CMS scrapped about 315,000 ACA marketplace enrollments covering 760,000 people, a move officials say will save $2.2 billion in subsidies. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said on Tuesday it had scrapped about 315,000 Affordable Care Act marketplace enrollments last month, plans that covered roughly 760,000 people, after concluding the sign-ups were not authorized. Vice President JD Vance described the problem as "rampant fraud." The agency said its action was driven by the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, which Vance leads. The task force put the expected savings at around $2.2 billion in subsidies paid for by taxpayers. Alongside the cancellations, CMS said it is checking roughly 419,000 more enrollees to confirm they live in the United States legally and fall within the income limits needed to qualify for coverage on the public exchanges. Speaking at a briefing on Tuesday, Vance placed the blame on the previous administration, arguing that its rules let improper claims flow through unchecked. "You have a system where, on the one hand, brokers are paid money to feed patients into the system, while on the other hand, the government isn't even checking whether the people enrolled are actually eligible for the program," he said. "What do you have? Of course, rampant, rampant fraud." How many of the 315,000 canceled enrollments belonged to people who were never eligible remains unknown. It is also unclear whether the earlier administration had failed to confirm their eligibility before the coverage took effect. The move fits a broader pattern under President Donald Trump, whose administration has repeatedly alleged fraud across federal health programs and has tightened both funding and eligibility for Medicaid, the health plan jointly run by Washington and the states. CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz used the same briefing to argue that a large share of the marketplace population is not using its coverage. He said close to 35% of current enrollees have never filled a prescription or visited a doctor through the program. Under the ACA, most people are required to carry insurance, a rule meant partly to keep healthier, lower-cost members in the risk pool so premiums stay manageable. That requirement has lost its bite, however, because the federal fine for going uninsured has stood at zero dollars since 2019. The marketplace plans grew out of the Affordable Care Act signed by President Barack Obama, and they hand out subsidies scaled to a household's size and its expected annual earnings. Trump tried and failed to repeal the law during his first term. He has since floated changes that would trim the range of benefits the plans must cover. Oz tied the alleged abuse to the pandemic years, when federal outlays climbed sharply. He said the extra money drew bad actors into the system and pointed to the rise in sign-ups, from about 10 million before Covid-19 to roughly 22 million afterward. Weak controls and lax enforcement under the prior administration, he argued, allowed many of those enrollments to slip through improperly. What the June report found A report issued in June by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, the top policy adviser to the head of the Department of Health and Human Services, described "unprecedented enrollment growth from 2021 to 2024" in the marketplace plans. The report said that "nearly half" of that growth "was suspected to be improper, phantom, or fraudulent." It described improper or fraudulent sign-ups as cases in which people understated their income to unlock plans that cost them nothing. That surge followed the American Rescue Plan, the 2021 Covid-19 relief law that boosted the subsidies available to buyers as a way to hold down costs during the emergency. Lawmakers later extended the enlarged credits, but those enhancements ran out at the close of 2025, pushing premiums higher for many people who buy coverage on the exchanges. According to the same report, an estimated 19.2 million Americans are signed up for the plans today. Obamacare, Affordable Care Act, CMS, JD Vance, Mehmet Oz, healthcare fraud, ACA enrollment, Trump administration

