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US regulator approves pill form of Wegovy weight-loss drug

US regulator approves pill form of Wegovy weight-loss drug2 hours agoShareSaveKwasi AsieduandOsmond ChiaShareSaveReutersThe US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a pill version of the weight-loss drug Wegovy, according to pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk.
It is the first pill of its kind to receive approval from the regulator, marking a new era for weight-loss drugs.
Wegovy's Danish makers Novo Nordisk said the once-daily pill was a “convenient option” to the injectable and would provide the same weight loss as the shot. It comes after Wegovy was approved by the FDA specifically for weight loss.
Others like Ozempic, which has similar weight-loss effects, were primarily approved for the treatment of Type 2 diabetes.
The BBC has contacted the FDA for comment.
The Wegovy pill showed an average weight loss of 16.6% during Novo Nordisk's trials, the firm said on Monday.
A third of around 1,300 participants experienced 20% or greater weight loss in the same trial, it ..

World

Trump says US ‘has to have’ Greenland after naming special envoy

Trump says US 'has to have' Greenland after naming special envoy4 hours agoShareSaveJames Landale,Diplomatic correspondentandRachel HaganShareSaveWatch: BBC asks Trump what the new appointment to Greenland entailsDonald Trump has sparked a fresh row with Denmark after appointing a special envoy to Greenland, the vast Arctic island he has said he would like to annex.
In response to a question from the BBC about the new role of Jeff Landry, the Republican governor of Louisiana, Trump said the US needed Greenland for “national protection” and that “we have to have it”.
Landry, he said, would “lead the charge” as special envoy to Greenland, a semi-autonomous part of the Kingdom of Denmark.
The move has angered Copenhagen, which said it would call the US ambassador for “an explanation”. Greenland's prime minister said the island must “decide our own future” and its “territorial integrity must be respected”.
Gov Landry said in a post on X that it was an honour to serve in a “v..

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Indonesia bus crash: Driver loses control, hits barrier; 15 killed

At least 15 people were killed after a passenger bus crashed on Indonesia’s main island of Java early Monday, officials said.The inter province bus, carrying 34 passengers, lost control on a toll road just after midnight, struck a concrete barrier and rolled onto its side, said Budiono, a search and rescue agency chief who goes by a single name.According to officials, the bus was travelling from the capital Jakarta to the ancient royal city of Yogyakarta when the accident occurred. Further details about the cause of the crash and the condition of the injured are awaited.

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‘Active pursuit of dark fleet’: US intensifies Venezuela blockade; third interception attempt in two weeks

Videograb from the second interception of Venezuela vessel on Dec 20 (@Sec_Noem) US officials on Sunday confirmed the pursuit of a third oil tanker from Venezuela following the sanctions imposed by Washington on Caracas. This comes after US homeland security secretary Kristi Noem confirmed the interception of such a vessel over the weekend.According to a Reuters report, the officials confirmed that this could be the third such interception within two weeks of the sanction's imposition, if successful.The “active pursuit” of the vessel, as AFP reports, was confirmed by a US official who said, “The United States Coast Guard is in active pursuit of a sanctioned dark fleet vessel that is part of Venezuela's illegal sanctions evasion. It is flying a false flag and under a judicial seizure order.”On December 16, US President Donald Trump, in a post on Truth Social, announced a “blockade” of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving the South American nation for the theft of al..

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Redevelopment breaks up decades-old close community at Hong Kong’s Choi Hung Estate

AdvertisementHong Kong housingHong KongVideo | Redevelopment breaks up decades-old close community at Hong Kong’s Choi Hung EstateThe beginning of the end for the close-knit Choi Hung Estate as redevelopment project at the public housing community begins

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The beginning of the end for Choi Hung Estate
The beginning of the end for Choi Hung EstateKayla ChanPublished: 11:40am, 22 Dec 2025For decades, the rainbow-coloured exterior and massive basketball court of Choi Hung Estate in Hong Kong have been popular tourist attractions. Completed in 1964, the public housing complex has been a silent witness to Hong Kong’s history.
As the city developed, so did the close-knit community at Choi Hung Estate. But in 2024, the government announced the massive estate would be completely demolished and redeveloped by 2049. Now, as the project gets under way, residents and business owners are preparing to say goodbye to a place that has been home for most of their lives.
AdvertisementSelect VoiceCh..

