EZ News 07/22/26

Good afternoon, I'm _ with today's episode of EZ News. PLA helicopter crosses Taiwan Strait median line The Ministry of National Defense says a Chinese military helicopter was detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait median line on Monday. Officials say the helicopter and a drone were detected between 10:20AM and 7:40PM on Monday. Chieh Chung, a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, says he believes it is the first time a Chinese military helicopter has been detected crossing the median line. Chieh says that represents a new form of "gray-zone" operation. Defense officials have not said whether the detected helicopter was a shipborne aircraft (艦載機) or had been dispatched from a nearby Army aviation base along China's coast. Taiwan enters new COVID-19 epidemic phase: CDC Taiwan has officially entered a new COVID-19 epidemic phase after more than 47 hundred people sought treatment for the disease during July 12-18. The Centers for Disease Control says that figure marks a 66.5 percent increase from the previous week. Officials say Taiwan has sufficient supplies of antiviral medications and vaccines to respond to the outbreak. She said the NB.1.8.1 variant has remained the dominant strain in Taiwan for the past four weeks. The most common symptoms include sore throat, cough, nasal congestion (鼻塞) or a runny nose, fever, fatigue, headache and muscle aches. COVID-19 activity is also increasing in China, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea, Tseng said. Taipei retains** 14th place in global student city rankings** Taipei ranked 14th in the U.K.-based Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) Best Student Cities 2027 rankings. The rankings were based on indicators including university rankings, desirability, affordability, student mix and employer activity. QS noted that Taiwan's ranked cities performed particularly well for affordability (可負擔性), with all placing among the world's top 30. But Taiwan's cities lagged in employer activity, which measures how strongly employers associate a city with producing high-quality graduates. Globally, Seoul topped the 2027 rankings, followed by Tokyo, London and Melbourne. Munich and Sydney tied for fifth, ahead of Paris, Berlin, Vienna and Zurich. US STRIKES IRAN FOR TENTH CONSECUTIVE DAY A 10th straight day of attacks between the United States and Iran across the Middle East has overshadowed (使蒙上陰影) diplomatic efforts in Pakistan to salvage an interim ceasefire deal that collapsed earlier this month. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the Iran war has cost $37.5 billion, so far. It is now unclear what new arrangement might be reached to end the war… which has turned into a battle for control over the Strait of Hormuz… Ed Donahue reports on the mood from the White House. France social media ban French lawmakers have approved a bill banning children under 15 from using social media. The move makes France the first country in the European Union to pass a blanket ban (全面禁令) on platforms as concerns grow worldwide over the harmful effects of digital content on kids. Both chambers of the Parliament voted Tuesday in favor of the measure, a flagship initiative of French President Emmanuel Macron’s second term. The bill also bans the use of mobile phones in high schools. That was the I.C.R.T. EZ News, I'm _. -- Hosting provided by SoundOn