fire

Fire in Kenya girls' school dorm kills 16

Pupils were accused after a 2001 dormitory fire in the southern county of Machakos killed 67.

A fire in a girls' dormitory in Kenya on Thursday killed 16 children and hospitalised 79 in the latest deadly blaze to hit a school in the east African country.
Pupils were accused after a 2001 dormitory fire in the southern county of Machakos killed 67.

A fire in a girls' dormitory in Kenya on Thursday killed 16 children and hospitalised 79 in the latest deadly blaze to hit a school in the east African country.

The fire broke out shortly before 1:00 am local time at Utumishi Girls Academy in Nakuru County, around 120 kilometres (75 miles) north of the capital Nairobi, officials said.

There have been many devastating school fires in Kenya, where boarding schools are common as a colonial legacy of missionaries and the British.

It was unclear how old the victims of Thursday's blaze were.

"We have 16 fatalities. It's an unfortunate incident," education minister Julius Migos Ogamba told reporters at the scene.

Frantic parents were being held outside the school buildings by authorities as investigators raced to identify the victims.

"Our hearts and prayers are with the families who have lost their beloved daughters," President William Ruto said on X, describing it as an "unimaginable tragedy".

The school is linked to the National Police Service and most pupils are the children of officers, said interior minister Kipchumba Murkomen.

"We know that this is a very anxious moment," he told reporters.

Asked about the cause of the fire, Murkomen called for patience while investigations were ongoing and urged people to avoid speculation.

Children have been accused of deliberately starting school fires in the past. One report found there were 63 arson cases at schools in 2018 alone.

Pupils were accused after a 2001 dormitory fire in the southern county of Machakos killed 67.

A fire in 2024 killed 21 boys after flames engulfed a dormitory at the Hillside Endarasha Academy in Nyeri county.

A 2017 report by Kenya's National Crime Research Centre blamed exam stress and long school terms and said students in different schools were communicating via smuggled phones, leading to copycat acts.

After the deadly 2024 fire, the government promised a safety audit of all schools and to prosecute violators, but it is not clear if any measures were implemented.

rbu-er/kjm

slavery

France moves towards symbolic repealing of slavery legislation

BY CAMILLE MALPLAT AND ALICE HACKMAN

But they also referred to them as "moveable goods" who could be inherited, outlined brutal punishment including mutilation of the ear for trying to escape, and condemned the children of enslaved people to the same fate as their parents.

France is Thursday expected to move towards repealing outdated legislation that defines people enslaved in its colonies as "moveable goods", in a symbolic move as the country grapples with its colonial legacy.
But they also referred to them as "moveable goods" who could be inherited, outlined brutal punishment including mutilation of the ear for trying to escape, and condemned the children of enslaved people to the same fate as their parents.

France is Thursday expected to move towards repealing outdated legislation that defines people enslaved in its colonies as "moveable goods", in a symbolic move as the country grapples with its colonial legacy.

The French were the third largest slave traders in Europe, after the British and the Portuguese.

Ships departing from French ports between the 17th and 19th centuries forcibly transported more than one million men, women and children from Africa into slavery, many in plantations in its overseas colonies in the Caribbean, according to expert estimates.

France abolished enslaving humans more than 170 years ago, and in 2001 recognised slavery and the slave trade as "crimes against humanity".

But a series of royal decrees from the 17th and 18th centuries that established the legal status of enslaved people in its colonies, called the "Code noir" or "Black Code", were never explicitly overturned.

President Emmanuel Macron, who is stepping down next year after his maximum two terms in office, last week threw his support behind repealing these laws.

Lawmakers in the lower house will on Thursday debate a bill to annul the royal edicts, and the Senate is then to have its say at an undetermined date before the law can pass.

'Denial of humanity'

The decrees, the first of which were written under Louis XIV, ruled over the lives of enslaved people in the colonies.

They declared all enslaved people should be Catholics, and banned owners from making them work on Sundays, according to a copy on the French parliament's website.

But they also referred to them as "moveable goods" who could be inherited, outlined brutal punishment including mutilation of the ear for trying to escape, and condemned the children of enslaved people to the same fate as their parents.

Max Mathiasin, a lawmaker from the former colony turned overseas territory of Guadeloupe who is championing the bill, last week said repealing the decrees would be a "powerful symbolic and political gesture".

The Black Code "organised the denial of the humanity of women, men and children reduced to slavery because of their origin and the colour of their skin", he said.

France ended slavery in 1794 under the French Revolution, but Napoleon Bonaparte ordered troops to be sent to Guadeloupe in 1802 to restore the practice.

France then abolished it again in 1848.

But activists say the legacy of slavery endures through inequalities between mainland France and former colonies that are now overseas territories, as well as racism.

Macron last week said the issue of reparations should be addressed, but warned against making "false promises" and announced no specific measures.

Dieudonne Boutrin, an activist from the overseas territory of Martinique who is descended from enslaved people, said annulling the Black Code should have been done ages ago.

"It changes nothing. Black people are still looked at the same way," he said.

"Now we need to go beyond the symbolic," he said, urging a "real reparations programme", including for example more funds for educational projects to transmit history and help battle systemic racism.

'Lasting harm'

Serge Letchimy, an official from Martinique, in an open letter to Macron earlier this month also demanded reparations.

He urged "a law that clearly establishes the principle that the crimes of trafficking and slavery have caused lasting historical, cultural, social, economic and psychological harm".

He referred to a 10-point plan that Caribbean nations have put to European nations, including international debt cancellation, as well as support for healthcare and illiteracy eradication.

Among France's former colonies, Haiti -- the poorest country in the Caribbean -- stands out as having particularly suffered.

Haiti became the first independent black nation in the Americas in 1804, after enslaved people rebelled against their French masters in what was then the colony of Saint-Domingue.

In 1825, it accepted to pay France a huge sum in "reparations" in exchange for recognising its independence, but it was forced to take out loans with high interest rates from French bankers in order to pay it.

It only managed to pay off this "double debt" in 1952.

Macron last year said that a joint commission of French and Haitian historians would examine this and issue recommendations.

cma-ah/ekf/jhb

economy

'Shoebox' flat reform leaves low-income Hong Kong residents in limbo

BY CATHERINE LAI

The Hong Kong government has given owners who register under the new system until 2030 to renovate their subdivided flats, but some landlords have already issued eviction notices to their tenants.

Hong Kong resident Lisa Lau put on a costume drama as she settled on the bed that occupies much of her tiny apartment, trying to take her mind off of a looming eviction.
The Hong Kong government has given owners who register under the new system until 2030 to renovate their subdivided flats, but some landlords have already issued eviction notices to their tenants.

