Mali’s forces target rebel alliance in junta’s fight to keep power

Army supported by Russian mercenaries launches airstrikes after offensive by coalition of Islamist extremists and Tuareg separatists

Mali’s armed forces, supported by Russian mercenaries, have launched airstrikes targeting a rebel alliance of Islamist extremists and Tuareg separatists as the ruling junta struggles to maintain its hold on power in the unstable west African country.

Earlier this week warplanes targeted the key northern town of Kidal, which was lost when the rebels launched a surprise offensive across much of Mali in late April.

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Ukraine and Russia swap hundreds of prisoners, strike on Kyiv apartment block kills 24 – NBC News

  1. Ukraine and Russia swap hundreds of prisoners, strike on Kyiv apartment block kills 24  NBC News
  2. Prisoner swap goes ahead as Kyiv mourns 24 killed in Russian strike on flats  BBC
  3. Russia and Ukraine swap 205 prisoners of war each  Reuters
  4. SSU releases exclusive footage of today’s prisoner exchange  Ukrinform - Ukrainian National News Agency
  5. 205 Ukrainian POWs return from Russian captivity in latest exchange  The Kyiv Independent
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What was actually achieved at Trump and Xi’s ‘stalemate summit’ in Beijing?

US president has said he and Chinese leader ‘settled a lot of different problems’ but has given little detail on solutions

Donald Trump’s whirlwind trip to Beijing – the first US presidential visit in nearly a decade – wrapped up with much fanfare but little clarity about what was actually achieved.

Trump said on Friday he and Xi Jinping, China’s leader, “settled a lot of different problems that other people wouldn’t have been able to solve”. But he didn’t provide much detail on what those solutions were.

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UAE’s new oil pipeline push to double export capacity bypassing Hormuz – Reuters

  1. UAE's new oil pipeline push to double export capacity bypassing Hormuz  Reuters
  2. UAE fast tracks second West-East oil pipeline to bypass Strait of Hormuz  CNBC
  3. UAE to accelerate oil pipeline project to bypass Strait of Hormuz  Al Jazeera
  4. UAE to accelerate oil pipeline project to help bypass Hormuz amid Iran war fallout  The Times of Israel
  5. UAE to complete second oil pipeline bypassing strait of Hormuz by 2027  The Guardian
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Pound heads for worst week in 18 months as Burnham lines up Labour bid

UK government borrowing costs jump amid political uncertainty and oil price rise that fuelled inflation worries

The pound was heading for its worst week in 18 months on Friday as City traders anticipated that the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, could face a challenge from the Manchester mayor, Andy Burnham, later this year.

After days of uncertainty over Starmer’s future, sterling dropped by almost three cents, or 2%, during the week to $1.336 on Friday, a five-week low. That would be the largest weekly drop against the US dollar since Donald Trump’s election win in early November 2024.

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UAE Tried in Vain to Get Saudis to Coordinate on Iran Response – Bloomberg.com

  1. UAE Tried in Vain to Get Saudis to Coordinate on Iran Response  Bloomberg.com
  2. BRICS talks end without joint statement, exposing divisions over war in Iran  Reuters
  3. Trump Administration Told UAE to Seize One of Iran's Gulf Islands, Report Says  Haaretz
  4. UAE rejects ‘attempts to justify Iranian terror’ after Tehran alleges role in war  The Times of Israel
  5. UAE made failed attempt to get Saudi Arabia, Qatar to jointly attack Iran: Report  Middle East Eye
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Iran has ‘no trust’ in US, will negotiate only if it is serious, Araqchi says – Reuters

  1. Iran has 'no trust' in US, will negotiate only if it is serious, Araqchi says  Reuters
  2. Iran warns of readiness for war and economic costs as US talks falter  Al Jazeera
  3. Iran says it "cannot trust" U.S. in negotiations as Trump says "we control" strait  Yahoo
  4. Iran has ‘no trust’ in the U.S., will negotiate only if it is serious, Araghchi says  NBC News
  5. 'This was all avoidable': Iran on US facing 'rocketing costs of war of choice'  The Times of India
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