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CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli and Nepali Communist Party Coordinator Pushpa Kamal Dahal held a meeting at the residence of businessman Sharada Prasad Adhikari in Manbhawan, Lalitpur on Sunday. 

Adhikari is a trusted and close businessman of Dahal.

They had a conversation for over an hour, according to a source. 

After holding a meeting with Dahal, Oli went straight to Gundu, Bhaktapur. 

With the unification of new parties for the House of Representatives elections scheduled for March 5, informal discussions are underway among the leaders of the three major political parties—Nepali Congress, UML and the Nepali Communist Party—for electoral alliance.

However, the alliance has not been finalized.

They discussed contemporary political issues and electoral alliance for the forthcoming elections, Dahal Secretariat said.

Meanwhile, Dahal is leaving for India to take part in a program today. 

North Korea launched multiple ballistic missiles into the sea on Sunday, just hours before South Korean President Lee Jae Myung departed for China for high-level talks expected to address Pyongyang’s nuclear program. According to AP, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said several missiles were fired from the North’s capital region around 7:50 am, flying about 900 kilometers. South Korea and the United States are analyzing the launches and coordinating closely with Japan.

Japan’s defense minister confirmed at least two launches, calling them a serious threat to regional and global security. The tests are the latest in a series of weapons demonstrations ahead of North Korea’s anticipated ruling party congress, where new policies toward the US may be announced. The launches also added urgency to Lee’s China visit, during which he plans to urge Beijing to play a constructive role in easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula. South Korea later convened an emergency security meeting, condemning the launches as violations of UN resolutions.

Myanmar’s military government granted amnesty to more than 6,100 prisoners on Sunday to mark the 78th anniversary of the country’s independence from Britain. State-run MRTV reported that junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing pardoned 6,134 inmates, while a separate statement said 52 foreign prisoners would be released and deported. Authorities did not clarify whether the freed detainees included political prisoners jailed for opposing military rule.

The move comes as the military advances a monthlong, three-stage election process that critics say is meant to legitimize its continued grip on power. Some prisoners also received reduced sentences, excluding those convicted of serious crimes or security-related offenses. Releases, common during national holidays, began Sunday and are expected to take several days.

Former information minister Ye Htut was among those freed, but there was no indication that ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi, serving a 27-year sentence, would be released.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung arrived in China on Sunday for a four-day visit as Beijing seeks to strengthen ties with Seoul amid tensions over Taiwan. The trip is Lee’s first to China since taking office in June and follows strained relations between China and Japan after remarks by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi about military involvement if China acts against Taiwan.

China’s state news agency Xinhua said Lee landed in Beijing, where he will meet President Xi Jinping, marking their second meeting in two months. Ahead of the visit, Lee told state broadcaster CCTV that his government values relations with China and respects the One-China policy. He said bilateral ties depend on mutual respect and described Xi as a reliable neighbor.

China held military drills around Taiwan after US arms sales to the island. Lee said South Korea’s alliance with Washington should not lead to confrontation with Beijing.

The habitat of the black pangolin, which is on the critically endangered list of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), has been found in Khotang. 

The Nature Conservation and Study Center (NCSC), in collaboration with local community forest users' committees, confirmed the presence of the black scaly anteaters in the community forests of two local levels in Khotang through about six months of camera trapping. 

The habitat of the animal has been confirmed through camera trapping in various community forests of Jalpa and Kharmi in Diktel Rupakot Majhuwagadhi Municipality and in Haunchur of Rawa Bensi Rural Municipality. 

According to the Nature Conservation and Study Center, 16 species of mammalian wildlife have been recorded living in the community forests of these three wards.

Videos and photographs of one critically endangered species, three vulnerable species, two species near threatened, and 10 least concerned species of mammals have been captured. Among them, the discovery of the black pangolin has been regarded as a significant achievement, according to Jeevan Rai, Executive Director of the Nature Conservation and Study Centre (NCSC).

It has been reported that a program was conducted to enhance the capacity of communities involved in community forests to carry out camera trapping themselves for monitoring and conserving the biodiversity and wildlife in their areas. 

Thirteen camera traps were set up in various community forests in Jalpa-12, Kharmi-11 of Diktel Rupakot Majhuwagadhi Municipality and Haunchur-6 of Rawabensi Rural Municipality.

Nasa has said it hopes to send astronauts on a ten-day trip around the Moon as soon as February, BBC reported. 

The US space agency had previously committed to launching no later than the end of April but said it aims to bring the mission forward.

It's been 50 years since any country has flown a crewed lunar mission. Nasa will send four astronauts there and back to test systems, according to BBC. 

The United States has advised airlines its Caribbean airspace curbs will expire at midnight ET (0500 GMT) and flights could resume as schedules are quickly updated, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on Saturday, Reuters reported. 

The comments on X followed the cancelation of hundreds of flights by major airlines after the US attack on Venezuela and the capture of its president, Nicolas Maduro.

Key carriers United Airlines ‍and ⁠Delta were readying to resume flights to the Caribbean by Sunday, according to Reuters. 

The Department of Hydrology and Meteorology has predicted that rainfall this winter season would be below average. 

As per the estimation, rainfall would be below the average from January 1 to February 28 across the country. 

Information Officer at the Department, Dinakar Kayastha, shared that the below-average rainfall had occurred in last December and below-average rainfall would be witnessed in coming days as well. 

He added that Sudurpaschim Province, north part of Karnali Province and northwestern part of Gandaki Province would witness below-average rainfall, average rainfall and above- average rainfall respectively. 

Central parts of Sudurpaschim Province, southern part of Karnali, Lumbini and Gandaki Provinces, most of the parts of Bagmati Province, central part of Madhes Province and western part of Koshi Province  will witness below-average rainfall (with 55-65 per cent chance).

Kayastha mentioned that below-average rainfall is predicted in south-western part of Sudurpaschim Province, northern part of Lumbini Province, central part of Gandaki Province, central part of Bagmati Province, eastern and western part of Madhesh Province and central and south part of Koshi Province (with 45-55 percent chance). 

As per the estimation, the remaining parts of the country would also witness below-average rainfall (with 35-45 per cent chance).

According to preliminary data received so far, below-average rainfall was recorded across the country last December. 

The Department said this assessment was prepared based on climate model assessments of the World Meteorological Organisation's global and regional climate information production centers. 

It was also prepared taking into account the current situation of the El Nino phenomenon developing in the Eastern Pacific-ocean, which affects Nepal's winter climate, and Indian Ocean Dipole developing in the Indian Ocean, he added.