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The move is in line with a new law, giving hope to throngs of others jailed over alleged plots to oust the government.

Venezuelan authorities have granted amnesty to 379 political prisoners, according to a lawmaker, after a new law was enacted by interim authorities following the United States’ abduction of President Nicolas Maduro.

Venezuela’s National Assembly unanimously adopted the law on Thursday, providing hope that hundreds of political prisoners may soon be released.

National Assembly deputy Jorge Arreaza, the lawmaker overseeing the amnesty process, said in a televised interview on Friday that the 379 prisoners “must be released, granted amnesty, between tonight and tomorrow morning”.

“Requests have been submitted by the Public Prosecutor’s Office to the competent courts to grant amnesty measures,” he said.

Opposition figures have criticised the new legislation, which appears to include carve-outs for some offences previously used by authorities to target Maduro’s political opponents.

It explicitly does not apply to those prosecuted for “promoting” or “facilitating … armed or forceful actions” against Venezuela’s sovereignty by foreign actors.

Interim President Delcy Rodriguez has levelled such accusations against opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who hopes to return to Venezuela at some point from the US.

The law also excludes members of the security forces convicted of “terrorism”-related activities.

Arreaza said earlier that “the military justice system will handle” relevant cases for members of the armed forces, “and grant benefits where appropriate”.

Hundreds have already been granted conditional release by President Rodriguez’s government since the deadly US raid that seized Maduro.

‘Amnesty is not automatic’

The NGO Foro Penal had said before the announcement that about 650 were detained, a toll that has not been updated since.

Foro Penal director Alfredo Romero said on Friday that receiving “amnesty is not automatic”, but would require a process in the courts, viewed by many as an arm of Maduro’s repression.

Opposition politician Juan Pablo Guanipa, a Machado ally, announced his release from detention shortly after the bill was passed.

Earlier this month, he had been freed from prison but then quickly re-detained and kept under house arrest.

“I am now completely free,” Guanipa wrote on social media. He called for all other political prisoners to be freed and exiles to be allowed to return.

Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of Venezuelans have been jailed in recent years over plots, real or imagined, to overthrow the government of Maduro – who was taken to New York to stand trial on drug trafficking and other charges.

Rodriguez was formerly Maduro’s vice president and took his place as the South American country’s leader with the consent of US President Donald Trump, if she toed Washington’s line.

The US has taken over control of Venezuela’s oil sales, with Trump promising a share for Washington in the profits.

Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, denounce US ambassador’s remarks suggesting Israel has right to much of the Middle East.

United States Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has triggered an avalanche of criticism from Arab and Muslim countries after suggesting Israel has a right to expand its territory across a large swath of the Middle East.

Huckabee delivered the remarks during a sit-down interview with US commentator Tucker Carlson, broadcast on Friday, as he was pressed about the geographical borders of Israel.

Carlson asked Huckabee, a self-professed Christian Zionist and staunch supporter of Israel, to clarify his stance on the Biblical promise of the land spanning the area between the Euphrates River in Iraq and the Nile River in Egypt to the descendants of Abraham, and if the modern Israeli state had the right to claim that lineage.

“It would be fine if they took it all,” said Huckabee.

Such territory would encompass modern-day Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and parts of Saudi Arabia.

The US ambassador later appeared to walk back the claim, saying it was “somewhat of a hyperbolic statement”. He also said Israel was not looking to expand its territory and has a right to security in the land it currently holds.

‘Extremist rhetoric’

Huckabee’s comments sparked immediate backlash from neighbouring Egypt and Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the League of Arab States, which in separate statements called them “extremist”, “provocative” and “not in line with Washington’s official position”.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry described Huckabee’s comments as “extremist rhetoric” and “unacceptable”, and called for the US Department of State to provide clarification.

Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the remarks a “blatant violation” of international law, adding that “Israel has no sovereignty over the occupied Palestinian territory or other Arab lands.”

Jordan’s foreign ministry dismissed them as “absurd and provocative,” a violation of diplomatic norms and “an infringement on the sovereignty of states in the region”.

“Statements of this nature — extremist and lacking any sound basis — serve only to inflame sentiments and stir religious and national emotions”, the League of Arab States also said in a statement.

Huckabee, whom US President Donald Trump nominated as ambassador in 2024, has long opposed the idea of a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinian people, and denied the existence of an illegal Israeli occupation of the West Bank. Back in 2008, Huckabee went so far as to question Palestinian identity altogether, saying, “There’s really no such thing as a Palestinian.”

In 2024, the International Court of Justice ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory is illegal and must cease immediately.

But Israeli law does not clearly demarcate the country’s borders. Israel also occupies the Golan Heights in Syria, which it illegally annexed in 1981.

The US is the only country that recognises Israel’s claimed sovereignty over the Syrian territory, and only since 2019, during Trump’s first term as president.

After its 2024 war with Hezbollah, Israel also set up military outposts in five points inside Lebanon.

Some Israeli politicians, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have openly promoted the idea of a “Greater Israel” with expanded borders.

Feb. 21 (UPI) — Ukrainian Defense Forces late Friday night struck a Russian missile production facility that manufactures some of Russia’s fastest and deadliest missile systems.

Ukrainian forces used attack drones to strike the Votkinsk Machine Building Plant in Russia’s Udmurt Republic, which produces the advanced missile systems, Ukrainska Pravda reported.

The factory builds the hypersonic Iskander and Oreshnik missile systems.

Ukraine‘s general staff confirmed the strike in a statement released on Saturday.

“On the night of February 21, units of the Missile Forces and Artillery of the Armed Forces of Ukraine carried out a strike with FP-5 Flamingo cruise missiles. A defense industry enterprise — the Votkinsk Plant in the city of Votkinsk — was hit,” the statement said.

“A fire was recorded on the premises of the facility,” it added. “The results are being clarified.”

The Udmart Republic is located about 770 miles east of Moscow and about 1,300 miles northeast of Kyiv.

The Iskander missile is a mobile system that is carried and launched from atop a large military transport and is capable of carrying conventional or nuclear warheads with a range of up to 310 miles for some variants. The missile travels at hypersonic speeds of up to Mach 7.

