Exact charges president’s son would face were not immediately clear but indictment to come by 29 September at earliest
Federal prosecutors are seeking to bring a new indictment against Joe Biden’s son Hunter by the end of September, according to court documents filed on Wednesday.
The exact charges the president’s son would face were not immediately clear, but he has been under investigation in Delaware on gun and tax charges.
Continue reading...Tamir Pardo comments, slammed by ruling Likud party, carry weight because of high regard for intelligence agency in Israel
A former head of the Mossad intelligence agency has said Israel is imposing a form of apartheid on the Palestinians, joining a growing number of prominent Israelis to compare the occupation of the West Bank to South Africa’s defunct system of racial oppression.
But Tamir Pardo’s views will have added impact because of the high regard for Mossad in Israel and because they come at a time when far-right members of Israel’s government are moving to kill off any prospect of an independent Palestinian state.
Continue reading...Moscow targets cities with missiles as US secretary of state Antony Blinken makes surprise visit to Kyiv
A Russian strike has hit a crowded market in the Ukrainian city of Kostiantynivka, killing at least 17 people, as the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, was in Kyiv for an unannounced visit, his first for a year to the Ukrainian capital.
Ukrainian officials said a further 32 people were wounded in the attack, one of Russia’s deadliest attacks in months, 12 miles (20km) from the frontlines in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.
Continue reading...Seven oil and gas leases canceled by interior department, which said sale during final days of Trump administration were flawed
The US interior department has canceled seven oil and gas leases in Alaska’s Arctic national wildlife refuge that were part of a sale held in the waning days of the Trump administration, arguing the sale was legally flawed.
The interior secretary, Deb Haaland, said with her decision to cancel the remaining leases “no one will have rights to drill for oil in one of the most sensitive landscapes on earth”. However, a 2017 law mandates another lease sale by late 2024. Administration officials said they intend to comply with the law.
Continue reading...Austrian rail operator ÖBB says service will resume partly in December and daily from October 2024
A night train linking Berlin and Paris will return in December, nine years after the service was cancelled, the Austrian rail operator ÖBB has announced.
ÖBB has been a pioneer in bringing back night trains as Europeans look for low-carbon travel options.
Continue reading...Akif Rasuli spent more than two years behind bars after being accused of people smuggling
A Greek court has awarded thousands of euros in compensation to an Afghan refugee who spent more than two years in prison after being wrongfully accused of people smuggling, in a rare step hailed by campaigners.
A three-member appeal court sitting on the Aegean island of Lesbos ruled that Akif Rasuli had not only been unjustly jailed, but should be recompensed for the ordeal he had been made to endure.
Continue reading...Lee, currently in Atlantic, could be upgraded to hurricane later on Wednesday with its track still unclear
A tropical storm in the Atlantic might soon turn into an “extremely dangerous” major hurricane, with its future track and chances of making a potentially devastating landfall still unclear, the National Hurricane Center said on Wednesday.
Tropical Storm Lee could turn into a hurricane later on Wednesday and intensify to a category 3 or higher by this weekend. The National Hurricane Center issued advisories in areas near the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.
Continue reading...Nairobi Declaration, issued at first African Climate Summit, also includes call for global carbon taxes
African leaders have called for debt relief across the continent to allow countries to get on with responding to the climate crisis, as they publish the Nairobi Declaration at the end of the first African climate summit.
The declaration, which had a heavy focus on climate finance, also included a call for global carbon taxes, and for increased representation of African and other countries in the governance of multilateral banks.
Continue reading...More than 60 cities battered by storm since Monday night as more heavy rains expected but sparing worst-hit areas
An extratropical cyclone in southern Brazil has caused floods in several cities, killing at least 31 people and leaving more than 1,600 homeless.
More than 60 cities have been battered by the storm since Monday night, and Rio Grande do Sul’s governor, Eduardo Leite, said the death toll was the state’s highest due to a climate event.
Continue reading...Volodymyr Zelenskiy condemns attack on the eastern city of Kostiantynivka, where a child was among the dead. This live blog is closed
Cuba has uncovered a human trafficking ring aimed at recruiting Cubans to fight as mercenaries for Russia in its war in Ukraine, its foreign ministry has said, as Moscow seeks to increase the size of its forces.