News National

0 4 0

Odisha deploys 33 ODRAF units and evacuates over 3,500 people as a deep depression brings heavy rain to Kalahandi, Koraput, Nabarangpur and Malkangiri. The Odisha government positioned disaster response forces across southern and western districts on Wednesday (September 23, 2026) as heavy rain driven by a deep depression caused water-logging and landslides in several areas. The India Meteorological Department issued a heavy-rain warning for four districts - Kalahandi, Nabarangpur, Koraput and Malkangiri. The deep depression lay over the west-central and adjoining northwest Bay of Bengal and was moving slowly. It was expected to cross the north Andhra Pradesh and south Odisha coasts close to Kalingapatnam on Wednesday night. Officials said there was no possibility of a cyclone, but the administration was told to keep the highest level of preparedness and take all precautionary measures. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi reviewed the situation and directed all departments to work in coordination and ensure zero casualties. He said officials had been asked to move people out of waterlogged areas to safer locations and to provide them with relief. More than 3,500 people had already been evacuated to safer places. 33 ODRAF units deployed A total of 33 units of the Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force were sent to the affected districts, according to government sources. Six teams were deployed in Ganjam, six in Koraput, three each in Gajapati, Malkangiri and Rayagada, two in Kalahandi and one in Balangir. In addition, nine ODRAF teams stationed at Chhatrapur in Ganjam were kept in reserve. The deployment concentrated forces in the districts flagged by the IMD and in coastal and southern areas expected to feel the strongest effects as the system approached land. The reserve teams gave the administration a buffer to respond quickly if conditions worsened after the system crossed the coast. Where the rain fell hardest The state recorded widespread rain during the day. Baleshwar district saw the highest fall, 126.4 mm in the 24 hours ending at 8.30 a.m. on Wednesday. Paralakhemundi followed with 119.4 mm and Koraput with 116.4 mm. Koraput was among the four districts under the IMD warning and also carried a heavy share of the response effort, with six ODRAF teams assigned to it. Berhampur, a town in southern Odisha, witnessed water-logging as the heavy rain came down. The combination of steady rainfall and the slow-moving system raised the risk of further inundation and landslides in low-lying and hilly parts of the affected belt. The warning districts of Kalahandi, Nabarangpur, Koraput and Malkangiri sit across southern and western Odisha, the same zone where the government focused its evacuations and rescue teams. With the depression forecast to make its closest approach to the coast overnight, the administration held its forces in place to manage flooding, clear affected areas and shift residents to safety.Odisha deep depression, Odisha red warning, IMD heavy rain Odisha, Mohan Charan Majhi, ODRAF deployment, Bay of Bengal depression, Koraput rainfall, Odisha flooding 2026

News National

0 6 0

Hyundai will unveil the new European Bayon at the Paris Motor Show on October 12, 2026, while the India-spec SUV's reveal date stays unconfirmed. Hyundai has locked in a launch date for its new Bayon. The company's European arm confirmed that the redesigned SUV will make its global debut at the Paris Motor Show on October 12, 2026. The event will offer the first full public look at how the vehicle has evolved in both design and market placement. While the European timeline is now firm, Hyundai has stayed quiet on when the Indian version will appear. Teaser images for the India-bound model are already circulating, which points to an October arrival that could line up close to the Paris showing. Even so, the automaker has not committed to unveiling both cars on the same day. The two models will share a name but are expected to diverge in meaningful ways. Hyundai is likely to give the European and Indian Bayons different exterior treatments, cabin layouts, engine choices and equipment. The October 12 reveal should clarify how much visual DNA the two variants have in common, though the final specification sheet for India will depend on separate local announcements covering dimensions, powertrains and features. H-Edge Lighting Leads the India Teasers The latest teasers from India put Hyundai's H-Edge lighting front and centre. At the nose, a narrow horizontal strip of white light stretches inward before joining a taller vertical block at the outer corner. That cluster sits inside a dark housing, with a sharp crease running along the bonnet just above it. The images concentrate on this upper light bar rather than the full front end. Earlier prototypes caught during testing suggest a split headlight setup, with the primary beam units mounted lower on the bumper. The rear carries a matching design language, pairing horizontal and vertical light elements. A dark strip appears to bridge the two tail lamp clusters across the tailgate, although the teaser stops short of showing whether that connecting band lights up. Geometric Alloys and a Screen-Heavy Cabin Hyundai has also previewed a wheel design built around geometric shapes, mixing machined silver faces with recessed black sections. The teased car rides on 215/55 R17 rubber, framed by thick black cladding around the wheel arches. A parking sensor can be spotted just ahead of the front arch. Inside, an earlier design sketch pointed to a wide, horizontal dashboard anchored by a large display zone and a centre console that rises toward the driver. Spy shots of test cars have revealed two integrated screens and a steering wheel marked by Hyundai's four-dot motif. Testing mules have also been seen fitted with a sunroof and a 360-degree camera system, hinting at a well-equipped cabin for the local market. Slotting Between the Venue and Creta In India, the Bayon is tipped to occupy the gap between the Venue and the Creta in Hyundai's lineup. Its body is expected to stretch past the four-metre mark. Petrol units are likely to anchor the engine range, and a factory-installed CNG variant remains on the cards, though nothing has been confirmed on that front. For now, October 12 stands as the only fixed date, tied to the Paris unveiling. With the Indian teaser campaign already rolling out, the next questions centre on when Hyundai will announce a local launch schedule and exactly how far the India-spec car will stray from its European counterpart. Hyundai Bayon, Paris Motor Show 2026, Bayon India, Hyundai SUV, H-Edge lighting, Venue Creta, compact SUV, Bayon debut