The Oreshnik missile is a medium-range ballistic missile that can carry either conventional or nuclear warheads at distances of up to 1,000 miles and possibly more than 3,000 miles, while traveling at up to Mach 11, or 8,000 mph.

Ukrainian Defense Forces also targeted the Neftegorsk Gas Processing Plant in the Samara Region of Russia and fuel and lubricants storage facilities in Russian-occupied parts of the Donetsk region.

The extent of damage from those strikes is under assessment.

Manchester City’s win cut Arsenal’s lead at the top of the Premier League to two points.

Nico O’Reilly’s first-half brace inspired Manchester City to a vital 2-1 victory over Newcastle United, which turned up the heat on Premier ⁠League leaders Arsenal.

City took the lead on Saturday when O’Reilly slammed in a left-footed shot in the 14th minute before Lewis Hall levelled.

O’Reilly headed in Erling Haaland’s cross to restore City’s lead ⁠in the 27th minute, and it proved to be the match-winner as Pep Guardiola’s side cut Arsenal’s lead to two points.

Arsenal face north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, knowing that City are now breathing down their necks.

The stuttering form of Arsenal, who drew with the bottom club Wolverhampton Wanderers ‌on Wednesday, opened the door for City, but victory over Newcastle was imperative.

It looked like a formality early on as they overran their visitors, but it was a different story after the break as they nervously held on to the victory.

Nothing illustrated City’s determination more than the sight of goal-machine Haaland working tirelessly back in his own area, blocking shots and making clearing headers.

Newcastle pushed hard for an equaliser, and ⁠when the final whistle blew, there was relief around Etihad ⁠Stadium. They will now be watching Arsenal’s Sunday derby with added interest.

City were slick at the start and went ahead when a surging Omar Marmoush played in O’Reilly. He could have touched it on for Haaland ⁠to his left, but the 20-year-old opted to trust his left foot, and his powerful shot beat Nick Pope.

Newcastle were level soon afterwards, ⁠though, as a weak clearance fell to Hall, whose ⁠shot took a touch off a City player before beating keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Haaland was not on the scoresheet but showed many other attributes to his game, and it was his measured cross that was met by O’Reilly, ‌who directed his header past Pope.

City were nowhere near as effective as an attacking force after the break, but they defended doggedly when required and were always a threat on the ‌counter-attack.

They ‌now have 56 points from 27 games. Should Arsenal fail to beat Tottenham on Sunday, City will feel they have the title race firmly in their hands.

O’Reilly said he was “over the moon” about the goals and three points.

“The win was the most important thing: close the gap and apply as much pressure as possible,” he told TNT Sports.

“Very happy with the two goals. It is a dream of mine to win [the Premier League].”

Asked if City, unbeaten in eight games, can win the title, he added: “Yeah, definitely. We always believe we can win games.”

Elsewhere on Saturday, ⁠Aston Villa’s faint Premier ⁠League title hopes suffered a blow as they were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Leeds United, and Chelsea’s top-four ambitions were damaged when they dropped two points against relegation-bound ⁠Burnley.

Anton Stach’s stunning 31st-minute free kick past Emiliano Martinez looked like giving Leeds a vital victory at Villa Park, but substitute Tammy Abraham levelled late on.

Chelsea moved above Manchester United into fourth spot on goal difference, but it felt like two points dropped for the second week running as they drew 1-1 with Burnley at home.

Joao Pedro put Chelsea ahead, but the hosts were reduced to 10 men when Wesley Fofana received a second yellow ⁠card and Burnley equalised in stoppage time through Zian Flemming.

Brighton’s James Milner broke the Premier League appearance record in ⁠their 2-0 win at Brentford.

The 40-year-old former Manchester City and Liverpool ⁠player made his 654th appearance to go past Gareth Barry.

West Ham had the opportunity to really put some pressure on Nottingham Forest and Spurs in the relegation battle, but played out a turgid draw with visiting Bournemouth. It ‌was ‌the sixth successive Premier League stalemate between the sides.

US President Donald Trump’s tariff regime has been ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court, removing a central policy plank of his second term.

Trump’s promised replacement tariffs will take effect within days.

What is the impact of the court’s ruling? And how will it play out internationally?

Presenter: Tom McRae

Guests:

Melanie Brusseler – US programme director at the think tank Common Wealth

James Davis – founder and president of Touchdown Strategies and Republican adviser

Claire Finkelstein – Algernon Biddle professor of law and philosophy, University of Pennsylvania

Hundreds of Britain First protesters faced larger antifascist crowds in a tense Manchester city centre standoff.

Manchester, United Kingdom – Chants of “send them back” echoed through a damp underpass as hundreds of far-right anti-Islam protesters prepared to march through the streets.

Union Jacks fluttered in the wind as protesters – some visibly under the influence of alcohol – chanted a series of anti-immigration slogans and derisive comments about British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

In response to the demonstration organised by Britain First, a far-right political party that calls for mass deportation and the removal of migrants and Muslims from the UK, a counterprotest was also planned for midday on Saturday.

It formed a much larger crowd made up of antifascist protesters who gathered a few streets away, carrying antiracist banners and waving an array of flags, including the Palestinian flag.

Ruby, 20, a student from South London, took a five-hour coach ride to show her support for the counterprotest and told Al Jazeera that attending was a “no-brainer”. She asked that her surname not be published, fearing repercussions.

‘A master race’

Ruby said her grandparents, originally from Montserrat, were part of the Windrush generation – immigrants invited to the UK between 1948 and 1971 from Caribbean countries – and, despite having given so much to their adopted country, are now feeling increasingly unwelcome.

She said her grandparents had told her they were witnessing a return to the levels of racism they experienced when they came to the country in the 1950s.

It was a sentiment echoed by Llowelyn, 16, a counter-protester from Wales who said her father, who is British Guyanese, has received more verbal abuse based on his race in the past few years than at any other point.

The tension was palpable before the two marches were due to begin, with far-right agitators livestreaming to their followers as they entered the area assigned to the counterprotest.

John – a stocky, tenacious counter-protester from Wales – confronted them with arms outstretched as police officers looked on.

“They come here to cause a ruckus and make money of it online, but I come here to protect the left. These guys [far-right agitators] try and intimidate … minorities because they think they are a master race”, he told Al Jazeera.

