News

A new campaign has emerged on Kazakh social media to support «Jane Doe,» a young woman whose real name is being withheld as the investigation continues, after she filed a complaint accusing seven Cornell University students of gang-raping her.

Users are sharing their own experiences of sexual violence under the hashtag #IamJaneDoe. Over the past two days, Threads has been flooded with such posts, with young women — and even men — in Kazakhstan joining the campaign. Some have written about being sexually abused by older brothers, fathers or grandfathers during their teenage years or even...

Kazakhstan intends to restrict access to social media for children under 16. The government has already submitted relevant amendments to the Kurultai, Kazakhstan’s parliament. If adopted, the restrictions could apply to both new and existing accounts, according to Prime Minister Olzhas Bektenov’s response to a parliamentary inquiry.

The amendments would restrict the registration of users under 16 on online platforms. If the law is adopted, the government will develop separate rules requiring social media platforms to verify users’ ages.

At the same time, the temporary suspension of existing accounts belonging to children is under consideration.

Kazakhstani President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Sultan and Prime Minister of Oman Haitham bin Tariq Al Said held extensive talks in Astana. The Kazakh leader described the visit as a historic event and a step toward a new era in relations between the two nations. To mark the deep respect and strong friendship between the two countries, Tokayev awarded the Omani monarch the Altyn Qyran (Order of the Golden Eagle), Kazakhstan’s highest state decoration.

«For me, as president of this country, and for my people, your visit is of immense significance. I wish to emphasize our deep...

Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan have agreed to immediately implement their collective-defense commitments and prepare for the rapid deployment of military forces and capabilities to Saudi Arabia following an emergency meeting of their Mecca Defense Alliance in Riyadh, according to Anadolu Agency.

Read also: Pakistan extends nuclear umbrella to Saudi Arabia in new defense pact.

The alliance was activated amid repeated Houthi attacks on Saudi territory, including reported strikes affecting Mecca, Medina and several other cities, as well as vessels in the southern Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait, TASS...

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics to Francis Halzen for his pioneering work on high-energy cosmic neutrinos of astrophysical origin.

By designing and building the IceCube Neutrino Observatory embedded deep within the Antarctic ice sheet, Halzen and his team enabled the detection of subatomic “ghost particles” coming from extreme cosmic events billions of light-years away, establishing the era of high-energy neutrino astronomy.

Read also: Nobel Prize in medicine honors pioneers of light-controlled brain research.

American YouTuber James Stephen «Jimmy» Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, will visit Central Asia for the first time. Kursiv LifeStyle looks at how to attend an event with him in Tashkent.

The Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation (ACDF) is organizing the event. Participants will be selected at random from those who register.

Registration is free and open only to people aged 18 and over. Applicants are required to provide their full name, an Uzbek phone number and details from an identification document. Each person may apply only once.

After registration closes...

Kazakhstan is set to launch six new Earth observation satellites to improve the accuracy of space monitoring, Kazakhstan’s Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development Zhaslan Madiyev said during a government session.

He said the country plans to actively develop its own satellite systems and expand into export markets. Two KazSat satellites currently provide communications services and have already generated 72 billion tenge (approximately $157.9 million) in income. KazSat-3R satellites are planned to replace them by 2029.

In addition, the Earth observation satellite constellation will be expanded with six new satellites, three offering high-resolution imagery and three offering medium-resolution imagery.

The Trans-Caspian fiber-optic communication line between Azerbaijan’s Sumgayit and Kazakhstan’s Aktau is set to become operational in October, according to Kazakhstan’s Minister of Digital Development Zhaslan Madiev.

Kazakhtelecom and AzerTelecom International are jointly implementing the project through their joint venture, CaspiLink B.V. The two sides have already laid the 390-kilometer cable across the Caspian seabed, creating what is expected to become a new direct, high-speed data transmission corridor between Asia and Europe.

«The new route will strengthen Kazakhstan’s digital connectivity with global data networks and lay the foundation for the further development of AI, cloud...