News National

0 4 0

A New York judge sentenced Harvey Weinstein to 15 years for a criminal sexual act against ex-assistant Miriam Haley, after a retrial reconviction. Harvey Weinstein has been ordered to serve 15 years behind bars after a New York jury last year found him guilty of committing a criminal sexual act against a woman who once worked as his assistant. Judge Curtis Farber delivered the sentence on Wednesday, telling the former film producer he had refused to answer for his conduct. "You took what you wanted by force and you have never accepted responsibility," the judge said. The case centred on Miriam Haley, who addressed the courtroom directly. In her victim-impact statement, she said the attack had left a "devastating effect on my life and sense of security that may never go away." Weinstein, 74, attended the hearing in a wheelchair. He rejected the accusations against him but offered an apology to "anyone I may have hurt by my actions." This marks the second time Weinstein has been sentenced over the same allegation. He was first found guilty and punished in 2020, but New York's top court threw out that conviction in 2024, ruling that he had not received a fair trial. The same decision also cancelled a separate conviction tied to actress Jessica Mann. Prosecutors put Weinstein on trial again, and jurors convicted him last year on a single count of a criminal sexual act involving Haley. Haley first gave evidence during the 2020 proceedings, telling the court that Weinstein had assaulted her in a bedroom of his Manhattan apartment in 2006. At the time, she was working as a production assistant on the television programme Project Runway. She returned to the witness stand for the retrial, later explaining that she felt she had no choice. "I just thought, I have to stand up for myself. I have to stand up for the truth," she said. The outcome of the retrial was mixed for prosecutors. While the jury convicted Weinstein over Haley, it could not agree on a verdict in the charges connected to Mann. He was cleared of a separate accusation brought by model Kaja Sokola. Weinstein has now faced three trials in New York over allegations of rape and abuse, and he has already spent several years in custody in the state. He is being held in a prison ward at Bellevue Hospital in New York, where he is being treated for a number of health problems that have emerged during his imprisonment. His legal troubles extend beyond New York. In a separate case in Los Angeles, a jury convicted him in 2022 of raping and sexually assaulting an actress in a hotel room in 2013. He has yet to be sentenced in that matter. An appeals court directed that he be re-sentenced there after the New York convictions were reversed. Weinstein rose to prominence as the driving force behind Miramax, the studio responsible for successes such as Shakespeare in Love. His standing collapsed in 2017, when the New York Times and the New Yorker published accounts from numerous women who accused him of sexual assault dating back decades. Those reports helped ignite the #MeToo movement, which encouraged people to speak publicly about sexual misconduct. Throughout the years of litigation, Weinstein has maintained his innocence and has said he expects to be cleared. Prosecutors, meanwhile, have had to work through repeated setbacks and reversals to secure and preserve convictions against him.Harvey Weinstein, Miriam Haley, sexual assault sentence, MeToo movement, Miramax, New York trial, Judge Curtis Farber, Weinstein retrial

