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India bans vast online gambling industry

India bans vast online gambling industry
Indian officials said the rapid spread of gambling platforms had caused widespread financial distress, addiction and even suicide. (AFP file photo)
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Updated 18 sec ago

India bans vast online gambling industry

India bans vast online gambling industry
  • Up to 450 million people lost a combined $2.3 billion annually on apps
  • Online gambling platforms linked to fraud, money laundering and terrorism financing

NEW DELHI: India’s parliament has passed a sweeping law banning online gambling, after government figures showed 450 million people lost a combined $2.3 billion annually on apps.
The ban impacts platforms for card games, poker and fantasy sports, including India’s wildly popular homegrown fantasy cricket apps.
The government said roughly a third of the world’s most populous country had lost money gambling online.
The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill was passed by both houses of parliament late on Thursday, and criminalizes the offering, promotion and financing of such games, with offenders facing up to five years in prison.
“This legislation is designed to curb addiction, financial ruin and social distress caused by predatory gaming platforms that thrive on misleading promises of quick wealth,” a government statement said.
India’s wider gaming industry is one of the largest markets in the world, but the new law carves out exceptions for e-sports and educational games, which the government says will be promoted as part of the digital economy.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the new law will “encourage e-sports and online social games” while “at the same time, it will save our society from the harmful effects of online money games.”
Industry groups had urged regulation and taxation rather than a blanket ban, warning the move could drive players to illegal offshore platforms.
But supporters of the bill argue the social costs are too high to allow.
Officials said the rapid spread of gambling platforms had caused widespread financial distress, addiction and even suicide.
The government said it had also been linked to fraud, money laundering and terrorism financing.
Ashwini Vaishnaw, minister of technology, noted the law differentiates between online “social” games and those played for money.
“It encourages e-sports, which are organized competitive video games, and promotes safe online social and educational games,” a government briefing note read.
“It clearly separates constructive digital recreation from betting, gambling and fantasy money games that exploit users with false promises of profit.”


South Sudan’s president fires finance minister, seventh since 2020

South Sudan’s president fires finance minister, seventh since 2020
Updated 6 sec ago

South Sudan’s president fires finance minister, seventh since 2020

South Sudan’s president fires finance minister, seventh since 2020
  • South Sudan’s economic performance has faced hurdles in recent years amid communal violence, with crude oil export revenue having dwindled since the 2013-2018 civil war

NAIROBI, Aug 22 : South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has fired the country’s finance minister, state-owned radio announced, the seventh replacement to the position since 2020.
Kiir gave no reason for firing Marial Dongrin Ater, who had held the post since July 2024. State radio said late on Thursday that Athian Ding Athian would take up the position, which he previously held between 2020 and 2021.
Kiir also fired the minister in charge of investment, the radio reported.
South Sudan’s economic performance has faced hurdles in recent years amid communal violence, with crude oil export revenue having dwindled since a 2013-2018 civil war and more recently export disruptions due to war in neighboring Sudan.
The International Monetary Fund forecasts a 4.3 percent contraction of the economy for 2025, and inflation of 65.7 percent for the same period.
Kiir became South Sudan’s first president in 2011 when it gained independence from Sudan.
In March, First Vice President Riek Machar was put under house arrest, eliciting fears of renewed conflict.
Information Minister Michael Makuei said the arrest was due to Machar contacting his supporters and “agitating them to rebel against the government with the aim of disrupting peace so that elections are not held and South Sudan goes back to war.”
Machar’s party denies the accusations.


India’s top court modifies earlier order to move stray dogs to shelters

India’s top court modifies earlier order to move stray dogs to shelters
Updated 45 min 6 sec ago

India’s top court modifies earlier order to move stray dogs to shelters

India’s top court modifies earlier order to move stray dogs to shelters
  • Animal lovers had filed an appeal against the Supreme Court’s earlier order
  • The court’s decision to relocate them had drawn criticism over its implementation

NEW DELHI: India’s top court modified its earlier ruling in a case involving stray dogs on Friday, ordering authorities in capital Delhi and its suburbs to release picked-up dogs in the same area after sterilization and immunization.
Animal lovers had filed an appeal against the Supreme Court’s earlier order to authorities to relocate all stray dogs to shelters after media reports of a rise in cases of rabies, especially among children.
The decision to relocate them had drawn criticism over its implementation, citing lack of infrastructure and medical treatment. Many animal lovers took to the streets to protest against the order.