Russia will continue launching its Proton-M expendable launch vehicles (ELVs), powered by toxic heptyl fuel, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan without paying additional compensation for environmental risks, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development told Kursiv.media in response to an inquiry.

According to the ministry, only one Proton-M was launched from Baikonur in 2026, on Feb. 12. No other launches of this type are planned by the end of the year. This means Roscosmos has nine more launches remaining under the previously approved plan of 10 rockets.

The ministry noted that Kazakhstan will not...

Kazakhstan should establish a system to verify historical content on social media, according to Sholpan Karinova, a member of the Kurultai. Karinova called for measures to identify and curb the spread of false and distorted information about Kazakhstan’s history on platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.

Read also: New theory: Dracula’s lineage traced to Genghis Khan.

According to Karinova, historical awareness is no longer shaped solely by textbooks and academic research. Social media and digital platforms play an increasingly important role, particularly among young people, who frequently get information from...

Kazakhstan’s national messenger, Aitu, is aiming to make everyday tasks easier for users, from obtaining government documents to transferring money and signing documents digitally.

At the AI & Digital Bridge 2026 forum, BTS Digital, which developed the messenger, unveiled a major update that expands Aitu beyond messaging and adds a range of digital services. The company is positioning the platform as a “Swiss Army knife” for everyday life in Kazakhstan.

Read also: New 1-gigawatt data center project to transform Kazakhstan’s economy.

WhatsApp remains the dominant messaging platform in...

Breast cancer affects men as well as women. About 20 men in Almaty, Kazakhstan, are registered as patients with the disease, according to doctors at the Almaty Oncology Center, nur.kz reported.

Akbota Adilova, head of the center’s consultative and diagnostic department, said breast cancer can develop at any age and affects both sexes. Although the disease is commonly associated with women, men are also at risk.

Read also: New study explains why men face higher cancer risk than women.

Screenings help detect cancer early

In the first eight months of...

On Oct. 5, the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm awarded the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel for their contributions to understanding how the brain works and developing optogenetics.

Optogenetics is a technique that uses light-sensitive proteins to control nerve cell activity, allowing researchers to study how neural circuits shape memories, feelings and behavior in the living brain.

According to the press release, in the early 2000s Hegemann and Nagel discovered the light-sensitive protein channelrhodopsin in the single-celled alga Chlamydomonas, driven by Hegemann’s interest...

SnowValley Food Kazakhstan Group Holdings Ltd., a subsidiary of China’s major potato producer Snow Valley, was registered at the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC). Economist Arman Batayev, author of the Finmentor.kz Telegram channel, spotlighted the development. The company plans to build a $100 million-$200 million plant in Kazakhstan.

Batayev wrote that SnowValley Food Kazakhstan Group Holdings Ltd. was registered on Sept. 30 with an authorized capital of $18 million. The company is a holding entity and can also process and preserve potatoes.

Its shareholder is Xuechuan Liupanshan Food (Ningxia) Co. Ltd., a production unit of China’s...

Canada is considering a scenario that until recently would have seemed almost unthinkable: a potential military attack by its longtime ally and close neighbor, the U.S., the BBC reported.

Last month, Prime Minister Mark Carney acknowledged that Canada was preparing for such a possibility, while stressing that an invasion remains highly improbable. Explaining why Canada had decided to consider the risk nonetheless, he described it as a matter of «risk management.»

The discussion emerged against the backdrop of U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated remarks about making Canada the 51st U.S. state and his use of economic pressure...

Kazakhstan has launched dredging operations at the Port of Aktau on the Caspian Sea, deepening the seabed to six to seven meters. The work aims to increase cargo volumes along the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), also known as the Middle Corridor, the Ministry of Transport reported.

The project involves dredging about 1.3 million cubic meters of material from the seabed, increasing the water depth to six to seven meters.

The dredging is expected to boost the port’s capacity and increase cargo volumes along the TITR by up to 30%. It is...

