductors and communications components that process information or control how a device operates. Security officials have argued that compromised parts may create vulnerabilities across an entire product, even when assembly and branding are handled by an unrelated manufacturer.

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said the commission was fully closing the component-part loophole. Huawei had not issued a public response immediately after the vote.

The change is likely to increase compliance demands for electronics manufacturers, importers and testing laboratories. Companies seeking permission to market wireless products in the US may need stronger documentation showing where chips, modules and other sensitive components were designed and manufactured.

Supply-chain tracing could become particularly important for routers, surveillance systems, connected appliances and industrial communications equipment. Smaller manufacturers that rely on third-party circuit boards or modules may face added costs when identifying the origin of embedded components.

The action forms part of a wider campaign against communications equipment linked to covered Chinese companies. The FCC has expanded restrictions on previously authorised products, foreign-made routers and certain drone systems. It is also examining whether telecommunications carriers should be prevented from interconnecting with covered companies operating data centres or internet exchange facilities in the US.

China has repeatedly rejected US national security allegations against its technology companies and has accused Washington of using security concerns to restrict commercial competition. American officials maintain that communications infrastructure and connected devices require stricter safeguards because vulnerabilities can affect government networks, businesses and consumers.

Alongside the equipment restrictions, the FCC approved rules for auctioning 160 megahertz between 3.98 and 4.14 gigahertz. Combined with the lower C-band already assigned for mobile use, the allocation creates a contiguous 440-megahertz block stretching from 3.70 to 4.14 gigahertz.

Mid-band spectrum is prized by mobile operators because it provides a balance between coverage and capacity. Lower frequencies can travel farther but generally offer less bandwidth, while millimetre-wave signals provide high speeds across shorter distances. C-band frequencies can support wider coverage while carrying large volumes of data.

The commission plans to complete the upper C-band auction by July 2027. The sale will offer 3,248 flexible-use licences across the contiguous US and is expected to generate tens of billions of dollars for the Treasury. The lower C-band auction completed in 2021 raised about $81 billion in gross proceeds.

Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile secured much of the spectrum offered in the earlier sale. The next auction could attract those operators as they seek additional network capacity, although satellite companies, new wireless entrants and technology groups will also watch the licensing structure closely.

Commercial operations in the upper C-band will not begin immediately. Satellite providers using the frequencies must first clear or reorganise their services. Wireless deployment in the 75 largest markets is scheduled to become possible from December 31, 2030, with remaining markets following from July 1, 2031.

The framework identifies Empresa, Eutelsat, Hispasat, SES and Telesat as incumbent satellite operators. Winning bidders will reimburse eligible relocation costs, while incentive payments will be available to operators meeting clearing deadlines.

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The unemployment rate among people aged 16 to 24 climbed to 16.4% in the three months to May, its highest level in about 11 years. The increase means roughly one in six young people participating in the labour market is unable to find work, compared with an overall UK unemployment rate of 4.9%.

The figures have intensified concern that Generation Z, generally defined as people born between the late 1990s and early 2010s, is entering working life during an unusually difficult economic period. Nearly one million people aged 16 to 24 are outside education, employment or training, leaving policymakers under pressure to prevent prolonged joblessness from damaging earnings and career progression.

Young jobseekers face fewer vacancies, cautious employers and fierce competition for junior positions. The number of available jobs across the economy has fallen to about 712,000, continuing a downward trend that has weakened bargaining power for workers and reduced opportunities for those without extensive experience.

Employers have also become more selective as higher labour costs, uncertain demand and weak economic growth restrict recruitment budgets. Payroll employment was broadly unchanged between April and May, while preliminary estimates indicated another small decline in June. Private-sector wage growth slowed to 2.9%, its weakest pace in five years.

Entry-level recruitment has been particularly vulnerable. Graduate vacancies have fallen across technology, finance, professional services and administration, while companies are using automated screening systems to process large volumes of applications. Artificial intelligence is also changing the type of work offered to junior employees, especially in software development, accounting, legal support and data analysis.

The result is a widening gap between the qualifications young people possess and the jobs available to them. Graduates who were encouraged to view higher education as a reliable path to professional employment are increasingly accepting temporary, part-time or lower-paid work outside their chosen fields.

Financial insecurity extends beyond the workplace. Polling published in June showed that savings and unexpected expenses remain among the weakest areas of household confidence. More than a third of adults lacked confidence in their ability to save, while almost a third were worried about meeting an unforeseen bill.

Those pressures are more severe for young adults who have had less time to build financial reserves. Rent, transport, food and energy costs consume a large share of entry-level salaries, leaving limited room for emergency funds, pensions or home deposits. Many depend on family support or remain in their parents’ homes for longer than planned.

