Hard numbers: China raises retirement age, Cocaine found in sharks, Russia and Belarusian athletes accused of supporting Ukraine war, Deadly Ethiopian mudslides

​Chinese retirement home.
Chinese retirement home.
65: China is beginning to gradually raise its retirement age over the next five years to cope with its aging population and overburdened pension system. China’s current retirement age is one of the lowest in the world: 60 for men and between 50-55 for women. Meanwhile, the country’s life expectancy has risen above that of the US, to 78 years. At the end of the adjustment, China’s retirement age is expected to be 65.

13: In the real-life sequel to “Cocaine Bear,” 13 sharks have tested positive for cocaine off of the coast of Brazil – at a level 100 times higher than other aquatic life. Experts believe cocaine is getting into the water via illegal labs illegally manufacturing the drug, or through excrement of drug users.

17: A human rights law firm has accused the International Olympic Committee of negligence for allowing 17 Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in the Summer Games in Paris even though the competitors have shown support for the war in Ukraine in breach of Olympic rules. Russia and Belarus have been banned from sending official teams to Paris. Still, some sports allow athletes to compete as individuals if they have passed a special IOC test of neutrality – which the law firm’s suit alleges they violated.

229: At least 229 people have died in mudslides this week following heavy rains in southwestern Ethiopia in the deadliest such disaster recorded in the Horn of Africa country. Most of the victims were rescue workers who were buried in a mudslide on Monday as they searched the steep terrain for survivors of another mudslide the previous day.

More from GZERO Media

- YouTube

On GZERO World, Ian Bremmer delves into the modern space race and its role as a critical domain for global security with Arizona Senator and former astronaut Mark Kelly. They discuss China’s growing ambitions, the future of the International Space Station, and the evolving role of private companies like SpaceX in shaping US space policy.

As the island nation attempts to crawl its way out of a crippling economic crisis, Sri Lanka’s leading presidential candidates are promising a fairer shake for ordinary families — but will voters demand an upheaval of the entrenched aristocracy?
REUTERS

As the island nation attempts to crawl its way out of a crippling economic crisis, Sri Lanka’s leading presidential candidates are promising a fairer shake for ordinary families — but will voters demand an upheaval of the entrenched aristocracy?

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro delivers a speech during a rally to celebrate the results of last month's presidential election, in Caracas, Venezuela August 28, 2024.
REUTERS/Fausto Torrealba/File Photo

Six foreign nationals, including three American, two Spanish, and one Czech citizen, were arrested in Venezuela on Saturday, accused of plotting to assassinate strongman President Nicolás Maduro.

FILE PHOTO: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with Chairman of NATO's military committee, Admiral Rob Bauer, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine March 21, 2024.
Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS

Five people were killed Saturday in Russian aerial attacks on the Ukrainian city of Odessa and a farm in the Zaporizhzhia region.

People, mainly Houthi supporters, rally to mark the anniversary of the birth of the Prophet Mohammad and to show solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in Sanaa, Yemen, September 15, 2024.
REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday vowed that the Houthis would pay a “heavy price” after a missile fired from Yemen struck central Israel.

Law enforcement officers on the scene after reports of shots fired outside Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump's Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Sept. 15, 2024.

REUTERS/Marco Bello

Donald Trump is safe after a gunman was apprehended near the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Sunday. The FBI confirms that it had “responded to and is investigating what appears to be an attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.”

Mastercard’s Start Path Open Banking and Embedded Finance startup engagement program is designed to support and collaborate with fintechs to democratize financial services while keeping consumers in control of their data. One participant, Payitoff, is a white-label solution that provides banks and fintechs with the technology to help people manage student loans and other debt. Built on online banking technology, Payitoff can be embedded into fintech and banking platforms to provide clients with a 360-degree picture of their financial profile. The benefits can be life-changing: Reducing monthly debt repayments can improve credit scores, which gives people a better chance of getting mortgages to buy homes or loans to launch businesses. Learn more here.