Israel on Tuesday launched its latest spy satellite into space from an undisclosed site, the Defence Ministry said.

The Ofek 19 satellite was built by state-run Israel Aerospace Industries.

“Ofek 19 is a highly advanced SAR (synthetic aperture radar) observation satellite with enhanced capabilities. Upon entering Earth’s orbit, the satellite will undergo a series of designated tests to assess its integrity and performance,” the ministry said in a statement.

Israel has launched Ofek observation satellites since 1988 for monitoring and intelligence gathering for the military.

Internet users in India, Pakistan, and parts of the Middle East faced widespread disruptions after subsea cable systems in the Red Sea were damaged, according to internet observatory NetBlocks. The outage has highlighted the vulnerability of global digital infrastructure that depends heavily on undersea cables for connectivity.

According to Reuters, the impact of the outage was not limited to South Asia. Users in the United Arab Emirates also reported difficulties in accessing online services, particularly those using Etisalat and Du networks. NetBlocks confirmed the disruptions and traced the problem to failures in cable systems near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Indian filmmaker Anuparna Roy has won Best Director award in the Orizzonti section at the 82nd Venice Film Festival. This section highlights new and indie films. Her film, Songs of Forgotten Trees, was the only Indian entry in this category and tells the story of two migrant women in Mumbai. The award was announced by Julia Ducournau, president of the Orizzonti jury.

Vetern U.S. director Jim Jarmusch won festival’s top honor, the Golden Lion for Best Film, for his movie Father Mother Sister Brother. The film explores family dynamics and generational tension, with scenes set in New Jersey, Dublin, and Paris. The Silver Lion runner-up award was given to The Voice of Hind Rajab, directed by Tunisia’s Kaouther Ben Hania. Based on a true story of a young Palestinian girl killed during the Gaza war.

Toni Servillo won Best Actor for his role as a weary president in Paolo Sorrentino’s Italian film La Grazia while the Best Actress award went to Chinese star Xin Zhilei for her performance in The Sun Rises On Us All. Benny Safdie was named Best Director in the main competition for The Smashing Machine. Italian director Gianfranco Rosi received a special jury prize for his black-and-white documentary Below the Clouds.

Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh has felicitated the student winners in New Delhi, comprising the Indian team at the 18th International Earth Science Olympiad (IESO-2025) held at Jining in China last month.

Team India put up a stellar performance by securing a total of seven medals including one Gold, 4 Silver and 2 Bronze, along with a 3rd Prize in the International Geoscience Youth Movement Reporter category.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Jitendra Singh lauded the young achievers for bringing glory to the nation and said the results reflect the new aspirational spirit among youth, particularly from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, after India’s startup revolution in the last decade. The Minister underlined that the National Education Policy (NEP-2020) has unleashed the creative potential of young minds by freeing them from the limitations of rigid subject streams and enabling them to explore diverse disciplines.

Max Verstappen stormed to victory at the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday, September 7, taking the chequered flag from pole position and shattering Michael Schumacher’s long-standing record for the fastest race in Formula 1 history.

The Red Bull driver completed the 53 laps at Monza in 1 hour, 13 minutes and 24.32 seconds, eclipsing Schumacher’s 2003 benchmark of 1 hour, 14 minutes and 19.838 seconds. That race, also at Monza, had stood as the sport’s speed record for more than two decades.

Reflecting on the win, Verstappen said: “Lap 1 was a bit unlucky but after that we were flying. The car was really enjoyable, I could manage the pace and we pitted at the right time. Just fantastic execution by everyone. Step by step, race by race — but this was for us an unbelievable weekend.”

The central government on Thursday said it has notified rules regarding service matters related to benefits under the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) in respect of its employees.

“The Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare has notified in the official Gazette on the Central Civil Services (Implementation of the Unified Pension Scheme under the National Pension System) Rules, 2025 for regulating the service matters relating to benefits under the Unified Pension Scheme in respect of Central Government employees opting for UPS as an option under the NPS,” the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions said in a statement on Thursday.

The Ministry further said that the Central Civil Services (Implementation of the Unified Pension Scheme under the National Pension System) Rules, 2025 will cover various topics.

The International Cricket Council announced that the upcoming edition of the eight-team women’s ODI World Cup will take place from September 30 to November 2 across five venues in India and Sri Lanka.

The Sri Lankan capital will be organising all games featuring Pakistan.

The venues for the knockouts will depend on Pakistan‘s qualification, as two alternative venues have been identified for one semifinal and the final.

The eight teams that will feature in the Women’s World Cup are India, Australia, England, South Africa, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. The teams will clash in 28 league matches in a round-robin format.

Aadhaar authentication transactions increased by 10 per cent year-on-year to 221 crore in August 2025, Unique Identification Authority of India said on Thursday.

Aadhaar custodian Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) said the Aadhaar Face Authentication solutions are also witnessing consistent growth, with at least 18.6 crore transactions recorded in August 2025 compared to 6.04 crore a year ago.

"Aadhaar number holders executed over 221 crore authentication transactions in August 2025, more than the previous month this year, as well as the corresponding month in the previous fiscal. The August 2025 authentication transactions are over 10.3 per cent more than such transactions recorded in August 2024," UIDAI said in a statement.

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has announced a significant increase in UPI transaction limits for certain categories. The move is aimed at facilitating high-value transactions.

From September 15, verified merchants under tax payments, capital markets, and insurance categories can carry out transactions under the enhanced limit. As per the circular issued on August 28, NPCI has increased the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transaction limit to Rs 5 lakh.

“NCPI has increased the per transaction limits for entities under categories aligned to tax payments to Rs 5 lakh. With UPI emerging as a preferred payment method, there are requirements from the market on extending higher per transaction limits for additional categories of transactions in UPI," the circular read.

Under the MoU, ICICI Bank will design and roll out a Startup Engagement Programme, which will be hosted on the Startup India portal. The programme will be seamlessly integrated with Startup India’s broader outreach and visibility initiatives to ensure maximum adoption and awareness. Startup India will support ICICI Bank in amplifying communication, managing programme visibility, and enabling connections with DPIIT-recognised startups across India.

The initiative will provide selected startups with access to ICICI Bank’s Mumbai-based accelerator facility, including dedicated workspace. They will benefit from a structured curriculum and mentorship by industry leaders, along with opportunities to run pilot programmes with ICICI Bank business units to validate product-market fit. The programme will also extend networking opportunities with venture capital firms, investors, and potential clients, in addition to enabling participation in industry-specific workshops and innovation showcases.