Housing has become a defining source of generational dissatisfaction. Property prices and rents have risen faster than many younger workers’ incomes, particularly in London and the South East. Buyers are increasingly looking towards cities such as Stoke-on-Trent, Hull, Derby and Liverpool, where the relationship between earnings and property prices is less severe.

Even in more affordable locations, buyers must contend with deposit requirements, mortgage rates and insecure employment. Young renters face their own difficulties, including limited supply, frequent rent increases and the cost of moving between properties.

These conditions are reshaping expectations about adulthood. Marriage, parenthood and home ownership are being postponed as people wait for greater financial stability. Career choices are also becoming more cautious, with younger workers placing greater value on job security, wellbeing and flexibility than rapid promotion.

Only a minority of Generation Z workers now identify fast advancement as their preferred career path. Many favour gradual progression, lateral moves and opportunities to build transferable skills. Leadership remains attractive, but concern about stress and work-life balance has weakened the appeal of traditional management careers.

The government has placed youth employment near the centre of its economic agenda. An official review has examined measures including expanded apprenticeships, improved mental-health support, stronger careers guidance and incentives for employers to recruit young workers.

Business groups have called for lower employment costs and clearer policies on training. Education specialists argue that schools and universities must give students stronger digital, technical and interpersonal skills while responding more quickly to changes caused by artificial intelligence.

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US Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman signed the accord in Washington on Wednesday. The agreement, known as a Section 123 pact under US law, establishes the legal framework required for American companies to transfer nuclear technology, equipment and material to Saudi Arabia.

The 30-year arrangement is expected to support the construction of nuclear power reactors worth tens of billions of dollars. Westinghouse, the US-based reactor developer owned by Cameco and Brookfield Asset Management, is positioned to compete for contracts involving its AP1000 reactor design.

A separate bilateral safeguards agreement was signed alongside the nuclear pact. US officials said the framework would maintain high standards of safety, security and non-proliferation, although full details of the safeguards have not been publicly released.

The most consequential element is a provision that creates a possible route towards uranium enrichment inside Saudi Arabia. A joint US-Saudi study, expected to take about two years, will assess whether domestic enrichment is technically and economically justified.

Should the study support the proposal, American companies could build and operate an enrichment facility under a tightly controlled “black box” model. Such an arrangement would seek to prevent Saudi personnel from gaining access to sensitive centrifuge designs, operating data or other technology that could be diverted towards weapons development.

Uranium enrichment increases the concentration of the fissile isotope uranium-235. Low-enriched uranium is used as fuel for civilian reactors, but the same technology can produce highly enriched material suitable for nuclear weapons if enrichment levels are raised substantially.

The pact does not adopt the so-called gold standard used in the US nuclear agreement with the United Arab Emirates. Under that arrangement, Abu Dhabi renounced domestic uranium enrichment and the reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel.

Saudi Arabia has resisted making a comparable commitment, arguing that it should be allowed to develop a complete civilian nuclear fuel cycle using domestic uranium deposits. Prince Abdulaziz has repeatedly stated that the kingdom intends to explore and process its uranium resources for peaceful energy production.

Riyadh has also said it would seek a nuclear weapon if Iran acquired one, a position that has heightened scrutiny of any agreement permitting enrichment capability. The risk has become more sensitive amid continuing regional conflict and international efforts to restrict Tehran’s nuclear programme.

Non-proliferation specialists and several US lawmakers have questioned whether bilateral monitoring can substitute for the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Additional Protocol. The protocol grants inspectors wider access to locations, information and activities that may not involve declared nuclear material.

Saudi Arabia is a member of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and has a comprehensive safeguards agreement with the IAEA. It ended its Small Quantities Protocol at the close of 2024, strengthening inspection requirements as its nuclear ambitions advanced. The kingdom has not, however, brought the Additional Protocol into force.

The agreement must now undergo congressional review. Lawmakers will have about 90 days of continuous session to examine the pact and introduce a joint resolution of disapproval. Blocking it would be difficult because any presidential veto would require a two-thirds majority in both chambers to override.

Opponents are expected to focus on enrichment rights, inspection standards and the possibility that Saudi capabilities could encourage other regional powers to pursue sensitive fuel-cycle technology. Supporters argue that rejecting the agreement could push Riyadh towards nuclear suppliers from China, Russia or South Korea, leaving Washington with less influence over safety and safeguards.

The deal also gives US companies greater access to Saudi Arabia’s emerging nuclear market. Riyadh plans to build large reactors, small modular reactors and fuel-cycle facilities as part of an energy strategy aimed at reducing domestic oil consumption, expanding electricity supplies and supporting desalination.

