Pacific Ocean, Jan 16: An earthquake of magnitude 6.0 rattled the North Pacific Ocean on Friday, a statement by the National Center for Seismology (NCS) said.

The earthquake occurred at a shallow depth of 10km, making it susceptible to aftershocks.
In a post on X, the NCS said, “EQ of M: 6.0, On: 16/01/2026 08:55:54 IST, Lat: 43.79 N, Long: 127.98 W, Depth: 10 Km, Location: North Pacific Ocean.”

Shallow earthquakes are generally more dangerous than deep earthquakes. This is because the seismic waves from shallow earthquakes have a shorter distance to travel to the surface, resulting in stronger ground shaking and potentially more damage to structures and greater casualties.

The world’s greatest earthquake belt, the circum-Pacific seismic belt, is found along the rim of the Pacific Ocean, where about 81 per cent of our planet’s largest earthquakes occur. It has earned the nickname “Ring of Fire,” the USGS states.

The belt exists along boundaries of tectonic plates, where plates of mostly oceanic crust are sinking (or subducting) beneath another plate. Earthquakes in these subduction zones are caused by slip between plates and rupture within plates. Earthquakes in the circum-Pacific seismic belt include the M9.5 Chilean Earthquake [Valdivia Earthquake] (1960) and the M9.2 Alaska Earthquake (1964).

Approximately 90% of the world’s earthquakes occur along the Ring of Fire. About 81% of the world’s largest earthquakes happen in this belt. It is estimated that there are 500,000 detectable earthquakes in the world each year. 100,000 of those can be felt, and 100 of them cause damage.
The Pacific Ring of Fire is about 40,000 km (25,000 mi) long and up to about 500 km (310 mi) wide, and surrounds most of the Pacific Ocean.

The current configuration of the Pacific Ring of Fire has been created by the development of the present-day subduction zones, initially (by about 115 million years ago) in South America, North America and Asia. As plate configurations gradually changed, the current subduction zones of Indonesia and New Guinea were created (about 70 million years ago), followed finally by the New Zealand subduction zone (about 35 million years ago).

United Nations, Jan 16: India called out Pakistan for misusing UN platforms to drive its “divisive agenda” after Islamabad’s envoy raised the issue of Jammu and Kashmir in the General Assembly.

Counsellor in the Permanent Mission of India to the UN Eldos Mathew Punnoose on Thursday said that the right to self-determination must not be abused to encourage secession in pluralistic and democratic states.

“At a time when member states have to rise beyond their narrow considerations, Pakistan continues to misuse all platforms and processes in the UN to drive their divisive agenda,” Punnoose said.

“This forum is no exception either and Pakistan made an unwarranted reference to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, an integral and inalienable part of India,” Punnoose said, while delivering the national statement at the UN General Assembly Plenary on ‘Report of the Secretary-General on the work of the Organisation’.

“The right to self-determination is a fundamental principle enshrined in the UN Charter. However, this right must not be abused to encourage secession in pluralistic and democratic states. Though habituated, Pakistan would do well if they do not resort to baseless allegations and falsehoods and portray a picture that is completely detached from reality,” he said.

The strong retort by India came after Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the UN Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad made a reference to Jammu and Kashmir in his remarks in the General Assembly.

Pakistan repeatedly raises the issue of Jammu and Kashmir at the United Nations and its various platforms but fails to get any traction from the wider international community on the matter.

Punnoose, in his remarks, also stressed that the Global South has its unique set of developmental challenges that cut across development financing and climate justice and financing, among other areas.

“India has consistently endeavoured to bring these to the forefront across all UN platforms. Concerted and focused follow up action is required on this front. Moving forward, there is a need to translate the sentiments of the Global South to concrete and tangible steps,” he said.

As the UN membership takes stock of the past, it is important to reflect upon the current context and the way ahead for the largest multilateral organisation, the United Nations.

“United Nations is going through a crucial phase, as it faces various critical challenges. World citizenry expects the UN to deliver on each of the three pillars – peace and security, development and human rights,” he said.

India emphasised that UN’s inability to purposefully intervene on its critical functions leads to questions related to efficacy, legitimacy and credibility. “This is quite pronounced in case of maintenance of international peace and security. As conflicts rage across different parts of the globe, the world hopes the UN to deliver, to put an end to human suffering and misery,” Punnoose said.

United Nations, Jan 16:  After weeks of escalating tension, US and Iranian officials faced each other Thursday at the UN Security Council, where America’s envoy renewed threats against the Islamic Republic despite President Donald Trump’s efforts to lower the temperature between the two adversaries.

The US was joined by Iranian dissidents in rebuking the government’s bloody crackdown on nationwide protests that activists say has killed at least 2,637 people.

“Colleagues, let me be clear: President Trump is a man of action, not endless talk like we see at the United Nations,” Mike Waltz, US ambassador to the UN, said in a statement. “He has made it clear that all options are on the table to stop the slaughter. And no one should know that better than the leadership of the Iranian regime.”

Waltz’s remarks came as the prospect of US retaliation for the protesters’ deaths still hung over the region, though Trump signaled a possible de-escalation, saying the killing appeared to be ending. By Thursday, the protests challenging Iran’s theocracy appeared increasingly smothered, but the state-ordered internet and communication blackout remained.

The US requested the emergency Security Council meeting and invited two Iranian dissidents, Masih Alinejad and Ahmad Batebi, to open the session with gruesome details of their experience as targets of the Islamic Republic.

In a stunning moment, Alinejad addressed the Iranian representative directly.

“You have tried to kill me three times. I have seen my would-be assassin with my own eyes in front of my garden, in my home in Brooklyn,” she said while the Iranian official looked directly ahead, without acknowledging her.

In October, two purported Russian mobsters were each sentenced to 25 years behind bars for hiring a hit man to kill Alinejad at her New York home three years ago on behalf of the Iranian government.

Batebi described the deep cuts the prison guards in Iran would inflict on him before pouring salt on his wounds. “If you do not believe me, I can show you my body right now,” he told the council.

Both dissidents called on the world body and the council to do more to hold Iran accountable for its human rights abuses. Batebi pleaded with Trump not to “leave” the Iranian people alone.

“You encouraged people to go into the streets. That was a good thing. But don’t leave them alone,” he said.

Before the meeting, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres spoke by phone for the first time since the deadly protests began last month. Iran’s semiofficial Tasnim news agency reported that Araghchi implored the top UN official to live up to the “serious expectation” that Iran’s government and its people have of the UN’s role in condemning “illegal US interventions against Iran.”

Meanwhile, the US announced new sanctions on Iranian officials accused of suppressing the protests, which began late last month over the country’s faltering economy and the collapse of its currency. The Group of Seven industrialized democracies and the European Union said they too were looking at new sanctions to ratchet up the pressure on Iran’s theocratic government.