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• US President Donald Trump has said Iran "appears to be standing down" after it fired missiles at air bases housing US forces in Iraq.


• Mr. Trump, in a televised address from the White House, said no US or Iraqi lives were lost in the attacks and the bases suffered only minimal damage.


• Iran said it acted in retaliation after the assassination of top Iranian General Qasem Soleimani last week.

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• The UK and the EU will remain the "best of friends" but they will "not be as close as before" after Brexit, the new European Commission president has said.


• Speaking ahead of talks with the PM, Ursula von der Leyen warned it would be "impossible" to reach a comprehensive trade deal by the end of 2020.


• She said if the deadline was not extended it was not a case of "all or nothing", but of priorities.

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• Iraq’s President Barham Saleh condemned Iran’s missile strikes on Iraqi bases where US and other foreign troops are based, saying he feared “dangerous developments” in the region.


• “We denounce the Iranian missile bombing that hit military installations on Iraqi territory and renew our rejection of the repeated violation of state sovereignty and the transformation of Iraq into a battlefield for warring sides,” his office said in a statement.

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• A Ukrainian airliner crashed soon after taking off from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini airport, killing all 176 people aboard, Iran’s state television and Ukraine’s leaders said.


• The Boeing 737 belonging to Ukraine International Airlines crashed near the airport and burst into flames. Iranian TV said the crash was due to technical problems but did not elaborate.


• Ukraine’s embassy in Iran said the plane had suffered engine failure and the crash was not caused by “terrorism”.

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• When Master Chief Petty Officer (musician) Vincent Johnson marches down Rajpath during the Republic Day parade on January 26, he will have the rare distinction of taking part in the spectacular parade for the 16th time.


• The 48-year-old musician will lead an 80-man naval band as its drum major in front of almost 150,000 attendees, with millions watching India’s most loved ceremonial event on their televisions at home.

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• A committee chaired by Rajasthan chief secretary shortlisted two aviation firms for buying new multi-engine turbofan (jet) engine airplane worth Rs 200 crore for state dignitaries, said a senior official, privy to the development on the condition of anonymity.


• The government of Rajasthan on October 15, 2019, had invited global expression of interest (EoI) to purchase a luxury plane with 10 executive club seats, excluding flight crew.


• The airplane is being bought to fly senior dignitaries and government officials, to promote tourism and carry out other administrative requirements, according to the expression of interest released last year.

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• Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren announced that the state administration has recommended dropping the sedition charges slapped against 3,000 people for taking part in a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in Wasseypur area.


• "Laws are not made to frighten and silence the people but to instill a feeling of safety in the public.

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• The Navy's Republic Day tableau will showcase the country's first indigenous aircraft carrier Vikrant with MiG-29K aircraft, Kalvari submarines and depict the force's humanitarian assistance during the Maharashtra floods last year.


• A model of the tableau was unveiled at the Kota House in New Delhi.

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• A group of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) students and teachers have filed a petition in the Allahabad High Court, seeking probe into the role of the district administration, paramilitary forces and varsity administration in the December 15 violence that had left 70 people injured.


• The high court has already asked the state government to submit a report on the violence and the role of police during the incident.


• The National Human Rights Commission has also asked the state government to explain the matter.

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• Ministry of Skill Development And Entrepreneurship has released the e-NTC and Semester wise Mark-sheets of trainees on its official website.


• Trainers can download their e-NTC and Semester wise Mark-sheets from the NCVT MIS portal. To download their mark sheet they should visit the NCVT MIS portal and take their curser to Trainees in the top Nav bar. Then click on Trainee Profile by scrolling down.

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• State Bank of India (SBI) on January 7 announced the Residential Builder Finance with Buyer Guarantee (RBBG) scheme, which will issue a guarantee of completion for select residential projects to its home loan customers, PTI reported.


• “This product will improve the confidence of the home buyers and increase the velocity of sales of residential units,” SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar said.

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• SoftBank Group Corp is in talks to sell a majority stake in its renewables joint venture in India as it aims to raise cash amid global investment setbacks, India's Economic Times daily reported.


• The Japanese technology and investment giant has held talks with sovereign wealth and pension funds from the Far East and Gulf regions, besides some Silicon Valley technology giants, the ET reported, citing people in the know of the matter.

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• Teen prodigy Coco Gauff was knocked out of the WTA Auckland Classic on Thursday when she was outsmarted by German Laura Siegemund in the second round.


• The promoters' hopes of a dream quarter-final between Gauff and the queen of the court Serena Williams fell apart when Siegemund fought back from a set down to triumph 5-7, 6-2, 6-3.


• The 31-year-old Siegemund, who played her first WTA qualifier in 2003 before Gauff was born, was up 5-4 when she dropped her serve twice to lose the first set.

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• Toni Kroos scored a wonder goal straight from a corner as Real Madrid beat Valencia 3-1 to reach the final of the controversial Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia.


• Kroos caught Valencia goalkeeper Jaume Domenech napping with a brilliant, instinctive strike before Isco made it two and Luka Modric added a classy third from a curling finish with the outside of his foot.

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• According to the Forbes’s prestigious list of ‘20 people to watch in the 2020s’, two Biharis namely Prashant Kishor (Poll strategist and JD(U) national vice-president ) & Kanhaiya Kumar (former JNU Students’ Union president) have been included in the list.


• Forbes has placed Kanhaiya in 12th place and Prashant in 16th position.


• Hasan Minhaj, an American comedian & political commentator is on the 1st position in the list, while Keyna’s Marathon runner Eliud Kipchoge in on the 20th place.

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• Zoran Milanovic, Croatia's center-left former prime minister, has won the country's presidential election, defeating center-right incumbent Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic in a second-round vote.


• Milanovic, of the Social Democrats (SDP), won 52.7% of the vote according to results released, a larger margin than expected. Grabar-Kitarovic of the ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) won 47.3%.

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• Pedro Sanchez Perez-Castejon (47), a Spanish politician & Socialist leader took the oath as Spanish prime minister (PM) before Spanish King Felipe VI.


• He assumed his office after his proposal to form a leftist coalition government with support from smaller parties by narrowly won a parliamentary confidence vote.


• The Vote, by a simple majority of MPs(member of parliament), went 167 in the 350-seat assembly.