After Uzbekistan’s economic growth accelerated to 8.7% in Q1, it cooled slightly over the following three months, with GDP growth slowing to 8.5% in the first half of the year, compared with the same period in 2025. Nevertheless, this year’s growth is still well ahead of last year’s pace: the country’s economy grew 7.2% in the first half of 2025.

At current prices, Uzbekistan’s GDP reached $89 billion in January-June, based on the official exchange rate as of July 1, 2026.

Since December 2025, Uzbekistan’s Central Bank has revised its 2026 economic growth forecast three times...

World No. 1 Elena Rybakina has withdrawn from the WTA 1000 Wuhan Open. The Kazakhstani player needs time to recover from a lingering lower leg and foot injury, the WTA reported.  

Tournament organizers announced Rybakina’s withdrawal. Following the announcement, Rybakina addressed fans who had been looking forward to seeing her on court and thanked them for their support.

“I’m very sorry to the fans who were looking forward to seeing me play. I’ll take some time to rest and recover. Thank you for your understanding and continued support...

The share of women in Kazakhstan marrying and having children for the first time after age 40 is rising. In 2025, nearly 5,000 women over 40 registered their first marriages, while women in the same age group gave birth to more than 16,000 children, according to the Bureau of National Statistics.

In 2025, 4,900 women over age 40 registered their first marriages, up 5.7% from 2021. Their share among all women entering a first marriage increased from 4% to 5.5%.

According to Finprom analysts, most women entering their first marriage after age 40 were between...

The best films created using artificial intelligence were recognized at the Astana AI Film Festival, where Latvian filmmaker Nikolay Shestak won the Grand Prix and a $450,000 prize.

The festival took place Oct. 1-3 as part of AI Month, a series of events dedicated to artificial intelligence.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev spoke at the opening ceremony. He described the festival as a unique project that gives participants an opportunity to showcase their creativity and innovative ideas.

Tokayev also addressed AI safety and responsible use, comparing technology’s dual nature to the fire of Prometheus — a symbol of...

Artificial intelligence will help people in Kazakhstan find jobs, create resumes and identify risks of unemployment. The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection is developing a digital employment service powered by AI, according to the ministry.

The system will create digital profiles of citizens based on their education, work experience and skills. It will use this information to match job seekers with vacancies based on their location. If applicants lack the required skills, the system will recommend training through the Skills Enbek platform.

Read also: 56% of 2030 jobs: Why AI ‘cross-competency’ is...

Phil Collins has opened up about the unexpected end of his 24-year feud with Paul McCartney, according to Page Six. The musicians fell out in 2002 following a brief remark by the former Beatle.

How it all began

During rehearsals for Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee concert, Collins showed McCartney a rare first edition of Hunter Davies’ book “The Beatles” and asked him to autograph it.

According to Collins, McCartney turned to his then-wife, Heather Mills, and remarked:

«He’s a big Beatles fan, is our little Phil?»

Collins admitted that he took...

Following the success of “When Life Gives You Tangerines” and the second season of “Weak Hero Class 2,” Korean series continue to dominate streaming platforms. Tatler Kazakhstan has rounded up the Korean shows worth watching.

Read also: Indian filmmakers turn Almaty into South Korea.

In 2026, viewers can look forward to romantic comedies, political thrillers, legal dramas and adaptations of popular webtoons.

“Can This Love Be Translated?”

This Netflix romantic comedy centers on Joo Ho-jin, a polyglot and interpreter played by Kim Seon-ho. He begins working with...

The draft Charter of the Rights of the Child with an Incurable Disease was discussed at the second joint colloquium between Kazakhstan and the Holy See, held on Oct. 2-3 in Astana, according to Akorda, the Kazakh presidential administration. The document is being promoted as a joint initiative of Kazakhstan and the Vatican.

The opening session was attended by Yerlan Karin, vice president of Kazakhstan and head of the Secretariat of the Congress of the Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, and Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, prefect of the Holy See’s Dicastery for Interreligious...