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UK Varsities Kick Against Ban On Foreign Students’ Families

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Most Universities in the United Kingdom have kicked against the country’s new immigration rules for foreign students shortly after the government announced new measures to control the influx of immigrants.

The UK Home Office On Tuesday, said that international students would no longer be able to bring family members with them as from 2024.

The UK also said overseas students would be stopped from switching from the student visa route to a work visa until their studies have been completed.

But in a statement on Tuesday, the UK International (UUK) – a body of universities across the UK – said the move was a threat to the country’s global success as a top destination for international talent and needed to be considered very carefully.

Specifically, the body of universities said the development will worsen their financial pressure in the United Kingdom.

According to the UK director, Jamie Arrowsmith, foreign students contributed largely to the economy. Arrowsmith stated that UK nationals had a wide acceptance of international students.

“International students make an invaluable contribution to our universities and to the UK’s economy. Building on the government’s explicit commitments and ambitions, which were clearly set out in the international education strategy, we have seen significant growth since 2019,” Arrowsmith said in a statement.

“Our research shows that international students make a huge economic contribution to the UK, with a single cohort delivering a total benefit of £41.9 billion.

“We also know that the public is overwhelmingly supportive of the international students we attract – just nine percent of people think we should be discouraging international students from choosing the UK.”

While Arrowsmith said he understood the impact an unchecked influx may be having in some areas, he asked the government to explore other ways of curbing immigration that would not cripple an already weakened financial situation for the universities.

“While the vast majority of students will be unaffected by proposals that limit the ability to be accompanied by dependents, more information is needed on the programmes that are in scope before a proper assessment of the impact can be made.

“We, therefore, urge the government to work with the sector to limit and monitor the impact on particular groups of students – and on universities, which are already under serious financial pressures. The review process that has been announced must consider these issues.”

“Ultimately, our collective aim must be to ensure that international students who choose the UK can be confident that they are welcome here, that their contribution is valued, and that the terms on which they have made decisions remain stable. Anything that threatens to affect the UK’s global success as a top destination for international talent needs to be considered very carefully,” the statement added.

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International

US vice president’s wife, Usha Vance, announces fourth pregnancy

The couple, who married in 2014, already have three children — Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel.

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FILE – Vice President JD Vance, right, and second lady Usha Vance.

Usha Vance, the wife of United States Vice President JD Vance, has announced that she is pregnant with her fourth child.

In a post on X on Tuesday, the second lady said she is expecting a baby boy in late July.

“Usha and the baby are doing well,” a statement posted on Tuesday to the second lady’s social media account read.

The couple, who married in 2014, already have three children — Ewan, Vivek, and Mirabel.

Usha Vance, née Chilukuri, was born and raised in the working-class suburbs of San Diego, California, to a mechanical engineer father and a molecular biologist mother who moved to the US from Andhra Pradesh, India.

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International

South Korea Confirms New African Swine Fever Outbreak, Culls 20,000 Pigs in Swift Response

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Authorities in South Korea have confirmed a fresh case of African Swine Fever (ASF) at a pig farm in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, marking the country’s first outbreak in nearly two months since November 2025.

The infection was detected after 32 pigs died at the facility on January 16, 2026, with laboratory tests confirming that 29 of them tested positive for the highly contagious and fatal virus.

The outbreak, reported by the Gangwon provincial government and covered by major outlets including Yonhap News Agency and The Korea Herald, prompted immediate quarantine measures.

In response, officials culled approximately 20,000 pigs at the affected farm to halt the spread of the disease.

A 48-hour standstill order was also imposed on pig farms across six neighboring cities and counties, restricting movements to prevent further transmission.

Prime Minister Kim Min-seok directed emergency containment efforts, including restricted site access, intensive disinfection protocols, and investigations into the outbreak’s origin.

The government is prioritizing rapid tracing and biosecurity enhancements to safeguard the nation’s pork industry.

ASF, a viral disease devastating to domestic pigs and wild boars, causes high mortality rates but poses no risk to human health or food safety when pork is properly cooked.

This incident in Gangwon Province — the first ASF case recorded in the region in about 14 months — underscores ongoing challenges in controlling the virus, which has affected South Korea since 2019 through both farm infections and detections in wild boars.

Officials continue monitoring nearby farms and wild populations as part of heightened national vigilance.

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International

High-speed train collision in Spain kills at least 39

Spanish Transport Minister Óscar Puente described the incident as “extremely strange” as officials launched an investigation.

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At least 39 people have died in a train collision in southern Spain and dozens more have been injured in the country’s worst rail crash in more than a decade, according to Spain’s Civil Guard.

Carriages on a Madrid-bound train derailed and crossed over to the opposite tracks, colliding with an oncoming train in Adamuz, near the city of Córdoba.

Four hundred passengers and staff were onboard both trains, the rail networks said.

At least 73 people were taken to hospital – 24 of them seriously injured, including four children – according to Andalusia’s emergency services.

Spanish Transport Minister Óscar Puente described the incident as “extremely strange” as officials launched an investigation.

All the railway experts consulted by the government “are extremely baffled by the accident”, Puente told reporters in Madrid.

Rail network operator Adif said the collision happened at 19:45 local time (18:45 GMT), about an hour after the train left Málaga heading to Madrid, when it derailed on a straight stretch of track.

The force of the crash pushed the carriages of the second train into an embankment, Puente said.

He added that most of those killed and injured were in the front carriages of the second train, which was travelling from Madrid to Huelva.

The type of train involved in the crash was a Freccia 1000, which can reach top speeds of 400 km/h (250 mph), a spokesperson for the Italian rail company Ferrovie dello Stato told the Reuters news agency.

Credit: BBC

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