Israel-Iran War News Live Updates: Israel strikes Houthi targets in Yemen, killing six

For the first time in Indian Railways, Northeast Frontier Railway has embarked upon an initiative for the maintenance of electrification infrastructure including Overhead Equipment’s (OHE) & Power Supply Installation (PSI) by tying up with IRCON International Limited through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), officials said.

This MoU was signed on Thursday between the General Manager, of Northeast Frontier Railway Chetan Kumar Shrivastava & Chief Managing Director, IRCON H M Gupta.

IRCON is a reputed organisation well known for undertaking challenging infrastructure projects, especially in difficult terrains in India and abroad since 1976.

Kapinjal Kishore Sharma, CPRO of Northeast Frontier Railway said that the MoU will provide maintenance of Overhead Equipment (OHE) & Power Supply Installation (PSI) in the Lumding and Tinsukia divisions.

Hong Kong’s announcement of bounties on six democracy activists based overseas “is a form of transnational repression that threatens US sovereignty,” the US State Department said on Thursday.

“The extraterritorial application of Hong Kong’s national security laws is a form of transnational repression that threatens US sovereignty and the human rights and fundamental freedoms of people all over the world,” said Matthew Miller, the department’s spokesperson.

Hong Kong police on Tuesday announced the bounties of HK$1 million (around $130,000) for information leading to the arrest of the six activists, who are accused of national security crimes.

Authorities also said they would cancel the passports of seven others for whom bounties had already been issued, including ex-lawmakers Ted Hui and Dennis Kwok, local media said.

Political dissent in Hong Kong has been quashed since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law in 2020 after huge, sometimes violent pro-democracy protests the year before.

China’s President Xi Jinping will visit Russia in 2025, Russia’s RIA news agency quoted Moscow’s ambassador to Beijing as saying early on Friday.

“As for concrete bilateral events, I can say that the appropriate plans are actively being drawn up,” ambassador Igor Morgulov told RIA.

“What can be said that is no secret, in terms of priority, is that the chairman of the People’s Republic of China is expected in Russia next year.”

China’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for confirmation from Reuters.

World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus narrowly escaped an aerial bombardment at Sanaa International Airport in Yemen on Thursday, which resulted in the deaths of at least two people.

Tedros, along with his United Nations (UN) and WHO colleagues, was about to board a flight when the attack took place, injuring one of the plane’s crew members.

In a post on X, the WHO chief Ghebreyesus said, “Our mission to negotiate the release of @UN staff detainees and to assess the health and humanitarian situation in #Yemen concluded today. We continue to call for the detainees’ immediate release. As we were about to board our flight from Sana’a, about two hours ago, the airport came under aerial bombardment. One of our plane’s crew members was injured. At least two people were reported killed at the airport. The air traffic control tower, the departure lounge — just a few meters from where we were — and the runway were damaged. We will need to wait for the damage to the airport to be repaired before we can leave. My UN and @WHO colleagues and I are safe. Our heartfelt condolences to the families whose loved ones lost their lives in the attack.”

Moscow on Thursday declared a national state of emergency following an oil spill caused by two separate incidents involving Russian tankers in the Black Sea.

The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations said in a statement that a severe storm hit the two tankers on December 15, causing one to split in half and the other to run aground.

This incident resulted in an oil spill, polluting the shores of the famous Anapa resort and surrounding areas, as well as causing serious problems for wildlife.

The Ministry stated that more than 10,000 people are working to contain the oil spill and clean the affected beaches.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, on Thursday, emphasized the importance of bringing in new leadership and empowering the party’s organizational structure in order to move forward effectively.

Speaking at the Congress Working Committee’s ‘Nav Satyagrah Baithak’ in Karnataka’s Belagavi, Kharge stated that while hard work is essential, a solid strategy and direction are equally important for success.

Kharge highlighted the party’s plans to fill organizational vacancies and equip its members with the necessary skills to win elections.

In his remarks shared on X, Kharge said, “Hard work alone is not enough; a time-bound and solid strategy and direction are necessary. There is a need to give a chance to new power and bring forth local and new leadership.”

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated the state-of-the-art ‘MBS Spices Industry’ at Gangapur in Odisha’s Ganjam district on Thursday.

“The factory will play a crucial role in taking the rural economy forward and skilled people of Ganjam will work in the home district instead of going out for employment,” Pradhan said after the inaugural ceremony.

In a post on X, he said, “Inaugurated the state-of-the-art ‘MBS Spice Factory’, established in Gangpur, Ganjam district. This factory will play a major role in taking the rural economy forward. Skilled people of Ganjam district will work here instead of going out for employment. With the establishment of this factory, farmers will be able to get fair prices for agricultural products produced in the local area, especially the raw materials required for spices. As we move forward to realize the vision of a developed Odisha and a developed India, as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the establishment of this factory is a welcome step in that direction.”

Investigators in Mexico announced Thursday they have found 12 bodies in clandestine burial sites in the northern border state of Chihuahua.

State prosecutors said the skeletal remains were found in the township of Ascencion, about 110 miles (180 kms) west of Ciudad Juarez, which is itself across the border from El Paso, Texas.

The investigators started exploring the desolate site on Dec. 18, and in subsequent days, they expanded the search area.

They eventually found 11 separate shallow pits into which a dozen bodies had been dumped. The remains were taken to state forensic laboratories for possible identification and to determine where possible the cause of death.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Roger Binny reflected on the on-field altercation between star India batter Virat Kohli and Australia’s debutant batter Sam Konstas on the first day of fourth Test at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), saying that such things happen on the field and one must just accept it and move on.

Konstas’ much-anticipated debut in Australia turned out to be one of the most entertaining in a long while. Not only did the 19-year-old make headlines by toying with Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah and scoring 34 of his 60 runs against him, but Virat also got involved in a heated exchange with the youngster after bumping into him, making a direct physical shoulder-to-shoulder contact. The 36-year-old was fined 20 per cent of his match fee by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and handed over one demerit point for this altercation.

Speaking to ANI about the altercation, Binny said, “I did not see the incident (Virat Kohli-Sam Konstas incident), but these things happen on the cricket ground. You have to accept it and carry on. See that the game goes on. That is important.”

Israel struck multiple targets linked to the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen on Thursday, including Sanaa International Airport, and Houthi media said at least six people were killed.

The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said he was about to board a plane at the airport when it came under attack. A crew member on the plane was injured, he said.

The Israeli military said that in addition to striking the airport, it also hit military infrastructure at the ports of Hodeidah, Salif and Ras Kanatib on Yemen’s west coast. It also attacked the country’s Hezyaz and Ras Kanatib power stations.

The Houthi-controlled Saba news agency said that three people were killed in the strikes on the airport and three were killed in Hodeidah, while 40 others were wounded in the attacks.