Hong Kong resident Lisa Lau put on a costume drama as she settled on the bed that occupies much of her tiny apartment, trying to take her mind off of a looming eviction.

Subdivided flats like Lau's three-square-metre (32-square-feet) home -- made by splitting up an apartment into smaller units -- are being phased out after a law to regulate them came into effect in March.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has ordered the wealthy finance hub to resolve housing woes that are the result of decades of pervasive inequality, an acute housing shortage and eye-watering rents.

The Hong Kong government has given owners who register under the new system until 2030 to renovate their subdivided flats, but some landlords have already issued eviction notices to their tenants.

"I'll stay here day by day," Lau, a 48-year-old welfare recipient who had received an eviction notice months ago, told AFP.

"I don't know (where to go)," said Lau, who lives on the equivalent of about $930 a month, of which $330 go for rent.

"I'm scratching my head."

The new rules ban flats smaller than eight square metres (86 square feet) and mandate safety and hygiene standards, such as having at least one openable window, a sink and a toilet in an enclosed space.

Authorities estimate that more than 220,000 people in the city of 7.5 million live in so-called "shoebox" flats, around one-third of which need major renovation.

Lau's cubicle is one of nine in a single unit, separated by thin wooden dividers, in a 60-year-old building in one of Hong Kong's poorest neighbourhoods, Sham Shui Po.

With no kitchen, she makes soup or noodles in a rice cooker placed on the bed.

She uses a shared toilet and shower, and has taped a foam board across the bottom of her doorway to keep out rats and cockroaches.

Unaffordable housing

Despite the cramped conditions, Lau is reluctant to leave a familiar area where she has built a social network, and hopes her application for transitional housing nearby would be approved.

"As long as the landlord doesn't come (to evict residents), we are so at peace, we are so comfortable," she said.

The Housing Bureau said over 100 households had already moved out of Lau's building, and that it was helping the 40 that are left to find suitable accommodation.

The Society for Community Organisation, an NGO that works with underprivileged groups, said the reform could help alleviate some of the worst living environments in Hong Kong.

But more government housing is needed, especially in the central areas, said Sze Lai-shan, the group's deputy director.

"Don't expect these people who live in very small flats to move into the new basic housing units. They won't be able to afford it," she said.

"A lot of the poorest people will be very dependent on the government to resettle them."

The charity knows of around 300 households threatened with forcible eviction from subdivided flats, with more expected to follow, according to Sze -- far more than the 35 notices the government said it had received.

Some residents have moved into public or transitional housing, while others have moved into other substandard flats as a temporary measure, Sze added.

- 'Coffin homes' -

Liu Xiaoli, who faces eviction from her subdivided flat, works two part-time jobs as a cook and cleaner to make ends meet after her divorce, and supports her daughter and granddaughter in mainland China.

"If the rent here or in other places goes up, I really can't afford it," the 63 year-old told AFP, adding that she was unable to find alternate accommodation nearby.

"I couldn't find any (apartments) that meet the government's requirements," she said.

"Right now, I'm just delaying as much as I can."

In response to AFP's inquiry, the government said it had "significantly increased public housing supply" with an aim to produce around 196,000 units in the next five years, and sped up the process for residents on the waiting list for public housing.

These measures would contribute to "reduced demand" for subdivided units, keeping rents at bay, a Housing Bureau spokesperson said in a statement.

The new rules do not apply to notorious "coffin homes", cubicles stacked on top of each other like bunk beds in shabby dormitories.

Wan Hon-cheung, 64, has been living in a plywood box about the size of a single bed for the last 10 years, and hopes the government will improve conditions for residents like him as well.

He often gets bitten by bedbugs and walks with a cane, making climbing up and down from his bed difficult.

"For us lower classes... this is reality, there's nothing to complain about."

cla/dhw/ami/abs

animal

'Trump' buffalo spared sacrifice, sent to Bangladesh zoo

BY SHEIKH SABIHA ALAM

Muslim-majority Bangladesh, a South Asian nation of 170 million people, celebrates Eid al-Adha, the "feast of the sacrifice", on Thursday.

A buffalo in Bangladesh nicknamed "Donald Trump" for its flowing blond hair has been spared from sacrifice after shooting to fame, and will instead be cared for at the national zoo.
Muslim-majority Bangladesh, a South Asian nation of 170 million people, celebrates Eid al-Adha, the "feast of the sacrifice", on Thursday.

A buffalo in Bangladesh nicknamed "Donald Trump" for its flowing blond hair has been spared from sacrifice after shooting to fame, and will instead be cared for at the national zoo.

Muslim-majority Bangladesh, a South Asian nation of 170 million people, celebrates Eid al-Adha, the "feast of the sacrifice", on Thursday.

The 700-kilogramme (1,500-pound) bull, a rare albino buffalo with a flowing helmet of light hair resembling the signature look of the US president, was due to be slaughtered to mark the day.

But hours before it faced the knife, the government stepped in to save the animal, which has become an online sensation.

Curator of the National Zoo, Atiqur Rahman, said the animal would be well looked after.

"We have designated a shed for the albino buffalo and assigned a caregiver," Rahman told AFP on Wednesday. "He will be quarantined for two weeks."

Crowds in Bangladesh had flocked to snap photographs with the unlikely social media star.

Zia Uddin Mridha, 38, the buffalo's former owner, said his brother had named it "Trump" because of its "extraordinary hair".

Mridha said a constant stream of curious visitors -- social media fans, onlookers and children -- came eager to see the animal.

However, he sold the bull ahead of Eid al-Adha.

But police has swooped after the government ordered that the buffalo be spared.

"The livestock department requested us to take the buffalo from the owner as it is a rare animal," Mohammad Ruhul Quddus, officer-in-charge of Dhaka's Keraniganj Police Station, where the buffalo was taken, told AFP.

"They said that the albino buffalo is still very young, and can be raised for a few years."

More than 12 million livestock including goats, sheep, cows and buffaloes are expected to be sacrificed during the holiday, when many poorer families get a rare chance to feast on meat.

sa/pjm/ami

robbery

German far-left militant jailed for 13 years for robberies

BY SEBASTIAN BRONST

Klette was arrested in her Berlin apartment in February 2024 after evading authorities for more than 30 years.

A German far-left militant arrested in Berlin after decades on the run was sentenced to 13 years' jail Wednesday for a series of armed robberies committed while she was a fugitive.
Klette was arrested in her Berlin apartment in February 2024 after evading authorities for more than 30 years.