As the Britain First march began, flanked by police and led by Paul Golding, a portly, combative far-right activist who has previously been imprisoned for religiously aggravated harassment, the celebratory mood quickly turned aggressive as they came across counter-protesters in the city centre.

“Leftie scum,” screamed one member of the Britain First crowd as they harassed three young people who staged a sit-down, forcing riot police to encircle and pull them to safety.

‘Divisive, racist positions’

The two marches finally met in an expletive-ridden crushendo as police struggled to hold ranks.

Britain First protesters prodded counter-protesters with flag poles, and some slipped through the porous police lines as they shouted anti immigration and anti-Palestine slogans.

A number of counterprotesters and bystanders expressed frustration that the police allowed the march to go ahead.

“We, as Jews and internationalists, are having to confront Britain First, the fascists who are organising on the streets, who have been permitted to market their divisive, racist, dictatorial positions on our streets,” Pia Feig, of Jewish Action for Palestine, told Al Jazeera.

Audrey, a teacher and counterprotester who was pushed away by police after being shoved by a Britain First protester, said the police always “protected” the far-right groups.

A police officer told Al Jazeera that the day required extensive planning and was a particularly difficult operation, as the two groups kept changing their planned route.

He said on condition of anonymity that handling the two conflicting protests, a rally in support of Ukraine, and managing crowds at large football fixtures held this weekend had stretched the local police force thin.

Slovakia and Hungary vexed after Russian oil flows via Ukraine halted by alleged Russian drone strike last month.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has issued Ukraine a two-day deadline to resume the pumping of Russian oil through its territory, threatening to cut off electricity to the war-torn country if this demand is not met.

Fico issued his ultimatum to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday, warning on X that he would ask state-owned company SEPS to halt emergency supplies of electricity if flows of Russian crude via the Soviet-era Druzhba pipeline crossing Ukraine are not resumed by Monday.

Slovakia and neighbouring Hungary, which have both remained dependent on Russian oil since the Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine almost four years ago, have become increasingly vocal in demanding Kyiv resume deliveries through the pipeline, which was shut down after what Ukraine said was a Russian drone strike hit infrastructure in late January.

The Slovak leader accused Zelenskyy of acting “maliciously” towards his country, alluding to Ukraine’s earlier halting of Russian gas supplies after a five-year-old transit agreement expired on January 1, 2025, which he claimed is costing Slovakia “damages of 500 million [euros; about $589m] per year”.

Describing Zelenskyy’s actions as “unacceptable behaviour”, he said that his refusal to “involve the Slovak Republic in the latest 90 billion euros ($105bn) military loan for Ukraine” had been “absolutely correct”.

Slovakia is a major source of European electricity for Ukraine, needed as Russian attacks have damaged its grid. Energy sector experts say Slovakia provided 18 percent of record-setting Ukrainian electricity imports last month.

EU loan in peril

Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic all opposed the interest-free European Union loan package, which was agreed to by the bloc’s member states back in December to help Ukraine meet its military and economic needs over the coming two years.

While the three nations opposed the package, which replaced a contentious plan to use frozen Russian assets that ran aground over legal concerns, a compromise was reached in which they did not block the initiative and were promised protection from any financial fallout.

However, as tensions mounted over the interrupted supply of Russian oil this week, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban threatened on Friday to overturn December’s deal by vetoing the EU loan package.

“As long as Ukraine blocks the Druzhba pipeline, Hungary will block the 90‑billion-euro Ukrainian war loan. We will not be pushed around!” the Hungarian leader wrote on Facebook.

Slovakia and Hungary both received a temporary exemption from an EU policy prohibiting imports of Russian oil over the war in Ukraine.

Ukraine responds

The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs slammed Slovakia and Hungary on Saturday for what it called their “ultimatums and blackmail” over energy issues, saying the two countries are “playing into the hands of the aggressor [Russia]”.

The ministry said that Ukraine had provided information on the damage that resulted from “Russian attacks” on the Druzhba pipeline to Hungary and Slovakia, and that repair work is under way.

In the meantime, it said, it has “also proposed alternative ways to resolve the issue of supplying non-Russian oil to these countries”.

Persistent rain in Colombo forces abandonment of Pakistan’s game with New Zealand, which was to open Super Eights stage.

Pakistan and New Zealand’s Super Eights match to open the second phase of the 2026 T20 World Cup was abandoned because of rain without a ball being bowled.

The rain started at Colombo’s R Premadasa Stadium as soon as Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha won the toss and chose to bat first on Saturday.

The post-toss interviews were completed, but with the forecast suggesting the game would be in doubt, there was little surprise when the teams ran for cover.

More than 60 ground staff were on hand to cover the square and the majority of the playing surface.

The persistent rain eventually led to the umpires calling the Group 2 match off at 9:05pm local time (15:35 GMT).

Not even a five-over match was possible by the 10:16 pm (16:46 GMT) cut-off time, giving the two teams one point each.

Tournament co-host India plays South Africa in Ahmedabad in the first Group 1 match on Sunday, when co-host Sri Lanka and England meet in Group 2 in Pallekele.

Feb. 21 (UPI) — President Donald Trump approved an emergency declaration that will mobilize the Federal Emergency Management Agency to assist in the clean-up of millions of gallons of sewage in the Potomac River.

The declaration comes five weeks after nearly 250 million gallons of sewage spilled into the river after a sewage line collapsed.

The Potomac River runs between Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

“The President’s action authorizes FEMA to coordinate all disaster relief efforts to alleviate the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population and to provide appropriate assistance to save lives, to protect property, public health and safety and to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe,” FEMA said in a press release.

The spill started when the Potomac Interceptor, a 72-inch in diameter pipe that carries up to 60 million gallons of wastewater per day from Maryland and Virginia to a treatment plant in Washington, D.C., ruptured on Jan. 19, spilling 243 million gallons of untreated wastewater into the river.

DC Water, which operates the pipe, installed a temporary bypass on Jan. 24, stopping more wastewater from leaking into the river.

Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser on Feb. 18 formally declared a major disaster in the District and directly requested that Trump mobilize FEMA to help with cleaning up the waterway as work starts on a permanent fix, which could take as long as 10 months to complete.

