Day: September 10, 2024

Seoul: The top leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) called for greater efforts for economic development and strengthening national defense on the occasion of the country’s 76th founding anniversary, state media reported on Tuesday.

Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made the remarks during a National Day speech on Monday at the headquarters building of the WPK Central Committee in Pyongyang. He outlined a detailed state work plan based on a review of the country’s development so far this year, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

The DPRK’s top leader said economic growth has trended up this year as the national economic sectors met their production targets “without fail.” The country’s light industry and urban management are also poised for further improvements, the KCNA said.

According to the report, during his speech, Kim also listed favorable agricultural production rates and expec
ted “fairly good harvests” for the rest of the year. He added that the DPRK’s military strength was due to critical national defense research and production achievements.

In his National Day address, the DPRK’s top leader also emphasized the need to boost national productivity by guiding key industries to meet their production targets. He also stressed the importance of the construction sector achieving this year’s plan, emphasizing “thoroughly” ensuring construction quality, and reminded the agricultural sector to meet this year’s farming goals while preparing for the next, according to KCNA.

It said Kim expressed heightened urgency to strengthen national defense capabilities given current security developments on the Korean Peninsula.

Noting the U.S.-led military alliances in the region have turned into “a nuclear-based military bloc,” posing a grave threat to the military security environment around the DPRK, Kim vowed the country would “take more important measures and make constant efforts to maintain
and further boost its military supremacy,” the KCNA reported.

Strong power means “a genuine peace and an absolute guarantee for the development of our state,” Kim was quoted by the KCNA as saying.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Omuthiya: The Ministry of Education , Arts and Culture ‘ s Executive Director , Sanet Steenkamp , has expressed shock over the death of a 16 – year – old learner who allegedly drowned in Lake Guinas near Tsumeb over the weekend . The Namibian Police Force reported that O ‘ linn Nauyoma drowned around 15h00 on Sunday . He was a learner at Etosha Secondary School in Tsumeb . ‘ We are shocked by the loss of our learner . Our condolences go out to the family and Etosha Secondary School ,’ Steenkamp said in an interview on Tuesday . The executive director said the ministry is collaborating with the police and the divers to search for Nauyoma ‘ s body , while also preparing for social workers to visit the school and his family . The Namibian Police Force ‘ s crime investigations coordinator for the Oshikoto Region , Deputy Commissioner Titus Ekandjo , confirmed the incident , saying Nauyoma had been at the lake as part of an excursion by the school ‘ s learners ‘ representative council . The incident reportedly occ
urred while Nauyoma and a friend were swimming . The body of the deceased had not yet been retrieved from the lake by Tuesday , and his next of kin have been informed .

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Kuala lumpur: Malaysia’s manufacturing sector’s sales value rose 9.1 percent year on year to 157.1 billion ringgit (36.04 billion U.S. dollars) in July, marking the highest growth since February 2023, official data showed Tuesday.

The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said in a statement that the increase was driven largely by a double-digit growth of 16 percent in the food, beverages and tobacco sub-sector.

This was followed by the sub-sector of electrical and electronics products (8.2 percent), and the petroleum chemical, rubber and plastic (6.2 percent).

On a month-to-month basis, the sales value grew by 0.6 percent from 156.1 billion ringgit in June.

Export-oriented industries which constituted 72.3 percent of the total sales value, stayed robust with a 9.4 percent growth in July.

Meanwhile, domestic-oriented industries strengthened at 8.4 percent. (1 ringgit equals 0.23 U.S. dollars)

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Moscow: The Russian navy has launched its planned large-scale Ocean 2024 strategic exercises, which will run through Sept. 16, the country’s defense ministry said in a statement Tuesday.

“The exercise will become one of the most important events of the Russian armed forces’ operational and combat training in 2024,” according to the defense ministry.

The defense ministry said over 400 warships, submarines and support vessels, as well as over 120 naval aircraft, 7,000 units of weaponry, military and special hardware, and more than 90,000 personnel, will participate in the exercises.