A German far-left militant arrested in Berlin after decades on the run was sentenced to 13 years' jail Wednesday for a series of armed robberies committed while she was a fugitive.

Daniela Klette, 67, is a former member of the Baader-Meinhof gang, a radical anti-capitalist group that carried out killings, bombings and kidnappings mainly in the 1970s and 1980s.

While on the run, Klette scoped out targets, drove getaway vehicles and in some heists wielded a "realistic looking" dummy bazooka while acomplices were armed with assault rifles, the court heard.

Klette was arrested in her Berlin apartment in February 2024 after evading authorities for more than 30 years. Police found a Kalashnikov assault rifle, wigs and fake ID cards as well as gold and large sums of cash in her flat.

She was found guilty on Wednesday of taking part in robberies with two male gang members to finance their lives on the run after the group, also known as the Red Army Faction (RAF), disbanded in 1998.

Klette was found guilty of six counts of "particularly serious robbery" committed between 1999 and 2016, and other charges including extortion and arms violations.

Defence lawyers said they had immediately appealed the verdict.

The robbers got away with a total of 2.4 million euros ($2.8 million), stolen from supermarkets and armoured cash transports, according to prosecutors.

The court noted "the high level of criminal intent" and the fact the crimes "were planned down to the smallest detail and carried out meticulously", said court spokesman Ahmad Mohamad.

Prosecutors also accuse Klette of three politically motivated attacks in the 1990s, while the gang was still active. Those charges are being dealt with in separate proceedings.

Life on the run

The Baader-Meinhof gang -- named after two early leaders, Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof -- emerged out of the radical fringe of the 1960s and 70s student protest movement.

The group took up arms against what they saw as US imperialism and a "fascist" German state still riddled with former Nazis.

The RAF is believed to have been responsible for 34 deaths, including police, judges, American soldiers and a former Nazi SS officer who later became a prominent industrialist.

A number of sympathisers were in court Wednesday, cheering Klette and shouting "Free Daniela!". At least one woman was led away by security personnel.

In separate proceedings, prosecutors accuse Klette of involvement in an RAF plot to blow up the offices of Deutsche Bank in 1990.

She is also said to have strafed the US embassy in Bonn with machine gun fire in 1991 and to have been part of a team that bombed the Weiterstadt prison near Frankfurt in 1993.

'Against capitalism and patriarchy'

Klette was part of a trio -- with fellow gang members Burkhard Garweg and Ernst-Volker Staub -- that were part of the RAF's "third generation" in the 1980s and 1990s.

Police are still searching for Garweg and Staub, who if still alive would now be 57 and 72 respectively.

"They carried out their robberies with a division of labour and in a highly conspiratorial manner," said presiding Judge Lars Engelke.

The three had been living in hiding since at least 1999, rented getaway cars under false identities and spoke of the armed robberies as "their work" and source of income, the judge said.

When police came to arrest her, Klette managed to send off a text message to Garweg, allowing him to escape from his Berlin hideout.

During her trial she usually entered the court beaming and waving to supporters, who greeted her with applause.

Addressing the court last year, Klette defiantly vowed to continue the struggle against "capitalism and patriarchy".

bro-fz/fec/tw

demonstration

Bolivia blockades make saving lives 'ordeal'

BY JOSé ARTURO CáRDENAS

Hinojosa broke down in tears as she recounted the difficulties of getting her son to the hospital from El Alto, a suburb of La Paz, where they live at an altitude of 4,150 meters (13,600 feet).

Zulma Hinojosa waits anxiously in a doctor's office at La Paz's Children's Hospital for her 13-year-old son, who suffers from asthma and heart problems.
Hinojosa broke down in tears as she recounted the difficulties of getting her son to the hospital from El Alto, a suburb of La Paz, where they live at an altitude of 4,150 meters (13,600 feet).

Zulma Hinojosa waits anxiously in a doctor's office at La Paz's Children's Hospital for her 13-year-old son, who suffers from asthma and heart problems.

Oxygen and medicines are in short supply at hospitals in the city following nearly a month of blockades and protests against the Bolivian government, and she worries he will not get the treatment he needs.

Hinojosa broke down in tears as she recounted the difficulties of getting her son to the hospital from El Alto, a suburb of La Paz, where they live at an altitude of 4,150 meters (13,600 feet).

It is difficult to navigate the debris that protesters are using to block the city with a child with asthma and a heart murmur, the 44-year-old mother told AFP.

"I can't expose him to this stress, to walking so much, because he's on medication," she said, adding that the trip "is a real ordeal."

Demonstrations began in early May with trade union demands for salary increases, stable fuel supplies and sounder economic management.

But the movement has intensified, with protesters calling for President Rodrigo Paz to step down.

Demonstrators have blockaded entry routes into La Paz, shops have shuttered for fear of violence, and food, medicine and fuel supplies are running low.

"Medicine is getting more expensive, and some are running out," said Hinojosa, who makes a living working two jobs -- making empanadas and working as a carer.

At least four people have died because they did not receive timely medical care due to the blockades, according to the government.

'No medicine'

At the Clinicas de La Paz public hospital, one of the oldest and largest in the country, the shortage of medical oxygen is critical.

Neurosurgeon Enrique Coritza, head of the surgical unit, told AFP that the hospital's current supply of oxygen will last only a few days.

"Starting Thursday, Friday, Saturday, we don't know what the situation will be," he warned.

Christian Calle, head of the hospital's pharmacy unit, complained that the "oxygen distribution" by suppliers does not meet "the hospital's actual needs."

At the entrance to a recovery room, 63-year-old Ruth Angulo watches her son recover from a stroke.

"There are no medicines" at the hospital, she said, explaining that she had to search private pharmacies for his drugs.

'Nutrition deficiencies'

Food shortages are also affecting the hospital.

"We don't have beef, we don't have chicken, and we don't have vegetables, which is leading to nutrition deficiencies in patients," Calle said.

"We're measuring, rationing and cutting back on portions so there's enough" for the patients, she explained.

Angulo's son used to be given "soup and a main course," but now "the portions are getting smaller," his mother said.

The situation is similar in hospitals across La Paz and El Alto, according to a report on Monday from the health ministry.

Neighborhood groups have protested in recent days to demand an end to the blockades, with people holding banners with slogans including "The people can't take it anymore."

jac/mis/mr/lb/lkd/cms

consumption

Frugal and more online: smarter spenders rewrite luxury's China dream

BY MARY YANG AND AGATHA CANTRILL IN SHANGHAI

"I think people's spending habits after the pandemic may be more cost-effective and practical," Li told AFP, on a pilgrimage to the Galeries on its penultimate day of operations.