On Feb. 16, Trump said that he would send FEMA to assist with the clean-up and, with his approval of Bowser’s declaration, the agency will now be mobilized to provide equipment and resources necessary.

Feb. 20 (Asia Today) — Motif Technology’s consortium has been selected in an additional call to join South Korea’s government-backed effort to build an “independent” artificial intelligence foundation model, as officials said a second evaluation in August will continue to weigh whether teams meet the project’s originality standard.

The Ministry of Science and ICT said Motif was chosen for its experience designing models with its own architecture and for achieving performance it said could compete with leading global systems despite operating in a limited data environment.

The Motif consortium includes the company, startup More, Seoul National University’s industry-academia cooperation foundation and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology.

The group plans to build an inference-focused large language model with 300 billion parameters and later expand work into vision-language models and vision-language-action models, the ministry said.

Motif will develop its model from this month through July and then compete in an August stage evaluation against LG AI Research, Upstage and SK Telecom. The ministry said it will extend the development timeline for the existing three teams by one month, setting the deadline at the end of July, and will provide Motif with support comparable to the other teams, including 768 graphics processing units and data.

The August stage evaluation will narrow the field to three teams and will include the originality requirement, officials said. Two teams are to be selected for final support by the end of the year.

Kim Kyung-man, director of the ministry’s AI policy office, said the four teams will discuss how to apply the originality assessment and that more detailed criteria will be developed with input from industry and academia.

The project drew attention last month after Naver Cloud failed to meet the originality requirement in an initial evaluation and NC AI was eliminated after scoring lowest on other criteria, raising questions in some quarters about the program’s momentum.

The ministry said the project’s priority is building a domestic AI ecosystem through teams capable of developing an independent foundation model.

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

© Asia Today. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution prohibited.

Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260220010006171

Indian Prime Minister Modi hailed the agreement on critical minerals and rare earths as a ‘major step towards building resilient supply chains’. 

Brazil and India have signed an agreement to boost cooperation on critical minerals and rare earths, as the Indian government seeks new suppliers to curb its dependence on China.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Saturday and discussed boosting trade and investment opportunities.

Modi said in a statement that the agreement on critical minerals and rare earths was a “major step towards building resilient supply chains”.

China dominates the mining and processing of the world’s rare-earth and critical minerals, and has increased its grip on exports in recent months as the United States attempts to break its hold on the growing industry.

Still, for Brazil, which follows China as the world’s second-largest holder of critical minerals, its resources are used across a range of fields, including electric vehicles, solar panels, smartphones, jet engines, and guided missiles.

In a statement, Lula said, “increasing investments and cooperation in matters of renewable energies and critical minerals is at the core of the pioneering agreement that we have signed today.”

While few details have emerged about the mineral deal so far, demand for iron ore, a material for which Brazil is the second-largest producer and exporter after Australia, in India has grown amid rapid infrastructure expansion and industrial growth.

Rishabh Jain, an expert with the New Delhi-based Council on Energy, Environment and Water think tank, told the AFP news agency that India’s growing cooperation with Brazil on critical minerals follows recent supply chain engagements with the US, France and the European Union.

“Global South alliances are critical for securing diversified, on-ground resource access and shaping emerging rules of global trade”, Jain told AFP.

Trade agreements

India’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson announced that, along with the critical minerals and rare earths deal, nine other agreements were signed, including a memorandum of understanding that ranged from digital cooperation to health.

Moreover, Modi called Brazil India’s “largest trading partner in Latin America”.

“We are committed to taking our bilateral trade beyond $20bn in the coming five years,” he said.

“Our trade is not just a figure, but a reflection of trust,” Modi said, adding that “When India and Brazil work together, the voice of [the] Global South becomes stronger and more confident.”

India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar also said he was confident that Lula’s talks with Modi “will impart a new momentum to our ties”.

According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC) in 2024, Indian exports to Brazil reached $7.23bn, with refined petroleum being the main export. On the other hand, Brazilian exports to India reached $5.38bn, with raw sugar being the main export.

More than 150 giant tortoises have been released on Ecuador’s Floreana Island in the Galapagos, nearly 150 years after they disappeared. The reintroduction is part of a long-term effort to restore the island’s ecosystem.

An explosive-laden motorcycle rammed vehicle in security forces convoy, military says.

Two soldiers, including a lieutenant colonel, have been killed during a military operation when a fighter driving an explosive-laden motorcycle rammed a security convoy vehicle in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province near the border with Afghanistan, according to the country’s army.

The deadly clash took place on Saturday in KP’s Bannu district, with the Pakistani military saying at least five armed fighters, including one it described as “a suicide bomber” were also killed during the operation.

The military said that the bomber was stopped by the leading security team, preventing his attempt to attack civilians and law enforcement personnel and averting “a major catastrophe”.

The army referred to the fighters as “khawarij” – the term it uses for banned groups, including the Pakistan Taliban, also known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Islamabad has repeatedly accused the Taliban administration in Kabul of providing refuge to the TTP, a banned Pakistani group separate from but linked to the Afghan Taliban, though Kabul has denied the allegations.

The two countries had previously clashed in a brief border conflict in October last year.

“Pakistan will not exercise any restrain and operations would continue against the perpetrators of this heinous and cowardly act for justified retribution against khwarij, irrespective of their location,” the statement said.

“Such sacrifices of our brave soldiers further reinforce our unwavering commitment to safeguarding our nation at all costs,” it said.

Repeated attacks

Bannu has long been a frequent flashpoint for armed violence, with repeated attacks on security forces and police checkpoints in recent years.

Security officials have reported strikes on police installations, suicide bombings and armed assaults in the district, part of a broader surge in armed rebel group activity across KP after the TTP ended a ceasefire with the government in late 2022.

Earlier this week, two bomb attacks and a gun battle between police and rebel fighters killed more than a dozen people in the province. One child and 11 security personnel ⁠were ⁠killed in an attack ‌in Bajaur district, the Pakistani military said, while seven ⁠others, ⁠including women and children, ⁠were injured ⁠in ⁠the incident.

Feb. 20 (Asia Today) — A National Assembly subcommittee on Thursday approved a third revision to South Korea’s Commercial Act that would in principle require listed companies to cancel repurchased shares within a year, shifting key decisions from boards to shareholders.

