Author: Prima News

Armed with a smartphone, Anza Zafran Utama, a 9-year-old boy in the Indonesian city of Bogor, is either a dinosaur or a shooter, depending on ​his mood. Zafran and his friends regularly hang out on Roblox (RBLX.N), opens new tab, the U.S. platform where children can build immersive 3-D worlds and communities, but from ‌Saturday under-16s are set to be restricted from using the platform under new government rules, after officials designated it high risk. “I like to joke around with my friends there,” Zafran said of Roblox. His mother, Andina Dwi, said he spends as long as four hours on…

Cuban officials ​have petitioned the Vatican ‌to help persuade the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to ​ease its oil embargo ​in senior-level meetings with Vatican ⁠officials including Pope Leo, the ​Washington Post reported on Friday, ​citing people familiar with the matter. Medias could not immediately verify the report. ​The Vatican press office, ​the White House and the Cuban government ‌did ⁠not immediately respond to a request for comment. Havana and Washington entered talks earlier this ​month as ​an ⁠oil blockade imposed by Trump pushes the Communist-run ​nation deeper into economic crisis. ​Reports ⁠had suggested the Trump administration was seeking to remove…

Zhang Chengzhong was ​named party chief ‌of China’s Ministry of ​Emergency Management ​on Friday, the ministry ⁠said in ​a statement issued ​on its website. The former minister of ​emergency management, ​Wang Xiangxi, had been ‌placed ⁠under investigation for suspected “serious violations of discipline ​and ​law,” ⁠and was removed ​from the ​post ⁠of minister in February.

Austria’s conservative-led, three-party government plans to introduce a ban on social media ​use for children under 14, it said on Friday. Cabinet ‌members from the three ruling parties announced a deal between them on the principle of a ban, aimed at protecting children from “algorithms ​that are addictive” and content including sexual abuse, but ​could not say when it would begin, and ⁠they have yet to agree on how it will ​be implemented. “We will decisively protect children and young people in ​future from the negative effects of social media,” Vice Chancellor Andreas Babler of the Social Democrats said. “We will no…

Canada and South America’s Mercosur bloc are advancing toward a free‑trade agreement that ​could be signed by the end of the year, with another round of negotiations scheduled for next month ‌in Brasilia, according to three sources familiar with the talks. The government officials, from Canada, Argentina and Brazil, told Reuters they expect the deal to be concluded in 2026, with one noting that talks were progressing well and could be wrapped up before September. The Argentine government official said that the agreement ​is expected to be signed in September or October, marking roughly a year since negotiations formally restarted. Another diplomat,…

War between Israel and Hezbollah is pushing Lebanon’s fragile state and society towards breaking point, straining sectarian and political faultlines as Shi’ite Muslims are displaced and enmity deepens between the Iran-backed group and its opponents. Of all Lebanon’s many crises since a 1975-90 civil ​war, the renewed conflict ignited by the Iran war could be its most destabilising, Lebanese analysts and figures from across the political spectrum say. Israel has threatened Gaza-like destruction and an occupation of the south and there are acrid splits in Lebanon over ‌Hezbollah’s weapons, which the group has refused to give up despite a year-long effort by the state to disarm…

 Mongolian ​Prime ‌Minister Zandanshatar ​Gombojav ​has submitted a ⁠letter ​of ​resignation to the ​ruling ​Mongolian People’s Party, ‌Chinese ⁠state broadcaster CCTV ​reported ​on ⁠Friday.

The families of dozens of jailed opposition figures in Tunisia are among the few remaining voices demanding democratic freedoms, as they seek the release of loved ones held in what rights groups have called ​a crackdown on dissent by President Kais Saied. The leaders of the main opposition parties in Tunisia have been jailed within the last three years, along with dozens of politicians, journalists, businessmen and others on ‌charges of conspiring against state security, money laundering, and corruption – charges they say are fabricated. Among the family members to protest is Youssef Chaouachi, a 35-year-old engineer who became an activist after his father,…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday said that his country and Saudi Arabia have reached an “important arrangement” on defense cooperation during his visit to the Gulf nation. In a statement on the US social media company X, Zelenskyy said the agreement between the defense ministries of both countries was signed ahead of his meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. “It lays the foundation for future contracts, technological cooperation, and investment. It also strengthens Ukraine’s international role as a security donor,” he said. Regarding his meeting with the Saudi crown prince, he stated that they discussed the situation…

The International Strategic Communication Summit (Stratcom Summit) 2026 kicked off Friday in Istanbul, bringing together senior officials from 38 countries to discuss the war in the Middle East and broader challenges facing the international system. Organized by Türkiye’s Communications Directorate, the two-day summit running March 27-28 will be attended by Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, and National Intelligence Organization Director Ibrahim Kalin. Eleven ministers from 10 countries will be among more than 60 senior officials participating in the summit. Under the theme “Disruption in the International System: Crises, Narratives, and the Search for Order,” the summit…