World News

Finland is named the happiest country in the world for the eighth year in a row, according to the World Happiness Report 2025 published Thursday.

Other Nordic countries are also once again at the top of the happiness rankings in the annual report published by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford. Besides Finland, Denmark, Iceland and Sweden remain the top four and in the same order.

Country rankings were based on answers people give when asked to rate their own lives. The study was done in partnership with the analytics firm Gallup and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.

When it comes to decreasing happiness — or growing unhappiness —the United States has dropped to its lowest-ever position at 24, having previously peaked at 11th place in 2012. The report states that the number of people dining alone in the United States has increased 53% over the past two decades.

Nation Table

Protesters have taken to the streets and university campuses, and in underground stations, with crowds chanting anti-government slogans. It is a display of public anger not seen in years.

UK-based internet watchdog Netblocks said on Wednesday Turkey had severely restricted access to social media sites like X, YouTube, Instagram and TikTok.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/34475877

US medical giants say Australia’s Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is an “egregious and discriminatory” program that Trump should target in the next wave of tariffs.

Archived version: https://archive.is/20250319050457/https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/big-pharma-plea-to-trump-to-punish-australia-for-cheaper-medicines-20250319-p5lko1.html

Disclaimer: The article linked is from a single source with a single perspective. Make sure to cross-check information against multiple sources to get a comprehensive view on the situation.

Last Monday, a shocking accident occurred in Berlin, Germany, which once again highlighted the inhumane living conditions of the homeless of the city.

A 33-year-old man, apparently seeking refuge from the freezing temperatures, was sleeping between layers of paper and cardboard in a waste bin when it was emptied in the early hours of the morning.

France’s research minister said a French scientist was denied entry to the US this month after immigration officers at an airport searched his phone and found messages in which he had expressed criticism of the Trump administration.

• Lira plunges 12% to all-time low of 42 to the dollar
• Imamoglu faces charges of corruption and aiding PKK
• CHP calls detention a coup attempt against next president
• Erdogan's govt denies criticism, says judiciary independent
• Next election scheduled for 2028 but could come sooner

ISTANBUL, March 19 (Reuters) - Turkey detained Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the main rival of President Tayyip Erdogan, on charges of corruption and aiding a terrorist group in what the main opposition party on Wednesday called "a coup against our next president".

The move against the popular two-term mayor caps a months-long legal crackdown on opposition figures across the country which has been criticised as a politicised attempt to hurt their electoral prospects and silence dissent.

Turkey's lira currency crashed as much as 12% to an all-time low, opens new tab of 42 to the dollar in response, underscoring worries over the eroding rule of law in the major emerging market and NATO member country that Erdogan has run for 22 years.

Imamoglu, 54, who leads Erdogan in some opinion polls, was to be named his Republican People's Party's (CHP) official presidential candidate within days. He now faces two separate investigations that also include charges of leading a crime organisation, bribery and tender rigging.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed Wednesday to a limited ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow, as U.S. President Donald Trump suggested during a call with the embattled country’s leader that he consider American ownership of Ukraine’s power plants to ensure their long-term security.

Trump told Zelenskyy that the U.S could be “very helpful in running those plants with its electricity and utility expertise,” according to a White House statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and national security adviser Mike Waltz that described the call as “fantastic.”

Trump suggested “American ownership of those plants could be the best protection for that infrastructure,” according to White House officials. The idea was floated even as the Trump administration looks to finalize an agreement to gain access to Ukraine’s critical minerals as partial repayment for U.S. support for Ukraine during the war.

Canada is in advanced talks with the European Union to join the bloc’s new project to expand its military industry, a move that would allow Canada to be part of building European fighter jets and other military equipment at its own industrial facilities.

The budding defense cooperation between Canada and the European Union, which is racing to shore up its industry to lower reliance on the United States, would boost Canada’s military manufacturers and offer the country a new market at a time when its relationship with the United States has become frayed.

Shaken by a crisis in the two nations’ longstanding alliance since President Trump’s election, Canada has started moving closer to Europe. The military industry collaboration with the European Union highlights how traditional U.S. allies are deepening their ties without U.S. participation to insulate themselves from Mr. Trump’s unpredictable moves.

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China’s Ministry of Commerce has delayed BYD’s approval to build an EV plant in Mexico, fearing U.S. competitors could access its technology.

The move reflects rising trade tensions, with Trump accusing Mexico of being a "backdoor" for Chinese goods. Mexico has also imposed tariffs on Chinese imports, complicating relations.

BYD remains committed to expansion but faces supply chain and tariff challenges.

