China's software and information technology (IT) sector logged steady growth in profits and revenue in the first 10 months of the year, official data showed Friday.
From January to October, companies in the sector raked in a total of 1,572.1 billion yuan (about 222 billion U.S. dollars) in profits, up 7.7 percent year on year, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology showed.
Software revenue of the sector climbed 13.2 percent from a year ago to about 12,510.4 billion yuan (about 1.77 trillion U.S. dollars) during the period, the data showed.
In the first 10 months, China's software exports amounted to about 51.09 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 6.7 percent, keeping a momentum of positive growth for eight consecutive months.
China's software, IT service sector expands in Jan-Oct
China's software, IT service sector expands in Jan-Oct
China's software, IT service sector expands in Jan-Oct
Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region has suspended in-person classes at all schools and universities following Iran's threats to target U.S.-linked universities in the country.
Local authorities have moved classes online, citing growing security threats from Iran.
The decision came after Iran warned that U.S.-linked universities could be attacked, in response to a recent airstrike on a university in Tehran, which Israel says was involved in ballistic missile development.
"Iran is seriously threatening the Kurdistan region, and we must take this seriously. The lives of people -- and especially our students -- are more valuable than anything," said Mohammad Qadir, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research for the Kurdistan Region.
The sudden move to online learning has been challenging, with many students struggling to stay connected.
"Some students couldn't join the live sessions. Others had electricity problems, internet issues, or other technical difficulties on the first day. Despite all that, in my opinion, online teaching -- with all its shortcomings -- is better than doing nothing and staying at home," said Dana Mohammed Abdullah, an assistant lecturer at Salahaddin University.
Abdullah added that the impact is especially severe on programs that rely on hands-on instructions.
"Many of our courses are practical rather than theoretical and need to be taught face to face. Now that everything is online, it's only a temporary solution -- better than pausing entirely -- but for a fine arts college, it won't be very effective," he said.
For many students, fear is now part of their daily life.
"We don't feel safe. Drones are coming from the sky and can explode at any moment. We don't know where they will hit -- so we can't be fully confident about going back to campus and studying in class," said Zana Amin, a university student.
With no clear end to the conflict, officials say it is too soon to say when classrooms will reopen.
"We can't give a timeline. We are in a war situation, and it has affected Kurdistan and Iraq deeply. Even politicians don't know when things will return to normal. In-person classes will resume when the war ends," said Qadir.
Iraq's Kurdistan region suspends in-person university classes over security concerns