Nuclear generation would allow Saudi Arabia to reserve more crude oil and natural gas for export or industrial use. Electricity demand is rising as the kingdom develops new cities, data centres, manufacturing projects and tourism infrastructure under its Vision 2030 economic programme.

Saudi Arabia began seeking bids for two large reactors several years ago, with vendors from the United States, China, Russia, France and South Korea showing interest. The US agreement strengthens Westinghouse’s position but does not guarantee a reactor order.

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HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 23 July 2026 – Ocean Park is set to ignite a summer of joy with the Pandastic Summer Birthday Celebration for its entire family of six beloved giant pandas, running from now until 31 August 2026. Join us in celebrating the second birthday of the panda twins, Elder Sister Jia Jia and Little Brother De De, alongside their August-born parents Ying Ying and Le Le, and June birthday stars An An and Ke Ke. Come immerse in the celebration brimming with interactive games, performances and water play.

Even more exciting, visitors could take home fabulous prices, including the newly launched MAXUS MIFA 7 PLUS, the mid-size family pure electric MPV – by entering the Summer Joy Lucky Draw* on every eligible visit during the promotion period of 3 July and 31 August 2026!

Birthday photo spots and Panda Friends encounters

Celebrate the pandas’ special days with pandastic photo opportunities across the Park. Capture snapshots at the main entrance’s gigantic birthday countdown zone. Don’t miss the charming 5-metre-tall Giant Panda Birthday Bun Tower at Waterfront Plaza, adorned with piles of pink birthday buns to celebrate the pandas’ birthdays in true Hong Kong style.

Explore the Panda Friends Cute & Cuddly zone at Eco-Herbal Trail, featuring over 60 Panda Friends sculptures, each carrying magnifying sunglasses and cameras, ready to discover the wonders of nature.

The precious panda moments

Relive the heartwarming journey of all six giant pandas at the Pandastic Happy Moments exhibit next to the Hong Kong Jockey Club Sichuan Treasures. This special display showcases precious footage commemorating the rapid growth of twins Jia Jia and De De and other adorable life stages from all the giant panda members. It is a truly unmissable experience for all panda enthusiasts.

Fans can also visit the Giant Panda Fans Zone near the exhibit, created for fans to meet and connect and exchange their own handmade crafts and treasured panda keepsakes until 31 August 2026!

Summer splashing fun with Panda Friends

Dive into body-cooling water fun at the Panda Friends Splashy Birthday Camp outside Applause Pavilion. Experience the thrill of dashing through giant water curtains or facing a massive waterfall-style deluge from the mega water bucket. Unleash your playful instincts with all-time favourite water bomb fights at Panda Friends Water Bomb Fun or get caught in refreshing water gun ambushes from Ocean Park’s special Celebration Squad during their energetic Pandastic Birthday Splash, featuring adorable dance routines inspired by the panda twins.

Delightful entertainment and limited-edition performances

The highly-anticipated Pandastic Summer Birthday Spectacular features giant inflatable Panda Friends roaming the Park, accompanied by various performance groups delivering vibrant songs and dances at the Pawsome Summer Party on 8, 15 and 16 August 2026. Ocean 6N1 dress up with their special birthday outfits and showcase incredible singing and dancing in All Star Jam talent show. Whiskers & Friends will also give a birthday edition special performance at Ocean Park Star Match. Ocean Park’s lively roving band will also keep the festive atmosphere high.

Exclusive collectibles

Commemorate the twins’ second birthday with exclusive, limited-edition Giant Panda Birthday stamps. Collect all the stamps from designated Park locations to complete your very own beautiful birthday card. Test your skills and reflexes at interactive game booths to win special prizes. The talented coloured-chalk artists painting adorable giant panda figures in the Park.

Adorable merchandise and food and beverage

Check out our adorable Panda Friends Summer Collection, vibrant with colourful and summery designs. Highlights include the Giant Panda Plush Keychain Blind Box, featuring all the Panda Friends in their cutest summer outfits. Jia Jia and De De have transformed into the “Lemon Twins”, starring in a new range of summer essentials to keep everyone cool and refreshed throughout the season. Equally unmissable is the Panda Friends Hong Kong Food Collection, which charmingly captures iconic Hong Kong food elements.

Beyond these, the all-new Ocean Park x Maltese Crossover Series and the Panda Friends Hong Kong Food Collection prize items will be making their way to game booths across the Park, starting from mid-July. On top of that, fans can also look forward to Panda Friends photo frame, claw machines and press penny machines to bring in another level of excitement.

