World

Canberra, Feb 19 (IANS) Australia's unemployment rate remained steady at 4.1 per cent in January, according to official data released on Thursday.

The latest monthly labour force data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed that the number of Australians employed on a full-time basis increased by 50,500 between December and January, which was partially offset by a fall in part-time employment of 32,700 people, Xinhua News Agency reported.

The official unemployment rate remained at 4.1 per cent in January after it fell from 4.3 per cent from November to December.

Economists were widely expecting the unemployment rate to rise slightly to 4.2 per cent in January, according to local media.

The ABS said that the participation rate, which measures the proportion of the working-age population who are either employed or actively looking for work, was 66.7 per cent in January compared to a record-high 67.3 per cent recorded 12 months earlier.

The total number of hours worked by Australians increased by 0.6 per cent between December and January to 2.01 billion.

On February 3, Australia's central bank raised its key interest rate for the first time in more than two years in response to a spike in inflation.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) said that its Monetary Policy Board unanimously decided at its first meeting of 2026 to raise the cash rate target from 3.60 per cent to 3.85 per cent.

It marks the first increase to the cash rate target since November 2023 and comes after the central bank cut rates by 0.25 percentage points on three separate occasions in 2025.

The Monetary Policy Board said that inflation has fallen substantially since its peak in 2022, but picked up materially in the second half of 2025.

According to the latest official data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), the consumer price index (CPI) rose by 3.8 per cent in the 12 months to December 2025, up from 3.4 per cent in November.

The trimmed mean, a measure of underlying inflation preferred by the RBA, rose by 3.3 per cent in the year to December, up from 3.2 per cent in the year to November.

The Monetary Policy Board said that it now considers that inflation is likely to remain above the 2-3 per cent target band "for some time."

"It is evident that private demand is growing more quickly than expected, capacity pressures are greater than previously assessed and labor market conditions are a little tight," it said.

In updated forecasts released, the RBA said it expects annual CPI growth to reach 4.2 per cent in June 2026, up from the 3.7 per cent it projected in November, before falling to 2.9 per cent in June 2027.

--IANS

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Seoul, Feb 19 (IANS) A court on Thursday sentenced former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to life in prison for his failed bid to impose martial law in 2024.

In the first ruling on the case, the Seoul Central District Court convicted Yoon of leading an insurrection through the martial law bid but handed down a sentence lighter than the death penalty recommended by special prosecutors, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The court made clear the martial law order amounted to an insurrection as the former president sought to cripple the National Assembly by sending troops to the parliamentary compound.

It stressed multiple times that at the core of the case was Yoon's deployment of troops to the National Assembly.

The hearing was attended by the jailed former president and broadcast live on national television.

Yoon was indicted in January last year on charges of leading an insurrection through his brief imposition of martial law on December 3, 2024, which lasted six hours.

According to his indictment, Yoon conspired with former Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun and others to stage a riot aimed at subverting the Constitution and illegally declared martial law in the absence of war or an equivalent national emergency.

During the trial's final hearing last month, special counsel Cho Eun-suk's team requested the death penalty for the former president, saying he deserved the maximum sentence for declaring martial law "with the purpose of remaining in power for a long time by seizing the judiciary and legislature."

“The nature of the crime is serious as he mobilised physical resources that should have been used only in the interest of the national collective,” the team said.

Yoon reiterated his claim of innocence in his final statement, arguing that the exercise of a president's constitutional state emergency right cannot constitute an insurrection.

“It was not a military dictatorship that suppresses citizens, but an effort to safeguard freedom and sovereignty, and revive the constitutional order,” he said.

--IANS

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Islamabad, Feb 19 (IANS) At least 13 people, including women and children, were killed and 13 others were injured after a suspected gas explosion triggered a residential building collapse in the Soldier Bazaar area of Pakistan's Karachi, local media reported on Thursday, citing rescue services.

The incident took place at a house in Gul Raza Colony of Karachi's Soldier Bazaar area. The injured and deceased people were taken to Civil Hospital, Pakistan's leading daily, Dawn, reported.

A District East police spokesperson said, "According to initial reports, the explosion occurred due to a gas leak, resulting in part of the building collapsing."

Rescue 1122 stated that search and rescue operations are underway, with an urban search and rescue team and a disaster response vehicle present at the site of the incident. The police spokesperson further stated that law enforcement personnel and rescue teams reached the site after they received the information regarding the incident.

According to officials, police have cordoned off the area, and rescue teams have launched a search and rescue operation.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah took notice of the incident and ordered relevant authorities to immediately rescue people trapped under the debris and provide the best possible medical assistance to the injured people, according to the statement released by CM House.

He directed the Karachi commissioner to carry out a probe into the cause of the incident.