The bill cleared the Legislation and Judiciary Committee’s Bill Review Subcommittee No. 1. It sets a one-year deadline for canceling newly acquired buyback shares and gives companies six months to comply for company-held shares already on their books.

Rep. Oh Ki-hyung of the Democratic Party told reporters the core change is requiring companies to decide their shares-held-in-treasury disposal plans at an annual shareholders meeting rather than leaving the matter to boards.

He said directors could face administrative fines of up to 50 million won ($34,500) if the company fails to cancel the shares within the required period.

Oh said the measure is not an unconditional mandate to cancel repurchased shares, arguing that companies could keep them for extended periods if they obtain approval from shareholders.

The revision also adds language allowing boards to pass resolutions on capital-reduction procedures when buyback shares acquired for specific purposes are canceled, lawmakers said.

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

© Asia Today. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution prohibited.

Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260220010006176

Feb. 20 (Asia Today) — The number of fishing vessels over 10 tons in North Gyeongsang Province has fallen nearly 16% over the past five years as squid stocks along South Korea’s East Sea coast continue to decline, government data show.

According to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries’ fisheries statistics portal, 369 vessels exceeding 10 tons were registered in Gyeongbuk in 2024, down from 438 in 2020, a 15.7% decrease.

Local fishermen have long relied on squid as a primary source of income. In 2020, catches of Pacific flying squid in the region reached 20,653 tons, accounting for more than half of total production. By 2023, that figure had plunged to 2,793 tons, an 86% drop in four years.

Analysts attribute the decline in part to rising sea temperatures that have pushed spawning and feeding grounds northward, causing juvenile squid to remain longer in northern Gangwon Province and waters near North Korea.

Some observers also point to large-scale fishing activity by Chinese vessels in North Korean waters. In 2020, Global Fishing Watch, a nonprofit monitoring group, reported that squid populations in South Korean and Japanese waters had fallen about 80% since 2003, linking the decline to foreign fishing in North Korean waters.

The group said more than 900 large Chinese vessels were found operating in the area in violation of U.N. sanctions and estimated they harvested more than 160,000 tons of Pacific flying squid worth roughly $500 million between 2017 and 2018 – an amount comparable to the combined annual catch of South Korea and Japan.

As nearshore squid stocks dwindle, distant-water fishing has expanded. In Busan, the number of vessels over 200 tons rose 18%, from 273 in 2020 to 321 in 2024, even as mid-sized vessels declined.

Overall registered fishing vessels in Busan remained relatively stable at 3,339 in 2024, compared with 3,333 four years earlier, but the fleet composition shifted toward larger ships.

Government data show distant-water squid production nearly doubled from 31,500 tons in 2023 to 63,200 tons in 2024.

Industry groups said a recently passed amendment to the Coastal and Inshore Fisheries Structural Improvement Act could provide a more stable exit path for fishing households facing financial strain.

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

© Asia Today. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution prohibited.

Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260220010006175

Who: Tottenham Hotspur vs Arsenal
What: English Premier League
Where: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, UK
When: Sunday, February 22 at 4:30pm (16:30 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 13:30 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.

Arsenal will look to banish their untimely bout of title race anxiety as the wobbling Premier League leaders head to bitter rivals Tottenham for the north London derby.

Mikel Arteta’s men are in danger of blowing a commanding position in the title race after successive draws against Brentford and Wolves left them with just two wins in their last seven league matches.

The Gunners squandered the lead in both matches, with Wednesday’s 2-2 draw at bottom-of-the-table Wolves especially galling as they conceded a stoppage-time equaliser having led 2-0.

Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City side will move two points behind Arsenal if they beat Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Tottenham’s new coach, Igor Tudor, faces a baptism of fire in his first game in charge of the club as he is tasked with steering Spurs out of a relegation battle.

Thomas Frank was sacked as Tottenham manager following the defeat to Newcastle earlier in February, as a dire domestic campaign has left Spurs in 16th place going into the weekend, just five points above the relegation zone.

Saka urges Arsenal to ‘get over the line’

On February 7, Arsenal players walked off the field after a convincing 3-0 home win against Sunderland with their lead in the Premier League at nine points. Then things started to go wrong.

Defiant Arsenal forward Bukayo Saka is adamant his side will eventually “get over the line” and end their trophy drought.

After allowing City to overhaul them in the 2023 and 2024 title races, the north Londoners, who have not won silverware since the 2020 FA Cup, face pointed questions about their ability to handle the mounting tension.

Saka said Arsenal must silence the doubters by getting back on track at archrivals Tottenham on Sunday.

“I believe the next few years are going to be the years that we get over the line, and we’re able to win trophies and make history for this club,” Saka said. “We’re back where we belong, fighting for everything.”

Arteta dismisses ‘bottlers’ talk

Arsenal’s boss rejected the term “bottlers’ ahead of Sunday’s Premier ⁠League visit ⁠to Tottenham Hotspur.

“It’s not part of my ‌vocabulary and I don’t see it like this because I don’t think anybody wants to do that as an intention,” Arteta told reporters on Friday, when asked about the term being used regarding their latest wobble in the title race.

“That’s individual opinion, perspective. You have to ⁠respect that. That’s what I said after ⁠in the press conference. You lose two points against Wolves in the manner that the game played out, you have to take it on the ⁠chin. It’s part of our role.”

“What I’m very interested in is the next one, ⁠what we are made of, what ⁠we love about this and how we write our own destiny from here.”

‘No time to find excuses’

Tottenham Hotspur’s new interim head coach Tudor says instilling the players with confidence is his most urgent task.

“First priority is to give everything the team needs in these moments. The team need, I believe, first of all, to get some confidence, to get some courage, but also, in same way, the concrete things in the pitch,” Tudor told Spursplay.

“Of course, I’m coming here knowing that situation is not easy. There is no time to find excuses. What I said from the first day here, each of us, need to give something more, something extra.”

He added: “The position of the club in this moment is one that nobody can accept. Every Tottenham fan cannot accept the situation. We are aware of that. But it’s not enough to just be aware of that.”

Tudor wants a team prepared to ‘suffer’

While Tudor is aware of the significance of a derby win over Arsenal, he is more concerned with building a strong team spirit to help fuel their survival bid.