To celebrate the giant pandas’ birthdays, Ocean Park has prepared a tempting lineup of panda-themed treats, including the Panda Twins Mini Burgers and Panda Snack Platter. No birthday celebration is complete without desserts and cakes. The Park has also launched a delightful selection of treats, as well as refreshing snow cones and frozen fruits for visitors to beat the summer heat. What’s more, other restaurants across the Park will be introducing a summer menu featuring fruit-inspired recipes, so you can savour the flavours of summer with surprises in every bite.

Summer Joy Lucky Draw

Adding a final layer of excitement, the Summer Joy Lucky Draw* offers fantastic surprises. From 3 July to 31 August 2026, upon Park admission, visitors can register to participate for a chance to win from over 1,000 prizes with a total value of more than HK$815,000, including the grand prize, a brand-new MAXUS MIFA 7 PLUS Pure Electric 7-Seater MPV worth HK$369,102, sponsored by Inchcape Hong Kong. Every visit offers another chance to win!

Pair up and dive into summer fun with Summer Duo Pass

Pair up with a friend or family for an unforgettable summer adventure and enjoy up to 30% off with the Summer Duo Pass^# available from now until 31 August 2026. Weekday tickets for two adults or two kids start at HK$753 and HK$377 respectively, while any-day tickets for two adults or two kids start at HK$861 and HK$430 respectively.

New Get Closer to the Animals experiences

Beyond the panda birthday festivities, Ocean Park is launching two new Get Closer to the Animals programmes. You can enjoy snorkelling in the Park’s world-class aquarium and visit behind the scenes to interact with the mysterious yet adorable sharks and rays for the very first time in the newly launched Fish Friends Face-Off X Shark & Ray Discovery! There is also a new Meerkat Feeding experience for visitors to learn more about these adorable ambassadors!

Elevating the digital visitor experience

To coincide with the launch of Ocean Park’s summer celebrations, Ocean Park is also enhancing its digital experience with a redesigned official website, which features enhanced mobile compatibility and a more intuitive browsing experience across all devices. This new website supersedes the previous mobile application and enables viewers to access the latest park information anytime, anywhere on one platform.

Ocean Park Named “Muslim-friendly Attraction of The Year”

Ocean Park has been named Muslim-friendly Attraction of The Year at the prestigious Halal in Travel Awards 2026 organised by CrescentRating, the world’s leading consultant on Muslim-friendly tourism. This recognition highlights the Park’s dedication to welcoming diverse guests through comprehensive facilities, including dedicated prayer rooms and an expanded portfolio of Halal-certified dining options like the recently certified Bayview Restaurant. With this milestone, Ocean Park looks forward to welcoming even more international visitors to experience its unique blend of conservation, entertainment, and exceptional cultural hospitality.

*The Summer Joy Lucky Draw (Trade Promotion Competition Licence Number: 61599) will be held from 3 July to 31 August 2026. Terms and conditions apply. For eligibility, registration procedures and promotion details, please visit https://www.oceanpark.com.hk/en/a-day-at-the-park/events/summer-joy-lucky-draw

# Terms and conditions apply. For information of the Summer Duo Pass, please visit: https://www.oceanpark.com.hk/en/ticket-offer/admission-ticket-special-offers

Hashtag: #OceanPark

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

The article A Pandastic Summer Birthday Celebration at Ocean Park Chance to win the all-new MAXUS MIFA 7 PLUS Pure Electric 7-Seater MPV appeared first on Arabian Post.

The Galaxy Z Fold8, Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra and Galaxy Z Flip8 were introduced at the company’s Galaxy Unpacked event in London on Wednesday. Samsung is expanding its foldable portfolio at a time when the wider smartphone market is shrinking and competition in premium devices is set to intensify.

The standard Fold8 adopts a shorter and wider design intended to make video viewing, gaming and multitasking more comfortable. Its proportions resemble a passport when closed, marking a shift from the taller book-style shape used in earlier generations.

Samsung has priced the Fold8 at $1,899 in the United States. The more powerful Fold8 Ultra will cost $2,099, while the compact Flip8 carries a $1,199 price tag. The Ultra and Flip models are each $100 more expensive than their predecessors, reflecting rising production expenses and the growing cost of advanced components.

The company is seeking to protect its lead in foldable phones before Apple enters the category. Apple is widely expected to introduce its first foldable iPhone later this year, potentially bringing a larger group of premium users into a market that Samsung helped establish.

Foldable devices still account for less than 2 per cent of global smartphone sales, but shipments are forecast to grow by about 20 per cent this year. That contrasts with an anticipated double-digit contraction in the overall handset market, where demand is being weakened by higher prices, economic uncertainty and longer replacement cycles.

