Corporate retirement pension funds grew nearly 13 percent from a year earlier in 2024, breaching the 400 trillion-won mark for the first time since their introduction in 2005, while their return on investment declined, data showed on Monday.

The total amount of corporate retirement pension funds under management came to 431.7 trillion won (US$317 billion) as of end-2024, up 49.3 trillion won, or 12.9 percent, from a year before, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service, reports news agency.

The funds recorded an average return of 4.77 percent on their investments last year, down from the previous year's 5.26 percent.

The funds' average return on investment for the past five years came to 2.86 percent as of end-2024, with the 10-year average standing at 2.31 percent.

The corporate pension program was introduced in 2005, allowing employees to receive their pension in one lump-sum payment or monthly instalments after their retirement.

The UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) on Saturday welcomed the decision of the Libyan Presidency Council to form two committees to address security and human rights concerns following recent armed clashes in the capital Tripoli.

"These efforts are aimed at strengthening security arrangements to prevent the outbreak of fighting and ensure the protection of civilians, as well as addressing human rights concerns in detention facilities, including widespread arbitrary detention," the UNSMIL said in a statement.

Six family members were killed and two others seriously injured after a gas cylinder explosion in Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province on Saturday, according to a rescue official.

According to Pakistan's News, among the deceased were a husband, wife, and four other family members.

Local police said that the roof of a dilapidated house collapsed due to the blast, leaving several people buried under the debris.

Russia on Saturday accused Ukraine of indefinitely delaying a planned exchange of prisoners and the handover of fallen soldiers' bodies.

Russia has handed over the first list of 640 prisoners to Ukraine and begun transferring bodies of dead Ukrainian soldiers, but Ukrainian negotiators did not arrive at the exchange site, Russian Presidential Aide Vladimir Medinsky said in a telegram post.

He called on Ukraine to "strictly adhere to the schedule and all agreements reached, and to immediately begin the exchange."

Ukraine's second-largest city Kharkiv came under the "most intense" Russian attack early Saturday since the start of the two countries' conflict, said Mayor Ihor Terekhov.

According to preliminary data, Russia launched 48 Shahed combat drones, two missiles and four guided bombs at the city, resulting in more than 40 explosions, Terekhov said in a post on Telegram.

At least three people were killed, with 21 others, including two children, injured, and 18 apartment buildings, 13 private houses, a civilian enterprise and an educational institution were destroyed, he said.

Ukraine's Air Force said Russia fired a total of 215 projectiles at Ukraine overnight, including 206 combat drones, a cruise missile Iskander-K and two ballistic missiles Iskander-M/KN-23, 174 of which were intercepted,news agency reported.

South Korean appeals court has ruled in favour of a 107-year-old South Korean victim of Japan's wartime forced labour in a damages suit filed against Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., sources said on Saturday.

The civil appeals division of the Seoul Central District Court overturned a lower court's ruling handed down in 2022 that rejected Kim Han-soo's suit seeking compensation from the Japanese company on the grounds that the case's statute of limitations had expired.

In May, the appeals court ordered Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to pay 100 million won ($73,400) in compensation to Kim in a ruling that came about 80 years after he was conscripted into Japan's wartime forced labour.

Despite the court's ruling, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is not likely to pay the compensation.

A flight carrying 192 Venezuelan migrants deported from the United States arrived at the Simon Bolivar International Airport in Maiquetia, which serves the capital Caracas area, the Ministry of Interior, Justice and Peace of Venezuela reported.

According to a press release on Friday, the flight, operated by a US-registered aircraft, carried 156 men, 26 women, and 10 minors.

The returned migrants were attended to under established medical, legal, and social protocols.

Since February, Venezuela has been receiving two to three flights per week of individuals deported by US authorities, including those relocated from Mexico and Honduras, reports news agency.

So far in 2025, a total of 5,475 deported migrants have been processed under the government's Plan Vuelta a la Patria, designed to facilitate their return, official figures indicate.

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has ignited fresh speculation in the American political landscape by hinting at the formation of a new political party, possibly named 'The America Party.'

Though Musk has not made a direct announcement, a series of posts on his social media platform X have fuelled widespread discussions.

In one of his posts, Musk floated a poll asking whether a new political party was needed in the United States. He claimed that 80 per cent of respondents supported the idea.

"The public has spoken. A new political party is needed in America to represent the 80 per cent in the middle! And exactly 80 per cent of people agree. This is fate," he wrote.

Following this, a user posted an image suggesting the name "America Party".

New Delhi-based rights group Rights and Risks Analysis Group (RRAG) on Friday claimed that at least 123 Awami League members were victims of targeted murder under Muhammad Yunus’ regime, including 41 being hacked to death in Taliban style attacks.

RRAG Director Suhas Chakma said that they would approach the International Criminal Court (ICC) against the targeted murder under the Bangladesh caretaker government led by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus.

The rights group in a report, ‘Bangladesh: Organised murder for membership to the Awami League and its affiliate organisations’, released on Friday stated that at least 123 members of the Awami League and its affiliate organisations such as Swechasebak League, Chhatra League, Juba League, Matsojibi League, Krishak League were victims of targeted murder under the regime of Muhammad Yunus from August 5, 2024 to April 30 2025.

North Korea said on Friday that it has successfully righted a warship that partially capsized during a launch ceremony last month, adding the ship is currently moored at the pier for more repairs.

The 5,000-tonne destroyer tipped over and became partially submerged during the launch ceremony held in late May in the northeastern port city of Chongjin. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered the full restoration of the warship before a key party meeting set for late June.

After a North Korean team restored the balance of the warship in early June, it moored the ship at the pier by safely conducting its end launching Thursday afternoon, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

"The team will start the next-stage restoration after the reexamination of the overall hull of the destroyer by a group of experts," the KCNA said.