“I understand the importance of this game. This is a derby, a north London derby,” he said.

“This is a team that is full of quality, full of talented players, with good motor engines. But my goal in these first training sessions is that we become a team, with a really right way of going to war.

“A team who want to suffer. To fight, to run, to have the right mentality. This is the start.”

Head-to-head

Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal have locked horns on 212 occasions; Arsenal won 90 of the games, while Spurs won 67, and 55 were draws.

Arsenal are now unbeaten against Spurs in their last seven games. Earlier this season, Eberechi Eze scored a hat-trick in November as the Gunners thrashed Tottenham 4-1 at the Emirates.

Arteta’s side also did the double over their bitter local rivals in 2024-25, winning 1-0 at Tottenham and earning a 2-1 victory at home.

Tottenham’s team news

Spurs were dealt a big blow when promising young winger Wilson Odobert ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament against Newcastle.

He joins a long injury list of players who will miss the derby, including James Maddison, Ben Davies, Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentancur, Mohammed Kudus, Destiny Udogie, Kevin Danso and Lucas Bergvall.

Cristian Romero will serve the second of his four-game suspension after the Spurs captain was sent off in the defeat to Man United earlier this month.

Brazilian forward Richarlison is back in training after a knock and could be available for selection, while Pedro Porro faces a late fitness test as he looks to return from injury.

Predicted starting XI:

Vicario (GK); Palhinha, Dragusin, Van de Ven; Gray, Gallagher, Sarr, Spence; Kolo Muani, Simons; Solanke

Arsenal’s team news

Versatile midfielder Mikel Merino has undergone surgery for a stress fracture in his right foot, an injury sustained in January, and could miss the rest of the season.

Leandro Trossard is a serious doubt for the derby after he went off injured in stoppage time against the Wolves.

But Arteya has said he hopes to have captain Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz available for selection after they were struggling with injuries, and youngster Max Dowman has returned to training after an ankle problem.

And while Saka also limped off against Wolves, he is expected to be declared fit for this match.

Predicted starting XI:

Raya (GK); Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Hincapie; Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Jesus, Martinelli

Feb. 21 (UPI) — On this date in history:

In 1848, The Communist Manifesto was published by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. A rare copy of the publication sold at auction for $39,600 in 1986.

In 1878, the New Haven, Conn., Telephone Co. published the first phone directory. It listed 50 subscribers.

In 1885, the Washington Monument, a 555-foot-high marble obelisk built in honor of America’s revolutionary hero and first president, was dedicated in Washington.

File Photo by Pat Benic/UPI

In 1916, Germans launched the Battle of Verdun. More than 1 million soldiers in the German and French armies were killed in nearly 10 months of fighting. It was the longest battle of World War I.

In 1925, the first issue of The New Yorker was published.

In 1934, Nicaraguan guerrilla leader Cesar Augusto Sandino was killed by members of the country’s national guard.

In 1953, Francis Crick and James D. Watson discovered the double helix structure of the DNA molecule. It took another three decades for scientists to produce a clear, direct picture of the DNA molecule.

The Francis Crick Letter titled “Secret of Life” is on display at Christie’s in New York City on April 5, 2013. The letter from Francis Crick to his son dated March 19, 1953, outlines the revolutionary discovery of the structure and function of DNA. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI

In 1965, Black Muslim leader Malcolm X was assassinated at a rally in New York.

In 1972, Richard Nixon became the first U.S. president to visit the People’s Republic of China.

In 1994, longtime CIA counterintelligence officer Aldrich Ames and his wife, Maria, were arrested and charged with selling information to the Soviet Union and Russia. Ames was sentenced to life in prison; his wife got a five-year term.

In 1995, a Russian commission estimated up to 24,400 civilians died in a two-month uprising in the separatist republic of Chechnya.

In 2007, nuclear neighbors India and Pakistan signed a treaty in New Delhi aimed at preventing the accidental use of atomic weapons.

In 2014, U.S. President Barack Obama met the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader, at the White House after the Chinese government warned the meeting would damage U.S.-China relations. A White House statement said Obama “reiterated the U.S. position that Tibet is part of the People’s Republic of China and that the United States does not support Tibet independence.”

In 2019, the Japanese Space Agency’s Hayabusa-2 probe touched down on asteroid Ryugu. It was the first probe to deploy working rovers onto an asteroid.

In 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered “peacekeeping” troops into two separatist regions of eastern Ukraine under new decrees recognizing them as independent republics. Three days later, Russia invaded Ukraine.

File Photo courtesy of Kremlin Pool

The Gaza Strip – As soon as the “ceasefire” in Gaza began in October, Palestinian farmer Mohammed al-Slakhy and his family headed straight for their farms in the Zeitoun area of Gaza City.

After more than two years of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza – and despite ongoing Israeli attacks – it was finally safe enough to return, and attempt to rebuild and restore.

Mohammed and his family spent months clearing rubble from the ground and whatever was left of their greenhouses, which were flattened during the fighting, like many of the buildings in Gaza.

With very limited resources, they prepared the soil and planted the first courgette crop, hoping it would be ready to harvest by early spring.

But even this limited attempt to bring the family’s land back to life is not without risk. As Mohammed explains, every time he goes to tend to his field, he is risking his life. A few hundred metres away sit Israeli tanks, and the sound of bullets flying by is common.

Before the war, Mohammed’s farm produced large quantities of vegetables.

“I learned farming from my father and grandfather,” he told Al Jazeera. “Our farm used to produce abundant, high-quality crops for the local market and for export to the [occupied] West Bank and abroad. Now, everything we had has been destroyed in the war.”

Levelled to the ground

More than three hectares (7.5 acres) of Mohammed’s greenhouses were levelled to the ground. The destruction also included his entire irrigation network, all nine of his wells, two solar power systems, and two desalination plants.

Mohammed’s losses reflect the wider extent of the damage to the agricultural sector in Gaza. According to a July 2025 report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), more than 80 percent of cropland was damaged, and less than 5 percent remained available for cultivation.

And even with the “ceasefire”, the losses have not stopped for Gaza’s farmers, as Israel expands a so-called buffer zone, within which its forces are based.