Samsung’s launch strategy suggests that it expects foldables to remain one of the industry’s few areas of meaningful growth. The addition of a third model gives buyers a broader choice between portability, screen size and productivity features.

The Fold8 Ultra is aimed at customers seeking a tablet-like experience. It offers the largest display in the range, a high-resolution 200-megapixel camera and a 5,000mAh battery. The standard Fold8 has a smaller body and is positioned as a more portable option for users who still want a large internal screen.

The Flip8 retains the clamshell design that folds vertically into a compact square. Its external FlexWindow has been updated to show more notifications, controls and artificial intelligence features without requiring users to open the device.

All three phones include Samsung’s Galaxy AI tools and Google’s Gemini assistant. The software is designed to summarise content, translate conversations, edit images and provide contextual suggestions across applications. Samsung is placing greater emphasis on AI as hardware improvements become less dramatic and consumers demand stronger reasons to upgrade.

The larger screens on the Fold8 and Fold8 Ultra allow several applications to run at once. Samsung has also introduced software that can suggest actions based on what appears on the display, such as creating calendar entries, comparing information or moving content between apps.

Qualcomm’s latest premium mobile processor powers much of the range, while some versions of the Flip8 will use Samsung’s Exynos chips depending on the market. The mix enables Samsung to reduce reliance on outside suppliers while promoting its own semiconductor technology.

However, rising memory prices pose a complex challenge for the company. Samsung benefits from stronger chip prices through its semiconductor division, but the same trend increases costs for its smartphone business. Memory components form a substantial part of the bill of materials for premium handsets, particularly models offering high storage capacity and advanced AI functions.

The mobile division faces pressure to maintain margins without pushing foldable prices beyond the reach of consumers. Higher retail prices may restrict demand, particularly when conventional flagship phones offer many of the same cameras, processors and AI services at lower cost.

Analysts have also questioned whether a wider display and thinner body will be enough to persuade users to replace existing foldables. Durability, battery life and the visible crease in folding screens remain key concerns, although Samsung says it has strengthened the hinge and improved the internal display structure.

The Fold8 is lighter and slimmer than previous book-style models, addressing complaints that foldables can feel bulky when closed. Samsung has also worked to reduce the prominence of the crease across the main screen and improve one-handed use.

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The service is available through the Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform and can also operate as a component of Google AI Threat Defense. It marks the transition of CodeMender from a Google DeepMind research project into an enterprise product that can be integrated with development tools and software delivery pipelines.

CodeMender differs from conventional code scanners by attempting to establish whether a detected weakness can actually be exploited. The agent creates proof-of-concept exploit code and runs it inside an isolated sandbox managed by the customer. This allows security teams to distinguish practical threats from theoretical findings and direct resources towards flaws presenting the greatest risk.

After confirming exploitability, the agent produces a patch, tests the change and supplies it to developers as a code difference for review. CodeMender does not automatically commit changes to repositories or push them into production. A developer must examine and approve each proposed fix, maintaining a human checkpoint within the remediation process.

Google said the agent can scan for memory corruption, injection vulnerabilities, web security defects, cryptographic weaknesses and unsafe data handling. It supports C and C++, Go, Java, Python, Ruby, Rust and TypeScript, covering languages widely used in enterprise applications, cloud services and open-source infrastructure.

The underlying system combines artificial intelligence models with security tools such as static analysis, dynamic analysis, fuzzing, differential testing and mathematical solvers. Rather than relying only on patterns associated with known bugs, the agent analyses control flow, data flow, application behaviour and the wider context of a software repository.

Code compilation, testing and exploit execution take place inside customer-controlled local sandboxes or isolated virtual machines. The agent’s reasoning and orchestration functions are hosted through Google’s platform. Organisations can route traffic through their virtual private cloud, while Google says source-code data is isolated, encrypted and subject to a zero-retention policy.

Developers can operate CodeMender through a lightweight command-line interface or integrations with tools including Visual Studio Code. It can also run as a headless agent inside continuous integration and continuous delivery pipelines, allowing security checks and patch generation to become part of routine software development.

The launch comes as security teams struggle with large volumes of scanner alerts, many of which require manual investigation before their significance can be established. False positives can delay remediation by forcing engineers to examine warnings that do not represent a workable attack path. Exploit-based verification is intended to reduce that burden, although running automatically generated attack code introduces operational risks that make strong isolation essential.

Security research has shown that coding agents and their sandboxes can face prompt-injection attacks, supply-chain manipulation and attempts to cross execution boundaries. Malicious instructions concealed in repositories, documentation or dependencies may influence an agent’s actions. Customer-managed environments therefore give organisations more control, but they also place responsibility on administrators to configure, patch and monitor those environments securely.