Earlier on January 17, a massive fire broke out at a shopping mall in Karachi, claiming the lives of at least 80 people, and several remained missing.

The fire broke out at the Gul Plaza shopping centre on Muhammad Ali Jinnah Road, spreading rapidly through the multistory commercial building, claiming several lives and injuring many, causing extensive damage.

In August last year, four Awami National Party (ANP) workers were injured after a gas explosion triggered the collapse of their office in Orangi town, Dawn reported.

In July last year, at least 27 people were killed, and 10 others were injured after a five-storey building collapsed in the Lyari area of Karachi. The authorities had already declared the building uninhabitable due to its dilapidated structure. At the time, a statement released by the Sindh Building Control Authority stated that 588 buildings had been declared dangerous in Karachi.

--IANS

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New York, Feb 19 (IANS) Jay Bhattacharya, a physician and economist, is taking over the leadership of the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as the acting director of the world’s premier medical research organisation.

Bhattacharya, who now heads the National Institutes of Health (NIH), will simultaneously hold the CDC position, he told NBC News, confirming several earlier news reports.

He steps into the CDC, which, like the rest of the federal health establishment, has been enmeshed in controversies under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and has been a revolving door for leaders.

Susan Monarez was fired as the CDC director in August after less than a month on the job, after clashing with Kennedy, a vaccine sceptic.

Deputy Health Secretary Jim O’Neill was appointed the temporary head of the CDC, and Bhattacharya now takes over from him.

Kolkata-born Bhattacharya, who holds both a medical degree and a PhD in economics, was a professor at Stanford University’s medical school in California when President Donald Trump tapped him to lead the NIH.

He shot to national prominence during the Covid pandemic by questioning the prevalent orthodoxy of the government health establishment that imposed extended, broad lockdowns to fight the disease, and went head-to-head with Anthony Fauci, who was acclaimed as the architect of the official policy.

That caught the attention of Trump and Kennedy.

Atlanta-based CDC has a $9.7 billion budget for its mandate to deal with threats to public health worldwide and in the US.

Through its 25 centres and institutes with a network of laboratories, it monitors and provides ways of controlling infectious diseases, food-borne pathogens, and environmental health problems, as well as non-infectious health issues like obesity and diabetes.

Occupational safety, health and injury prevention are also in its remit.

The NIH, located in the Washington suburb of Bethesda, has 27 institutes and centres and a budget of $48 billion for research at its institutions and sponsoring studies at others through grants.

Another Indian American doctor, Vinay Prasad, also has a top job in the US government health establishment.

He is the director of the Food and Drug Administration’s Centre for Biologics Evaluation and Research, which monitors the safety, purity, and effectiveness of biologics, including vaccines, and gene therapies.

Prasad, who took up the helm of the centre in May, quit the job on July 29 only to return on August 9 at the request of the FDA leadership.

--IANS

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Washington, Feb 19 (IANS) Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser has declared the month-long Potomac River sewage spill a local public emergency to request federal support.

On January 19, a section of Potomac Interceptor, a major sewage pipeline operated by DC Water -- the main water utility that serves Washington -- collapsed, releasing over 200 million gallons of wastewater into the Potomac River. The US capital and surrounding areas have been grappling with the spill.

The mayor on Wednesday (local time) requested the federal government to direct the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to establish regular interagency coordination calls among federal agencies, affected states, and the District to maintain shared situational awareness and align federal assistance.

She also requested the federal government provide additional federal technical and testing assistance for expanded water quality monitoring, environmental modelling and engineering support, as needed.

In a post on social media platform X on Wednesday, the mayor said that the request seeks 100 per cent "reimbursement" for costs incurred by the District and DC Water.

The Potomac River runs through Washington and into the Chesapeake Bay, which then connects to the Atlantic Ocean. DC Water officials have said the region's drinking water remains safe to drink.

The latest request from the mayor came as President Donald Trump recently criticised local leaders for the handling of the spill.

In a post on Truth Social on Tuesday, Trump said DC, Maryland and Virginia officials "must get to work, IMMEDIATELY" to address the Potomac sewage spill.

"If they can't do the job, they have to call me and ask, politely, to get it fixed," Trump said.

An alert on the website of DC Water said that repair work "continues" and that "a bypass established five days after the overflow occurred continues to successfully divert wastewater around the collapse site and back into the pipe further downstream."

--IANS

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Quetta, Feb 19 (IANS) Several religious scholars have called for resolving issues of Balochistan through talks and urged the Pakistani government to carry out a transparent probe into all missing persons cases and stated that any individual found guilty should be tried in open courts, while innocent people should be released immediately, local media reported on Thursday.

