- Honda and Nissan expected to begin merger talks
- 'Draconian' Vietnam internet law heightens free speech fears
- Israeli women mobilise against ultra-Orthodox military exemptions
- Asian markets track Wall St rally as US inflation eases rate worries
- Tens of thousands protest in Serbian capital over fatal train station accident
- Trump vows to 'stop transgender lunacy' as a top priority
- 'Who's next?': Misinformation and online threats after US CEO slaying
- Only 12 trucks delivered food, water in North Gaza Governorate since October: Oxfam
- Langers edge Tiger and son Charlie in PNC Championship playoff
- Explosive batsman Jacobs gets New Zealand call-up for Sri Lanka series
- Holders PSG edge through on penalties in French Cup
- Daniels throw five TDs as Commanders down Eagles
- Atalanta fight back to take top spot in Serie A, Roma hit five
- Mancini admits regrets over leaving Italy for Saudi Arabia
- Run machine Ayub shines as Pakistan sweep South Africa
- Slovak PM Fico on surprise visit to Kremlin
- 'Incredible' Liverpool must stay focused: Slot
- Maresca 'absolutely happy' as title-chasing Chelsea drop points in Everton draw
- Salah happy wherever career ends after inspiring Liverpool rout
- Three and easy as Dortmund move into Bundesliga top six
- Liverpool hit Spurs for six, Man Utd embarrassed by Bournemouth
- Netanyahu vows to act with 'force, determination' against Yemen's Huthis
- Ali hat-trick helps champions Ahly crush Belouizdad
- Salah stars as rampant Liverpool hit Spurs for six
- Syria's new leader says all weapons to come under 'state control'
- 'Sonic 3' zips to top of N.America box office
- Rome's Trevi Fountain reopens to limited crowds
- Mbappe strikes as Real Madrid down Sevilla
- Pope again condemns 'cruelty' of Israeli strikes on Gaza
- Lonely this Christmas: Vendee skippers in low-key celebrations on high seas
- Troubled Man Utd humiliated by Bournemouth
- 2 US pilots shot down over Red Sea in 'friendly fire' incident: military
- Man Utd embarrassed by Bournemouth, Chelsea held at Everton
- France awaits fourth government of the year
- Death toll in Brazil bus crash rises to 41
- Odermatt stays hot to break Swiss World Cup wins record
- Neville says Rashford's career at Man Utd nearing 'inevitable ending'
- Syria's new leader vows not to negatively interfere in Lebanon
- Germany pledges security inquest after Christmas market attack
- Putin vows 'destruction' on Ukraine after Kazan drone attack
- Understated Usyk seeks recognition among boxing legends
- France awaits appointment of new government
- Cyclone Chido death toll rises to 94 in Mozambique
- Stokes out of England's Champions Trophy squad
- Gaza rescuers say Israeli strikes kill 28
- Sweet smell of success for niche perfumes
- 'Finally, we made it!': Ho Chi Minh City celebrates first metro
- Angry questions in Germany after Christmas market attack
- China's Zheng pulls out of season-opening United Cup
- Minorities fear targeted attacks in post-revolution Bangladesh
Climate change may have toppled Hittite Empire: study
Three years of extreme drought may have brought about the collapse of the mighty Hittite Empire around 1200 BC, researchers have said, linking the plight of the fallen civilisation to the modern world's climate crisis.
The Hittites dominated Anatolia in modern-day Turkey for nearly 500 years, even rivalling the power of the Egyptian Empire for a period.
They were one of several influential ancient civilisations in the Eastern Mediterranean and Near East which were all toppled or severely weakened at around the same time, bringing the curtain down on the Bronze Age.
The Hittites mysteriously abandoned their capital and religious centre Hattusa around 1200 BC, when the royal line died out and written historical documents dried up.
The empire's centuries-old political and cultural structures ended "quite rapidly," Sturt Manning, an archaeologist at Cornell University in the United States and lead author of a new study, told AFP.
There are several theories for what was behind the "Late Bronze Age collapse", including attacks from naval raiders called the "Sea Peoples", epidemics and famines -- as well as a 300-year change to a drier, cooler climate.
But exactly what triggered the demise of these empires has remained unclear.
- 'Existential threat' -
Now, for the Hittites at least, the answer may have come inscribed in the rings of ancient juniper wood.
The juniper comes from one of the world's oldest wooden structures, found at the Phrygian capital of Gordion in central Turkey as part of the excavation of a king's tomb in the 1950s.
By analysing the rings of the juniper wood, the researchers were able to reconstruct climate conditions more than 3,000 years ago.
In semi-arid Central Anatolia, "the major threat to growth for most plants in the region is a lack of water," Manning said.
Narrower tree rings indicate drier years, when a lack of water meant the trees did not grow much.
The rings showed three-straight years -- 1198 BC to 1196 BC -- with "unusually" low growth, suggesting a prolonged and particularly severe drought, according to the study published in the journal Nature on Wednesday.
The researchers suggested that the drought caused severe food shortages, particularly for the land-locked parts of the central Hittite kingdom, which depended on grain and livestock.
The food shortages could have led to political, economic and social unrest, ultimately bringing about the end of the empire.
Manning warned that current global warming means the modern world could face a "multi-year existential threat" similar to the one that affected the Hittites.
Muge Durusu-Tanriover, an archaeologist at Temple University in Philadelphia who was not involved in the study, hailed it as "groundbreaking".
"Now that we know a major climate event might have tipped the Hittite empire beyond its point of no return, there are more questions to ask about climate change, its impact on states and society and, most crucially, what can be learnt from the past during our current climate crisis," she said in a Nature comment piece.
G.M.Castelo--PC