CodeMender began as a DeepMind project announced in October 2025. During its first six months of development, it contributed 72 security fixes to open-source projects, including codebases containing as many as 4.5 million lines. Its early work included tracing complex memory errors and applying broader safeguards intended to prevent entire categories of buffer-related vulnerabilities.

The agent has been tested by companies including Salesforce, Robinhood and Palo Alto Networks. Google is also positioning it alongside Wiz, the cloud security company it agreed to acquire, and Mandiant, its incident response and threat intelligence operation. Planned integrations would use deployment context from the Wiz Security Graph to identify exposed applications and instruct CodeMender to generate targeted repairs.

Customers can select from multiple models depending on the required balance of speed, cost and scanning depth. Support for third-party frontier models is planned later this year, potentially making CodeMender less dependent on a single model family.

The article Google launches CodeMender for automated vulnerability repair appeared first on Arabian Post.

GUILIN, CHINA – Media OutReach Newswire – 22 July 2026 – Known worldwide for its dramatic karst landscapes, Guilin has long been one of southern China’s most iconic travel destinations. As travelers increasingly seek deeper connections with local communities, rural Guilin offers a different way to experience the countryside. Here, visitors are not simply observers of the landscape — they become part of it, walking through rice terraces, cycling along rivers, tasting local cuisine, and discovering traditions that have evolved alongside nature for generations.

In the latest season of Village Voyage, CGTN host Julian Waghann from the United States and Filipino traveler Eliza Arce journey into Longsheng and Yangshuo, exploring how the mountains, rivers and people of Guilin continue to inspire a unique rural lifestyle.

Terraces shaped by generations of farming wisdom

Rising high in the mountains of Guangxi, the Longji Rice Terraces are far more than a spectacular agricultural landscape. Carved into the hillsides over centuries by generations of local communities, they embody a remarkable balance between human ingenuity and the natural world.

For local villager Liao Yanmei, the terraces are inseparable from everyday life. “They mean everything to us,” she says. “They’re our life.” Today, she is leading efforts to restore and preserve the ancient terraces, ensuring this living heritage continues to thrive for generations to come.

Julian and Eliza arrive during the Shuyang Festival, one of Longsheng’s most important annual farming celebrations. Walking along the narrow paths between the fields, they join villagers in the traditional seedling-throwing ritual and carry torches through the illuminated terraces as night falls.

For Eliza, the landscape evokes memories of the Banaue Rice Terraces in her native Philippines. “They’re in the northern part of the country,” she says. “They were also carved into the mountains by local communities. I was amazed by how closely our rice terrace cultures mirror each other. It made me realize we share deeper roots. And, in that moment, I truly felt at home.”

Through these encounters, Julian and Eliza discover that the Shuyang Festival no longer marks only the beginning of the farming season. It has also become an immersive cultural experience, inviting visitors to step into the rhythms of rural life and discover a new way of experiencing China’s countryside.

The secret behind the world’s long hair village

Deep within the Longji Rice Terraces lies Huangluo Yao Village, home to the Red Yao people and renowned for its centuries-old long hair tradition. For generations, Red Yao women have cared for their famously long, glossy hair using fermented rice water, a natural hair treatment passed down from one generation to the next.

“Long hair, in Red Yao culture, symbolizes longevity and prosperity,” said local cultural ambassador Haili. “We believe that healthy hair reflects a healthy body, bringing both long life and good fortune.”

Drawing on generations of ecological knowledge, the Red Yao have long used rice water together with locally grown herbs to create a natural hair-care recipe. Rooted in the surrounding landscape, the tradition reflects a sustainable way of living that values natural resources and respects the rhythms of the environment.

Beyond their long hair tradition, the Red Yao are equally renowned for their exquisite costume craftsmanship. According to master artisan Pan Jifeng, completing a single traditional outfit can take an entire year. Weaving, batik, natural dyeing, and intricate embroidery come together in garments whose patterns are inspired by the mountains, animals, and everyday life, preserving generations of cultural memory.

Beyond the landscape: A new way to experience rural Guilin

While Guilin has long attracted visitors with its iconic scenery, a new generation of travelers is discovering the region through more immersive experiences.

In Yangshuo, the mountains and rivers have become a playground for outdoor exploration. Cycling through countryside paths, hiking among karst peaks, drifting along rivers on bamboo rafts, and experiencing cliffside adventures offer visitors a chance to engage with the landscape rather than simply admire it.