In fact, many Palestinians fear that Gaza’s agricultural lands will be forcibly taken by Israel if the buffer zone becomes a permanent fixture. Blueprints released as part of United States President Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” plan for Gaza show many agricultural areas erased.

Expanding buffer zones

Israel still controls about 58 percent of the Gaza Strip, calling it a security buffer zone in the east, north, and south of the Gaza Strip. The majority of that buffer zone is Palestinian agricultural land.

Mohammed has only been able to return to one hectare (2.5 acres) of the more than 22 hectares (54 acres) of farmland his family had cultivated in Gaza City before the war. The other 21 hectares lie within the Israeli buffer zone, and he cannot access them.

The solitary hectare is only about 200 metres (650 feet) from the “yellow line”, which marks the border between the buffer zone and the rest of Gaza. Mohammed says that Israeli tanks frequently approach and fire randomly.

One such incident occurred on February 12, when Israeli tanks advanced into Salah al-Din Street and opened fire. Two Palestinians were killed, and at least four others were reported wounded. Mohammed was in his farmland, close to the Israeli tanks.

“We were working in the field when suddenly a tank approached and opened fire towards us. I had to take cover behind a destroyed building and waited there for more than an hour and a half before I could escape west,” Mohammed said.

The dangers to Mohammed’s farm are mirrored in central Gaza, where 75-year-old Eid al-Taaban is increasingly worried.

His land in Deir el-Balah lies only about 300 metres (980 feet) from the yellow line and the Israeli areas of control.

“We planted eggplants in an open field after the ceasefire. Now, we can’t reach it and harvest the crop because of the expansion of the buffer zone,” Eid told Al Jazeera.

“The sounds of Israeli heavy machineguns are heard every day in our area. Every time my sons go to irrigate the crops in the greenhouses, I just pray that they come back alive,” he added.

On February 6, the Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that the Israeli army killed Palestinian farmer Khaled Baraka while he was working on his land in eastern Deir el-Balah. Khaled was Eid’s neighbour and friend.

“Khaled Baraka was a great farmer,” Eid said. “He dedicated his life to cultivating his land and teaching his sons and daughters about farming.”

Israeli blockade

According to Palestinian farmers, the Israeli blockade of Gaza is one of the biggest challenges they face in their efforts to reclaim agricultural land.

Since October 7, 2023, Israel has largely prevented the entry of any agricultural equipment or supplies, such as seeds, pesticides, fertilisers, irrigation networks, or tractors.

That has led to a huge shortage, with what is available still liable to being damaged in bombing, or in the case of seeds, pesticides, and fertilisers, reaching expiry. The prices of what little is available have also skyrocketed due to the Israeli restrictions.

And even when the materials can be obtained, they do not guarantee a return.

Eid said that he had planted tomatoes in his greenhouses to harvest in the spring, paying an exorbitant amount to acquire the seeds, fertilisers, and pesticides.

After 90 days of costly care for the plants, and when it was time to start harvesting, the entire crop was ruined because the pesticides and fertilisers he had bought turned out to be ineffective. He was forced to replant the crop.

Market difficulties

Eid noted that the current economic conditions in Gaza mean that it is hard to find customers for the produce.

“Even when we manage to keep the plants alive and harvest the crop, we don’t know if we’ll be able to sell it,” Eid said.

The instability of the market in Gaza is causing heavy losses for local farmers.

Waleed Miqdad, an agricultural produce wholesaler, explained that Israeli authorities sometimes close the crossings and at other times flood the market with various goods, causing significant losses for Palestinian farmers.

He added that Israeli goods are usually of a lower quality and are priced more cheaply.

“Our local produce, although much fewer in quantity than before the war, still has a distinctive quality and taste. Many of our customers prefer local produce,” Waleed told Al Jazeera.

But many residents of Gaza, whose economy has been devastated as a result of the war, do not have the money to be able to choose the higher-priced items.

The competition from Israeli produce is therefore making it difficult for Palestinian farmers to market their produce and make a profit.

“I was recently forced to sell large quantities of my produce for less than the cost of production because of the competition from imported goods that are widely available in the market,” said Mohammed, the farmer from northern Gaza. “I had to sell and lose or watch my produce rot. And of course, we haven’t received any compensation or support.”

Despite the challenges facing the farmers in Gaza, they remain determined to reclaim agricultural fields across the Gaza Strip. These areas have always been adored by Palestinians in Gaza, where most had lived in the built-up cities. The farms provided a respite from Israel’s control over the territory and its constant wars.

“Agriculture is our life and our livelihood,” said Mohammed. “It is an important part of our Palestinian identity. Despite the destruction and danger, we will remain steadfast on our land and will replant all the land we can reach. Our children will continue after us.”

For Eid, farming is a continuation of the work of his ancestors – in towns that are now in Israel, and where he can never set foot.

“I’m 75 years old, and I still work in the fields every day,” Eid said. “My grandfather was a farmer in our hometown of Beersheba before the [1948] Nakba.”

“He taught my father, my father taught me, and today I’m passing on my agricultural expertise to my grandchildren,” Eid added. “The love of the land and agriculture is passed down from generation to generation in our family, and it can never be taken away from us.”

The three-day trip, at Beijing’s invitation, comes more than eight years after Trump’s first visit to China during his first stint as president.

Donald Trump will travel to China from March 31 to April 2, the White House has said, in what will be the first official visit to Beijing by a United States president since Trump’s last trip there in 2017.

The dates, confirmed by a White House official on Friday, come as Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping have respectively described “excellent” and “good communication” between the two countries in recent months.

“That’s going to be a wild one,” Trump said on Thursday of the planned trip.

“We have to put on the biggest display you’ve ever had in the history of China,” Trump said.

The announcement of Trump’s China visit came shortly before the US Supreme Court on Friday struck down the tariffs that Trump had imposed on countries around the world, in a tactic the US president has openly used to influence other countries to support his policies.

Tariffs will likely be on the agenda in Beijing, as will China’s response to the US’s trade threats, including no longer buying soybeans, previously the top US export to China.

Beijing has already hosted a number of other Western leaders in recent months, including Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who touted new trade deals and a lifting of Canada’s ban on buying Chinese-made electric cars during his visit.

China’s increasing global exports of electric vehicles come as Beijing has invested heavily in new technologies and renewable energy in recent years, potentially further setting it apart from the US, where Trump is doubling down on fossil fuels.

