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The Hindu
27 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Myanmar junta claims recapture of gold mining town, Thabeikkyin
Myanmar's junta claimed on Thursday (July 24, 2025) claimed to have recaptured the gold mining town of Thabeikkyin after a year-long battle, marking its second key town regained in a week. With control of Thabeikkyin and Nawnghkio, junta forces hold two flanks of the town of Mogok — the renowned centre of Myanmar's ruby mining industry. A civil war has consumed Myanmar since a 2021 coup deposed the civilian government, with the military battling a myriad of pro-democracy guerrillas and ethnic armed organisations. This year, the junta's China- and Russia-backed forces have clawed back ground on the northern front, and state media said its soldiers managed "to fully retake" the town of Thabeikkyin on Wednesday. One resident, Ye Dinn, said people had fled fighting to shelter in the forest or nearby schools and monasteries. "People have nothing to eat and no place to flee to," the 65-year-old said. Thabeikkyin, located about 100 kilometres north of the second most populous city of Mandalay, is a lucrative hive of gold mining sitting on the banks of the Irrawaddy River bisecting Myanmar. State mouthpiece the Global New Light of Myanmar said an anti-coup alliance attacked Thabeikkyin with "overwhelming strength" last August, but its counteroffensive retook the town after 17 major battles. "We are really scared," said another resident, speaking on condition of anonymity. "Nowhere is safe. We are all looking for a safe place, but people have no idea where they should go and hide." The junta last Thursday said it had recaptured the northeastern town of Nawnghkio, on another key highway towards Mandalay city, fending allied rebels back further into the fringes of the country. Earlier this week, guerrillas said they ambushed a junta flotilla of five ships sailing up the Irrawaddy north of Mandalay — another apparent sign of the military's renewed regional offensive. With control of Thabeikkyin and Nawnghkio, junta forces hold two flanks of the town of Mogok -- the renowned centre of Myanmar's ruby mining industry which rebel forces claimed last summer. Mines excavating precious metals, gemstones and rare earth elements are coveted by all factions in Myanmar's civil war, allowing them to fill their coffers and fund their offensives. Some 3.5 million people are living displaced amid the war, according to the United Nations, while more than half the nation of around 50 million now lives in poverty.


Time of India
27 minutes ago
- Time of India
‘Comply with Prez's order': Blackburn slams Tennessee colleges for hiding DEI behind coded language
During a Senate Judiciary hearing focused on ending DEI, Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) accused Tennessee universities of disguising their DEI programs by using coded or rebranded language. Her remarks came as President Donald Trump has vowed to bring the country together by eliminating DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives across all institutions, from federal agencies to college campuses. Show more Show less


Time of India
27 minutes ago
- Time of India
Countries will face tariffs ranging from 15% to 50%: Donald Trump
Trump's comment declaring that the tariffs would begin at 15% represented the latest twist in his effort to impose duties on nearly every US trading partner, and the latest indication that Trump was looking to more aggressively impose the levies on exports from countries outside the small group that so far has been able to broker trade frameworks with Washington. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump suggested that he would not go below 15% as he sets so-called reciprocal tariff rates ahead of an Aug. 1 deadline, an indication that the floor for the increased levies was rising."We'll have a straight, simple tariff of anywhere between 15% and 50%," Trump said Wednesday at an AI summit in Washington. "A couple of - we have 50 because we haven't been getting along with those countries too well."Trump's comment declaring that the tariffs would begin at 15% represented the latest twist in his effort to impose duties on nearly every US trading partner, and the latest indication that Trump was looking to more aggressively impose the levies on exports from countries outside the small group that so far has been able to broker trade frameworks with earlier this month said that more than 150 countries would receive a letter including a tariff rate of "probably 10 or 15%, we haven't decided yet." Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CBS News on Sunday that small countries including "the Latin American countries, the Caribbean countries, many countries in Africa" would have a baseline tariff of 10%. And at the first announcement of the tariffs in April, Trump unveiled a universal tariff of 10% on nearly every Trump and his advisers initially expressed hopes of securing multiple deals, the president has been touting the tariff letters themselves as "deals" and suggesting that he is uninterested in back-and-forth negotiations. Still, he has left the door open for countries to make agreements that could lower those rates.