/lifestyle/offbeat en /node/2604235/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/120821">AP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Thu, 2025-06-12 05:53</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> WASHINGTON: A tuxedo-wearing President Donald Trump was booed and cheered as he took his seat for the opening night of “Les Misérables” at the Kennedy Center, bringing his own dose of political drama to the theatrical production that was unfolding onstage.<br /> It was his first time attending a show there since becoming president, reflecting his focus on remaking the institution in his image while asserting more control over the country’s cultural landscape.<br /></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/12/4611073-1383821305.jpeg" width="1000" height="667" alt="" title="US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump arrive at the Kennedy Center on June 11, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Getty Images/AFP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/trumpreturns">Trump Returns</a></div></div></div> Thu, 12 Jun 2025 02:54:35 +0000 Mahad 2604235 at /node/2604120/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/111606">AFP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-id field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">ID:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">1749626774160208000</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Wed, 2025-06-11 07:10</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> AMESTERDAM: The “unchecked expansion” of social media platforms is driving an unprecedented global mental health crisis in kids and teens, a children’s NGO said Wednesday, calling for urgent coordinated action worldwide.<br /> The KidsRights report said one in seven children and adolescents aged between 10 and 19 suffered mental health issues, with the global suicide rate at six per 100,000 for those aged 15-19.<br /> Even these high rates represent “the tip of the iceberg” as suicide is widely under-reported due to stigma, according to the Amsterdam-based group.<br /></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/11/4610794-243514342.jpg" width="1130" height="753" alt="" title="School children attend a class at school near the town of Gjakova on October 22, 2024. (AFP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/main-category/media">Media</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/children">children</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/internet">Internet</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/tags/technology">technology</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/health">Health</a></div></div></div> Wed, 11 Jun 2025 07:28:04 +0000 rbksa 2604120 at /node/2604109/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/111606">AFP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">AFP</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-id field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">ID:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">1749619831439787700</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Wed, 2025-06-11 05:14</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> SHARJAH: After Muhammed Sajjad moved from India to the United Arab Emirates a decade ago, he missed his native Kerala’s monsoon season, so he embarked on an unlikely quest: finding rain in the desert.<br /> Using satellite imagery, weather data and other high-tech tools, the amateur meteorologist tracks potential rainfall spots across the desert country and, along with other Indians nostalgic for the monsoon season, chases the clouds in search of rain.<br /></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/11/4610771-1188887441.jpg" width="1118" height="753" alt="" title="After Muhammed Sajjad moved from India to the United Arab Emirates a decade ago, he missed his native Kerala&#039;s monsoon season, so he embarked on an unlikely quest: finding rain in the desert. (AFP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/tags/india">India</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/category/tags/uae">UAE</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/rain">rain</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/monsoon">monsoon</a></div></div></div> Wed, 11 Jun 2025 05:32:15 +0000 rbksa 2604109 at /node/2604100/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/111606">AFP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Wed, 2025-06-11 05:56</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> TOKYO: Nintendo said Wednesday it had sold a record 3.5 million Switch 2 units worldwide in the first four days after the console was launched.<br /> “This is the highest global sales level for any Nintendo hardware within the first four days,” the Japanese video game giant said in a statement.<br /> Featuring a bigger screen and more processing power, the Switch 2 is an upgrade to Nintendo’s blockbuster Switch console.<br /> It was released last Thursday to a global swell of fan excitement that included sold-out pre-orders and midnight store openings.<br /></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/11/4610746-553790282.jpeg" width="1000" height="667" alt="" title="That makes it the third best-selling console of all time. (AFP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/nintendo">Nintendo</a></div></div></div> Wed, 11 Jun 2025 02:59:52 +0000 Mahad 2604100 at /node/2604094/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/111606">AFP</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/taxonomy/term/120821">AP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Wed, 2025-06-11 03:49</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> YEONCHEON, South Korea:  Two more BTS members were released from South Korean military service Wednesday, bringing the K-pop supergroup closer to a reunion as they promised fans a “better version” of themselves soon.