Category Archives: World News

Netanyahu must now work for support of US as Trump tires of Israel’s war in Gaza

Posted on by

The US president will not visit Israel on a trip to the Middle East and his envoy has reportedly said Netanyahu’s government is drawing out the war

Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff didn’t mince his words. In a meeting late on Sunday with former hostages and relatives of those still held in Gaza, he told them Israel is drawing out a war the US wants to end, local media reported.

On the eve of the release of Edan Alexander, the last living American being held by Hamas, Witkoff spelt out the gulf between his boss and the government of Benjamin Netanyahu.

Continue reading...

Kurdish militants PKK to disarm after decades of attacks against Turkey

Posted on by

Kurdistan Workers’ party says it will dissolve its guerrilla forces, months after call to do so from its jailed leader

A Kurdish militant group whose attacks and insurgency against Turkey have spanned more than four decades has declared it will disarm and disband, after a call from its jailed leader earlier this year.

The Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK) announced the decision to dissolve its guerrilla forces, heeding a watershed announcement from Abdullah Öcalan three months ago.

Continue reading...

India has only ‘paused’ military action against Pakistan, Modi says

Posted on by

Indian PM says he is ‘monitoring every step of Pakistan’ as ceasefire holds

Narendra Modi has said India has only “paused” its military action against Pakistan and would “retaliate on its own terms” to any attacks, after a ceasefire brought escalating hostilities between the two countries to a standstill at the weekend.

In his first address since attacks began between India and Pakistan – culminating in both sides launching missiles at each other’s key military bases and airfields on Saturday – the Indian prime minister said he was “monitoring every step of Pakistan”.

Continue reading...

Murders in Jamaica drop but activists alarmed at rise in fatal police shootings

Posted on by

Officials hail fewer homicides as rights advocates call for body-worn cameras to improve police accountability

Jamaican officials have hailed a sharp reduction in murders but rights campaigners warn that tackling crime should not come at the expense of accountability amid an “alarming” rise in fatal police shootings.

Already burdened with the highest homicide rates in the region, Jamaica has recently struggled with a surge in gang-related violence. But the number of murders per capita has been falling this year, with a marked decline between January and April.

Continue reading...

Climate crisis threatens the banana, the world’s most popular fruit, research shows

Posted on by

Fourth most important food crop in peril as Latin America and Caribbean suffer from slow-onset climate disaster

The climate crisis is threatening the future of the world’s most popular fruit, as almost two-thirds of banana-growing areas in Latin America and the Caribbean may no longer be suitable for growing the fruit by 2080, new research has found.

Rising temperatures, extreme weather and climate-related pests are pummeling banana-growing countries such as Guatemala, Costa Rica and Colombia, reducing yields and devastating rural communities across the region, according to Christian Aid’s new report, Going Bananas: How Climate Change Threatens the World’s Favourite Fruit.

Continue reading...

Norway hands over Arctic Council intact after ‘difficult’ term as chair

Posted on by

Ukraine conflict and Trump’s threat to seize Greenland have caused internal tensions within intergovernmental body

Norway is to hand over the leadership of an intergovernmental body comprising countries with territory in the Arctic after what its foreign minister called a “difficult two years”, during which there have been unprecedented tensions within the group’s membership related to Russia’s war in Ukraine and Donald Trump’s threat to seize Greenland.

The Arctic Council requires consensus from all eight Arctic states – the US, Russia, Canada, Finland, Iceland, Norway, the kingdom of Denmark, which includes Greenland, and Sweden – for all decisions and statements.

Continue reading...

‘Substantial progress’ at US-China trade talks, says Scott Bessent

Posted on by

US treasury secretary’s remarks on second day of meetings come after Trump hails ‘total reset’ in America-China ties

The US treasury secretary Scott Bessent has reported “substantial progress” in talks with China’s top economic officials to avoid a damaging trade war, but offered no details of an agreement reached as two days of negotiations wrapped up in Geneva.

Bessent said that details would be announced on Monday and that Donald Trump was fully aware of the results of the “productive talks”.