In a statement, the Cuban foreign ministry said the authorities were working to “neutralise and dismantle” the network, which it said was operating within the Caribbean island nation and in Russia.
Continue reading...Margaret Betts, of Ipswich, was headhunted in 1942 to decipher enemy communications during WW2
One of the last surviving female Bletchley Park codebreakers, who worked helping to decipher enemy communications during the second world war, has died aged 99.
Margaret Betts, of Ipswich, Suffolk, was 19 when she was headhunted by “men from the ministry”, having performed well at school, her son Jonathan Betts, 68, said.
Continue reading...‘Revolutionary’ Digital Markets Act aims to allow more competition and let consumers delete preloaded phone apps
The EU has unveiled a set of “revolutionary” laws to curb the power of six big tech companies, including allowing consumers to decide what apps they want on their phone and to delete pre-loaded software such as Google or Apple’s maps apps.
The package of laws will also pave the way for more competition in some of the areas most guarded by the tech firms, including Apple Wallet and Google Pay.
Continue reading...King Charles and Queen Camilla to dine at Palace of Versailles banquet and meet sports stars
King Charles will address members of both houses of the French parliament and will have a bilateral meeting with French president, Emmanuel Macron, during a state visit to France with the queen later this month.
The visit, originally due in March, was postponed when pension-reform protests in France spiralled into violent clashes.
Continue reading...IOM says half of country’s population now in need of aid and protection after months of violence
Five million people have been displaced by civil war in Sudan, which is facing a rapidly mounting humanitarian emergency after months of serious fighting between the military and a rival paramilitary force.
The displacement figure, provided by the International Organization for Migration, echoes a warning from the UN’s main refugee agency, UNHCR, that more than $1bn would be needed to support those fleeing the violence into neighbouring countries.
Continue reading...‘Just in time’ production system minimises costs but technical glitch highlights risks
Toyota has blamed a recent shutdown of all of its factories in Japan on a system malfunction caused by “insufficient disk space”.
The Japanese carmaker said the stoppage on 29 August at all 14 of its domestic plants occurred after servers that process orders for vehicle parts broke down following a maintenance procedure carried out the previous day.
Continue reading...At least 12 people die across three countries as torrential rainstorms cause severe damage to buildings, roads and bridges
At least 12 people have died in Turkey, Greece and Bulgaria as flash floods from torrential rainstorms turned rivers into torrents, swept away bridges and inundated streets, homes and public buildings.
Greece’s climate crisis and civil protection minister, Vassilis Kikilias, said after an emergency cabinet meeting: “This is the most extreme phenomenon in terms of the maximum amount of rain in a 24-hour period since records began in the country.”
Continue reading...In August, 50,000 people fleeing northward were met with long lines for medical attention, a lack of water and sleeping spaces
Medical non-governmental organizations (NGOs) attending to injured and sick migrants crossing the Darién Gap are increasingly unable to manage the record number of people taking the perilous journey, according to Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) and the United Nation high commissioner for human rights.
In August 50,000 people took the week-long trek through the dense jungle connecting Colombia and Panama, outstretching the capacity of MSF’s staff at medical treatment posts on the Panamanian border.
Continue reading...Ruling against man who claimed family were ‘pushback’ victims seen as blow to efforts to make Frontex accountable
A Syrian refugee has lost a landmark case against the EU’s border protection agency, Frontex, after he and his family were forcibly deported from Greece before his asylum application was processed.
The ruling is seen as a major blow to efforts to make the operations of Frontex in Greece and other countries more transparent and accountable to the member states who employ them.
Continue reading...US secretary of state expected to announce initial package of military aid for Kyiv of up to $200m
The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has arrived in Kyiv for an unannounced visit that is his first for a year to the Ukrainian capital.
He is expected to announce a new package of US assistance of $175m-$200m during the two-day visit, AP reported, with a larger package worth more than $1bn expected later this week, according to a senior state department official.
Continue reading...New law in Sindh introduces ‘extraordinary measures’ to ensure vaccination of children against range of infectious diseases
Parents in Pakistan who refuse to get their children vaccinated against infectious diseases could be jailed or fined under a new law introduced in Sindh province.
The introduction of the legislation is an attempt to eradicate polio, which is endemic in Pakistan, but will cover vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough (pertussis), measles, mumps and rubella.
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