The US Central Command said on Friday that its naval forces in the Red Sea had intercepted three bomb-laden drones launched by the Houthi group in Yemen.

"In the past 24 hours, US Central Command forces successfully destroyed two Iranian-backed Houthi unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) over the Red Sea and one UAV in a Houthi-controlled area of Yemen," it said in a post on the social media platform X.

"It was determined these UAVs presented a clear and imminent threat to the US and coalition forces, and merchant vessels in the region," it added as quoted by news agency report.

Early on Friday, the Houthi group claimed responsibility for attacking a cargo ship in the Gulf of Aden and the Greek-flagged MV SOUNION oil tanker in the Red Sea, using missiles, boats and drones.

Since November last year, the Houthis have been targeting Israeli-linked ships to show solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Swami Bhitiharananda, a respected monk of the Ramakrishna Math, recently visited Desh Bhagat University to deliver an expert talk on value education to the fresher students. Drawing inspiration from the teachings and life of Swami Vivekananda, Swami Bhitiharananda shared profound insights into the importance of integrating spirituality with human life. He emphasized the timeless lessons of social work, selfless service and the principles of living a life guided by higher ideals. Swami Bhitiharananda’s discourse covered various aspects of Swami Vivekananda’s teachings, such as the significance of character-building, the power of self-confidence, and the role of education in shaping an individual’s life. 

Panjab University Chandigarh student council elections have been announced. According to the information received, voting will be held on September 5 and the results will come out on the same day. There are various student organizations active in Punjab University which raise the issues of students.

A bus carrying 40 Indian passengers in Nepal has plunged into a river. According to the reports, 14 passengers have lost their lives in the accident and the remaining 16 have succumbed to injuries.

The bus was travelling from Pokhra en route to Kathmandu.

"The bus, bearing number plate UP (Uttar Pradesh) FT 7623, plunged into the river," DSP Deepkumar Raya of Tanahun district said. The incident happened in the Tanahun district in Aaina Pahara.

Rescue operations are underway at the accident scene with a team of 45 police officers under the command of Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Madhav Paudel of the Armed Police Force Nepal Disaster Management Training School.

In Pokhara, Indian travellers resided at the Majheri Resort. On Friday morning, the bus departed Pokhara for Kathmandu.

The national civil aviation regulator DGCA has imposed a financial penalty of Rs 90 lakh on Tata Group-owned Air India Limited for operating a flight with non-qualified crew members, according to an official statement issued on Friday.

In addition, a penalty of Rs 6 lakh and Rs 3 lakh respectively has been imposed on the Director, Operations and Director, Training of Air India. The concerned pilot has also been warned to exercise caution to prevent such occurrences in future.

Air India operated a flight commanded by a non-trainer line captain paired with a non-line-released first officer, which has been viewed by the civil aviation regulator as a serious scheduling incident having significant safety ramifications.

The incident came to the notice of DGCA through a voluntary report submitted by Air India on July 10. Taking cognizance of this incident, the regulator undertook comprehensive investigations into Air India’s operations, including examination of documents and carrying out a spot check of the airline’s scheduling facility.

“Based on the investigation, it was prima facie revealed that there are deficiencies and multiple violations to the regulatory provisions by several post holders and staff, which could significantly affect safety,” the DGCA said.

South Korea, the US, and Japan are planning to hold a meeting in Washington, D.C., in October to discuss North Korean human rights issues, Seoul's Unification Ministry said.

The meeting, to be hosted by the US State Department in early October, will involve government officials and civilian experts, the Ministry said on Friday.

"The meeting will serve as a forum to address various issues related to North Korea, including human rights," said Kim In-ae, the Deputy Spokesperson for the Ministry, during a press briefing.

The event is reportedly a follow-up to the historic trilateral summit held at Camp David in Maryland last August, which brought together South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, news agency reported.

Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho is likely to attend the event, according to sources.

The Meteorological Department of Patna issued a warning for ‘moderate’ to ‘heavy’ rainfall in 17 districts of Bihar on Friday even as many rivers are in spate in the state with the water levels flowing above the danger mark.

Residents in these areas, especially in Patna, Bhojpur, Arwal, Jehanabad, Gaya, Nalanda, West Champaran, East Champaran, Gopalganj, Siwan, Saran, Aurangabad, Khagaria, Jamui, Banka, Bhagalpur, and Munger, have been advised to avoid agricultural fields due to the risk of lightning strikes predicted during the rain.

In addition, heavy rainfall in Nepal's catchment areas has led to a rise in the water level of the Gandak River, which is now flowing above the danger mark at Dumaria Ghat in Gopalganj District.

The current water level there is 62.77 meters, 55 centimeters above the danger level.

Residents in the affected districts have been urged to remain vigilant and follow safety precautions.

All nine people aboard a small plane are feared dead after rescuers found no survivors at the crash site in Chachoengsao, Thailand, local media reported on Friday.

The Thai Flying Service Cessna Caravan C208 (HS-SKR) crashed on Thursday, shortly after taking off from Suvarnabhumi Airport, reports.

The aircraft, which had nine people onboard, lost contact with the Suvarnabhumi control tower around 3:00 P.M. local time. The crash occurred at 3:18 P.M. near Wat Khao Din in the Bang Pakong district of Chachoengsao.

Following an 11-hour search operation, the plane's wreckage was discovered in a mangrove forest submerged in mud.

Rescuers employed pumps to drain water and excavated mud approximately 10 meters deep and eight meters wide to reach the wreckage.

Several human body parts were also recovered during the search.

Head teachers in Fiji have been urged to step up efforts to effectively address cyberbullying incidents.

The guidance aims to ensure such matters are managed appropriately and comprehensively within educational institutions, said Josua Naisele, chief executive of the Education Ministry Substance Abuse Advisory Council, on Friday, during the 41st Fiji Head Teachers Association Annual Conference.

He said victims of cyberbullying will be provided with counselling services facilitated by their schools according to the guidelines, news agency reported quoting Fiji Broadcasting Corporation.

Parents have the option to report incidents to the police if necessary, Naisele said, adding that in such cases, the authorities will investigate and take further action as required.

Market regulator Security and Exchanges Board of India (SEBI) has barred Anil Ambani and 24 other entities from the capital market for five years, restraining the businessman from being associated with any listed company.

SEBI barred the industrialist and 24 other entities for diversion of funds from Reliance Home Finance Ltd (RHFL). The markets regulator imposed a penalty of Rs 25 crore on Anil Ambani and restrained him from being associated with the securities market, including as a director or key managerial personnel in any listed company, or any intermediary registered with the market regulator, for five years.

Further, the regulator barred Reliance Home Finance Ltd from the securities market for six months with a fine of Rs 6 lakh.

In a 222-page order, SEBI said that Anil Ambani, with the help of RHFL's key managerial personnel, orchestrated a fraudulent scheme to siphon off funds from RHFL by disguising them as loans to entities linked to him.

“The Board of Directors of RHFL issued strong directives to stop such lending practices and reviewed corporate loans regularly but the company's management ignored these orders. This suggests a significant failure of governance, driven by certain key managerial personnel under the influence of Anil Ambani,” SEBI stated.