Places in News Current Affairs MCQs

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Recently, a cruise liner with Israeli tourists was denied docking at Syros Island, Greece due to protests over the Gaza war, forcing it to reroute to Cyprus. Syros island is located in Greece, specifically within the Cyclades island group in the Aegean Sea. It lies 78 nautical miles (144 km) southeast of Athens, the capital of Greece.

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Recently, the Preah Vihear Temple became the flashpoint in deadly border clashes between Thailand and Cambodia. The temple is called Preah Vihear in Cambodia and Phra Viharn in Thailand. It is located atop the Dangrek Mountains along the Thailand-Cambodia border. The 11th-12th century temple was built by the Khmer Empire and is sacred to both Theravada-Buddhist nations. Despite a 1962 International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling giving Preah Vihear to Cambodia, Thailand disputes it. Tensions flared again in 2008 after Cambodia listed the temple as a UNESCO site, provoking Thai nationalist anger. Both nations claim ownership, fueling long-standing historical and territorial tensions.

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Recently, the Noon River in Rampur Narua village, Kanpur district, Uttar Pradesh, was revived under the “One District, One River” campaign launched during the Saryu Mahotsav on June 5 by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. The 48.5 km-long Noon River flows through 34 gram panchayats and originates from Kanhaiya Lake, ending at the Ganga near Bithoor. It had dried up mainly due to jal kumbhi (water hyacinth) infestation, waste dumping, and boulders from nearby construction sites. The revival work began on February 22, 2024, and was completed using old satellite images, drone mapping, and technical support from institutes like IIT Kanpur, BHU, BBAU, and the Remote Sensing Application Centre.

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Recently, glaciers of Mount Cilo in southeastern Turkey have lost nearly 50% of their ice cover in 40 years due to climate change and rising heatwaves. Mount Cilo is the second-highest mountain in Turkey, reaching 4,135 meters at its summit called Reşko or Gelyaşin or Uludoruk. The mountain stretches 30 kilometers and forms the western arm of Cilo-Sat Mountains National Park, declared in 2020. The terrain features sharp ridges, limestone cliffs, gorges, and glacial valleys.

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Krasheninnikov volcano erupted on 2 August 2025 in Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. It was the first recorded eruption of the volcano in modern times. The eruption occurred three days after a nearby magnitude 8.8 earthquake. Ash emissions from the volcano reached an altitude of 20,000 feet. Krasheninnikov is an active stratovolcano located in Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. It lies within a 9 km wide caldera formed by a massive eruption 39,600 years ago. The volcano is part of the Pacific “Ring of Fire” and has two eruptive cones.

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Recently, the Great Barrier Reef recorded its steepest decline in hard coral cover in nearly 40 years due to climate change-induced heat stress, cyclones, and coral-eating starfish outbreaks. It is located in the Coral Sea, off northeastern Australia. It is the world’s longest and largest reef complex and the largest living structure on Earth. It stretches over 2,000 km, covering around 350,000 sq. km, and forms about 10% of global coral reef ecosystems. It consists of about 2,100 individual reefs and 800 fringing reefs, with 400 coral types, 1,500 fish species, and 4,000 mollusk species.

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Recently, the Sea of Galilee in Israel turned red due to the bloom of Botryococcus braunii algae. The Sea of Galilee is a large freshwater lake located in northeastern Israel. It lies in the Jordan Rift Valley, mainly fed by the Jordan River and some underground springs. Known by names like Sea of Kinneret, Lake of Gennesaret, and Lake of Tiberias, it is bordered by plains in the north and hills of Lower Galilee in the west and southwest. Botryococcus braunii is a single-celled green algae found in freshwater or brackish lakes, known for producing hydrocarbons and forming protective biofilm structures.

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A study shows mariners in the Bering Strait are following 2018 shipping guidelines, showing quiet U.S.-Russia cooperation despite strained ties. The Bering Strait is the northernmost part of the Pacific Ocean, separating Asia (Russia) and North America (United States). It lies just south of the Arctic Circle and connects the Bering Sea to the Chukchi Sea of the Arctic Ocean. At its narrowest point, Russia and the U.S. are only 85 km apart, between Cape Dezhnev and Cape Prince of Wales. The strait is shallow with an average depth of 50 m and contains islands like St. Lawrence and the Diomede Islands.

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A Ukrainian drone attack recently caused a short-lived fire at the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant in Russia. Kursk region is located in the European part of Russia, bordering Ukraine to the west. It is historically famous for the Battle of Kursk in 1943, the largest tank battle in history and a turning point in World War II. The region lies within the basins of the Dnieper and Don rivers. Kursk hosts the Kursk Magnetic Anomaly, the world’s largest magnetic anomaly and one of the richest iron ore deposits. The incident raised concerns over nuclear safety in a strategically important region.

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The Pong Dam, also called the Beas Dam, recently saw water levels breaching the danger mark in Himachal Pradesh. It is an earth-fill embankment dam built on the Beas River in the Shivalik hills of Kangra district, Himachal Pradesh. The dam was constructed between 1961 and 1974 and was the tallest of its type in India at that time. It serves purposes of irrigation and hydroelectric power generation. The dam created an artificial lake named Maharana Pratap Sagar.