Author: admin@primenews

“People usually apologise after cracking jokes,” Indian stand-up comic Munawar Faruqui says in an episode of Bigg Boss, a popular reality TV show. “But in my case, it’s best if I do it in advance.” His humour wasn’t missed on the millions of Indians watching the programme, a homegrown version of UK’s Big Brother. In the show, 21 contestants are isolated in a custom-built house, where they are filmed around the clock and are evicted through weekly audience votes. Within the eclectic mix of contestants, Faruqui stood out. A Muslim, he was arrested in 2021 on charges of hurting religious…

Adidas says it plans to sell remaining stocks of Yeezy sneakers from its defunct partnership with Kanye West for at least cost price. The firm cut ties with the rapper and fashion designer, who is also known as Ye, in 2022 after he made a series of antisemitic comments on social media. But demand for Yeezy sneakers has not faded, as they remain hugely popular in the resale market. It comes after currency fluctuations cost the firm €1bn ($1.08bn; £850m). The German sportswear giant’s finances were impacted last year by the discontinuation of the Yeezy business and as it cut…

Israelis who dealt with the bodies of victims of Hamas’s 7 October attacks on Israel have told British MPs and peers that there was “deliberate, systematic genital mutilation” of female victims and that there was “no question” that some had been sexually assaulted. Business Secretary and Minister for Women Kemi Badenoch said all the reports must be fully investigated and sexual violence must be condemned. “Rape is not resistance,” she stated. Hamas has denied its gunmen sexually assaulted women during the attacks. But a senior Israeli police officer said her force had “clear evidence” that rape and other acts of…

The US has managed to dismantle the hacking efforts of a Chinese state-sponsored group that had been targeting key public infrastructure like the power grid and pipelines, says the FBI. The FBI’s director told lawmakers it had executed a campaign to shut down the “Volt Typhoon” group. That group hacked into hundreds of older office routers to access data on US assets, Christopher Wray alleged. The Chinese government is yet to respond to the accusations. However, it has previously denied accusations of state-sponsored cyber warfare against other countries. It has, in the past, also accused the US of being “the…

The rumours about Imran Khan’s third wife did not take long to start swirling. For a start, Bushra Maneka – as she was known before her marriage to Pakistan’s former cricket captain-turned-politician – was quite different to her two glamorous predecessors. While British socialite Jemima Goldsmith and journalist Reham Khan graced the covers of magazines and television screens, she stayed hidden behind a veil. In fact, Khan would tell the Mail on Sunday proudly in 2018 that he “did not catch a glimpse of my wife’s face until after we were married” – something that he said would have been “unthinkable” back…

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has apologised to families who say their children had been harmed by social media, during a fiery hearing in the US Senate. Mr Zuckerberg – who runs Instagram and Facebook – turned to them and said “no-one should go through” what they had. He and the bosses of TikTok, Snap, X and Discord were questioned for almost four hours by senators from both parties. Lawmakers wanted to know what they are doing to protect children online. It was a rare opportunity for the US senators to question tech bosses. Mr Zuckerberg and TikTok CEO Shou Zi…

Chantrea drags an electric fan the size of a large door into the airless chamber where she works every day. It is her only respite from the heat inside the brick kiln that looks more like a dimly-lit tomb. “It’s like working inside a burning prison,” the 47-year-old says as she stacks the dried bricks, which will be moved to a warehouse. “I have asked the owners to provide us with more fans. But they won’t because it will cost more money.” The fan she does have slowly clunks as it starts, eventually whirring into action. It barely creates a…

The Federal Reserve makes its first interest rate decision of the year on Wednesday. But with practically all of Wall Street in agreement that no changes will be made, investors are focused on Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s afternoon press conference where he’ll answer questions about his outlook for monetary policy. And if past performance is any indicator of future results, there’s a lot resting on Powell’s guidance. We can guess what might happen: If he hints that cuts are coming, markets will likely respond with glee. If he suggests that interest rates will stay higher for longer, we can expect…

England spinner Jack Leach is a significant doubt for the second Test against India because of a knee injury sustained in the first Test. Leach hurt his left knee fielding in Hyderabad, but was still able to bowl 10 overs in the second innings as England sealed a remarkable 28-run win. He did not bowl in training on Wednesday as England prepare for the second Test in Visakhapatnam on Friday. Leach’s absence could lead to a debut for Somerset team-mate Shoaib Bashir. Uncapped off-spinner Bashir, 20, joined the England squad during the first Test after returning to the UK in order…

Tech bosses including Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Linda Yaccarino of X are due to testify in Washington today, as concerns rise about children’s mental health and safety online. Politicians say big tech companies are not doing enough to protect children from sexual exploitation. They have been debating tougher laws, and demanded executives appear to explain what has been done so far. The heads of TikTok, Discord and Snap are also due to attend. It marks the first time many of the executives, including Ms Yaccarino, have testified before Congress. Ms Yaccarino, as well as Discord boss Jason Citron and Snap…