The drills will be conducted across the Pacific and Arctic Oceans, as well as the Mediterranean, Caspian, and Baltic Seas.

According to the ministry, the Ocean 2024 strategic command and staff exercise will test the readiness of the Russian Navy’s senior staff to command all-arms groups of forces and the ability to solve non-standard operational tasks. Russian forces will also practice the use of high-precision and modern weapon
s.

The drills also aim to “expand cooperation with the navies of partner countries to perform joint maritime missions,” added the ministry.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Kuala lumpur: Malaysia’s industrial production index (IPI) expanded by 5.3 percent year-on-year in July, driven by strong growth in the manufacturing sector output, official data showed Tuesday.

The Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) said in a statement that the manufacturing output rose 7.7 percent, while the electricity output grew 7 percent.

Meanwhile, the mining sector declined by 5 percent.

Both export-oriented and domestic-oriented industries performed favorably in July by recording 7.8 percent and 7.5 percent growths, respectively.

In comparison with the preceding month, the IPI dropped by 1.5 percent from 4.8 percent growth in the previous month.

For the first seven months this year, the IPI improved by 4.1 percent year on year, with all sectors posting increases, including the mining index by 2.9 percent, the manufacturing index by 4.1 percent and the electricity index by 7.1 percent.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Dalian: Following is the starting list of China against Saudi Arabia in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier here on Tuesday:

Goalkeeper: 14-Wang Dalei

Defenders: 2-Jiang Guangtai, 3-Gao Zhunyi, 4-Li Lei, 5-Zhu Chenjie

Midfielders: 16-Jiang Shenglong, 20-Xie Wenneng, 21-Li Yuanyi

Forwards: 7-Wu Lei(C), 17-Fei Nanduo, 23-Behram Abduweli

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Jakarta: Lewotobi Laki-Laki volcano on the Indonesian island of Flores erupted again on Tuesday morning with local airports being temporarily closed.

According to the country’s Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation (PVMBG), Lewotobi Laki-Laki, standing as high as around 1,980 meters above sea level, threw ash up to 400 meters above its peak at around 8:00 local time.

The volcano, which is currently at Level 3 of 4, the country’s highest danger level for a volcano, has reportedly erupted six times over the past week.

Airports in the cities of Ende and Maumere were temporarily closed due to the increasing activities of the volcano.

The PVMBG has called on the public not to carry out any activities within a radius of 3 kilometers from the center of the eruption.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Brussels: A Belgian historian has hailed Beijing’s old city as an architectural masterpiece, emphasizing how its layout showcases centuries of urban evolution, with a central axis that stands unparalleled in its design.

The recent recognition of Beijing Central Axis as a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) world heritage site underscores its immense significance in the fields of archaeology, architecture, and culture, Thomas Coomans, an architectural historian, archaeologist and heritage conservationist, said in an interview with Xinhua.

Coomans, a professor in the department of architecture of KU Leuven University, has been collaborating with Chinese scholars since 2011. In 2014, he and Xu Yitao from the School of Archaeology and Museology at Peking University established a research cooperation framework in building archaeology. Coomans also served as a visiting professor at Peking University from 2016 to 2017.

Building archaeology combines archaeological methods with
historical research, Coomans explained. “We look at buildings with the eyes of an archaeologist, not an architect. We try to understand from the materials how the building was, its history and how people built them.”

Through his frequent academic exchanges with Chinese colleagues, Coomans has visited Beijing numerous times. During one of these visits, he lived in a hutong lane near Nanluoguxiang, a popular tourist destination in the heart of the city, immersing himself in local life to gain a deeper understanding of the area’s culture and history.

Nanluoguxiang, an 800-meter-long historic alley, is renowned for its traditional hutong architecture and lively cultural atmosphere. Reflecting on his time there, Coomans said, “When you live in a hutong, you are no longer a tourist. You become part of the Chinese community. You smile to people, interact with them, and you really understand these places with a very long history. That’s really the heart of Beijing.”