News National

0 6 0

Microsoft's 12-inch Surface Pro and 13-inch Surface Laptop return October 13 with six-core Snapdragon X2 Plus chips, 16GB minimum RAM and steep price jumps. Microsoft is updating its two most compact Surface machines, the 12-inch Surface Pro and the 13-inch Surface Laptop, with Qualcomm's six-core Snapdragon X2 Plus processors. Both models keep the same chassis, screens and ports as their predecessors and gain new silicon inside, along with noticeably steeper starting prices. The 12-inch Surface Pro goes on sale on October 13th, starting at $1,149.99. A year ago the same tablet opened at $799.99. The 13-inch Surface Laptop follows a similar path, climbing to $1,199.99 from its earlier $899.99 entry point. Part of that increase comes down to memory. Microsoft has dropped the entry-level 8GB configuration entirely. Every unit now ships with at least 16GB of RAM, and buyers can order up to 24GB. What the X2 Plus delivers Microsoft frames the Snapdragon X2 Plus mainly around efficiency and speed. Compared with the previous generation, the company says the chip offers up to 18 percent better battery efficiency, more than 60 percent quicker graphics, and as much as 95 percent faster on-device AI processing through the built-in neural processing unit. In practical terms, those figures translate into longer runtimes. Microsoft brands the updated tablet the Surface Pro 12-inch Second Edition and rates it for roughly 13 hours of web browsing, an hour more than before. The Surface Laptop 13-inch Second Edition gains two hours, reaching about 18 hours of browsing on a charge. Screens and connections stay familiar The displays carry over almost unchanged. The Surface Pro 12-inch uses a 2196 x 1464 LCD panel at 220 pixels per inch, refreshing at up to 90Hz. The Surface Laptop 13-inch keeps its 1920 x 1280 screen at 178 pixels per inch and a 60Hz refresh rate. The one meaningful tweak is brightness: both panels now peak at 500 nits, up from 400 nits. Connectivity is also a repeat of last year. Each device carries two USB-C 3.2 ports, and the Surface Laptop 13-inch adds a USB-A 3.2 port plus a 3.5mm headphone jack. Both machines support Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4. One omission stands out. Neither smaller Surface received a haptic trackpad, even though Windows 11 has added subtle haptic cues and the Surface Laptop Ultra already includes the feature. Separately, Microsoft is releasing a second-generation Surface Mouse with built-in haptics. Colors and configurations Buyers get a familiar palette with one addition: black returns for both models, joining platinum silver and violet. Microsoft is selling both devices to commercial customers as well, and the Surface Pro 12-inch can be ordered with an optional 5G configuration for cellular connectivity. The result is a straightforward internal upgrade. The look, the screens and the port layout are the same as the outgoing versions, while the new Qualcomm chips push battery life and performance forward and the higher memory floor pushes the price up with them. Microsoft Surface, Snapdragon X2 Plus, Surface Pro 12-inch, Surface Laptop 13-inch, Qualcomm, Windows 11 laptop, Surface price, Surface Second Edition

News National

0 7 0

New US sanctions have shut Iranian airlines out of much of the world's airspace, cancelling most flights and forcing civilians onto costly land routes. Air travel has become sharply harder for Iranian civilians after United States sanctions locked domestic airlines out of much of the world's airspace, forcing many people onto slower and more expensive overland routes. Wednesday, September 23, 2026, marked the end of a short wind-down period that had allowed neighbouring countries to keep servicing Iranian carriers, and its expiry triggered the cancellation of all but a handful of Iranian flights to Turkiye, the United Arab Emirates and China. The latest squeeze traces to September 8, when the US Department of the Treasury designated 27 airlines, covering the remaining Iranian carriers that Washington had not already sanctioned. Larger names such as Iran Air and Mahan Air were already under heavy sanctions but had kept limited operations running. The newer round widened the net beyond aircraft operators, targeting individuals and entities tied to aviation support and procurement in the UAE, Turkiye, China, India, the United Kingdom, Malaysia and other countries. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday that airports and companies supplying Iranian-operated planes with fuel, landing services or ticket sales now risk secondary US sanctions that could sever them from the American financial system. The measures are part of a broader effort to pressure Tehran into concessions during the US-Israel war on Iran. Neighbouring airspace closes The most immediate effect came from neighbouring aviation authorities that had continued to open their airspace and airport services to Iranian airlines and have now stopped. Oman, Azerbaijan and Georgia are among those that said they would no longer provide such services. In Iraq, Baghdad Airport was declared off-limits to Iranian carriers, though flights to Najaf Airport were still running on Wednesday. Many connections between Iran and the major transit hubs of Turkiye and the UAE had already been halted because of the war and earlier sanctions. International carriers have also pulled back almost entirely. Turkish Airlines has suspended its flights until at least March 2027, while Qatar Airways, Emirates and Lufthansa have all suspended operations to the country. That combination leaves Iranian travellers with few remaining air links and pushes many towards land crossings, which are cheaper to reach but longer and costlier overall for those who once relied on direct flights. A 'new level of sanctions' Mohammadreza Ebrahimpour, an Iran-based aviation and transit expert, said years of US sanctions had already pushed Iranian airlines to lean on third countries and smaller firms to secure fuel and services. Sourcing spare parts to keep the country's ageing fleet in the air has grown steadily harder over the same period. But the formal refusal of services by aviation authorities in neighbouring states, he said, amounted to "a new level of sanctions in action" that could carry longer-lasting consequences than the earlier restrictions. Unlike informal workarounds, official closures are harder to route around. Ebrahimpour added that the US had effectively barred international airlines from crossing Iranian airspace as well. Washington did so by suspending authorisations for some US-origin aircraft to fly to Iran and by limiting US-linked payments for overflights. He described the loss of overflight revenue as "a big blow," noting that such payments had been one of the most lucrative parts of Iran's aviation sector. The overflight restrictions matter beyond passenger convenience. Fees paid by foreign carriers to cross a country's airspace are a steady source of hard currency, and cutting that stream removes income that Iran had continued to earn even as its own airlines struggled. For now, the practical picture on the ground is stark: most scheduled international service into and out of Iran has stopped, the handful of surviving Iranian flights operate under tight limits, and travellers face the choice of long overland journeys or waiting for routes that may not return soon. Iran aviation sanctions, US Treasury Iran airlines, Iran Air Mahan sanctions, Scott Bessent, Iran flight cancellations, US-Israel war on Iran, Iranian airspace overflight, Imam Khomeini airport