Supported by convenient transportation, diverse outdoor activities and growing tourism facilities, Yangshuo is emerging as an international destination where nature, culture and local life come together.

More than a journey: Villages connected by nature and culture

Every village tells its own story.

Some are written in the mountains, others in the rivers. Some live on through songs and festivals, while others survive through everyday traditions passed from one generation to the next.

From the rice terraces to the Karst landscapes, Guilin shows how rural communities continue to grow from the landscapes that shaped them — welcoming new visitors while keeping their own stories alive.

Hashtag: #CGTN #Guilin

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

The article Village Voyage: Where Guilin’s landscape inspires new ways to experience rural China appeared first on Arabian Post.

The revival of the US-Israel-Iran war is set to intensify the concatenation of economic, energy and geopolitical shocks facing neighbouring Iraq.

Before the February 28 onset of the conflict, Iraq was Opec’s second-largest oil producer, with estimated output of 4.3-4.5 million barrels per day.

By June, national production had fallen to a paltry 817,000 bpd, comparable to that of minor producers such as Azerbaijan or Oman. This is an economic disaster. It also represents a draconian devaluation of Iraq’s influence.

Iraq exported around 3.5 million bpd before the conflict, almost all via the Strait of Hormuz. The closure of the waterway, the US naval blockade and Centcom strikes on Iranian missile sites and oil facilities have sharply reduced regional oil supplies, driving prices higher.

Inflated oil prices have provided only limited relief. Although Iraq’s export volumes have collapsed, each remaining barrel commands a much higher price, cushioning some of the fiscal damage. A rapid reopening of Hormuz, or an early end to the conflict, would reduce oil prices and remove even that modest buffer.

Entrenched risks

Iraq is the ultimate petroeconomy. Around 90 percent of its government revenues depend on oil exports via Hormuz. To put it in further perspective, one quarter of the working population of Iraq is dependent on state salaries, pensions and welfare benefits.

Before Washington, Tehran and Tel Aviv plunged the Gulf into its most vicious spasm of interstate violence since Saddam Hussein’s brutal invasion of Kuwait in August 1990, Baghdad was generating around $7 billion a month in oil revenue.

But war, renewed ethnic violence in the Kurdish north and around Basra, and attacks on Iraq’s energy infrastructure have fundamentally changed the outlook.

These factors have also made it far harder to attract the estimated $200 billion in investment needed to achieve Baghdad’s ambition of increasing oil production to 7 million bpd over the next five years.

Iraq’s new prime minister, Ali Al-Zaidi, is attempting to reverse that deterioration. During his visit to Washington last week, he sought to attract major US investment into Iraq’s oil, gas and power sectors after the war devastated crude production and state finances.

Baghdad is also lobbying Opec to raise Iraq’s production quota, arguing that higher output is essential to finance post-war reconstruction and economic recovery.

Fiscal and geopolitical crunch

Iraq’s revenues were just over $1.5 billion in May and could fall below $1 billion a month if this “forever war” in the Gulf continues.

Capital flight has accelerated since the conflict intensified in mid-June. Wealthy Iraqis are moving money abroad, particularly into property in Turkey and the GCC, amid fears that prolonged instability could undermine the dinar’s de facto peg of around 1,300 per dollar.

If Iran-backed militias continue to consolidate their power and further weaken the authority of the Iraqi state, confidence in the currency may erode. In the worst-case scenario, deepening sectarian divisions may push Iraq towards the kind of state fragmentation seen in Lebanon, where powerful armed groups operate alongside weakened state institutions.

Al-Zaidi’s Washington outreach may improve long-term investment prospects, but geopolitics remains the overriding factor. Western oil companies and Gulf sovereign funds will stay cautious about committing tens of billions of dollars while the US and Iran remain at war and Iraq’s oil-producing regions are exposed to militia influence and wider regional conflict.

The economic fallout of the war on Iraq’s fiscal stability in 2026 is awful enough. The budget deficit was almost non-existent in late 2025, when Iraq pumped 4.4 million bpd and exported 3.5 million bpd to the world via tanker traffic.

A return to that petro-Arcadia now appears unlikely. Shipping costs and war-risk insurance premiums have soared, while the Gulf is once again witnessing its fiercest tanker conflict since the Reagan-Khomeini-Saddam confrontation of the late 1980s.

The IMF and World Bank estimate that Iraq’s budget deficit will rise to 8 to 11 percent of GDP by the end of 2026. By 2027 it could become a fiscal Black Death for the country, a founder member of Opec.