While addressing a press conference after a seminar on ‘Rest­oring Peace in Balochistan and Confidence-Building, the Institutional Respo­nsibilities of Ulema and Mashaykh’, the scholars -- including Maulana Ata ur Rehman, Allama Muh­ammad Juma Asadi, Mau­lana Anwar-ul-Haq Haq­qani, and Qari Abdul Reh­man Noorzai -- stressed that lasting solutions lie in justice, mediation, and reconciliation instead of the use of force, Pakistan's leading daily Dawn reported.

The scholars warned that Balochistan now stands at cross roads, where one path leads to complete separation while the other leads to a constitutional struggle for basic rights. They demanded that people of Balochistan should be treated as partners of the state instead of suspects.

They demanded jobs for local residents to reduce frustration and anxiety among the youth and a meaningful stake in Gwadar, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and mining projects. They demanded that the majority of the revenue generated from the resources of Balochistan be allocated for local development, Dawn reported.

The clerics said the seminar proposed several measures for restoring stability, which include holding transparent elections in Balochistan, giving a rightful share of natural resources to local residents, expanding education, providing job opportunities, regulating border trade routes, drug and trawler mafias, giving more powers to the Human Rights Commission, and setting up a reconciliation council comprising ulema and respected community figures.

Last week, Baloch activists, political leaders and human rights activists voiced concerns over the situation in Balochistan, focusing on issues like enforced disappearances and political representation, during the Asma Jahangir Conference in Lahore, local media reported.

The Baloch Yakjehti Committee's (BYC) central member Sammi Deen Baloch participated in the conference and held meetings with diplomats, politicians, journalists and reporters. The BYC stated that Baloch used the conference to highlight what it termed serious human rights issues and raise the viewpoint of the Baloch people.

During the conference, Sammi Deen Baloch met several United Nations officials, including the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, Gina Romero, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls Reem Alsalem of Jordan and the senior adviser to UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders Ed O’Donovan, The Balochistan Post reported.

During these meetings, Sammi Deen Baloch stated that peaceful assembly and freedom of expression were being restricted and people were not being allowed to protest or speak out against state actions in Balochistan.

She voiced concerns about alleged violence against Baloch women, including enforced disappearances of women and minors and what she termed as unlawful arrests.

She spoke about the systematic targeting of human rights activists, citing allegations of threats, harassment, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests, killings and mentioned cases of Mahrang Baloch, Beebo Baloch, Gulzadi Baloch and others.

According to the statement released by BYC, UN representatives voiced concern over the reported human rights violations and announced that they would highlight these issues at relevant UN forums.

--IANS

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Seoul, Feb 19 (IANS) The US Air Force said Thursday an estimated 11,000 gallons or some 41,000 litres of jet fuel were leaked from a fuel tank in the recent fuel leak at a US air base in Gunsan, the southwestern city of South Korea, last month.

Airmen from the 8th Logistics Readiness Squadron and 8th Civil Engineer Squadron detected the spill at Kunsan Air Base on January 26, prompting an investigation to determine its exact cause, according to the US 8th Fighter Wing.

"It is estimated up to 11,000 gallons of jet fuel leaked from a fuel tank," the 8th Fighter Wing said in a statement, noting trained experts continue to monitor the site as restoration efforts continue.

"These investigations are complex and thorough, and we are committed to taking the necessary time to ensure a comprehensive and accurate conclusion," it added.

The Air Force unit said last month there was no threat to drinking water, nor did it anticipate any "immediate risk" to the health or safety of on-base or surrounding off-base communities, reports Yonhap news agency.

Meanwhile, a similar fuel leak was reported at Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek, some 60 kilometres south of Seoul, on February 5, prompting the 51st Civil Engineer Squadron to take immediate action, according to the 51st Fighter Wing.

A US Air Force official said it has retrieved 230 gallons or 870 litres of fuel leaked from the incident, without specifying the total amount of fuel leaked.

"There is no immediate threat to drinking water because drinking water is sourced from off base," it said in a release uploaded to its website, adding the source of the release has been confirmed and isolated.

--IANS

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Quetta, Feb 19 (IANS) Families of Baloch missing persons held a protest outside the Karachi Press Club against what they termed a fake encounter of a young man who had been previously forcibly disappeared and was later killed in a staged police operation, local media reported.

The protesters stated that the authorities were not giving the body of the deceased to his family.

During the protest, a large number of women and children held placards and demanded justice. Protesters said 24-year-old student Hamdan Baloch was subjected to enforced disappearance before being killed in what they described as a "fabricated encounter." The family said that the authorities were not giving them the body of Hamdan Baloch despite identification, The Balochistan Post reported.

Speaking to reporters during the protest, Hamdan's father, Muhammad Ali, said that his son was detained by Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) personnel on December 29, 2025, near Dhobi Ghat Bridge without a warrant. He said that the family received no information about his whereabouts following the detention and termed the incident a clear case of enforced disappearance.

