Category Archives: World News

Iran sanctions: nearly all UN security council unites against ‘unpleasant’ US

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Letters from 13 of 15 members underscore US isolation as it seeks to ‘snap back’ measures against Tehran

The extent of US isolation at the UN has been driven home by formal letters from 13 of the 15 security council members opposing Trump administration attempts to extend the economic embargo on Iran.

The letters by the council members were all issued in the 24 hours since the US secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, came to the UN’s New York headquarters to declare Iran in non-compliance with a 2015 nuclear deal.

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Trump campaign fails to show evidence of vote-by-mail fraud, filing reveals

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  • Documents obtained by Guardian shows evidence sorely lacking
  • Campaign complained of widespread fraud in Pennsylvania

Donald Trump’s campaign failed to produce any evidence of vote-by-mail fraud in Pennsylvania after a federal judge ordered it do so, according to a 524-page court filing obtained by the Guardian.

Related: USPS chief Louis DeJoy says he won't restore mail-sorting machines ahead of election – live

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Coronavirus in Europe: dozens of schools report infections in Berlin

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Cases on rise across Europe with Spain alone registering nearly 70,000 in past fortnight

Coronavirus cases have been reported by at least 41 schools in Berlin, barely two weeks after the German capital’s 825 schools reopened.

Cases are rising across Europe, including in Spain, which registered 66,905 in the past two weeks, resulting in the continent’s highest 14-day infection rate and warnings over the risk of a new wave of deaths.

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West holding back on criticism of Russia over Navalny ‘poisoning’

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While activist remains in the country, response is unlikely to go overboard

Western leaders have raised “concerns” about the suspected poisoning of leading Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny, and offered medical help, but mostly avoided direct attacks on Russia as the activist fought for his life in a Siberian hospital.

The most muted response came from the US president, Donald Trump, who barely acknowledged the sudden collapse of Russia’s most prominent opposition figure, confirming only that his administration was looking into the events.

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Trouble for Trump as Fox News praises ‘enormously effective’ Biden speech

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Republican pundits accept success of Biden’s convention address as Trump’s bid to portray Democratic rival as radical leftist falls flat

Under pressure on the last day of the Democratic convention, Joe Biden “hit a home run” with an “enormously effective” speech that blew “a big hole” in Donald Trump’s efforts to paint him as a mentally faltering captive of his party’s left wing.

And that was to hear Fox News hosts Dana Perino and Chris Wallace tell it.

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USPS chief Louis DeJoy says he won’t restore mail sorting machines ahead of election – live

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Senator Tom Carper explained his cursing during the hearing with Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, which was caught on a hot mic and widely shared on Twitter.

“Those who know me know that there are few things that get me more fired up than protecting the Postal Service!” Carper said in a tweet.

Those who know me know that there are few things that get me more fired up than protecting the Postal Service!#DontMessWithUSPS

2020 mood pic.twitter.com/lKnf23W0jV

Brief Kanye update: Kanye West has not qualified to appear on the ballot in the swing state of Ohio, according to Ohio secretary of state Frank LaRose.

Kanye does not make the ballot in Ohio, according to Secretary LaRose pic.twitter.com/HWp3ORKkJM

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Alexei Navalny’s wife asks Putin to let him be treated in Germany

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Letter appeals to Russian leader after doctors refuse to allow Kremlin critic to leave country

The wife of the Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny has appealed directly to Vladimir Putin to allow her husband to be evacuated to a clinic in Germany to receive treatment for a suspected poisoning.

Doctors treating Navalny in the Siberian city of Omsk have refused to release him for evacuation to a clinic abroad, sparking a standoff with his family and aides who say his life is in danger in Russia.

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Malta’s former PM questioned over Daphne Caruana Galizia murder inquiry

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Joseph Muscat formally interviewed for first time in connection with investigation

Malta’s former prime minister Joseph Muscat has been questioned by police in connection with the investigation into the murder of the anti-corruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Muscat resigned as leader of the EU member state in January after the widening political scandal surrounding the journalist’s death threatened to bring down his government.

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Crews prepare to sink Mauritius spill ship despite opposition

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MV Wakashio has split in two and leaked 1,000 tonnes of oil into the water since it ran aground

Salvage crews were preparing to sink a Japanese-owned ship that ran aground off Mauritius, despite opposition from environmental campaigners.

The MV Wakashio broke into two on Saturday, almost three weeks after hitting a reef and spilling 1,000 tonnes of oil into idyllic waters full of marine life.

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Irish minister resigns over golf dinner that may have breached Covid-19 regulations

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Agriculture minister Dara Calleary attended just after Ireland’s restrictions tightened

Ireland’s agriculture minister has resigned after he said he had damaged the national effort to contain Covid-19 by attending a social event police were investigating for an alleged breach of health regulations.

Dara Calleary was among more than 80 guests at a hotel dinner hosted by the Irish parliament’s golf society the night after he and his cabinet colleagues significantly tightened nationwide restrictions to try to rein in an increase in infections.