Coomans expressed a particular fascination with
Beijing’s ancient structures that blend European styles with Chinese craftsmanship, uniquely merging Western architectural concepts with Chinese techniques and artistic ideas. This fusion, he noted, creates a remarkable and unprecedented architectural synergy.

The 589-hectare area of the Beijing Central Axis connects structures that reflect centuries of cultural exchange between China and the West, including St. Michael’s Church and St. Joseph’s Church. Beyond the Central Axis, landmarks like Xiyanglou, or “Western Mansions” — influenced by early 18th century Italian painter and missionary Giuseppe Castiglione — and the former embassy district of Dongjiaominxiang, further illustrate the architectural diversity shaped by these exchanges across Eurasia.

The Beijing Central Axis spans 7.8 kilometers, making it the world’s longest urban axis. Initiated in the 13th century, it reached its current form by the 16th century. Coomans said its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List in July serves as proof of
its outstanding value.

As Coomans sees it, Beijing is a truly unique capital, with a structure incomparable to that of any other capital in the world. “The city’s layout is the result of evolution of earlier capitals in China, but Beijing is truly the masterpiece.”

Coomans has been invited to the 2024 Beijing Culture Forum, scheduled for Sept. 19-21. He expressed his excitement about the event, looking forward to learning and meeting new friends. During the forum, scholars from various countries will share their perspectives and insights on Beijing. This year’s theme is “Enhance Cultural Exchanges for Common Progress.”

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Vientiane: A national tour guide training course kicked off in Lao capital Vientiane, which aims to produce more qualified personnel to support tourism growth in Laos and address the shortage of skilled workers in this field.

The course takes place from Sept. 9 to Nov. 29, with participants receiving training in ethical standards and how to satisfactorily lead groups of people to various locations and provide them with a high level of service, Lao National Radio reported on Tuesday.

The course aims to produce a cohort of tour guides equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills and can demonstrate respect for Laos’ culture and the country’s many attractions, both historical and religious.

Lao Deputy Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Dalany Phommavongsa said tourism is on an upward trend this year and is making a steady recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tourism-related businesses have gained confidence in the stability of the tourism industry and are accelerating the expansion of new mark
ets, focusing on green tourism and greater participation by local people.

The training also teaches participants about the special attributes needed to provide an acceptable standard of service so that visitors have a good experience, are impressed, and want to return to Laos, said Dalany.

In a bid to bolster tourist numbers during Visit Laos Year 2024, the government has approved visa-free entry and extended the duration of stay for tourists from certain countries.

Source: The Namibia News Agency

Sanaa: The Houthi group on Tuesday claimed that they had shot down a U.S. MQ-9 drone in northern Yemen, while the U.S. military said it had destroyed two Houthi missile systems.

“We shot down an American MQ-9 drone while it was carrying out hostile, espionage and combat operations in the airspace of the province of Saada,” Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a statement aired by the group’s al-Masirah TV.

“This is the second U.S. drone we downed in less than 72 hours,” he said. The Houthis shot down a U.S. MQ-9 drone on Saturday over the central province of Marib, the group announced in an earlier statement.

“This is the ninth drone of the same type we have shot down since October last year,” he said, vowing that his group would continue to launch more attacks against what he said “Israeli-linked” ships.

So far, there has been no comment from the U.S. military on the Houthi claim.

Meanwhile, in a post earlier Tuesday on social media platform X, the U.S. military said it had destroyed two Houthi
missile systems in northern Yemen.

“In the past 24 hours, U.S. Central Command forces successfully destroyed two Iranian-backed Houthi missile systems and one support vehicle in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen,” it said, adding it also successfully destroyed a Houthi unmanned aerial vehicle over the Red Sea.

The Houthis and the U.S. military have been attacking each other since November last year, when the Houthis began launching anti-ship missiles and drone attacks on what they said were “Israeli-linked” cargo ships in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, to show solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Since January, the U.S.-British naval coalition stationed in the region has conducted regular air raids and missile strikes against Houthi targets to deter the group.

Source: The Namibia News Agency