</p> <p> Jimin and Jung Kook are the latest and final members of supergroup to be discharged from South Korea’s mandatory military service.</p> <p> The septuplet BTS, South Korea’s most lucrative musical act, has been on a self-described hiatus since 2022 while its members separately completed their military service, which is mandatory in the South for all men under 30.</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/11/4610728-300498034.jpg" width="1200" height="800" alt="" title="Jungkook (L) and Jimin of K-pop supergroup BTS salute for the media and fans at an outdoor sporting facility in Yeoncheon on June 11, 2025, shortly after their release from 18 months of South Korean military service. (AFP) " /></div><div class="field-item odd"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/11/4610729-405686165.jpg" width="1200" height="799" alt="" title="K-pop boy band BTS members RM (L) plays the saxophone while V looks on at an outdoor sporting facility in Chuncheon on June 10, 2025, after their release from 18 months of South Korean military service. AFP)" /></div><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/11/4610731-906740697.jpg" width="1200" height="800" alt="" title="K-pop band BTS members RM, center left, and V, center right, react after being discharged from a mandatory military service in Chuncheon, South Korea, on June 10, 2025. (AP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/south-korea">South Korea</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/bts">BTS</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/k-pop-band">K-pop band</a></div></div></div> Wed, 11 Jun 2025 02:00:31 +0000 romulo 2604094 at /node/2604086/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/120821">AP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Wed, 2025-06-11 01:39</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> NEW YORK: Jurors in Harvey Weinstein’s sex crimes retrial appeared to be focusing on one of his three accusers as deliberations stretched into a fourth day Tuesday, with no further sign of interpersonal tensions that flared earlier.<br /> The jury had requested to start off Tuesday with electronic copies of emails and other evidence pertaining to Jessica Mann — the accuser with arguably the most complex history with Weinstein.<br /></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/11/4610712-1942369812.jpeg" width="1000" height="667" alt="" title="Weinstein, 73, has pleaded not guilty to all the charges in the case. (AP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/harvey-weinstein">Harvey Weinstein</a></div></div></div> Tue, 10 Jun 2025 22:40:40 +0000 Mahad 2604086 at /node/2604013/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/111606">AFP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">AFP</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-id field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">ID:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">1749546703041073300</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Tue, 2025-06-10 09:07</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> PARIS: Emperor penguin populations in Antarctica have shrunk by almost a quarter as global warming transforms their icy habitat, according to new research Tuesday that warned the losses were far worse than previously imagined.<br /> “We’ve got this really depressing picture of climate change and falling populations even faster than we thought, but it’s not too late,” said Peter Fretwell, of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), who led the study monitoring sixteen colonies, representing nearly a third of the global emperor penguin population.</p> </div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/10/4610500-866245038.jpg" width="2800" height="1568" alt="" title="Emperor penguin populations in Antarctica have shrunk by almost a quarter as global warming transforms their icy habitat, according to new research Tuesday. (AFP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/emperor-penguin">Emperor penguin</a></div></div></div> Tue, 10 Jun 2025 09:12:57 +0000 rbksa 2604013 at /node/2604000/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/120821">AP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">AP</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-id field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">ID:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">1749537963020339900</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Tue, 2025-06-10 04:20</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> PADDOCK WOOD: The injured fox is cornered in a cage, teeth bared and snarling at the woman trying to help it.<br /> Nicki Townsend is unfazed. Wearing only rubber gloves and an outfit suitable for a yoga class, she approaches with soothing words. “All right, baby,” she coos as she deftly drapes a towel over his head, grabs him by the scruff of his neck, scoops up his wounded legs and moves him to a clean cage.<br /> It’s not the way her day typically begins, but there’s nothing routine about rescuing foxes.