When Beijinger Jacqueline Li first heard one of her favourite luxury department stores in the city was closing, she was shocked -- until she considered how Chinese spending habits have changed in recent years.
"I think people's spending habits after the pandemic may be more cost-effective and practical," Li told AFP, on a pilgrimage to the Galeries on its penultimate day of operations.

When Beijinger Jacqueline Li first heard one of her favourite luxury department stores in the city was closing, she was shocked -- until she considered how Chinese spending habits have changed in recent years.

The closure of France's Galeries Lafayette in the Chinese capital on Wednesday takes place against the backdrop of a sluggish post-pandemic economy and shifting consumption practices.

It is the latest sign foreign luxury brands might not retain the pull -- and the cashflow -- that they counted on in the world's second largest economy in the 2010s.

"I think people's spending habits after the pandemic may be more cost-effective and practical," Li told AFP, on a pilgrimage to the Galeries on its penultimate day of operations.

"It's no longer as over-the-top as before, like needing to have an impressive logo. So you'll see that (demand for) luxury goods has fallen," the international school admissions officer said.

While luxury consumption in Europe and the United States has been driven by pandemic-era savings, Chinese consumers have spent more frugally as the post-Covid recovery has stuttered.

The property market, into which millions had poured their savings, is struggling to recover from a long-running crisis, while middle class incomes have stagnated and youth unemployment remains high.

Last month, consumer spending grew at the slowest pace in more than three years, official data showed.

In 2025, the luxury market in China declined three to five percent, after plummeting 17 to 19 percent the year before, according to consultancy Bain & Company.

Pandemic hangover

Before the pandemic, China's burgeoning middle class produced plenty of first-time high-end buyers, said Lisa Nan, editor at Jing Daily, a publication that focuses on China's luxury market.

Now, "because of the economic downturn, people are much more rational and they have to navigate through this difficult period", she said.

Even in financial hub Shanghai's swanky shopping districts, buyers still viscerally feel the uncertainty of the Covid pandemic.

"I find myself wanting to save money even more now," said 24-year-old July Xu, who was browsing the stores in upmarket Xintiandi with her friends.

"Having lived through such an extraordinary period (during the pandemic), I've come to realise that having some personal savings is quite important."

"Beforehand, people felt like money came pretty easily, with their income increasing every year, but during the pandemic a lot of people suddenly lost their jobs," said 61-year-old Hu Shuqing, speaking to AFP outside a luxury fragrance store.

Some analysts think there could be light on the horizon though, with the country's high-wage sector steadily growing.

"There could be a pent-up demand," said Jelena Sokolova from investment research firm Morningstar.

"(People) have a lot of savings, and once they feel kind of good, or better about their financial situation, they could go on and spend this money that has been accumulated."

Changing market

Unfortunately for traditional brands, consumer confidence is not the only challenge they face in China.

The dominance of e-commerce means shoppers from college students to retirees are used to buying marked-down clothing in just a few taps from the comfort of their sofas.

They have a plethora of choices, from apps like Taobao and JD.com to hours-long sales livestreams on the Instagram-like Xiaohongshu and Douyin, China's version of TikTok.

At Galeries Lafayette on Tuesday, as employees packed away denuded mannequins, admissions officer Li said she thought the store had been too reliant on "the traditional... business model that has existed for decades in France".

"This new generation of Chinese likes to shop online," she said. "For a lot of people born in the 1990s and 2000s... this mall is a stranger."

Even when shoppers do frequent brick-and-mortar shops, their online equivalents still inform purchase decisions.

"When I shop offline, after I spot an item of clothing, I'll see how much it costs to purchase online," said 46-year-old freelancer Yang Dunqin, who had come for one last trip to the department store.

Chinese consumers have "matured a lot", becoming more discerning, said Jing Daily's Nan.

Younger shoppers in particular focus less on legacy logos, instead seeking out pop-ups or emerging domestic brands.

"The need of buying luxury is no longer just a taste of their social status," she said. "It's really about self-expression."

Yang, the freelancer, was stoic about the loss of the Galeries.

"It just shows that this era continues to move forward," he said. "It's part of changing times."

ac-isk-mya/reb/tc

birds

Love birds: twice-extinct parakeet gets lifeline from randy pair

"The wild populations are very vulnerable to predators, so we always need backup populations."

One of the world's rarest parakeets has seen its numbers surge thanks to a pair of super breeders now responsible for more than 10 percent of the total population.
"The wild populations are very vulnerable to predators, so we always need backup populations."

One of the world's rarest parakeets has seen its numbers surge thanks to a pair of super breeders now responsible for more than 10 percent of the total population.

The New Zealand native kakariki karaka -- or orange-fronted parakeet -- is critically endangered and has twice been declared extinct, only to be rediscovered.

There are around 450 of the birds left, mainly in sanctuaries and predator-free islands but also in wild populations.

Parents Nacho and Trixie were paired up in 2024 at the Isaac Conservation and Wildlife Trust in Christchurch and have since produced 55 chicks, including 33 this year alone.

Wildlife manager Leigh Percasky praised "super-mum" Trixie.

"The breeding season has ended and yet she's still producing eggs and raising chicks," Percasky said.

"Ideally we'd prefer her to stop so she can have a rest, but she shows no signs of that with another seven chicks in her most recent clutch.

"Nacho also deserves credit as he's responsible for finding food for both Trixie and the chicks which is incredibly busy."

Captive breeding

Wayne Beggs, lead of the Department of Conservation's kakariki karaka recovery programme, said breeding pairs like Nacho and Trixie were ensuring the species didn't go extinct.

"We rely on the captive breeding programmes as without them we couldn't establish new sites," Beggs said.

"The wild populations are very vulnerable to predators, so we always need backup populations."

Percasky said Nacho and Trixie had made a "massive contribution" to the survival of their species, but he wants the love birds to "have a well-earned break" after their latest clutch.

"I'm not sure where they get all their energy from."

bes/oho/abs

poverty

Low cost glasses help India's poor see a better future

BY PHILIPPE ALFROY

For less than two dollars, Jena left with a pair of corrective glasses -- and a clear vision of his future.

As soon as he put on his glasses, Indian vegetable seller Tofan Jena knew daily life would never be the same.
For less than two dollars, Jena left with a pair of corrective glasses -- and a clear vision of his future.

As soon as he put on his glasses, Indian vegetable seller Tofan Jena knew daily life would never be the same.

