Pakistan is continuing its harsh crackdown on Afghan refugees, as tensions between Islamabad and Kabul continue to surge. The latest deportations come just days after new military clashes erupted at the border between the two countries. The Taliban claimed that five people had died after both militaries exchanged heavy fire along their shared frontier.

Pakistan has previously accused Afghanistan’s government of financing and sheltering fighters from the resurgent Pakistan Taliban (TTP). The TTP has carried out lethal attacks on security forces inside Pakistan, including a suicide bombing at a paramilitary headquarters in Peshawar just over a week ago.

The continuing political and military tensions have resulted in a massive clampdown by Islamabad of Afghan refugees living in Pakistan.

The Pakistani government has vowed to deport all three million Afghan refugees currently living on its territory.

In the latest development, 1,198 refugees were returned on Monday to Afghanistan, according to the Taliban.

They returned to Afghanistan via several border crossings, including the one at Spin Boldak, where fighting erupted on Friday night.

Over the weekend, Pakistan expelled another 5,943 refugees, as deportations continue apace.

Residents of Spin Boldak were forced to flee as Pakistani and Taliban forces exchanged fire. The clashes began at around 22:30 (18:00 GMT) on Friday, according to Afghani civilians living near the border.

Footage from the area showed scenes of panic, with large numbers of people fleeing on foot and in vehicles.

Pakistan accused the Taliban of “unprovoked firing”, while an Afghan government spokesperson said Islamabad had “once again initiated attacks”, forcing it to respond.

The two warring sides had agreed to a ceasefire brokered by Turkey and Qatar less than two months ago.

The ceasefire ended more than a week of fighting in which dozens were killed – the worst clashes between Pakistan and the Taliban since the group returned to power in 2021

Artificial intelligence researcher Roman Yampolskiy believes civilisation faces extinction due to AI development.

The computer scientist, who focuses on AI safety and cybersecurity at the University of Louisville, forecasts a staggering 99.9% probability that artificial intelligence will wipe out humanity within the coming century, according to his appearance on podcaster Lex Friedman’s programme released on Sunday.

Throughout the extensive two-hour interview, he argued that not one AI system launched to date has proven secure and voiced pessimism about future iterations avoiding critical flaws. He joins a select group of pioneering AI developers sounding such alarms during President Donald Trump‘s artificial intelligence competition.

Yampolskiy published a volume last year entitled “AI: Unexplainable, Unpredictable, Uncontrollable,” described as providing “a broad introduction to the core problems, such as the unpredictability of AI outcomes or the difficulty in explaining AI decisions.

“This book arrives at more complex questions of ownership and control, conducting an in-depth analysis of potential hazards and unintentional consequences,” he said.

“The book then concludes with philosophical and existential considerations, probing into questions of AI personhood, consciousness, and the distinction between human intelligence and artificial general intelligence (AGI).”

Technology experts observe that the original pioneers of AI, including Yampolskiy, are amongst those delivering the most severe warnings about the potential devastation and apocalyptic consequences that this technological progress might bring.

Nevertheless, certain research questions Yampolskiy’s extinction forecast, indicating a significantly lower threat than his calculations suggest.

Research carried out by the University of Oxford in England and Bonn in Germany discovered that there is merely a 5% probability that AI will eliminate humanity, based on evaluations from over 2,700 AI researchers.

“People try to talk as if expecting extinction risk is a minority view, but among AI experts it is mainstream,” warns Katja Grace, one of the paper’s authors. “The disagreement seems to be whether the risk is 1% or 20%.”

Several leading AI specialists have completely dismissed assertions about AI causing an apocalyptic situation, including Google Brain co-founder Andrew Ng and AI pioneer Yann Lecun, the latter of whom accused technology leaders such as OpenAI’s Sam Altman of harbouring hidden agendas behind their alarmist rhetoric about catastrophic AI outcomes.

OpenAI’s Altman has made numerous troubling statements regarding his industry. He cautioned that AI will probably destroy countless jobs, which he characterised as not “real work,” comments that sparked fierce criticism.

Mirroring Altman’s forecasts, numerous AI sceptics have similarly cautioned that the technology could trigger an economic catastrophe, replacing countless workers across every sector without exception.

More than ten years ago, in 2015, Altman ominously declared, “AI will probably most likely lead to the end of the world, but in the meantime, there’ll be great companies.”

He also encountered sharp backlash for stating earlier this year that the widespread adoption of AI will necessitate “changes to the social contract.”

A 7.6 magnitude earthquake off the northeastern coast of Japan has prompted a tsunami warning. 

Situated at a point where several continental on oceanic plates collide, Japan experiences around 1,500 to 2,000 each year, ranging from mild to severe. 

A magnitude of 7.6 is a rare occurrence that signifies a major to great earthquake, capable of causing serious damage over large areas, significant destruction and loss of life.