Thailand and Cambodia have agreed to an “immediate and unconditional” cease-fire from midnight to resolve deadly border clashes.
Day: July 28, 2025
Kazakh Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov has urged the five Caspian littoral states to coordinate efforts in response to the steadily declining water levels of the Caspian Sea, describing it as one of the region’s most pressing environmental threats.
Speaking at the inaugural International Environmental Conference in Manzherok, Russia, Bektenov emphasized the urgency of a collective response.
“Since the early 2000s, the water level in the Caspian Sea has been steadily declining. To study this and other challenges, Kazakhstan has established the Caspian Sea Research Institute. Scientists’ forecasts are alarming. We need decisive joint measures,” Bektenov stated, according to his press service.
The Caspian Sea is bordered by Kazakhstan, Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan. As previously reported by The Times of Central Asia, the sea’s water level dropped to less than 29 meters below sea level by summer 2025, a historic low. The northern Caspian, which borders Kazakhstan and Russia, is experiencing the most rapid desiccation.
In addition to the Caspian issue, Bektenov addressed other major environmental concerns. He highlighted Kazakhstan’s work in the Aral Sea region, where the country currently chairs the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea. Key priorities include reinforcing the Kokaral Dam, restoring the Syr Darya delta, revitalizing the fishing industry, and reforesting the dried seabed.
Kazakhstan is also establishing a saxaul nursery on the desiccated Aral seabed to produce 1.5 million seedlings annually. The goal is to cover up to 40% of Kazakhstan’s portion of the former sea with saxaul forests.
Bektenov also underscored the growing threat of glacier melt. Experts warn that Central Asia’s glaciers could shrink significantly by 2100. The UNESCO Central Asian Regional Glaciological Center, based in Almaty, is already serving as a key platform for research and monitoring.
Kazakhstan, he added, is ready to implement joint hydrotechnical initiatives, including reservoir regulation and the introduction of automated water accounting systems.
Bektenov concluded by noting the symbolic importance of the forum’s location in the Altai region, often regarded as the cradle of Turkic civilization and a cornerstone of cultural and humanitarian cooperation.
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- The British rock band Oasis kicked off a new world tour on July 4 after an almost 16-year hiatus.
- Fans complained about long queues for expensive tickets after the tour was announced last year.
- But I saw them play at London’s Wembley Stadium on Friday, and boy, was it worth it.
I set myself up for disappointment on Friday.
Sitting in a packed-out tube carriage heading to London’s Wembley Stadium, I had high expectations for the night ahead.
The sun was out, the drinks had been flowing, and more importantly, Oasis was back.
But as a lifelong sports fan who’s experienced one too many heartbreaks, I’ve learned to be a little suspicious when things seem “too good.”
I need not have worried, however.
It had been 16 years since brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher infamously split following a spat ahead of a scheduled set in Paris — and the occasion was lost on no one.
The band was on ferociously good form right from the raucous openers “Hello” and “Acquiesce” through to the epic climax of “Champagne Supernova.”
There was no time for “kiss cams” here. The 90,000-strong crowd locked onto every word as the group rolled off many of its most iconic numbers and paid tribute to the late, great Ozzy Osbourne.
Samir Hussein/WireImage
A year ago, however, some of the initial buzz over Oasis’ unexpected comeback announcement was dampened slightly by controversy over the alleged use of surge ticket pricing, which companies selling products online sometimes use to increase prices as market demand rises.
Many Oasis fans had to queue for hours to secure tickets through Ticketmaster and saw the cost of some tickets shoot from £135, or about $181, to more than £350, which is around $470. I got off lightly, paying £150.
Ticketmaster has denied using a “dynamic pricing” model. Andrew Parsons, managing director at Ticketmaster UK, told MPs earlier this year that the platform does not change prices in “any automated or algorithmic way,” adding that they are set in advance with “event organisers and their teams.”
Other fans faced the prospect of skyrocketing prices on secondary sites.
One London-based fan who missed out on tickets on Ticketmaster told Business Insider at the time that he’d seen tickets listed for as much as £6,347 on one secondary site.
Friday night’s concert was also anything but cheap. A pint of beer broke the dreaded £8 barrier. T-shirts emblazoned with the brothers’ faces or the band’s logo were going for £40, while anything from the Adidas Originals x Oasis collection cost considerably more — I spied one “football shirt” selling for £85.
Oasis is set to play seven shows at Wembley this year. The Live ’25 Tour will also see the group perform at venues across North America, including Chicago’s Soldier Field, the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, and the Rogers Stadium in Toronto.
Nathan Rennolds
For those lucky enough to have gotten tickets to Friday’s show, any lingering bitterness over pricing seemed to have evaporated completely by the time the band stepped off stage.
It wasn’t just the chance of seeing two of rock and roll’s most charismatic characters back together — it was a few hours of unfiltered joy and camaraderie that one should not take for granted these days.
If you asked me now how much I’d have paid to go to the concert, I’d struggle to put a number on it. It’s an experience that feels impossible to quantify but that will certainly live forever.
Read the original article on Business Insider
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The Russian airline Aeroflot was forced to cancel dozens of flights on Monday after a shadowy pro-Ukraine hacking group claimed responsibility for what it said was a crippling cyber-attack.
The national carrier did not provide further details about the cause of the problem or how long it would take to resolve, but departure boards at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport turned red as flights were cancelled at a time when many Russians take their holidays.