For the first time, the 49-year-old could see the world around him in sharp detail.

"I can make out all the letters of the alphabet, even the smallest ones," he marvelled, pointing to his phone screen.

Jena is among one billion people recorded by the World Health Organization who suffer from vision problems but lack the means to correct them.

The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness estimates that $30 billion is lost in productivity from preventable or curable eye diseases in India alone.

Just an hour earlier, Jena who is a resident of Bhubaneswar, capital of the eastern state of Odisha, had his eyes examined for the first time in his life by GoodVision, whose mission is to bring eye care to underprivileged communities.

The charity hopes to close the gap in eyecare and works in 12 countries, including India, where around 550 million need glasses, and an estimated 250 million people lack access to them.

For less than two dollars, Jena left with a pair of corrective glasses -- and a clear vision of his future.

"I can read, I can write, and I can see very well at a distance," he repeats, as if trying to convince himself.

"I'll be able to do everything with these glasses."

Access to care

The small miracle was repeated for dozens of residents in the poor district of Salia Sahi.

Technicians from the charity set up a mobile camp under a tarpaulin, offering shade from the blazing sun, while providing eye examinations, vision tests, and the selection and fitting of glasses.

At the end, a line of people stood blinking at the world, amazed at the clarity and detail many had forgotten or, for some, had never known.

With glasses perched on his nose, 43-year-old shopkeeper Minati Rout completes his journey by passing a final test: separating small pebbles from grains of rice.

"I was not able to read small letters, I was not able to thread in a needle... now I can, to do all those things," she said.

"I will tell my neighbours to get their eyes checked here too."

Piush Khetan, the charity's India director, said they offer basic services which include a free eye screening and glasses for people in need as well as performing cataract surgery.

The lenses for the glasses come from China, while the frames are made in India from metal wire and assembled in about 10 minutes.

In the small town of Maniabandha, a two-hour drive from Bhubaneswar, patients wait on plastic chairs.

"These community camps are extremely important for villagers, because they have no access to eye care," said optometrist Gopinath Das.

"Sometimes they don't have money, sometimes they don't even know they have eye problems."

More than 400 underprivileged neighbourhoods and villages are visited each month, sites often overlooked by public health services.

"We are able to provide help to people, and we feel good about it," said technician Debasmita Behera, 23.

"And I'm also earning."

'Stigma'

In Maniabandha, eight patients were taken to Bhubaneswar's Vision Care Hospital for cataract surgery.

Hospital director Srimant Kumar Mishra said the most difficult part is to motivate patients to be operated on.

"There is a lot of social stigma, they are afraid... They have a feeling that even if you get old, it is natural that they are not able to see."

GoodVision's France representative, Maryline Ehlermann, said "eye care is a very profitable investment", citing a study estimating that if the billion people with curable vision problems were treated, it would "generate $447 billion annually for the global economy".

In the world's most populous country -- also one of its most unequal -- the challenge is enormous.

"In India, we only take things seriously if it's a matter of life or death," said Khetan.

"So we focus on providing information, we try to convince people of the importance of taking care of their eyes."

pa/pjm/ane/abs

employment

'My job is going': UK workers squeezed out by AI

BY LUCIE LEQUIER

"Some publishers have offered me lower rates than I was getting 10 years ago," the Brighton-based Spengler told AFP, adding that she no longer receives requests to translate corporate press releases or user manuals, typically an "entry point" into the profession.

When a client asked her a year ago to design a glossary to train an artificial intelligence system, translator Jessica Spengler realised she was going to train her own replacement.
"Some publishers have offered me lower rates than I was getting 10 years ago," the Brighton-based Spengler told AFP, adding that she no longer receives requests to translate corporate press releases or user manuals, typically an "entry point" into the profession.

When a client asked her a year ago to design a glossary to train an artificial intelligence system, translator Jessica Spengler realised she was going to train her own replacement.

"That was the day I really thought... my job is going," said the 52-year-old, who translates into English for German educational and historical organisations.

In the UK, where services account for around 80 percent of the economy, AI has become flexible, fast and inexpensive competition for many white-collar workers, with the impacts beginning to emerge.

The IMF estimated in 2024 that more than two-thirds of British workers perform tasks that AI could potentially carry out, making the country more exposed than many other advanced economies.

"Some publishers have offered me lower rates than I was getting 10 years ago," the Brighton-based Spengler told AFP, adding that she no longer receives requests to translate corporate press releases or user manuals, typically an "entry point" into the profession.

Instead, she is increasingly offered work proofreading machine-generated translations.

Translators "have to rewrite the whole thing, redo the translations, but they still only get paid the reduced rate," said Holly Parsons, a Spanish-to-English translator at the beginning of her career.

"It's hard as a translator to actually charge what the work is worth because people just don't want to pay it," the 24-year-old added.

She still earns most of her income working as a children's activity leader.

Change of direction

According to a report from Morgan Stanley, British companies that adopted AI cut their workforces by eight percent in the year to October 2025 -- more than in Germany, Japan or Australia.

Among the countries featured in the report, only the United States saw employment rise with AI.

"Film work has definitely been impacted by AI... it's really kicked us down," said Laura, 35, a director of photography in London, who preferred not to share her last name for professional reasons.

To escape the broader crisis hitting the film industry, she is retraining as an outdoor instructor in Dorset, southwest England, earning minimum wage.

After working on the short film "Mad Bills to Pay", which won an award at the Sundance Film Festival, 35-year-old Rufai Ajala also changed direction and is now training to become a plumber.

"I'm not going to rely on film as my main focus... I don't see it as a career option anymore where you can have stability," Ajala said, adding that the aim was to find an "AI-proof" career.

'Painful transition'

"There is going to be sort of a painful transition process because new jobs will take time to emerge," said Bouke Klein Teeselink, an economics professor at King's College London.

He said it would require "a massive adjustment for society," which could mean "a big increase in unemployment."

According to one of his studies, professions most exposed to AI, such as software developers and data analysts, reduced job postings after the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, particularly for entry-level positions.

The growth of AI comes as Britain already faces high levels of youth unemployment, with the war in the Middle East and an increased minimum wage weighing on hiring.

One in six Britons aged 16 to 24 is out of work, the highest level since 2014, according to official data.

Teeselink said, however, that another market dynamic is at play with AI: productivity gains could lead to lower prices, which in turn could stimulate demand and increase employment.

