BBC reported that Thailand’s king has dissolved parliament, paving the way for a general election in early May.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha’s new conservative, royalist party faces a strong challenge from the Pheu Thai party, led by exiled former PM Thaksin Shinawatra’s daughter Paetongtarn. Prayuth, who led a 2014 coup against the last pro-Thaksin government, has trailed in opinion polls for months.

The election date has not been set, but must be within 60 days of dissolution. Thailand’s current constitution – written by the military – could make it hard for the opposition to form a new government.

Campaigning by dozens of parties is already under way. Bangkok’s pavements are disappearing behind a blizzard of party posters making all kinds of promises to the voters.

UN chief Antonio Guterres says a major new report on climate change is a “survival guide for humanity”.

Clean energy and technology can be exploited to avoid the growing climate disaster, the report says. But at a meeting in Switzerland to agree their findings, climate scientists warned a key global temperature goal will likely be missed. Their report lays out how rapid cuts to fossil fuels can avert the worst effects of climate change.

In response to the findings, UN secretary general Antonio Guterres says that all countries should bring forward their net zero plans by a decade. These targets are supposed to rapidly cut the greenhouse gas emissions that warm our planet’s atmosphere.

“There is a rapidly closing window of opportunity to secure a liveable and sustainable future for all,” the report states.

Governments had previously agreed to act to avoid global temperature rise going above 1.5C. But the world has already warmed by 1.1C and now experts say that it is likely to breach 1.5C in the 2030s.

(BBC)