Continue reading...

Trump says planned gift of luxury plane from Qatar is a very ‘transparent’ deal

Posted on by

News of present known as ‘flying palace’ from royal family to replace Air Force One has ignited accusations of bribery and corruption

Donald Trump has indicated he is ready to accept a luxury plane being offered to the US president as a gift from Qatar’s royal family, almost immediately igniting accusations of bribery and corruption as well as commensurate criticism.

A statement from Qatar on Sunday acknowledged it had held discussions with the US about “the possible transfer” of a plane to be used temporarily by Trump as his presidential aircraft, usurping Air Force One. The emirate’s statement denied a final decision over the transfer had been made – or that it was a gift.

Continue reading...

Ex-Royal Marine completes ‘world’s longest triathlon’ at Everest summit

Posted on by

Mitch Hutchcraft swam the Channel, cycled to India and ran to Nepal, covering 8,000 miles, to raise money for charity

A former Royal Marine has completed “the world’s longest triathlon”, which he started in the UK eight months ago and finished at the summit of Mount Everest.

Mitch Hutchcraft, from Cambridgeshire, travelled more than 13,000km (8,077 miles) in 240 days by swimming, cycling, running and trekking before reaching the world’s highest peak on Sunday.

Continue reading...

‘Never again war’: Pope Leo calls for peace in Ukraine in first Sunday address

Posted on by

New pontiff also urges a ceasefire and humanitarian aid in Gaza and welcomes truce between India and Pakistan

Pope Leo XIV has called for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine and pleaded for an end to global conflicts, which he likened to a “third world war in pieces”.

In his first Sunday address at the Vatican, the new pontiff urged an immediate ceasefire and humanitarian aid in Gaza and the release of all hostages. He also welcomed the truce between India and Pakistan and referenced the end of the second world war in 1945.

Continue reading...

This American pope: Leo XIV’s bloodline reflects the US melting pot

Posted on by

A fraught history of race and immigration connect the new pope with his homeland

Pope Leo XIV, who on Thursday was elected as the first-ever US-born leader of the Roman Catholic church, has a familial bloodline that reflects his homeland’s fraught relationship with race – and why the nation’s stature as a melting pot of origins has long endured, records unearthed by genealogists show.

The maternal grandfather of 69-year-old Robert Prevost, the newly minted pope, was evidently born abroad in Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic, according to birth records that professional genealogist Chris Smothers cited to ABC News in a recent report. When Leo’s grandfather, Joseph Martinez, obtained an 1887 marriage license to wed the future pope’s grandmother, Louise Baquié, he listed his birthplace as Haiti, which at the time was the same territory as Santo Domingo, Smothers noted.

Continue reading...

Zelenskyy challenges Putin to meet in person for peace talks

Posted on by

Ukrainian president proposes face-to-face meeting after Russian leader suggests two sides hold talks in Turkey

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has challenged Vladimir Putin to meet in person for peace talks in Istanbul on Thursday, in a dramatic gambit after a weekend of diplomatic flurry.

His comments came after Putin rejected a demand from Ukraine and European allies to sign up to a 30-day ceasefire, but said Russia was ready for direct negotiations with Ukraine. Putin said delegations from the two countries should meet on Thursday in Turkey.

Continue reading...

Amid fragile ceasefire, Trump promises to boost trade with India and Pakistan

Posted on by

Truce agreement was reached after diplomacy and pressure from US but within hours there was cross-border shelling

A fragile ceasefire was holding between India and Pakistan on Sunday, after hours of overnight fighting between the nuclear-armed neighbours, as US president Donald Trump said he would work to provide a solution regarding Kashmir.

The arch-rivals were involved in intense firing for four days, the worst in nearly three decades, with missiles and drones being fired at each other’s military installations and dozens of people killed.

Continue reading...