He said the UK was "reasonably well positioned" for the AI transition thanks to its high-quality universities, which are set to play a crucial role in "upskilling young people to use AI well."

lul/ajb/ach/hol

Conflict

No feasts, no joy: Gazans mark a dark Eid

- Sheep shortage - Central to Eid al-Adha celebrations, which mark the end of the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, is the sacrificing of a sheep.

New clothes for children, sacrificial sheep and Eid biscuits, the hallmarks of the Muslim holiday, are all either unaffordable or unavailable in Gaza, casting a shadow over what is usually a time of celebration and joy.
- Sheep shortage - Central to Eid al-Adha celebrations, which mark the end of the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, is the sacrificing of a sheep.

New clothes for children, sacrificial sheep and Eid biscuits, the hallmarks of the Muslim holiday, are all either unaffordable or unavailable in Gaza, casting a shadow over what is usually a time of celebration and joy.

"I go to the market only to look around because I cannot afford to buy anything. Whenever I ask about prices, I return heartbroken," Nadia Abu Shamala, a Palestinian resident of Gaza, told AFP.

"This year, Eid comes with none of the joy we once knew in Gaza because of the effects of the war, the soaring prices, and our inability to provide even the simplest needs for our children," said the 40-year-old woman from Gaza's north displaced to the central Gaza city of Deir al-Balah for over two years.

Despite a US-brokered ceasefire that began in October 2025, Israeli air strikes are still common in Gaza, where 80 percent of buildings were damaged in the war and most of the population depends on aid for basic needs, according to the United Nations.

Israel controls all entry points to Gaza, and lets trucks of foreign aid and private sector goods enter in numbers that are too low to bring down war-inflated prices or shortages, NGOs on the ground say.

"The truce is a big lie, but in any case, we are trying to create joy for the children," said Abu Abdullah al-Mosadar, 59, who told AFP he pooled around 13,000 shekels ($4,570) with his brother to buy a sheep for sacrifice.

It is an amount that very few Gazans can afford.

"I know it is very expensive, but I decided to perform the sacrifice this year," said Mosadar, a former property dealer from one of central Gaza's well-established families, adding that he hopes to start his construction and real estate business when circumstances permit.

Sheep shortage

Central to Eid al-Adha celebrations, which mark the end of the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, is the sacrificing of a sheep.

According to Islamic tradition, God asked the Prophet Ibrahim, or Abraham in Jewish and Christian tradition, to sacrifice his son as a test of faith, only to stop him at the last moment and provide an animal to sacrifice instead.

But in tiny Gaza, livestock cannot enter from the outside, and only one quarter of the pre-war's sheep population remains, or about 15,000 for the coastal territory's 2.1 million inhabitants, according to the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

"Regarding prices this year, sacrificial animals are witnessing an unprecedented increase due to the limited supply and the rising costs of breeding, feed, and transportation, and the shutdown of many farms," said Raafat Asaliya, spokesperson for Gaza's agriculture ministry.

As a result, "a sheep or goat that was sold before the war for around 1,000 shekels is now priced between 11,000 and 15,000 shekels," Asaliya said.

Gazans say they are shocked by the prices of sheep this year.

"We have never heard of such prices in our lives," Ahmed Abu Salem, a resident of Gaza City, told AFP.

"Families like ours, who used to make sacrifices every year, are now unable even to buy one kilogramme of meat for our children," the 50-year-old said.

Tent-made sweets

With gas in short supply, baking and cooking at home becomes an issue as well, Abu Ahmed Wafi, a 42-year-old displaced with his family in south Gaza, told AFP.

"The markets are mostly filled with kaak, maamoul, and sweets. We used to dream of making them at home as we always did before, but prices have risen sharply and there is no cooking gas available to bake them," Wafi said.

In the south Gaza city of Khan Yunis, one family managed to prepare trays of maamoul, the Eid biscuits, under a makeshift shelter covered in a reused tarp bearing the logo of UN children agency UNICEF.

Sitting on the ground, a woman and her daughter assembled the dough in circles Gaza-style, before a man baked them in a makeshift clay oven.

From her tent in Deir el-Balah, an exhausted Shamala hoped for better days.

"We are still living in tents with no atmosphere of joy, only worries, fear, and exhaustion, without any of the happiness we once knew," she said.

str-az-lba/jd/jfx/ane

suicide

Canadian who supplied poison for suicides to plead guilty

BY BEN SIMON

Prosser told AFP prosecutors had informed her that Law will plead guilty to counseling suicide, with the murder charges dropped, information also shared with Canadian media by Law's defense lawyer Matthew Gourlay.

A Canadian man accused of shipping poison to people contemplating suicide around the globe is expected to plead guilty to several counts on Friday, ending a case that has shocked the public.
Prosser told AFP prosecutors had informed her that Law will plead guilty to counseling suicide, with the murder charges dropped, information also shared with Canadian media by Law's defense lawyer Matthew Gourlay.

A Canadian man accused of shipping poison to people contemplating suicide around the globe is expected to plead guilty to several counts on Friday, ending a case that has shocked the public.

While Kenneth Law is set to admit to 14 charges of aiding or counseling suicide, Canadian prosecutors are withdrawing second degree murder charges, multiple sources have confirmed, causing anger among devastated families.

Law, 60, is a former chef accused of running a number of online forums that offered predominantly young, distressed people advice on how to end their lives.

He allegedly shipped parcels to hundreds of people in dozens of countries containing sodium nitrite, a legally available preservative that can be fatal in certain concentrations.

Kim Prosser's son Ashtyn took his own life in March 2023, weeks before Law's arrest. It is one of the 14 Canadian deaths at issue in the case being heard in Newmarket, just north of Toronto.

Prosser told AFP prosecutors had informed her that Law will plead guilty to counseling suicide, with the murder charges dropped, information also shared with Canadian media by Law's defense lawyer Matthew Gourlay.

The office of Ontario's attorney general told AFP Law will appear in person on Friday "to take a plea."

Prosser, who said she will attend the hearing, spoke of the excruciatingly painful three years since her son's death on March 30, 2023.

She said she received his ashes that April 13, her birthday, just two weeks before what would have been Ashtyn's 20th birthday.

"To be at the courthouse on Friday and to sit there... it's a beginning to another chapter of this process of healing," she said.

Prosser, who now works in holistic coaching and wellness, told AFP she understands other families are furious Law will not be held culpable for murder, but said she does not share that emotion.

'For me, it's murder'

David Parfett's son Thomas was 22 when he ended his own life in 2021 with materials allegedly supplied by Law.

Thomas's death is not part of the ongoing Canadian case, but is one of nearly 100 British suicides reportedly linked to Law's online forums.