Other Chinese EV makers, including ZEEKR and Neta, have also sought entry into North America, but China’s caution may stall these efforts.

Summary

Trump and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy discussed a partial ceasefire on energy infrastructure following Trump’s failed attempt to get Putin to agree to a 30-day ceasefire.

Trump briefed Zelenskyy on his talk with Putin, who only pledged to halt attacks on energy sites. Zelenskyy welcomed the step but said Putin’s words alone were “not enough.”

Russia and Ukraine continued to exchange strikes despite the talks.

The U.S. will help Ukraine acquire more air defenses, and intelligence sharing will continue despite Russia’s demand to halt Western military support.

The unprecedented amount of capital the UAE is spending on American AI and technology gives them huge sway over the Trump administration, US and Arab officials have told MEE.

What was absent from the UAE officials' visit were public discussions or statements about Israel’s war on Gaza, which re-erupted on Tuesday when Israel began bombing the enclave.

The UAE's priorities underscore how far it has drifted away from its wealthy Gulf neighbours.

Whereas Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has publicly accused Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip, the UAE has continued to engage with Israel.

Behind the scenes, the UAE has broken with fellow Arab states lobbying the Trump administration against a plan drafted by Egypt and endorsed by the Arab League for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip, MEE revealed.

The UAE’s foreign minister hosted his Israeli counterpart in the UAE in January before a brief ceasefire was reached in Gaza. The two countries normalised ties in 2020 under Trump’s Abraham Accords.

TEL AVIV, Israel — The Israeli military says it has launched a new ground offensive in Gaza, sending troops back into areas they had retreated from during a nearly two-month ceasefire. This comes a day after Israel broke the ceasefire with a punishing series of airstrikes that killed more than 400 people, many of whom were children, and wounded hundreds more.

The IDF said it aims to expand what it calls the "security perimeter" separating Gaza and Israel, and to create a "partial buffer zone" between the north and south of the Gaza Strip. The IDF says it has "taken control and re-established" its presence in the Netzarim corridor, the large strip of land dividing Gaza's north and south that troops had occupied during the war and retreated from as part of a January ceasefire agreement.

Summary

Canadian citizen Jasmine Mooney was detained by ICE for two weeks despite having a valid U.S. work visa. Stopped at the San Diego border, she was abruptly arrested, denied legal counsel, and held in freezing cells before being transferred to a private detention center.

She witnessed systemic inefficiencies, inhumane conditions, and detainees trapped in bureaucratic limbo.

After media attention and legal intervention, Mooney was released.

Her experience highlights the profit-driven nature of private detention centers and the broader failures of U.S. immigration enforcement under Trump’s administration.

Turkish police have arrested the mayor of Istanbul, detaining the primary challenger to the president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, in dawn raids that also ensnared 100 politicians, businesspeople and municipal officials accused of corruption and links to terror groups.

Ekrem İmamoğlu, the mayor, released a video statement as police gathered outside his residence in Istanbul, speaking to the camera as he put on a shirt and tie before his arrest. In a caption accompanying the video posted to social media, he wrote: “This is a blow to the will of the people.”

. . .

The Istanbul mayor was detained along with about 100 others, including his chief spokesperson, Murat Ongun, the head of the İmamoğlu construction firm, Tuncay Yılmaz, and the head of the Istanbul municipality sports club, Fatih Keleş, all accused of corruption, embezzlement and bribery.

The Istanbul public prosecutor’s office added that İmamoğlu was charged as “the leader of a criminal organisation” accused of extortion, fraud and corruption.

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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced fury from protesters outside Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, in Jerusalem, a day after he resumed the war in Gaza, shattering the two-month-old ceasefire with Hamas.

On Highway 1 – the main road connecting Tel Aviv to Jerusalem – protesters held a banner reading: “The future of the coalition or the future of Israel.”

The banner underlined a message delivered by thousands of people to the capital on Wednesday: That over nearly 18 months of war and fragile ceasefires, Netanyahu continues to prioritize his political survival over the security of his country, the lives of Israeli hostages and those of Palestinians in Gaza.

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Based on 31 million data points for 202 countries, compiled by 4,200 scholars and other contributors, measuring 600 different attributes of democracy, within six months to a year, the US will officially no longer be a democracy.

Summary

Seven EU countries support a Czech proposal for the bloc to fund Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) after the U.S. cut its financial support.

The move follows Trump’s March 14 executive order directing U.S. agencies to reduce operations, leading to RFE/RL employees being placed on leave.

Germany and several Nordic and Baltic nations back the plan, calling RFE/RL vital for information in regions lacking democratic freedoms.