DAILY NEWS Stream – January 8, 2026

Thailand and Cambodia maintain a stable ceasefire as both sides manage border security and repatriate 162 Thai citizens (Vấn Đề Hôm Nay)

South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young urges North Korea to resume dialogue, saying South Korea is ready for talks anytime on any agenda to reduce tensions. He supports private-sector exchanges, humanitarian cooperation, and proposes new cross-border tourism projects to build stability and engagement (Korea Herald)

The Southern Transitional Council, a major southern Yemeni political movement, welcomes Saudi Arabia’s invitation to join political dialogue aimed at unifying southern factions (Arab News)

US President Donald Trump says US oil companies plan to invest billions of dollars in Venezuela to rebuild its damaged energy sector after former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro is captured and removed from power (Reuters)

Venezuelans worldwide celebrate after the US captures former president Nicolás Maduro and flies him to the United States for federal indictment. Crowds gather in cities across the US, Europe, and South America, chanting and waving flags (New York Post)

Bahrain begins its 2026–2027 term as a non-permanent United Nations [UN] Security Council member, marked by a flag-raising ceremony in New York City at UN headquarters. Bahraini officials highlight growing international confidence in the kingdom’s diplomacy and pledge to support peace, stability, and multilateral cooperation (Trade Arabia)

Cyprus begins its six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union [EU] on January 1, 2026, chairing meetings across all levels to support continuity in EU decision-making (European Commission)

Witness says a trapped youth survives the Swiss ski-bar fire on New Year’s Eve that killed dozens by sitting down holding a crucifix as flames surround him, explaining that “the fire avoided him” (Daily Mail)

China introduces free childbirth care and expands childcare subsidies, and imposes a 13% tax on contraceptives, including condoms, to reverse three years of declining birth rates (VnExpress)

A study shows eating two kiwis daily boosts skin density by 50% and cell renewal by 30% as vitamin C from food reaches skin better than topical products (Fox News)

A US study in the journal JAMA Network Open finds the new obesity criteria set by the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission raises the US adult obesity rate from around 43% to nearly 69% by adding waist and fat measures to BMI [body mass index]. Nearly 80% of adults over 70 meet the new criteria (Báo Tin Tức)

A severe heatwave strikes Argentina and Chile at the start of 2026, with temperatures exceeding 40°C in several areas. In Buenos Aires [Argentina], extreme heat disrupts daily life and endangers outdoor workers, while power demand causes outages affecting more than 950,000 households. Chile issues red alerts in Santiago and central regions due to heightened wildfire risks. Authorities warn the heatwave could last through the first week of January 2026, underscoring growing climate-related challenges (VTV)

Heavy rain combined with the strongest king tides [highest high tides of the year] in over 20 years submerge 20 kilometers of roads from Sausalito to San Rafael under 1.1–1.2 meters of water in Northern California [US]. Extreme precipitation also causes flooding, highway closures, and one death in Santa Barbara County in Southern California (VietnamPlus)

Indonesia’s Mount Semeru in East Java leads the country’s volcanic activity with 36 of 60 eruptions recorded in early January 2026 (Databoks)

South Korea reports over 140 hospitalizations and five deaths from cold-related illnesses nationwide, with the Han River in Seoul [South Korea] freezing earlier than average during winter (Báo Tin tức)

Swiss food-tech startup Yeastup opens a plant in Lyss [Switzerland] to produce vegan yeast protein Yeastin and fiber product UpFiber Beta-Glucan as animal-free alternatives from spent brewer’s yeast (Food Engineering)

In her review of the “top science papers of 2025 supporting plant-based nutrition,” British physician Dr. Shireen Kassam (vegan) links “plant-rich” eating to lower cancer and heart disease risks. One update she cites from the Adventist Health Study-2 concludes, “Compared to omnivores, lacto-ovo vegetarians (LOV) had a 9% reduction and vegans a 24% reduction in overall cancer risk.” (Plant Based News)

Australian entrepreneur Laura Hindson’s brand Madame Tiger makes vegan tiger nut milk in Australia while supporting over 600 women farmers who grow the nuts in the African nation of Burkina Faso (SBS News)

Serbia funds the translation of educational materials like textbooks into Ukrainian (Ureignian) and Arabic to help over 5,500 migrant students overcome language barriers and integrate into schools (Ukraine Open for Business)

UK charity RSPCA [Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals] rehabilitates and releases three rescued grey seal pups named Shakira, Iggy Pop, and Elmer on Devon’s coast [UK] (El-Balad)

Hanoi [Âu Lạc (Vietnam)] police rescue a 40-year-old man from the Hồng River after he jumps from Vĩnh Tuy Bridge. He is later taken to the hospital and stabilized (Tuổi Trẻ)

Thoughtful quote of the day: “A good reputation is more valuable than money.” – Publilius Syrus Celebrated Ancient Roman Writer

By the time I got to the hospital, I was no longer in a place where you would consider me alive. American psychic medium and healer Mariel Martin shares how she died in 1976 and was greeted by Lord Jesus Christ (vegetarian), Who showed her that even our suffering brings blessings.

