Is nuclear war imminent? Not quite yet, as North Korea has failed to launch a missile on its east coast, according to South Korean and US military officials – a day after Pyongyang warned the US amid rising tension in the region. The US said a ballistic missile exploded within seconds of the launch. Hours earlier, North Korea paraded what appeared to be long-range ballistic missiles at a major military display. It has already conducted five nuclear tests and a series of missile launches in contravention of UN resolutions.
Over in Kirkuk, a number of arsonists set fire to one of the Turkmen party headquarters on Saturday (April 15) in Kirkuk’s sub-district of Laylan. According to the head of the party Riyaz Sari Kahya, the party’s headquarters had been torched “deliberately” and an investigation has been launched into the incident. Ali Ikram, spokesperson of the Turkmenli Party in Kirkuk, accused the arsonists of wanting to disrupt “peace and security” in the city and wanting “to cause distrust between the components of the province.” Thankfully, the arson attack caused no casualties.
Lastly, in lighter news, Harry Styles’s debut single “Sign of the Times” has broken Ed Sheeran’s 13-week spell at the top of the charts. The One Direction star has achieved his first number one as a solo artist with this release – the first from his self-titled debut album. His song sold 3,000 copies more than Sheeran’s “Shape of You”, with just under 40,000 downloads and 3.5 million streams, according to the Official Charts Company.
Wishing you all a happy Easter Sunday.
