Central China's Henan Province launched its first postal drone delivery service in a mountainous region of Anyang City in the province, providing convenience for villagers and offering a solution to challenges in logistics to remote areas.
In Shibanyan Town of Anyang, drones were seen taking off from drone ports set up atop the premises of local postal branch offices, carrying mails and goods to remote and high-altitude villages deep in the Taihang Mountains previously difficult to access.
The drone delivery service covers 11 routes which operate one to two scheduled flights daily, benefiting over 4,000 residents in 11 villages.
Residents of Shangping Village, situated at an altitude of over 1,100 meters above the sea level, previously faced a four-hour walk back and forth to the Shibanyan postal branch office. With the drone delivery service, parcels now arrive in just seven minutes.
Villagers say the cost of drone delivery is affordable. Small packages cost around eight yuan (merely more than one U.S. dollar) for the first kilogram and about four yuan (about half a U.S. dollar) for each additional kilogram.
The application of drone delivery addresses the long-standing logistical challenges faced by areas with complex terrains and limited transportation access, like Anyang's mountainous areas.
"[The operation of drone delivery] can actually ease the bottleneck in the development of technology for future logistics in mountainous areas, island areas and cities. The projected market size could reach over 120 billion yuan (16.7 billion U.S. dollars)," said Han Henggang, deputy director of Anyang Blue Sky Laboratory's Airspace Management Research and Application Center.
Drone delivery service reaches mountainous village in central China
Thousands of demonstrators rallied in Italy and Greece on Saturday to protest against U.S. military intervention in Venezuela, with protesters in Rome, Milan and Athens condemning Washington's actions and calling for respect for Venezuelan sovereignty.
In Rome, more than 1,000 demonstrators marched toward the area near the U.S. Embassy, calling on Washington to immediately release Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.
Police blocked roads around the embassy to prevent protesters from approaching the building, but demonstrators continued to denounce U.S. actions.
"First of all, we oppose U.S. imperialist aggression. This kind of behavior is shameful. The U.S. is attacking a sovereign country, and as [U.S. President Donald] Trump himself has said, this is for oil interests," said protester Giovanni Barbera.
Saturday's rally marked the second large-scale protest in Rome this month against U.S. military operations in Venezuela, following an earlier one on on Jan 3.
Participants included members of multiple political parties, labor unions and social organizations. The protesters held banners reading "Stop imperialist interference" and "Free Maduro," urging the international community to respect Venezuela's sovereignty and the will of its people, and condemning the U.S. for violating international law.
"We are protesting the way the U.S. handles international politics. Since the events of January 3, we have seen violations of international law, and we are very concerned about how the global situation is developing," said protester Stefano De Angelis.
Organizers said solidarity rallies in support of Venezuela were held in 30 Italian cities on the same day.
Meanwhile, similar protests were also staged in Greece. About 200 people gathered outside the U.S. Embassy in Athens, voicing support for Venezuela and opposition to U.S. military actions.
"We oppose U.S. imperialism and its attack on Venezuela. At the same time, the U.S. is also threatening Cuba, Mexico and Greenland. We must stand up against this behavior," said Greek protester Argiro Sirmakezi.
Protesters rally in Italy, Greece against U.S. military operation in Venezuela