Washington also continues to provide weapons sales and other support to Taiwan, which Beijing has promised to unify with mainland China.

This will be Trump’s first trip to China since the COVID-19 pandemic, which the then-US president labelled as the “Chinese virus”. Trump then downplayed the virus’s potential consequences in the US, where more than one million people died during the pandemic.

Since reopening its borders in January 2023, following strict self-imposed isolation during the pandemic, China has seemingly increased its efforts to engage with the outside world in recent months.

In addition to hosting Western politicians, China has also opened its doors to popular US live streamers such as Hasan Piker and Darren Watkins Jr, also known as Speed, while also attracting US citizens to its social media apps.

Police confronted protesters in Albania’s capital Tirana after demonstrators shot fireworks and threw petrol bombs at Prime Minister Edi Rama’s office, during an opposition rally demanding his resignation. Political tensions have escalated since December, when the deputy prime minister was indicted over suspected corruption.

President Trump calls Supreme Court justices an ’embarrassment to their families’ in 45-minute address to the media.

United States President Donald Trump and his vice president, JD Vance, have launched personal attacks on the justices of the US Supreme Court and their families, after the country’s top court struck down trade tariffs imposed by the White House.

In a 45-minute address to reporters at the White House, the US president heaped criticism on the six justices who ruled against his signature tariff policy in the 6-3 decision by the court on Friday, including Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett, whom Trump appointed to the court during his first term.

“I think it’s an embarrassment to their families, you wanna know the truth, the two of them,” Trump said, referring to Justices Gorsuch and Barrett.

“I’m ashamed of certain members of the court – absolutely ashamed – for not having the courage to do what’s right for our country,” Trump added.

Shockingly, Trump also claimed that the Supreme Court “has been swayed by foreign interests”, without providing any evidence.

Trump then warmly praised the three members of the court who dissented in the ruling.

“I’d like to thank and congratulate Justices [Clarence] Thomas, [Samuel] Alito, and [Brett] Kavanaugh for their strength and wisdom and love of our country, which is, right now, very proud of those justices,” Trump said.

“When you read the dissenting opinions, there’s no way that anyone can argue against them,” he said.

Vice President Vance also sharply criticised the justices for their ruling, accusing them of “lawlessness” in a post on X.

“Today, the Supreme Court decided that Congress, despite giving the president the ability to ‘regulate imports’, didn’t actually mean it,” Vance wrote in a post on X.

“This is lawlessness from the Court, plain and simple,” said Vance, whose political profile rose to prominence after writing a memoir about his time at Yale Law School.

Trump and Vance’s comments mark a rare rebuke of the nine-member Supreme Court, which currently has six members appointed by Trump’s Republican Party and has often ruled in favour of his administration’s policies.

More than 7,000 languages are spoken around the world today and at least 3,000 of them, or 40 percent, are endangered.

English is the most widely spoken language, with approximately 1.5 billion speakers in 186 countries. Two out of every 10 English speakers are native, while the remaining 80 percent speak English as their second, third or higher language, according to Ethnologue, a database which catalogues the world’s languages.

Mandarin Chinese is the second most spoken language with almost 1.2 billion speakers. However, when accounting for native speakers, it is the largest language in the world, owing to China’s large population.

Hindi comes in third at 609 million speakers, followed by Spanish (559 million), and Standard Arabic (335 million).

Scripts in the world’s most popular languages

There are 293 known scripts – sets of graphic characters used to write a language – according to The World’s Writing Systems, a reference book about global scripts.

More than 156 scripts are still in use today, while more than 137 historical scripts, including Egyptian Hieroglyphs and Aztec pictograms, are no longer in use.

The Latin script, which is used to write English, French, Spanish, German and more, is used in at least 305 of the world’s 7,139 known living human languages. More than 70 percent of the world’s population use it.

Which are the most endangered languages?

Of the 7,159 languages spoken worldwide, 3,193 (44 percent) are endangered, 3,479 (49 percent) are stable, and 487 (7 percent) are institutional, meaning they are used by governments, schools and the media.

A language becomes endangered when its users begin to pass on a more dominant language to the children in the community. Many are used as second languages.

According to Ethnologue, some 337 languages are said to be dormant while 454 are extinct.

Dormant languages are those that no longer have proficient speakers, but the language still has social uses and the language is part of the identity of an ethnic community. Extinct languages are those that have no speakers and no social uses or groups that claim it as part of their heritage or identity.

According to Ethnologue, 88.1 million people speak an endangered language as their mother tongue. There are:

• 1,431 languages with fewer than 1,000 first-language speakers
• 463 with fewer than 100 speakers
• 110 with fewer than 10 speakers

Just 25 countries are home to some 80 percent of the world’s endangered languages. Oceania has the most endangered languages, followed by Asia, Africa and the Americas.

Some endangered languages include:

Oceania 

In Australia, Yugambeh, an endangered Aboriginal language, is spoken by the Yugambeh people, primarily across the Gold Coast, Scenic Rim and Logan in eastern Australia.

In recent years, a strong community-led revitalisation programme and the use of learning apps have made the language more accessible to younger generations.

Asia 

Japan’s Ainu (Ainu Itak) is a critically endangered language. According to UNESCO, it can’t be linked with certainty to any family of languages. The exact number of Ainu speakers is unknown, however a 2006 survey showed that out of 23,782 Ainu, 304 know the language.

Africa

In Ethiopia, Ongota is a critically endangered language.

It was spoken by a community on the west bank of the Weito River in southwest Ethiopia. There are only about 400 members of the community left, with a handful of elders speaking the language.

Americas

In North and Central America, almost all Indigenous languages are endangered. Louisiana Creole, a French-based creole with African and Indigenous influences, is a seriously endangered language in the United States, with it mostly spoken by elders.

Leco is an endangered Indigenous language spoken in Bolivia and is considered an isolated language – one that has no genetic relationship to other languages. The language is only now spoken by elders with a Leco ethnic population of only about 13,500.

Europe

Cornish (Kernewek), spoken in southwest England, was marked as an extinct language by UNESCO, until it was revived and in 2010 changed to an endangered language. It is spoken as a first language by 563 people according to the 2021 England and Wales census.