News National

0 6 0

Energy Minister Gottipati Ravi Kumar told officials to guard power infrastructure across four North Andhra districts as a Bay of Bengal depression brings heavy rain. Andhra Pradesh Energy Minister Gottipati Ravi Kumar has ordered officials to stay on high alert as heavy rain lashes the North Andhra districts, warning that a deep depression in the Bay of Bengal could severely damage the region's power supply network. He issued the directions on Wednesday during a tele-conference with senior officers of the Energy Department, including staff of the AP Eastern Power Distribution Company Limited (APEPDCL). Mr. Ravi Kumar said widespread rain was already being reported from Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Parvathipuram Manyam and Visakhapatnam districts under the influence of the deep depression. He cautioned that heavy rain and strong gales could bring down electricity poles and lines and damage transformers, cutting off power supply to affected areas. The Minister told officials to anticipate the conditions in advance and put preventive measures in place rather than waiting for damage to occur. He said the department had to stay especially watchful because weather systems forming over the Bay of Bengal have the potential to badly disrupt power infrastructure. While the rain was welcome for farmers and the wider public, he said, the Energy Department could not lower its guard. He asked officials to pay particular attention to low-lying areas and coastal regions, which he described as the most vulnerable to extensive damage. Restoration work, he directed, should be carried out on a war-footing wherever supply was interrupted. To make that possible, Mr. Ravi Kumar instructed officers to keep staff, vehicles, equipment, spare poles and other materials ready in advance so repairs could begin without delay. He ordered the formation of special teams that could move in immediately to handle any contingency. The Minister said the highest priority must go to preventing deaths from electrocution caused by damaged power lines and other equipment. He directed that special teams be formed to respond at once to any emergency in the field. Gottipati Ravi Kumar, North Andhra heavy rain, APEPDCL power supply, Bay of Bengal deep depression, Andhra Pradesh Energy Department, Visakhapatnam rain alert, electrocution prevention, power infrastructure damage