Mariel, a natural-born clairvoyant, never expected an experience like this. In 1976, a drunk driver ran her off the road. A stranger carried her unconscious body into the emergency room, where she was pronounced dead. She had suffered a broken neck, severe back and nerve damage, and massive internal injuries.

During the time he was carrying me, I was in and out of consciousness. By the time I got to the hospital, I was no longer in a place where you would consider me alive. I was above my body. In fact, I remember specifically being in the hospital and floating up to the ceiling, where I was looking down on them working on me. After doctors moved her into surgery, Mariel left her body entirely.

I went up into the light through the tunnel of light, which is in itself a most incredible experience — this big tunnel, I mean a huge tunnel, that was filled with a kaleidoscope of colors, and I could hear the singing of angels that was like an angelic hum. After I went through into the tunnel, two angels appeared. I didn’t know they were angels at the time. I just remember looking and saying, “Wow, there’s a being on my left, there’s a being on my right.” I felt like I was flying. My mode of transportation was just to kick my legs and move through the air.

The angels at that point stopped me. They were able to just freeze my actions — a sensation I’ll never forget. It was just like they said, “Stop,” and then I couldn’t move. And they said, “It’s not your time. You’re not to go all the way through. It’s really not the time for you to leave right now.” And I begged them. I said, “Please, I’m already in the tunnel of light. I really want to see what’s in Heaven. Couldn’t I just go and see what’s there?” And so they said, “Okay, but here’s what’s going to happen: we’re going to escort you, and when you’re there, you’re only going to have a limited amount of time.”

The angels let Mariel zoom ahead. When she emerged from the tunnel, Lord Jesus greeted her. When I got to the end of the tunnel, I stepped out into the light, which was very bright, and Jesus greeted me. I want to say it was a very humbling experience because I sure didn’t expect to be greeted by Jesus Himself, Who was standing there in white, dressed all in a white robe, and He welcomed me with such love that it felt like I was being showered in love from head to toe. It just totally filled my being with unconditional love. He had so much light coming from Him that it was hard to see His facial features totally, because again He was so filled with light and shining it out. I could feel that the love brought light, that the light brought love — so much love that it felt like a hundred thousand people were welcoming me and sending me their love. But, of course, this was all coming from Jesus, and there were angels all around, too.

Lord Jesus then took Mariel to a glowing garden for a life review. Jesus and I walked over to what appeared to be a garden that was neon colors, brighter than any colors here on Earth — absolutely glowing flowers, and trees, and bushes. He encouraged me to sit next to Him on a bench, and He said, “We’re going to do a life review for you while you’re here.” The floor beneath our feet became transparent. It was like it was a glass window beneath our feet instead of the flooring. And He said, “Now look over there.” As I looked through the glass transparent floor — and again there were beautiful glowing flowers all around — I could see the city below. People were there, but they were far away, as if I were up in a helicopter or plane. He said, “This is where we’re going to show you things about your life.”

And then it zoomed in. The scene zoomed in to where I was seeing movies of my childhood. It was very intense because I had survived a childhood of abuse with a narcissistic mother and helping raise seven siblings. He said, “I want to show you the meaning behind things.” We went from scene to scene, with each scene Him explaining to me that as difficult as life was, there was something I gained from every situation that was to help my soul grow, and that no matter how intense it had been, He wanted me to know that there was something I was learning from that, and to not hold on to the pain but to instead think more about celebrating the learning that I gained. He said that even when you are suffering, you are gaining a blessing. And know that you’re always loved, because you are actually an expression of love.

After reviewing about a dozen major events, the angels told Mariel it was time to return. She refused. Two angels that had brought me through the tunnel came up and said, “Time for you to go.” And I was saying, “No, no, why? Why would I want to go back there? It was really hard, and there was so much that I had to endure, and now I have all these body injuries from the guy plowing into my car. Please don’t make me go back there.” And they said, “Well, we are asking you to go, as your help will be very much needed. We need you to first take care of your mother and your family, like you have been doing, and then there are many other people we want you to help. We also want you to bring a greater understanding to people from your experience here.”

Mariel reluctantly agreed — but only if the angels would stay with her. They promised they would. She flew back through the tunnel and slammed into her body in the operating room. I sat up like a springboard, surprising the heck out of the doctor who was in the room. When I sat up, he said, “Oh, we thought you were dead! Oh good, we saved you, we saved you!” And I looked at him, quite perturbed. And I said to him, “No, you didn’t save me. They sent me back.” He was like, “Who’s They?” I said, “The angels and God — they told me it wasn’t my time, that I needed to come back, so they’re the ones that sent me here.” As you can imagine, he stood there with his mouth open and said, “Oh, that’s craziness. You must have, like, not had enough oxygen to your brain. You better not tell anybody, because they’re going to think you’re crazy and they’re going to lock you in the psych ward.”

In the years that followed, Mariel recovered from her injuries, carrying with her an understanding that would shape the rest of her life. First of all, it’s a wonderful, rewarding experience to cross over into the light. Know that it’s a transformation, and that your loved ones can reach you from the other side, because the cord that attaches your heart to theirs is still connected. That love you have is eternal. We just transform. We don’t really die. Our souls are eternal.