SpaceX founder Elon Musk congratulated his rival Jeff Bezos on the successful maiden test-launch of his heavy-lift rocket New Glenn on Thursday.

“Congratulations on reaching orbit on the first attempt’’ Musk wrote on X, the social media platform he owns, tagging Bezos in his post.

Amazon founder Bezos established his rocket company Blue Origin nearly 25 years ago.

But he has seen Musk’s SpaceX come to dominate the U.S. commercial space industry and obtain lucrative government contracts.

SpaceX’s unscrewed mega rocket Star ship, developed to carry astronauts to the moon, failed during its first two launches in 2023.

But the spacecraft has now made it into Earth’s orbit on several occasions, and the next test launch is planned for later Thursday.

Our priority must be to ease the tremendous suffering caused by this conflict, says UN Secretary-General António Guterres.

He said this in a statement following the announcement of a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza by Qatar’s Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman Al Thani.

Guterres commended Egypt, Qatar, and the U.S. for their dedicated efforts as mediators in brokering the deal, adding that their unwavering commitment to finding a diplomatic solution was critical in achieving the breakthrough.

He said the UN stood ready to support the implementation of the deal and scale up the delivery of sustained humanitarian relief to the countless Palestinians who continue to suffer.

According to him, the deal is a critical first step, but all efforts must be mobilised to also advance broader goals, including the preservation of the unity, contiguity, and integrity of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

“It is imperative that this ceasefire removes the significant security and political obstacles to delivering aid across Gaza so that we can support a major increase in urgent lifesaving humanitarian support.

“The humanitarian situation is at catastrophic levels. I call on all parties to facilitate the rapid, unhindered, and safe humanitarian relief for all civilians in need.

“From our side, we will do whatever is humanly possible, aware of the serious challenges and constraints that we will be facing. We expect our efforts to be matched by other humanitarian actors, the private sector and bilateral initiatives.”

The UN chief said Palestinian unity was essential for achieving lasting peace and stability.

On his part, ending the occupation and achieving a negotiated two-state solution, with Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace and security, in line with international law, relevant UN resolutions, and previous agreements remain an urgent priority.

According to him, only through a viable two-state solution can the aspirations of both peoples be fulfilled.

Guterres paid tribute to civilians who lost their lives in the 15-month war, including UN personnel and humanitarian workers.

“The United Nations is steadfast in its commitment to supporting all efforts that promote peace, stability, and a more hopeful future for the people of Palestine and Israel, and across the region,” he said.

The outgoing U.S. President, Joe Biden has signed an order granting the Republic of Cyprus access to three key U.S. military programmes, Greek media reported on Thursday.

Cyprus has joined the Foreign Military Sales (FMS), Excess Defence Articles (EDA) and Title 10 Security Cooperation programmes, the ERTNews broadcaster reported.

The move was considered particularly important for Cyprus as it would boost bilateral cooperation between the two states, strengthen operational compatibility and security ties.

This would also modernise the republic’s defence, the broadcaster said.

Under the FMS programme, the U.S. could transfer defence articles, services and training to international partners; the EDA programme allowed foreign governments or international organisations to receive surplus U.S. defence equipment.

The Title 10 programme gave an opportunity to take part in the activities aimed at developing new capabilities of foreign countries’ security forces.

Officials in Washington, in turn had reportedly supported the move, as this new expanded cooperation structure would help create a new security space in the region, in which Cyprus would   play an important role.

In October 2024, Cyprus and the U.S. launched a Strategic Dialogue, and in September, the countries signed a roadmap on cooperation in defence in 2024 to 2029.

Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides had strongly supported the development of U.S.-Cyprus ties, as well as joining NATO.

In December, he said that Cyprus would join NATO “tomorrow’’ if it were possible