Foreign News
Head of TikTok’s Chinese Holding Company to Step Down

The head of TikTok’s Chinese parent company, Byte Dance, has announced he is stepping down to focus more on its long-term strategy.
TikTok, a wildly popular short-form, video-sharing app, is the first global social media platform to run out of a country other than the United States.
“The truth is, I lack some of the skills that make an ideal manager,’’ Zhang Yiming, who co-founded the company, wrote to employees in a letter on Thursday, published on the company website.
By the end of the year, Yiming said he would hand the reins over to fellow co-founder, Liang Rubo, who is currently the company’s personnel chef.
TikTok came into the cross-hairs of former U.S. President Donald Trump, who imposed bans aimed at forcing the company to sell its American business to U.S. firms.
The Chinese government torpedoed the talks with sales restrictions on related software.
Trump expressed concerns at the time that U.S. citizens’ data could fall into the hands of the Chinese authorities.
Zhang said he wants to take time to develop new future-oriented ideas to help shape the company’s strategic direction.
“I worry that I am still relying too much on the ideas I had before starting the company and haven’t challenged myself by updating those concepts,’’ he wrote. (dpa/NAN)
Foreign News
Man Bites Off Part of Another Man’s Ear On Train

A fight on a German train saw a man bite off a piece of another man’s ear, police said on Monday.
The incident occurred on a Deutsche Bahn train between the south-western cities of Mannheim and Stuttgart.
An argument broke out after an unknown man accused a 43-year-old man of looking at his partner.
The former bit the ear of the 43-year-old, who retaliated by biting the man’s finger.
According to police, the unidentified man and his companion were able to leave the train at the central station in Stuttgart and fled.
Police said that they are searching for the man’s identity.
The 43-year-old was taken to the hospital, where the piece of his ear was sewn back on.
(dpa/NAN)(www.nannews.ng)Foreign News
Israeli strike hits hospital in Iran’s Kermanshah

A hospital in the western Iranian city of Kermanshah was reportedly struck by an Israeli airstrike, Iranian media said on Monday.
A video published by the newspaper Shargh showed a damaged intensive care unit, with blood-stained hospital beds visible in the footage.
An Israeli army spokesperson stated that the reports are under investigation.
Under international humanitarian law, hospitals are granted special protection as civilian facilities and may only be targeted if there is clear evidence they are being used for military purposes.
Israel says its military campaign inside Iran is now in its fourth day, aimed at thwarting the country’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
(dpa/NAN)Foreign News
Israel Claims Control of Tehran’s Skies as Deaths Mount on Both Sides

The Israeli military said on Monday it had gained control of airspace over Tehran and destroyed a third of Iran’s surface-to-surface missile launch pads.The casualties mounted on the fourth day of the conflict between the two regional powers.Military spokesperson Effie Defrin said that more than 50 Israeli fighter jets and precision missiles were involved in the strikes overnight.
This was targeted and destroyed over 120 Iranian launch pads. Missile depots and production facilities were also hit, he said.According to Defrin, Iran launched 65 missiles and dozens of drones at Israel overnight apparently only about half of what Iran’s military had intended to fire.“We thwarted a significant portion of the planned attack.“We can now say that we have achieved full air superiority in the skies over Tehran,’’ he said.He added that Israeli forces were continuing to target units actively attempting to launch missiles or engage Israeli aircraft.Since Friday, Israel has carried out widespread strikes on Iranian territory, including nuclear sites, defence installations, urban targets, and oil and gas infrastructure.According to the military, the attacks have also killed several high-ranking officers and nuclear scientists.Defrin reiterated that the operation’s central aim is to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons and long-range missiles.He said strikes would now expand further east into Iran.“We still have difficult days ahead,but we will get through them together and emerge victorious,” he said.Iranian strikes kill eightIsrael’s Defence Minister Israel Katz on Monday promised harsh retaliation against Tehran following a fresh wave of deadly Iranian rocket attacks on Israeli cities overnight.Iran had carried out targeted shots at the civilian home front in Israel, he said, adding that “residents of Tehran will pay the price and soon.’’According to emergency services, eight people were killed and 92 injured in the overnight attacks.The total number of fatalities in Israel since Friday now stands at 23.Emergency officials reported four strikes in the Tel Aviv area.U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said the embassy’s branch office in Tel Aviv sustained “minor damage from concussions’’ caused by a nearby impact, but no injuries were reported.Iran casualties mountAt least 224 people have been killed in Iran since the Israeli attacks began last week, the Health Ministry said.Some 1,277 had been injured, a ministry official wrote on X on Sunday. More than 90 per cent of the casualties were civilians, the spokesman said.Iranian media reported that an Israeli strike hit a hospital in the western city of Kermanshah, with a video from the Shargh newspaper showing a damaged intensive care unit and a blood-stained bed.An Israeli army spokesman said the reports are under investigation.Under international humanitarian law, hospitals are protected civilian sites and may only be targeted if clearly used for military purposes. (dpa/NAN)