Since Thomas's death, David Parfett has become an advocate for change, urging more rigorous legislation to confront online spaces that guide people toward harm.

He noted that while he is not a lawyer, he believes Canadian authorities were missing an opportunity to establish the gravity of Law's conduct.

"This was a man who was more than urging and assisting suicide," Parfett told AFP.

"If (Law) hadn't been offering detailed instructions about how to take your own life, then the chances are my son would still be here. So again, for me, it's murder," Parfett said.

Leonardo Bedoya --whose 18-year-old daughter Jeshennia Bedoya Lopez died in 2022, allegedly with Law's help -- told Canada's CTV he was furious with the plea deal.

"He's an assassin. A serial killer. They should treat him like a murderer," Bedoya told the network.

'Heinous crime'

Dalhousie University law professor Robert Currie told AFP prosecutors seeking to try Law for murder were handcuffed by a legal "gap."

Under Canadian law, it is not clear if "murder is a separate crime from counseling suicide, or whether the same conduct can make up both of those crimes," he said.

Prosecutors had hoped a Supreme Court decision in a separate case would resolve the uncertainty, but Canada's top judges "declined to clarify" the issue, Currie added.

Because Law's prosecutors doubted they could secure murder convictions, they're "going with the bird in hand," Currie said, stressing that counseling suicide is a serious offense.

Experts suggest Law is likely to be jailed for 10 to 20 years in Canada, depending on whether he receives concurrent or consecutive sentences, at a subsequent hearing.

"Given the heinous nature of this crime, I would be surprised if he didn't get something fairly stiff," Currie told AFP, noting Law could face further justice elsewhere, with extradition to the UK a plausible future step.

bs/sst

pope

Vance hails Pope Leo's AI encyclical as 'profound'

Leo XIV "is becoming pope at the beginning of the AI age, and I suspect that if we make it through this successfully, it will be in large part because the pope and the church are able to provide the kind of moral leadership that we need," Vance added.

US Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday praised Pope Leo XIV's manifesto warning of the risks of artificial intelligence, calling it "profound" and a necessary act of moral leadership in a disruptive AI age.
Leo XIV "is becoming pope at the beginning of the AI age, and I suspect that if we make it through this successfully, it will be in large part because the pope and the church are able to provide the kind of moral leadership that we need," Vance added.

US Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday praised Pope Leo XIV's manifesto warning of the risks of artificial intelligence, calling it "profound" and a necessary act of moral leadership in a disruptive AI age.

Vance has close ties to the tech industry, having worked as a venture capitalist before entering politics, and counts Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk among his most prominent backers.

In an encyclical called "Magnifica Humanitas" (Magnificent Humanity), the first US pope, who has clashed with the White House over the Iran war and its use of religion to justify conflict, set out on Monday a list of warnings about how the technology could impact humanity. Among other dangers he said AI could lead to "new forms of slavery."

"What I read of it sounds very profound, and the sort of thing that you would expect and hope from a leader of the church," Vance told NBC News in an interview.

"The thing about morality is that the principles never change, but the way you apply those principles does, because the world changes, right?" Vance added.

Vance and the Vatican have clashed over migration policy, with Pope Leo condemning the White House's policy on mass deportations.

The vice president, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, said he was happy that the pontiff, who is from Chicago, took the name Leo XIV when he took leadership of the Holy See last year.

"I think it was very much a nod to Leo XIII who, of course, became pope at the beginning of the Industrial Age" and similarly wrote a warning about the impact on humanity from major technological changes at the time.

Leo XIV "is becoming pope at the beginning of the AI age, and I suspect that if we make it through this successfully, it will be in large part because the pope and the church are able to provide the kind of moral leadership that we need," Vance added.

"I think we really need moral leadership to think through those questions, and that's exactly what the church is the best leader to do," Vance said.

arp/dw

museum

Louvre heist to be turned into film

Film rights to the book about the October 19, 2025 heist had been sold to the production company Iconoclast while rights for a documentary series were acquired by a British producer, the Flammarion publishing house said.

Last year's brazen robbery of the Louvre -- when thieves made off with jewellery worth some $100 million -- is set to become a movie and a documentary series, a publisher said on Tuesday.
Film rights to the book about the October 19, 2025 heist had been sold to the production company Iconoclast while rights for a documentary series were acquired by a British producer, the Flammarion publishing house said.

Last year's brazen robbery of the Louvre -- when thieves made off with jewellery worth some $100 million -- is set to become a movie and a documentary series, a publisher said on Tuesday.

French director Romain Gavras -- whose work includes 2025 Hollywood film "Sacrifice" starring Anya Taylor-Joy and music videos including most recently a hypnotic schoolboy choreography for GENER8ION -- will draw inspiration from the investigative book "Main basse sur le Louvre" (literally "A grab at the Louvre").

Film rights to the book about the October 19, 2025 heist had been sold to the production company Iconoclast while rights for a documentary series were acquired by a British producer, the Flammarion publishing house said.

The book, written by three journalists, from French dailies Le Parisien and Le Monde, and weekly glossy magazine Paris Match, is to hit bookstores on Wednesday.

According to trade magazine Le Film Francais, the movie project is in development, though neither the title nor the cast has been announced.

The Louvre heist sent shockwaves around the world and sparked a security crisis within the world-famous museum that ultimately led to the replacement of its director, Laurence des Cars.

After seven months of investigation, and despite the arrests of the main suspects, the jewels have still not been found.

The authors said their apparent disappearance "has become a dense mystery, a puzzle that has plunged investigators into deep confusion".

The heist illustrates how "the theft of artworks has become a business like any other for many criminals", they say. "The criminal underworld has found a new cash cow."

jri-as/ah-ekf/rmb

Islam

Saudi Arabia turns to drones to shield pilgrims from extreme heat

BY HAITHAM EL-TABEI

"Heat exhaustion is one of the main issues" during the hajj, said Saudi health official Jamil Abu Al-Aynayn.

With temperatures hitting 45C in Mecca this week, Saudi health workers have increasingly relied on drones to supply a vast array of medical clinics treating heat-stressed pilgrims during the hajj.
"Heat exhaustion is one of the main issues" during the hajj, said Saudi health official Jamil Abu Al-Aynayn.

With temperatures hitting 45C in Mecca this week, Saudi health workers have increasingly relied on drones to supply a vast array of medical clinics treating heat-stressed pilgrims during the hajj.

The rituals at the hajj have been a constant for centuries.

But technology is rapidly changing the experience for pilgrims and officials alike -- with AI, UAVs and mobile apps providing crucial services, logistical support and helping manage the mammoth crowds.

