The Weekly Focus Edition 58
Taliban in Afghanistan
Trigger Warning: Extremism
Afghanistan is a beautiful Asian country stuck in the midst of proxy wars, extremist invasions and more. The Taliban, an extremist force, is spreading extremely fast and gaining power in several border towns. The US withdrawal of troops by September 11th 2021 is reducing security by the hour and safety is at risk. The Afghan government is trying their best to help maintain a safe country. Moscow has stepped in, advising the Afghan government to start proper negotiations. It is crucial to stay safe and maintain a stable government. The country is in dire condition and will need international help to maintain its sovereignty.
Space Tourism
Richard Branson, the billionaire and founder of Virgin Atlantic recently went to space. Jeff Bezos is also all set to go to space as well. Both of these billionaires have one goal: to make Space tourism a reality and have it running in the next couple of years. They have already sold over 600 tickets, with the price of a quarter-million dollars each. Celebrities such as Justin Bieber, Leonardo Di Caprio, Lady Gaga and Tom Hanks have booked a seat, as well as Elon Musk, the second richest man on Earth and fellow space explorer. This could be the foundation of a whole new industry and a whole new era. This could be an incredibly progressive era for humanity as space travel becomes more accessible. Obviously, only the richest of the richest can book a flight as of now, but in the future, a space ticket may become more affordable, like a plane ticket. Just like the 60s were known for the Space Race, the 20s could also hold that title as time passes.
T20 World Cup Groups
The groups of the T20 world cup have been announced. We can prepare ourselves for some mouth watering encounters this year. The world cup begins on 17th October in Oman and UAE and ends on the 14th of November. The first 6-8 days will go in the First Round in which there are two groups, Group A including-
Sri Lanka
Ireland
Netherlands
Namibia.
The Group B includes-
Bangladesh
Scotland
Papua New Guinea
Oman
After that the winner of Group A and runner up of Group B will go into Group 1 of the round of 12 and the Group B winner and Group A runner up will go into the Group 2
round of 12. Group 1 contains:
England,
Australia,
South Africa
West Indies
Group 2 contains:
India,
Pakistan,
New Zealand,
Afghanistan
and the two qualifying teams.
India and Pakistan will be playing a match after over two years. The venues for the
T20 world cup are- Dubai International Stadium, the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu
Dhabi, the Sharjah Stadium, and the Oman Cricket Academy Ground. The schedule will
be released in a few days.
Other News
Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro was hospitalised after a severe case of persistent hiccups.
A Chinese man was reunited with his long lost son after 24 years, once the government launched a nationwide campaign to find him after he was kidnapped aged 2.
The Adani Group took over control of the Mumbai International Airport, promising to develop it further.
Italy bans cruise ships in the city of Venice after UNESCO urged them to do so.
22 Earthquakes hit Taiwan in the span of 2 hours, with 0 casualties reported so far
Italy beat England 3-2 in Penalties to claim their second ever Euro Cup.
Argentina beat Brazil 1-0 in the Copa America Final, handing Messi his first ever international tournament victory
Novak Djokovic equals Nadal and Federer at 20 Grand Slam titles after beating Matteo Berrettini 3 sets to 1 in the Wimbledon.
England beat Pakistan 3-0 in an ODI series, with a second-string squad.
Rishabh Pant, along with team staff test positive for Covid-19 as the team begins to return to the bubble after a 20-day break.
Tech News
Xiaomi has taken over Apple to be the 2nd best selling smartphone brand.
Google releases more patches for another security update.
Plenty new releases lined up for India in the mobile category.
iPhone users can now delete the last 15 minutes of their Google search history.
Anne With An E
Genre: Coming of Age
Available on: Netflix
Hurdled into the farm of Green Gables, ‘Anne With An E’ is a beautiful, I’ll agree sometimes slow, series on Netflix. It follows the life of an orphan, Anne, and how she finds a way into the world without dismantling her imagination, empowerment and smile. Anne stumbles across problems with family, friendship, and society as a whole, as they initially refuse to accept her into their world. It is highly recommended and showered with praise not only from me but from every single viewer I have come across. As Anne grows older, crushes sweep into view, problems get bigger- and the series ends (hopefully not ends) with a heart-clenching scene that every fan of the show has been waiting for.
On 11th July 1944, Franklin Roosevelt publicised his desire to run for a fourth term as POTUS.
On 12th July 1998, France won their first football World Cup after beating Brazil in the finals.
On 13th July 1930, the 1st ever football World Cup commenced.
On 14th July 1933, Hitler banned all non-Nazi parties in Germany.
On 15th July 1099, the Christians temporarily recaptured Jerusalem during the First Crusade.
On 16th July 2017, Roger Federer beat Marin Čilić to win a record 8th Wimbledon men’s title.
On 17th July 1945, the Potsdam Conference (the first post World War II meeting was held.
Bees can sting other bees!
Written by Vivaan Dharamshi
Edited by Nirvaan Zaveri
Article 1 by Arhaan Zaveri
Article 3 by Krishnav Bubna
Tech News by Krishnav Bubna
Review by Dia Makhecha
This Week in History by Nirvaan Zaveri