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UN-supported Libya government and rival authority call ceasefire

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Development raises hopes of political solution as both sides call for end to oil blockade

Libya’s UN-supported government has announced a ceasefire across the oil-rich country and called for the demilitarisation of the strategic city of Sirte, which is controlled by rival forces.

In a separate statement Aguila Saleh, the speaker of the rival House of Representatives in the east, also called for a ceasefire. The announcements came amid fears of an escalation in the more than nine-year-old conflict.

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Uganda court rules government must prioritise maternal health in ‘huge shift’

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Ruling is result of lawsuit filed over deaths in childbirth of two women due to staff negligence and lack of facilities

Health rights activists in Uganda have welcomed a landmark court ruling that the government should increase its health budget to ensure women receive decent maternal healthcare services.

The ruling is the result of a lawsuit filed in 2011 over the deaths in childbirth of two women – Jennifer Anguko and Sylvia Nalubowa – in a public health facility.

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China’s Cai Xia: former party insider who dared criticise Xi Jinping

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Prominent dissident explains how she came to doubt her fervent beliefs in party orthodoxy

In the mid-1990s, Cai Xia, a devout believer in Chinese communist doctrine, experienced her first moment of doubt.

She was a teacher at the central party school for training cadres when a friend called with some questions. Cai, an expert in Marxism and Chinese communist party theory, enthusiastically answered.

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Time-wasting UK makes post-Brexit deal unlikely, says Barnier

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Brussels’ chief negotiator says talks often go backwards as UK fails to grasp EU red lines

Michel Barnier has accused the British government of “wasting valuable time” and warned that a post-Brexit deal between the EU and the UK looks “unlikely”.

With two months to go until the EU-imposed deadline of October, the EU’s chief negotiator said: “Frankly I am disappointed and I am worried.” Barnier said he was “a little surprised” because Boris Johnson had told EU leaders earlier this summer he wanted an outline deal by July.

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How Julia Louis-Dreyfus roasted Donald Trump in DNC finale – video

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Actor Julia Louis-Dreyfus brought a great deal of levity while hosting the final night of the Democratic national convention. The comedian and star of Veep roasted Donald Trump and urged Americans to vote this November, joking that not even 'Facebook, Fox News and Vladimir Putin' can stop the democratic process

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Boy with stutter delivers moving DNC speech: ‘Joe Biden made me feel confident’ – video

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Brayden Harrington, 13, spoke about how he met Joe Biden, who stuttered himself as a boy, and how the Democratic presidential nominee gave him confidence. 'He told me we were members of the same club: we stutter. It was really amazing to hear that someone like me became vice president,' Brayden said.

In the final night of the Democratic national convention, Biden outlined his plans to bring relief and solace to a country battered by the coronavirus pandemic as he accepted the nomination to challenge Donald Trump in the November election

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Palestinians stage surprise ‘thank you’ event for Banksy in Bethlehem

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Photographs of works go on display in Manger Square to celebrate British street artist’s contribution to diversifying tourism

Photographs of 20 pieces of Banksy’s artwork in Palestine have been displayed in the centre of Bethlehem as a thank you to the anonymous British street artist for helping diversify tourism in the city.

The images were collated by Palestinian photographers for the surprise exhibition in Manger Square.

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Selective abortion in India could lead to 6.8m fewer girls being born by 2030

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New study shows preference for a son is highest in north of country with Uttar Pradesh having highest deficit in female births

An estimated 6.8 million fewer female births will be recorded across India by 2030 because of the persistent use of selective abortions, researchers estimate.

Academics from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia projected the sex ratio at birth in 29 Indian states and union territories, covering almost the entire population, taking into account each state’s desired sex ratio at birth and the population’s fertility rates.

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Papua New Guinea bans Chinese mine staff ‘given experimental Covid-19 vaccine’

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Flight carrying workers from Chinese state-owned Ramu nickel mine cancelled by pandemic controller over concerns about vaccine trial

A planeload of Chinese mine workers have been barred from entering Papua New Guinea, over concerns they had been subjected to an unapproved Covid-19 vaccination trial before they left.

A flight from China carrying workers for the Chinese state-owned Ramu Nickel mine in Madang province was cancelled by PNG’s police commissioner and pandemic controller, David Manning, over concerns about the trial.

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Surge in passport sales delivers Vanuatu a record budget surplus

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Economy devastated by Covid shutdowns and a destructive cyclone, but citizenships-for-sale are keeping the country afloat

Surging demand for Vanuatu passports has driven an unexpected record surplus, funding Covid-19 bailout packages and cyclone recovery.

With nearly every other sector of its fragile economy reeling from the twin crises of pandemic lockdowns and April’s category five Cyclone Harold, Vanuatu nonetheless managed to turn a 3.8bn Vanuatu Vatu (US$33.3m) surplus in the first half of 2020.

Its controversial citizenship-for-sale programmes account for nearly all of that.

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