Rather than relying on congested roads filled with over 1.5 million pilgrims, drones in particular have proven to be a technological remedy for helping keep the 127 clinics spread across Mecca, Mina and Arafat adequately provisioned.

"The main goal is to provide fast service to the guests of God during the season," Fahd Al-Bathi, the chief operating officer at the National Unified Procurement Company (NUPCO), told AFP.

Preparations for the medical needs of the hajj season began nine months ago.

Standing before a colour-coded map of medical centres dotting the area, the NUPCO operations officer Turki Al-Obaidi said his teams work around the clock during the hajj.

"Our teams must ensure we reach patients as quickly as possible. This is a crucial factor with these extremely large crowds," he added.

Before the adoption of drones, drivers could spend over an hour en route to clinics running low on supplies.

Now, authorities have centralised operations around a sprawling centre that supplies drones with medications and other necessities.

"We are seeking to integrate new innovations through which we can ensure that medical supplies arrive safely, as quickly as possible, and with the highest quality," said Bathi.

In the operations room -- equipped with a giant data screen -- staff carefully track drone deliveries, while other employees use electric scooters to get around faster.

Drones are part of a growing arsenal of technology-led solutions aiming to better manage the hajj and the challenges presented by the searing desert climate.

Artificial intelligence has been deployed to help monitor the footage from thousands of cameras in and around the holy city of Mecca.

The new solutions help supplement more traditional methods to manage the heat, which include giant fans, trucks distributing free water and mist systems that help cool crowds.

"Heat exhaustion is one of the main issues" during the hajj, said Saudi health official Jamil Abu Al-Aynayn.

"We maintain a high and rapid level of readiness."

ht-ds/ser

investigation

Starbucks Korea reveals series of mishaps leading to 'Tank Day' campaign

BY KANG JIN-KYU

"This incident went beyond the question of whether individual employees were at fault and exposed a lack of social and historical sensitivity within Starbucks Korea," he said.

Starbucks Korea revealed on Tuesday a series of mishaps leading to its heavily criticised "Tank Day" promotion, including the use of AI to develop the campaign, which it said lacked "social and historical sensitivity".
"This incident went beyond the question of whether individual employees were at fault and exposed a lack of social and historical sensitivity within Starbucks Korea," he said.

Starbucks Korea revealed on Tuesday a series of mishaps leading to its heavily criticised "Tank Day" promotion, including the use of AI to develop the campaign, which it said lacked "social and historical sensitivity".

The company has faced outrage in South Korea for promoting a line of coffee cups with a campaign that evoked a deadly crackdown on a 1980 pro-democracy uprising.

The furor led to a "sharp decline in sales", and the dismissal of Son Jung-hyun, head of Starbucks Korea, according to the Shinsaege Group -- which operates the coffee chain in South Korea under a licensing agreement.

In a packed news conference in Seoul on Tuesday, Shinsegae executive Jeon Sang-jin said "priority was given to the speed and immediacy" of the campaign and "not a single objection was raised during either the planning or approval stages".

The campaign for "tank tumbler" cups was branded as "Tank Day" and launched on May 18, the anniversary of the Gwangju uprising.

Official figures record the crackdown on the revolt killed 165 civilians, with 65 listed as missing and 376 others later dying of injuries. Many believe the true toll was higher.

The Gwangju uprising forms the haunting backdrop to Nobel laureate Han Kang's novel Human Acts.

The employees involved said they had "asked AI for suggestions and that the May 18 anniversary had never even crossed their minds", he said of the findings from the internal probe.

It was unclear whether the team went ahead with the AI suggestions.

Jeon said those involved "denied any intentional wrongdoing, saying they only realised the campaign could be problematic after the issue drew public backlash".

The investigation also found that some of the seven officials who approved the campaign "had signed off on it, as a matter of routine, without even opening the attached design file contained in the email", Jeon said.

He added that "the legal team's review process, which had been conducted in the past, was also skipped".

"This incident went beyond the question of whether individual employees were at fault and exposed a lack of social and historical sensitivity within Starbucks Korea," he said.

'No excuses'

The internal investigation did not determine whether employees had intentionally planned to make light of the uprising.

Three of the five marketing team members also refused to hand over their mobile devices for forensic investigation, citing privacy concerns.

Police have launched a separate investigation which could see anyone found intentionally mocking the uprising dismissed from the company and legal action pursued against them, Jeon said.

Shinsegae chairman Chung Yong-jin bowed in apology over the incident during the Tuesday news briefing and asked for forgiveness from bereaved families of the victims of the May 18 Democratic Uprising.

"I will make no excuses. I take full responsibility for this matter."

He did not take questions from the media.

Broken mugs

Protests over the "Tank Promotion" have sparked a broader backlash from government bodies and public figures, including President Lee Jae Myung.

"I am outraged by this inhumane and disgraceful conduct, a profiteering stunt that denies the values of the South Korean community," Lee wrote on X last week.

The defence ministry said it had suspended a partnership project with Starbucks that had provided beverages to soldiers.

The controversy has also spread to the entertainment industry, with some celebrities facing criticism for being seen holding Starbucks coffee.

Others have posted videos and photos on social media of themselves breaking Starbucks mugs.

kjk-sjh/mtp

investigation

Starbucks Korea reveals series of mishaps leading to 'Tank Day' campaign

"This incident went beyond the question of whether individual employees were at fault and exposed a lack of social and historical sensitivity within Starbucks Korea," he said.

Starbucks Korea revealed on Tuesday a series of mishaps leading to its heavily criticised "Tank Day" promotion, including the use of AI to develop the campaign, which it said lacked "social and historical sensitivity".
"This incident went beyond the question of whether individual employees were at fault and exposed a lack of social and historical sensitivity within Starbucks Korea," he said.

Starbucks Korea revealed on Tuesday a series of mishaps leading to its heavily criticised "Tank Day" promotion, including the use of AI to develop the campaign, which it said lacked "social and historical sensitivity".

The company has faced outrage in South Korea for promoting a line of coffee cups with a campaign that evoked a deadly crackdown on a 1980 pro-democracy uprising.

The furor led to a "sharp decline in sales", and the dismissal of Son Jung-hyun, head of Starbucks Korea, according to the Shinsaege Group -- which operates the coffee chain in South Korea under a licensing agreement.

In a packed press conference in Seoul on Tuesday, Shinsegae executive Jeon Sang-jin said "priority was given to the speed and immediacy" of the campaign and "not a single objection was raised during either the planning or approval stages".