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Hong Kong police arrest 15 over ‘meticulously planned’ 1 billion yen robbery

AdvertisementCrime in Hong KongHong KongLaw and CrimeHong Kong police arrest 15 over ‘meticulously planned’ 1 billion yen robberyPolice still trying to recover cash, with chief inspector calling robbery ‘meticulously planned and violent operation’ marked by a high level of professional execution
Reading Time:2 minutesWhy you can trust SCMP2Oscar LiuPublished: 11:35am, 22 Dec 2025Updated: 11:47am, 22 Dec 2025Hong Kong police have arrested 15 suspects in connection with a robbery outside a currency exchange, during which four suitcases containing 1 billion yen (US$6.4 million) were snatched within 30 seconds as part of a “meticulously planned” plot.
The force on Monday said it was still trying to recover the cash, adding that the robbery targeted two employees of a Japanese company specialising in cryptocurrency and luxury goods, who had planned to exchange 1 billion yen, or about HK$50 million, at the shop on Wing Lok Street in Sheung Wan.
The pair were ambushed when they arrived at the..

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SNL mocks Trump over Epstein file redactions, cognitive tests and renaming Kennedy Center in scathing Christmas episode cold open

Saturday Night Live's cold open mocked President Donald Trump over the heavily redacted Epstein files and his renaming of the Kennedy Center in a scathing Christmas episode.
James Austin Johnson continued his streak as the president and ridiculed the Trump administration over its claim to be the “most transparent in history” after hundreds of pages of the long-awaited documents were redacted when they were partially released Friday by the Justice Department.
Trump only appeared in the tens of thousands of documents a handful of times, and one of the photographs that appeared to show the president was removed by the DOJ Saturday, Democrats said. Trump is not accused of any wrongdoing.
“With regard to files, we're being very transparent,” Johnson’s Trump began. “Because Jeffrey Epstein was a terrible man, and I didn't know him, and I liked him a lot.”
“We released all the files, and I come out looking, frankly, very good,” he parodied. “We had to redact a few sensitive th..

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Epstein files live: Whistleblowers could hold key, says Democrat, while Bondi tweet provokes fierce backlash

CloseTop Trump administration official defends removal of photos from released Epstein filesLawmakers and Jeffrey Epstein survivors alike continue to press the Trump administration to do more to immediately release its remaining Epstein files.
Reps. Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna, who led the initial House push to force the files to be released, are threatening to hold Attorney General Pam Bondi in contempt of Congress, arguing the DOJ has failed to comply with the terms of a November law ordering the files to be made public by this Friday.
The DOJ has acknowledged hundreds of thousands of pages of materials have not been released yet, but it argues it is withholding certain materials to protect the identities of victims.
The continued delays prompted Rep. Robert Garcia of California to call for whistleblowers to come forward about what’s still being withheld.
“What they need to understand is that there are hundreds of FBI agents and others that are good American patriots that have worked..

World

US pursuing third oil tanker linked to Venezuela, official says

US pursuing third oil tanker linked to Venezuela, official says5 hours agoShareSaveSeher AsafShareSaveReutersThe US seized another oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela on SaturdayThe US Coast Guard is in “active pursuit” of another vessel in international waters near Venezuela as tensions in the region continue to escalate.
US authorities have already seized two oil tankers this month – one of them on Saturday.
Sunday's pursuit related to a “sanctioned dark fleet vessel that is part of Venezuela's illegal sanctions evasion”, a US official said. “It is flying a false flag and under a judicial seizure order.”
Washington has accused Venezuela of using oil money to fund drug-related crime, while Venezuela has described the tanker seizures as “theft and kidnapping”.
US President Donald Trump last week ordered a “blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving the country.
Venezuela – home to the world largest proven oil reserves – has accused the Trump administration of..

World

In rebel-held Myanmar, civilians face devastating air strikes and a sham election

In rebel-held Myanmar, civilians face devastating air strikes and a sham election6 hours agoShareSaveYogita LimayeSouth Asia and Afghanistan correspondent in MyanmarShareSaveBBCIang Za Kim had to flee her home after the junta launched air strikes nearbyLate one night last month Iang Za Kim heard explosions in a neighbouring village, then fighter jets flying overhead. She ran out of her home to see smoke rising from a distance.
“We were terrified. We thought the junta's planes would bomb us too. So we grabbed what we could – some food and clothes and ran into the jungles surrounding our village.”
Iang's face quivers as she recounts the story of what happened on 26 November in K-Haimual, her village in Myanmar's western Chin State, and then she breaks down.
She's among thousands of civilians who've fled their homes in recent weeks after the Burmese military launched a fierce campaign of air strikes, and a ground offensive in rebel-held areas across the country, t..