According to the family, CTD officials in a press conference on January 6, claimed that Hamdan had been detained on suspicion of connection with an armed group and alleged facilitation activities. The family has rejected the claims and termed the allegations fabricated.

The family said they took legal recourse after the charges against Hamdan Baloch. They stated that Hamdan's court appearance was scheduled, after which he was shifted to jail custody. However, CTD issued a statement on Tuesday, where it mentioned that Hamdan Baloch was killed in an armed encounter and had died due to firing by his own associates.

Muhammad Ali said similar statements had been used in previous cases and raised questions over the credibility of the explanation. Family members said they later identified the body of Hamdan Baloch; however, they faced problems in receiving his remains.

While addressing a press conference, relatives termed the pattern of enforced disappearance, terrorism allegations, and encounter killing a serious violation of law and human rights and called for registering a criminal case against CTD officers who were involved in the killing of Hamdan Baloch.

They demanded an immediate and transparent post-mortem examination and continuation of legal proceedings related to the case, The Balochistan Post reported.

During the protest, Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) leader Fauzia Baloch said the sequence of enforced disappearance followed by terrorism accusations and subsequent encounter killing seemed to place actions beyond legal accountability and demanded an impartial investigation and an independent autopsy to find the circumstances of death.

--IANS

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Seoul, Feb 19 (IANS) South Korea's defence ministry said on Thursday that it will push for reinstating a no-fly zone under the suspended 2018 inter-Korean military pact in a way that does not affect a military readiness posture.

The ministry also said it is in consultations with the United States over Seoul's push to partially restore the military pact, a day after Unification Minister Chung Dong-young disclosed the government's plan, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Chung said Wednesday the government will 'preemptively' seek to reinstate the inter-Korean military pact signed in September 2018 under former liberal President Moon Jae-in as part of efforts to prevent unintended military clashes along the tensely fortified border.

"The defence ministry is in discussions with relevant ministries and the US to review partially restoring the (military) pact, including designating a no-fly zone," ministry spokesperson Chung Binna said during a regular briefing.

"Our military plans to come up with supplementary measures to ensure the military's readiness posture is not affected," she said when asked about concerns over weakened surveillance against the North if the no-fly zone is reinstated on the South's side only.

In an effort to mend ties with North Korea, President Lee Jae Myung's administration has been seeking to restore the pact, which was fully halted in June 2024 during the previous Yoon Suk Yeol administration.

The conservative government of former President Yoon suspended the pact, citing North Korea's trash-carrying balloon campaigns and the successful launch of its military spy satellite in violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

Chung's remarks came after he expressed regret earlier this month over drones sent into North Korea by South Korean civilians, which the North denounced as a violation of its sovereignty.

North Korea has repeatedly demanded South Korea come up with steps to prevent a recurrence of drone incursions, accusing Seoul of sending drones equipped with surveillance equipment in September and on January 4, prompting the South Korean government to launch an official investigation.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, said she 'highly appreciates' South Korea's pledge to prevent a recurrence of drone incursions into the North while vowing to step up the country's vigilance along the border with the South.

--IANS

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Karachi, Feb 19 (IANS) At least six people were killed after a gas explosion triggered a partial building collapse in Pakistan's Karachi, local media reported, quoting officials on Thursday.

The blast took place at a house in Gul Rana Colony of the Soldier Bazar area, where a suspected gas leak is believed to have caused the explosion.

Following the incident, emergency teams rushed to the spot and began rescue operations. So far, 11 people have been pulled out from the debris and shifted to a nearby hospital for medical treatment. Authorities said the rescue work continued for several hours as teams searched through the rubble for any remaining trapped residents.

The blast occurred on the first floor on Wednesday night, causing part of the building to collapse, rescue sources on the ground said and added that all the available resources were being used in the search operation, according to a leading media outlet, Geo News.

The injured were shifted to the Civil Hospital, where they were given medical assistance.

The incident has once again highlighted concerns over gas safety and poor infrastructure in several residential areas, the leading daily Dawn reported.

Deputy Commissioner East Nasrullah Abbasi said there were fears that two more individuals could still be trapped under the debris.

He added that the building was severely damaged in the cylinder explosion, leading to its collapse.

Authorities said rescue efforts were continuing despite access challenges due to the congested locality.

Earlier on January 17, a massive fire broke out at a shopping mall in Karachi, claiming the lives of at least 80 people, and several remained missing.

The fire broke out at the Gul Plaza shopping centre on Muhammad Ali Jinnah Road, spreading rapidly through the multistory commercial building, claiming several lives and injuring many, causing extensive damage.

--IANS

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