The US has launched a series of “powerful” strikes on Iran in response to attacks on three commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. US Central Command (Centcom) said on Tuesday it had begun the assault, “to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent individuals in an international waterway”. Iran’s […]
Continue ReadingA court in eastern China has sentenced a former city official to death for taking more than 2.2bn yuan ($325m; £243m) in bribes over 30 years. Yang Youlin, who served in various positions in Nanjing city from 1993 to 2023, was also convicted of embezzlement, abuse of power and money laundering, with his ill-gotten gains […]
Continue ReadingIt also said two Bolivian child victims who were forced to work in a grocery store were rescued by Argentinian police, with arrests made. Separately, Belgian authorities arrested 17 suspects after dismantling a trafficking network that allegedly held victims recruited via social media captive, and forced them into prostitution rings across Belgium and France. The […]
Continue ReadingA resident inside Crimea has told the BBC the situation there is “catastrophic”, as Ukrainian drones strike oil refineries and power plants on the peninsula, as well as military targets. The strikes on Russian-annexed Crimea have increased significantly in recent weeks – partly to cut off supply lines to Russian troops attacking Ukraine from the […]
Continue ReadingThe US, however, has continued to tighten the screws. In late May it launched an investigation to determine whether Vietnam’s failure to stamp out IP violations was “unreasonable” and problematic for US commerce. So Vietnamese authorities tightened screws of their own. On 10 June, police in Thanh Hoa province dismantled a ring that manufactured and […]
Continue ReadingThe authorities in Australia are investigating the origins of mysterious large silver spheres that washed up on a beach in northern Queensland this weekend. The six solid objects discovered on Forrest Beach, to the north of Townsville, are thought to be space debris, and the Australian Space Agency (ASA) is now trying to determine where […]
Continue ReadingUkraine has struck a major oil terminal in Russia’s second city of St Petersburg and other targets in the country’s north-west. In a post on social media, President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote: “Ukraine’s defence forces struck port oil infrastructure that generates revenue for Russia’s war.” He also said an “important military target” was hit overnight in […]
Continue ReadingAround 1,000 names were reportedly on the guest list, including some of the biggest stars from music, Hollywood and sport. Selena Gomez, Camila Cabello, Hugh Grant, Gracie Abrams, Gigi Hadid, Bradley Cooper, Tom Hanks, Millie Bobby Brown, Ellie Goulding, Graham Norton, Dakota Johnson, Steven Spielberg, were among the A-list attendees. Many more drove straight in […]
Continue ReadingPope Leo XIV has called on European leaders to rise to the “momentous challenge” of handling migration as he visited the Italian island of Lampedusa. The pontiff urged Europe to help new arrivals integrate better and improve conditions in their home countries, during a mass on the island, which receives tens of thousands of migrants […]
Continue ReadingLarge crowds of black-clad mourners have gathered outside Tehran’s main mosque to pay their respects to Iran’s former supreme leader on the first day of his funeral comemorations. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s body is currently lying in state at the Grand Mosalla, ahead of his eventual burial in his hometown of Mashhad next Thursday. Authorities expect […]
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