<br /></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/10/4610471-206783576.jpg" width="1129" height="753" alt="" title="When they are ill, injured or abandoned as cubs in south London and its leafy suburbs, The Fox Project is often there to help. (AP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/london">London</a></div></div></div> Tue, 10 Jun 2025 06:47:34 +0000 rbksa 2604000 at /node/2603804/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/111606">AFP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">AFP</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-id field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">ID:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">1749355813092196300</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Sun, 2025-06-08 03:29</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> XINGYI, China: Surrounded by the rubble of demolished homes, Chen Tianming’s ramshackle tower of faded plyboards and contorted beams juts into the sky in southwestern China, a teetering monument to one man’s stubbornness.</p> <p> Authorities razed most of Chen’s village in Guizhou province in 2018 to build a lucrative tourist resort in a region known for its spectacular rice paddies and otherworldly mountain landscapes.</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/08/4609873-1350119887.jpg" width="1130" height="753" alt="" title="Above, China’s strangest ‘nail house’ – households that refuse to move in the face of development plans – in Xingyi, in southwest Guizhou province. (AFP)" /></div><div class="field-item odd"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/08/4609874-1641790797.jpg" width="1130" height="753" alt="" title="Last August, Chen Tianming’s home was designated an illegal construction, and he was ordered to destroy everything except the original bungalow within five days. (AFP)" /></div><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/08/4609875-9380962.jpg" width="1129" height="753" alt="" title="Chen Tianming spent seven years and over 100,000 yuan ($13,900) defying authorities’ demolition notices to turn his family’s humble stone bungalow on the outskirts of Xingyi city into a bewildering 10-storey pyramid-shaped home. (AFP)" /></div><div class="field-item odd"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/08/4609879-1470355599.jpg" width="1000" height="666" alt="" title="Chen Tianming stands near his house labelled China’s strangest ‘nail house’ – households that refuse to move in the face of development plans – in Xingyi, in southwest Guizhou province. (AFP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/category/tags/property">property</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/china-0">China</a></div></div></div> Sun, 08 Jun 2025 04:18:56 +0000 rbksa 2603804 at /node/2603802/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/111606">AFP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Sun, 2025-06-08 06:02</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> PARIS: Tim Friede was feeling particularly down on the day after the September 11 attacks, so he went to his basement and let two of the world’s deadliest snakes bite him.<br /> Four days later, he woke up from a coma.<br /> “I know what it feels like to die from snakebite,” Friede told AFP via video call from his home in the small US town of Two Rivers, Wisconsin.<br /> This experience might put most people off snakes entirely, but Friede simply vowed to be more careful next time.<br /></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/08/4609869-462199540.jpeg" width="1000" height="667" alt="" title="Tim Friede. (CENTIVAX/AFP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/snakes">snakes</a></div></div></div> Sun, 08 Jun 2025 03:05:35 +0000 Mahad 2603802 at /node/2603796/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/120821">AP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Sun, 2025-06-08 03:08</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> CHICAGO: A bottlenose dolphin at a Chicago zoo gave birth to a calf early Saturday morning with the help of a fellow mom, in a successful birth recorded on video by zoo staff.<br /> The dolphin calf was born at Brookfield Zoo Chicago early Saturday morning as a team of veterinarians monitored and cheered on the mom, a 38-year-old bottlenose dolphin named Allie.<br /> “Push, push, push,” one observer can be heard shouting in video released by the zoo Saturday, as Allie swims around the tank, the calf’s little tail fins poking out below her own.<br /></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/08/4609849-451477033.jpg" width="1200" height="800" alt="" title="This photo provided by Brookfield Zoo Chicago, bottlenose dolphins &quot;Allie&quot; with &quot;Tapeko&quot; are joined by the newly born calf at the Brookfield Zoo Chicago on June 7, 2025. (AP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/dolphins">dolphins</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/brookfield-zoo-chicago">Brookfield Zoo Chicago</a></div></div></div> Sun, 08 Jun 2025 00:31:13 +0000 romulo 2603796 at /node/2603700/world <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/120821">AP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">AP</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-id field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">ID:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">1749274200955116800</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Sat, 2025-06-07 05:23</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> VATICAN CITY: The world’s smallest country has a big budget problem.</p> <p> The Vatican doesn’t tax its residents or issue bonds. It primarily finances the Catholic Church’s central government through donations that have been plunging, ticket sales for the Vatican Museums, as well as income from investments and an underperforming real estate portfolio.