China’s Coast Guard warns Philippines to immediately cease ‘provocations’

China’s Coast Guard warns Philippines to immediately cease ‘provocations’
Updated 22 August 2025

China’s Coast Guard warns Philippines to immediately cease ‘provocations’

China’s Coast Guard warns Philippines to immediately cease ‘provocations’
  • Chinese Coast Guard would carry out protection of rights and law enforcement in the waters of Second Thomas Shoal in accordance with the law

HONG KONG: China’s Coast Guard spokesperson Gan Yu warned the Philippines on Friday to immediately cease “provocations and hype,” saying that its vessels approached a Chinese Coast Guard ship “in an unprofessional and dangerous manner.”
The Chinese Coast Guard would carry out protection of rights and law enforcement in the waters of Second Thomas Shoal in accordance with the law, safeguarding national sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, its spokesman said.
The Philippine embassy in Beijing did not immediately respond to an emailed query about the incident.


Car bomb and attack on a helicopter in Colombia kill at least 17, including police officers

Car bomb and attack on a helicopter in Colombia kill at least 17, including police officers
Updated 22 August 2025

Car bomb and attack on a helicopter in Colombia kill at least 17, including police officers

Car bomb and attack on a helicopter in Colombia kill at least 17, including police officers
  • The Antioquia governor had said on X that a drone attacked the helicopter as it flew over coca leaf crops
  • At least 12 police officers died in the attack on a helicopter that according to authorities was transporting personnel to an area in Antioquia in northern Colombia

BOGOTA: A car bomb and a separate attack on a police helicopter in Colombia killed at least 17 people Thursday, according to authorities. President Gustavo Petro attributed both attacks to dissidents of the defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, commonly known as FARC.
At least 12 police officers died in the attack on a helicopter that according to authorities was transporting personnel to an area in Antioquia in northern Colombia, to eradicate coca leaf crops, the raw material for cocaine. Petro had reported initially eight officers killed, but Antioquia Gov. Andrés Julián said four others died later and three remain injured.
The Antioquia governor had said on X that a drone attacked the helicopter as it flew over coca leaf crops. Colombian Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez said preliminary information indicates the attack caused a fire in the aircraft.
Meanwhile, authorities in the southwest city of Cali reported that a vehicle loaded with explosives detonated near a military aviation school, killing five people and injuring more than 30. The Colombian air force did not immediately provide additional details of the explosion.
Petro initially blamed the Gulf Clan, the country’s largest active drug cartel, for the attack on the helicopter. He said the aircraft was targeted in retaliation for a cocaine seizure that allegedly belonged to the group.
The president said an alleged member of the dissident group was arrested in the area of the explosion.
FARC dissidents, who rejected a peace agreement with the government in 2016, and members of the Gulf Clan both operate in Antioquia.
Coca leaf cultivation is on the rise in Colombia. The area under cultivation reached a record 253,000 hectares in 2023, according to the latest report available from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime.


Another US military mini shuttle launches on a secret mission

Another US military mini shuttle launches on a secret mission
Updated 22 August 2025

Another US military mini shuttle launches on a secret mission

Another US military mini shuttle launches on a secret mission
  • Launched by SpaceX, the space plane with no one aboard took off from Cape Canaveral, Florida
  • It is the eighth such flight for the test vehicles known as X-37B

Another US military mini shuttle blasted off Thursday night to conduct classified experiments in space.
Launched by SpaceX, the space plane with no one aboard took off from Cape Canaveral, Florida. It’s the eighth such flight for the test vehicles known as X-37B. This one will test laser communications and safe navigation without GPS, according to the US Space Force.
It’s not yet clear how long the mini shuttle will remain aloft. The last X-37B circled the globe for a little over a year before returning to Earth in March. Previous missions have lasted months to years.
The Boeing-made reusable space planes were first launched in 2010 and are 9 meters long with a wingspan of almost 4.5 meters.