The fabled oil curse has singled out Iraq for malign economic, human and geopolitical tragedy ever since the overthrow of the last Hashemite King Faisal II in 1958. I had hoped Iraq would achieve a modicum of political, economic and sectarian stability in 2025. I was even tracking the Baghdad Stock Exchange as a potential frontier market.

Baghdad’s balancing act between Washington and Tehran looks impossible to maintain in the Gulf’s current geopolitical milieu. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards can use sectarian militias as a Trojan horse anytime they want to retaliate against US and Israeli attacks on bridges, power grids and nuclear sites. This has been the modus operandi since at least 2024.

Al-Zaidi is a 41-year-old business magnate with no real political base or parliamentary bloc, unlike the militias, whose power base is in Iraq’s strategic southern Basra province, home to its largest oilfield, tanker-loading terminal and oil storage depots.

Another looming uncertainty is the advanced age of Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani. At 95, he has long served as one of Iraq’s strongest moderating influences. His eventual death could remove an important restraint on the expansion of militia influence inside Iraq.

An old proverb contends, “it is always darkest before dawn”. The June restart of the war has made any imminent Iraqi dawn unthinkable. What a pity. What a world!

The article As the war flares, Iraq’s economic dire straits deepen appeared first on Arabian Post.

An analysis of HTTP traffic across more than 120 countries found that kickoff times were among the strongest influences on digital behaviour. Matches played between midnight and 8am local time frequently pushed internet activity well above normal levels as supporters stayed awake or rose early to watch. Traffic more than doubled in some markets where overnight usage would ordinarily have been low.

Daytime fixtures produced a different effect. Matches beginning during working hours generally caused only limited movement because much of the audience was already connected. Evening games were more likely to reduce browsing as viewers put aside other devices and concentrated on the action.

The contrast was especially visible when teams in different time zones watched the same fixture. Brazil’s Round of 32 match against Japan began during normal waking hours in South America but landed deep into the night in Japan. Traffic in Japan rose to roughly twice its usual level, while activity in Brazil fell below the established baseline as people moved away from routine browsing.

Bosnia and Herzegovina showed a similar divide across matches. Traffic climbed above twice its normal level during a 2am kickoff, but dropped to about 70 per cent of typical activity when the national side played during the evening.

Cloudflare measured these changes by comparing minute-by-minute traffic with the median recorded during the previous four weeks. The method allowed high-volume and smaller internet markets to be assessed on a comparable basis while reducing distortions caused by ordinary daily fluctuations.

Argentina generated the strongest overall pull on global internet activity. Traffic in the typical country moved about 17 per cent away from normal whenever the defending champions played. France, Spain, Brazil, Portugal, Morocco and Norway also ranked among the teams producing the largest worldwide shifts.

Argentina’s quarter-final against Switzerland on July 11 created a greater global traffic movement than any other match, including the semi-finals and final. The fixture moved internet activity by a factor of about 1.26, ahead of the France-Spain semi-final at approximately 1.21.

The figures measured the scale of change rather than whether traffic rose or fell. A sharp decline caused by viewers abandoning other online activity was therefore treated as equally significant as a surge generated by streaming, messaging or social-media use.

Online behaviour also changed during pauses in play. Most participating countries recorded increases in traffic at half-time as viewers reached for phones, checked scores, browsed social platforms or exchanged messages. Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina displayed some of the clearest half-time increases.

The tournament’s mandatory three-minute hydration breaks produced smaller but still measurable spikes. Traffic commonly rose as soon as play stopped and declined again when the match resumed, showing that even brief interruptions were long enough to prompt viewers to switch attention to another screen.

Patterns were not uniform. Forty-four countries, covering 101 national-team match appearances, recorded increases during half-time and hydration breaks. Eight countries followed an almost opposite pattern, with traffic falling during those pauses.

Algeria, Tunisia, Jordan, Egypt and the Democratic Republic of Congo were among the markets where streaming appeared to account for much of the difference. Internet use climbed strongly at kickoff, remained elevated during play and declined at half-time when some viewers closed streams or stepped away.

During Algeria’s match against Austria, multimedia and streaming requests drove much of the traffic increase. Activity dropped during half-time before rising again for the second half. Austria, where streaming represented a smaller share of match-related traffic, recorded greater browsing during the interval.

Hydration breaks had less impact in streaming-heavy markets because viewers were unlikely to close a live feed for a three-minute stoppage. A 15-minute interval gave users more time to disconnect, move away from the screen or switch to another activity.

Traffic to sports-betting websites also rose after the tournament began. Before the opening match, requests followed a clear weekly cycle. Once fixtures started, activity became steadier because matches were played on an almost daily basis, generating more continuous demand.

The article World Cup reshaped global internet traffic patterns appeared first on Arabian Post.