News National

0 7 0

A Bundibugyo virus outbreak has caused 695 confirmed cases and 138 deaths in Congo and Uganda, exposing gaps in preparedness for rare pathogens. A rare member of the Ebola family is spreading rapidly across the Democratic Republic of Congo, and its scale has already eclipsed every previously documented outbreak of the pathogen. The World Health Organization recorded 695 confirmed cases and 138 confirmed deaths in the DRC and Uganda as of June 11, a toll that far exceeds the two earlier events tied to the Bundibugyo virus. The surge is the focus of a review published in the New England Journal of Medicine by Nancy Sullivan, a professor of biology, virology, immunology and microbiology at Boston University. Sullivan argues that the world's approach to dangerous diseases leans too heavily on the pathogens that generate the most headlines, leaving health systems exposed when an obscure virus returns without warning. A filovirus with only two prior outbreaks Bundibugyo sits within the filovirus family, the same group that produces the Ebola virus. Until now it had been linked to just two recognized outbreaks: one in Uganda in 2007 and a second in the DRC in 2012. The current episode has overtaken both, in the number of people infected and in how quickly it has moved. The present outbreak was formally identified only after a nurse died. That detail underscores how the virus reaches the people closest to the sick. It passes from person to person through direct contact with infected bodily fluids, which places relatives, caregivers and medical staff at heightened risk, particularly in hospital wards that lack strong infection control. The illness it produces is brutal. Bundibugyo can trigger a severe hemorrhagic fever marked by sweeping inflammation, injury and collapse of the cells that line blood vessels, bleeding that cannot be stopped, and the failure of several organs at once. Symptoms that mimic malaria One reason the virus is difficult to catch early is that its opening signs look like far more ordinary infections. Early symptoms shadow those of malaria, typhoid fever and other common conditions, so a firm diagnosis cannot be made at the bedside. Only laboratory testing can confirm that a patient carries the virus. Sullivan describes containment as a set of steps that must click into place together and fast: confirming infections quickly, separating patients who test positive, tracking down anyone they may have exposed, tightening infection control and delivering supportive care. Each of those actions grows harder when a region has few laboratories and thin testing capacity. In parts of the DRC, that capacity is exactly what is missing. Sullivan found that specimens often have to be carried long distances to reach national reference laboratories, turning what should be a fast test into a drawn-out process. "Delays in specimen collection, transportation and testing can postpone confirmation by days or weeks, which hinders the isolation of infected persons, contact tracing and the initiation of outbreak-control measures," Sullivan wrote. Every day lost to a slow result gives the virus more room. During an active outbreak, speed in identifying cases is what allows responders to wall off the infected and locate the exposed before the chain of transmission widens. No vaccine built for Bundibugyo The outbreak also highlights a blind spot in how the world stocks its medical arsenal. Researchers have made real headway on vaccines and treatments for the Ebola, Sudan and Marburg viruses. Bundibugyo has drawn no comparable effort. Because it strikes so seldom, no vaccine or therapy has ever been licensed to target it specifically. For decades the virus registered barely a flicker of recognized activity, which is part of Sullivan's point. Its sudden reappearance as a serious threat shows how hard it is to forecast which infectious agent will drive the next crisis. She contends that countermeasures should be developed across a far wider range of pathogens capable of causing severe illness or death, rather than being concentrated on the handful already known for frequent outbreaks. The Bundibugyo emergency, in her reading, is a test of whether preparedness can stretch beyond the familiar. Limited testing, a hospital-borne death that first exposed the outbreak, and the absence of any approved vaccine have combined to let a long-dormant virus climb past its own historical records - and to warn that the next surprise may come from a name few have heard. Bundibugyo virus, Ebola outbreak, Democratic Republic of Congo, filovirus, hemorrhagic fever, WHO outbreak, Nancy Sullivan, outbreak preparedness

News National

0 9 0

तिरुपति_दर्शन_का_सटीक_3_दिवसीय_प्लान 

News National

0 4 0

Hyundai has detailed the fifth-gen 2027 Tucson: a 245 PS hybrid rated at 17.4 km/l, Memory Reverse Assist and new safety tech. Korea sale in October. Hyundai has released full engine specifications and feature details for the fifth-generation Tucson, a month after first showing the SUV. The 2027 Tucson goes on sale in Korea in October, when Hyundai will also announce prices. An India launch is expected in 2027. The new Tucson leads with a set of technology and safety features, headlined by Memory Reverse Assist. The system can record how a driver parked into a tight space, then combine that stored information with its own sensor data and processing to reverse the vehicle out automatically. Hyundai says the larger body of the new model makes the feature more relevant. New safety systems Among the new safety additions is Pedal Misoperation Safety Assist. The driver assistance system detects when a driver has pressed the accelerator instead of the brake. When that happens, it limits acceleration and applies emergency braking. It is designed to activate automatically when the accelerator is pressed hard while the vehicle is stopped or moving slowly. The Tucson also introduces a Door Unlock Power Redundancy feature. If the main battery cannot supply power after a crash or malfunction, the doors can still be opened through a backup power source. Hyundai has added the feature in response to cases of doors failing to open after crashes, and it is likely to be a segment-first, depending on the market. Inside, the SUV gets the Pleos Connect infotainment system. It uses a large central touchscreen that displays information in separate sections for navigation, driving data and multimedia. A smaller panel on the dashboard shows readouts such as speed and range. Bigger body, Art of Steel look The fifth-generation Tucson has been redesigned around Hyundai's Art of Steel philosophy, giving it sharper lines and a boxier stance. It has also grown. The SUV now measures 4,700 mm long, 1,905 mm wide and rides on a 2,785 mm wheelbase - making it 60 mm longer and 40 mm wider than before, with a wheelbase stretched by 30 mm. The extra size has fed into cabin space. Rear knee room is up by 14 mm and headroom has improved by 29 mm. Boot capacity has risen by 22 litres. The rear doors now open to 83 degrees, compared with 73 degrees on the outgoing model, which Hyundai says makes fitting child seats and loading bulky items easier. More power from petrol and hybrid The powertrain line-up in Korea has been upgraded. The 1.6-litre turbocharged Smartstream T-GDI petrol engine now produces 193 PS, an increase of 13 PS over the outgoing unit. It is paired with an 8-speed automatic gearbox, replacing the previous 7-speed dual-clutch transmission. The hybrid variants get an improved system with combined output of 245 PS, up from the 230-235 PS of the previous-generation hybrid Tucson. Fuel efficiency has edged higher, with the new hybrid rated at 17.4 km/l. Hybrid models also add Stay Mode and an upgraded regenerative braking system. For now, Hyundai has not announced a diesel version of the new Tucson in Korea, and there is no plug-in hybrid. The company could introduce a plug-in hybrid in markets such as Europe at a later date. 2027 Hyundai Tucson, fifth-gen Tucson, Tucson hybrid 245 PS, Memory Reverse Assist, Hyundai Tucson India 2027, Art of Steel design, Pleos Connect, Tucson specifications