</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/07/4609525-1569359771.jpg" width="1134" height="753" alt="" title="Pope Leo XIV is facing challenges to drum up the funds needed to pull his city-state out of the red. (Reuters)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/world">World</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/pope-leo-xiv">Pope Leo XIV</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/vatican">Vatican</a></div></div></div> Sat, 07 Jun 2025 05:41:00 +0000 rbksa 2603700 at /node/2603653/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/120821">AP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">By PAN PYLAS | AP</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-id field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">ID:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">1749233218670873100</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Fri, 2025-06-06 21:09</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> LONDON: An art expert who appeared on the BBC’s Bargain Hunt show was sentenced Friday to two and a half years in prison for failing to report his sale of pricey works to a suspected financier of Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group.</p> <p> At a previous hearing, Oghenochuko Ojiri, 53, had pleaded guilty to eight offenses under the Terrorism Act 2000. The art sales for about 140,000 pounds ($185,000) to Nazem Ahmad, a diamond and art dealer sanctioned by the UK and US as a Hezbollah financier, took place between October 2020 and December 2021.</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/06/4609421-1253678180.jpg" width="1236" height="712" alt="" title="An art expert who appeared on the BBC&#039;s Bargain Hunt show was sentenced Friday to two and a half years in prison for failing to report his sale of pricey works to a suspected financier of Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group. (X/@Suffragent_)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/bbc">BBC</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/hezbollah">Hezbollah</a></div><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/oghenochuko-ojiri">Oghenochuko Ojiri</a></div><div class="field-item odd"><a href="/tags/london%E2%80%99s-central-criminal-court">London’s Central Criminal Court</a></div></div></div> Fri, 06 Jun 2025 18:09:38 +0000 rbksa 2603653 at /node/2603317/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/111606">AFP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-id field-type-text field-label-above"><div class="field-label">ID:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even">1749023302588353900</div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Wed, 2025-06-04 07:45</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> CAIRO: Nestled in the Sinai mountains, the ancient St Catherine's Monastery has been the centre of recent tensions after an Egyptian court ruled last week that it sat on state-owned land.</p> <p> Dating back to the sixth century BC, the UNESCO World Heritage Site is the world's oldest continuously inhabited monastery, attracting hundreds of pilgrims and tourists every year.</p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/04/4608484-621877994.jpg" width="1131" height="753" alt="" title="A picture taken on April 16, 2017 shows a general view of the Monastery of St. Catherine in Egypt&#039;s south Sinai. (AFP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/egypt">Egypt</a></div></div></div> Wed, 04 Jun 2025 08:14:33 +0000 rbksa 2603317 at /node/2603152/offbeat <div class="field field-name-field-rbitem-author field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">article author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/taxonomy/term/120821">AP</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-author field-type-text field-label-inline clearfix"><div class="field-label">Author:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-publication-date field-type-datestamp field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><span class="date-display-single">Tue, 2025-06-03 03:34</span></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p> MILAN: Foreign tourists were among a dozen people injured when a 50-year-old tree fell next to a bus stop in the Italian lagoon city of Venice on Monday, authorities said.<br /> The oak tree fell on a group of people waiting in a shaded area at Piazzale Roma, the last stop for buses and taxis ferrying visitors to and from the lagoon city from the mainland, city officials said. It wasn’t immediately clear why the tree fell.<br /></p></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-field-binary field-type-image field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025/06/03/4608094-503657645.jpeg" width="1000" height="714" alt="" title="Firefighters work at the scene where a 50-year-old tree fell, injuring foreign tourists and others who were standing in its shade, next to a bus stop in Venice, Italy, Monday, June 2, 2025. (Filippo Attili/Vigili Del Fuoco via AP)" /></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-1 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Main category:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/lifestyle/offbeat">Offbeat</a></div></div></div><div class="field field-name-taxonomy-vocabulary-9 field-type-taxonomy-term-reference field-label-above"><div class="field-label">Tags:&nbsp;</div><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><a href="/tags/venice">Venice</a></div></div></div> Tue, 03 Jun 2025 00:35:18 +0000 Mahad 2603152 at