Trump to embark on Middle East trip to meet Gulf allies

Posted on by

President eager to discuss trade and investment but no plans to visit Israel amid tensions over Gaza war

Donald Trump this week will embark on the first foreign trip of his second administration with a tour of the Middle East, as he looks to secure investment, trade and technology deals from friendly leaders with deep pockets amid turbulent negotiations around numerous regional conflicts, including Israel’s war in Gaza.

The tour through the Middle East is largely a repeat of his first international trip in 2017, when he was feted in the region as a transactional leader eager to secure quick wins and capable of providing support for the regional monarchies’ economic and geopolitical interests.

Continue reading...

There is suffering everywhere you look, says mother of emaciated baby girl trapped in Gaza

Posted on by

Babies such as Siwar Ashour are suffering from malnutrition as crucial supplies run out amid Israel’s total blockade on aid

Siwar Ashour was born into war and hunger and has known nothing else. She is now in real danger of dying without ever having known a moment of peace or contentment.

The six-month-old Palestinian girl, whose painfully emaciated body symbolised the deliberate starvation of Gaza when she appeared on the BBC this week, was only 2.5kg when she was born on 20 November last year.

Continue reading...

Five fishermen lost at sea for 55 days rescued by Ecuadorian tuna boat

Posted on by

Three Peruvians and two Colombians missing since setting sail from Peru in March arrive in Galápagos Islands

Five fishers who spent 55 days adrift at sea arrived on Saturday at a port in the Galápagos after being rescued by a tuna boat, the Ecuadorian navy said on X.

The three Peruvians and two Colombians had been missing since mid-March and were found on 7 May by an Ecuadorian boat called Aldo.

Continue reading...

Bangladeshi interim cabinet bans all ousted Awami League party activities

Posted on by

Ban of former PM Sheikh Hasina’s party under Anti-Terrorism Act will remain until trial over student deaths completes

The interim government in Bangladesh has banned all activities of the former ruling Awami League party headed by former influential prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who was ousted last year in a mass uprising.

Asif Nazrul, the country’s law affairs adviser, said on Saturday the interim cabinet headed by the Nobel peace prize laureate Muhammad Yunus decided to ban the party’s activities online and elsewhere under the country’s Anti-Terrorism Act. The ban would stay in place until a special tribunal completes a trial of the party and its leaders over the deaths of hundreds of students and other protesters during an anti-government uprising in July and August last year.

Continue reading...

Toxic chlorine cloud near Barcelona confines more than 160,000 indoors

Posted on by

Fire at warehouse storing pool cleaning products sends cloud over wide area around Vilanova i la Geltrú

Spanish authorities have told more than 160,000 people near Barcelona to stay indoors after a fire at an industrial warehouse released a toxic cloud of chlorine over a wide area.

The blaze, in the coastal city of Vilanova i la Geltrú, south of Barcelona, started at dawn on Saturday in a warehouse storing pool cleaning products, the regional fire service said.

Continue reading...

European leaders tell Putin to agree to unconditional ceasefire by Monday or face ‘massive’ sanctions – as it happened

Posted on by

This blog is now closed, you can read our full report on this story here

It is the first time the leaders of the four European nations (France, the UK, Germany and Poland) have made a joint visit to Ukraine, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).

“We are clear the bloodshed must end. Russia must stop its illegal invasion,” the leaders said in a joint statement, adding:

Alongside the US, we call on Russia to agree a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to create the space for talks on a just and lasting peace.

We will continue to increase our support for Ukraine. Until Russia agrees to an enduring ceasefire, we will ratchet up pressure on Russia’s war machine.

Continue reading...

Vladimir Putin rejects ceasefire ultimatum proposed by European leaders

Posted on by

Leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Poland told Russian president to accept unconditional 30-day ceasefire by Monday or face increased sanctions and weapons transfers to Ukraine

Vladimir Putin has rejected an ultimatum by European leaders to agree to a ceasefire with Ukraine or face increased sanctions, but has proposed holding direct negotiations with Kyiv this week.

The leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Poland told the Russian president either to sign up to an unconditional ceasefire by Monday or face increased sanctions and weapons transfers to Ukraine.

Continue reading...