News National

0 14 0

Britain will send an RAF Voyager to Cyprus to refuel Saudi fighter jets in mid-air, backing 'defensive' operations against Iran-backed Houthi attacks. Britain will send a military aircraft to keep Saudi Arabian fighter jets in the air during the kingdom's fight against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen. Defence Minister Luke Pollard said the Royal Air Force would begin "air-to-air refuelling" flights within days, using a single RAF Voyager based in Cyprus after London agreed to a direct request from Riyadh. Pollard, speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, said the mission was strictly for "purely defensive" Saudi operations and would last a "matter of weeks, rather than days". The refuelling, he said, would allow Saudi aircraft to stay aloft longer so they can intercept incoming threats, including shooting down drones and missiles fired from Yemen. The deployment follows a fresh wave of Houthi strikes. In recent days the group said it had launched drones and ballistic missiles at Riyadh, the Saudi capital, and at energy sites along the country's Red Sea coast. The Houthis remain locked in a civil war against Yemen's internationally recognised government, which Saudi Arabia supports. Pollard framed the assistance as a matter of loyalty to a partner. The RAF's help, he said, complied fully with international humanitarian law and was about "being true to our allies". Officials have stressed the offer is limited in scope and duration. A single aircraft from a small fleet The commitment is modest. Just one Voyager will fly the missions, drawn from a core RAF fleet of nine - eight registered for military use and one civilian-registered. Five further aircraft can be recalled for military service if required. Compared with the scale of the conflict, a lone refuelling plane sits at the lighter end of what counts as military support, and some observers may read it as a symbolic gesture toward an ally under pressure. Saudi Arabia has struggled to blunt the Houthi campaign. The group appears to hold a deep stock of drones and missiles that it continues to fire across the border at its larger neighbour to the north, leaving Saudi air defences stretched. Fuel prices and the Red Sea British ministers tied the decision to economic pressures at home. A UK figure travelling with the government delegation to the United Nations General Assembly in New York connected the move to the cost of living, saying it was about protecting Britain's interests and stability across the wider region. With Saudi Arabia already absorbing attacks and bracing for more, the argument ran, keeping supply routes open justified agreeing to the request. Pollard made the same case in economic terms. The RAF support, he said, was meant to prevent further escalation in the Red Sea that could push fuel prices higher. The concern is grounded in recent figures: the Office for National Statistics reported that UK petrol prices climbed in August to their highest level in almost four years, with diesel also rising sharply. The Red Sea is one of the world's busiest shipping corridors and a critical channel for global trade. The Houthis have tightened their grip on the waterway, recently taking the port city of Mokha and Perim Island, both of which command access to the sea lane that Saudi Arabia relies on. Risk of deeper involvement Although officials describe the operation as time-limited, the wider picture is more tangled. Yemen has been at war intermittently since 2014, and the current flare-up is complicated by the Houthis' backing from Iran, which is itself engaged in an on-and-off standoff with the United States. For Britain, the immediate exposure is small. But conflicts have a way of pulling outside powers in gradually, with commitments that grow over time. A short refuelling mission today could prove harder to end than planned - an outcome that may ultimately serve Saudi interests more than British ones. UK Saudi Arabia refuelling, RAF Voyager, Houthi attacks, Yemen conflict, Luke Pollard, Red Sea shipping, Saudi jets, air-to-air refuelling

News National

0 15 0

Seven Democratic senators pressed President Trump to hold firm on Taiwan's defense as Xi Jinping visits the US and a $14 billion arms package hangs in limbo. A group of seven US senators on Tuesday called on President Donald Trump to keep firm on Taiwan's defense and resist Chinese pressure to soften American support, issuing their appeal just before Trump's scheduled talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in Washington. All Democrats, the lawmakers warned that Trump must not allow Beijing to gain the upper hand during the visit. "We can't let President Xi leave stronger than when he arrived. That is not diplomacy, it's weakness," the senators wrote in a joint statement. Xi is in the US until Friday on a trip that includes his first stop in New York in 11 years. According to reports, arms sales to Taiwan, artificial intelligence and the war in Iran are among the topics the two leaders plan to raise. The statement was signed by Senate Foreign Relations Committee ranking member Jeanne Shaheen, Defense Appropriations ranking member Chris Coons, Appropriations Vice Chairwoman Patty Murray, Armed Services ranking member Jack Reed, Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Mark Warner, Elizabeth Warren and Andy Kim. The senators described Beijing as a rising danger, saying "the People's Republic of China presents a greater threat to American security and prosperity than ever before." They pushed Trump to cut off China's access to advanced chips and manufacturing gear, to demand that Beijing stop backing Russian President Vladimir Putin's campaign in Ukraine, and to challenge Xi over Chinese support for Iran. They also faulted the administration's approach to Taipei directly. "The Chinese military continues its pressure campaign against our vital democratic partner Taiwan as President Trump has retreated from longstanding security commitments," the statement said. The $14 billion package on hold The timing matters because of two weapons deals. In December last year, Trump signed off on an $11 billion package for Taiwan, the biggest single approval on record. But after a trip to Beijing in May, he said a further $14 billion in sales had been paused. Xi is expected to lean on Trump to shelve the deals entirely during their meeting this week. Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense signaled it intends to keep the sales moving. Deputy spokesman Chiao Fu-chun (喬福駿), speaking to reporters in Tainan during a media tour, said Taipei would stay in regular touch with Washington to carry out the transfers as scheduled. He framed regional security as a shared goal, calling stability in the Indo-Pacific a "common interest of democratic nations." "The US government and Congress have repeatedly expressed their support for Taiwan's ability to defend itself," Chiao said. "We will continue to maintain close contact with the US Department of Defense and continue to promote the implementation of arms sales according to plan." President William Lai (賴清德) has backed Trump's demand that US partners raise their own defense spending. The US remains Taiwan's leading source of weapons, though the island also builds its own hardware, including submarines, fighter aircraft and long-range missiles. At the State Department, Chinese-language spokesman Jakob Lengacher told Voice of America that US policy toward Taiwan had not shifted. He said Washington still backs Taiwan's participation in international bodies such as APEC, opposes any one-sided move to alter the "status quo" by either side of the Taiwan Strait, and remains focused on keeping the region peaceful and stable. A Coast Guard vessel bound for Manila In a separate development, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said its vessels will sail to the Philippines in October next year, marking the first time a Taiwanese maritime law enforcement ship has made such a visit. The ships will carry the words "Taiwan Coast Guard" during the trip. The agency also confirmed it had handed over one of its retired patrol boats to the Philippines, an unusual transfer of a decommissioned vessel to a country with which Taiwan has no formal diplomatic ties. An official noted that the CGA's civilian, non-combat character makes it useful for managing sensitive situations without triggering diplomatic friction. The planned voyage stands out against a long gap in such contact. The last time a Republic of China navy ship made a comparable visit to the Philippines was in 1974, shortly before Manila severed official relations with Taipei. Taiwan arms sales, US senators Taiwan, Trump Xi Jinping meeting, Taiwan defense, China Taiwan tensions, Coast Guard Administration Philippines, William Lai, US Taiwan policy

News National

0 9 0