Category: World

The movement is significant because Iran holds a major geographical advantage over the Strait and has repeatedly targeted vessels in retaliation for the US-Israeli strikes on February 28 that triggered the war.

Since Iran entered the war on February 28, the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical oil routes, has effectively been under blockade. The narrow passage between Iran and Oman carries nearly 20 per cent of global oil and natural gas supplies, and the disruption has rattled energy markets, pushed up fuel prices, and raised fears of wider economic instability across Asia and beyond.

Even after the April 9 ceasefire halted active fighting, the Strait itself remained largely shut, with maritime movement still heavily affected by the conflict.

Yet amid the uncertainty, several Indian-linked ships have continued to pass through the risky stretch, helping India maintain energy supplies despite severe disruptions in the region.

The movement is significant because Iran holds a major geographical advantage over the Strait and has repeatedly targeted vessels in retaliation for the US-Israeli strikes on February 28 that triggered the war.

Behind-The-Scenes Coordination

Speaking at an inter-ministerial briefing on Friday, officials from the shipping ministry shed some light on how India has been managing ship movements through the tense waterway, though they did not reveal operational details.

“In terms of how we coordinate with India, Iran, how do we decide the priority, I would not like to, you know, tell you how we coordinate for obvious reasons. So we coordinate through MEA, and that is where we are,” said Opesh Kumar Sharma, director of shipping at the Ministry of Ports.

He said vessel priority is worked out jointly with key ministries handling energy and essential supplies.

“He added that in terms of priority, it is decided in coordination with MOPNG (Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas), Ministry of Fertilisers, and thereafter the coordinated priorities prepared and through which we try and get the ships out.”

13 Indian Vessels Still In Hormuz

According to Sharma, around 13 Indian-flagged vessels are currently in the Strait of Hormuz region. These include one LPG tanker, five crude oil tankers, one chemical or product tanker, three container ships, two bulk carriers and one dredger.

Despite the danger, India has continued to maintain maritime traffic through the route and remains among the countries with the highest number of vessels transiting the Strait.

The Indian-linked ships that have crossed the waterway since February 28 include Shivalik, Nanda Devi, Jag Laadki, Pine Gas, Jag Vasant, BW Tyr, BW Elm and Green Sanvi.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/strait-hormuz-is-shut-indian-ships-still-passing-centre-shares-secret-strategy-11565953?pfrom=home-ndtv_topstories

“India is powerful and modernising its military,” Pete Hegseth said. He also highlighted that it is maintaining a balance of power, particularly in the Indian Ocean.

India is “powerful” and “modernising” its military with heavy industrial and logistics capacity to sustain “high-end military operations,” US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said on Saturday.

Hegseth made these remarks while talking to the delegates at the Shangri-La Dialogue on Saturday in Singapore.

“India is powerful and modernising its military,” he said and also highlighted that it is maintaining a balance of power, particularly in the Indian Ocean.

Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue, he noted that India was also “building a heavy industrial and logistics capacity to sustain high-end military operations.”

“We’ve also committed to pursuing co-production with India to advance capabilities,” said Hegseth, adding that America was undergoing a national manufacturing globalisation of its defence.

He also assessed defence-related relations with Japan, South Korea, ASEAN and Australia.

Hegseth highlighted several points on the US’ defence strategy in the region, noting that the Asia-Pacific was the most consequential region in the world, that the security of the region rested “disproportionately” on the US military power and called on nations to invest seriously in their own defence.

He pointed out that the US and China relations are better than they have been in many years under President Donald Trump, but also that “no state, including China, can impose hegemony and hold the security of our nation and allies in question”.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/india-us-relations-india-powerful-modernising-military-with-high-end-ops-us-secretary-of-war-pete-hegseth-top-trump-aide-11567015?pfrom=home-ndtv_topstories

The US Department of Homeland Security has clarified that most immigrants applying for green cards will not need to leave the United States while their applications are processed.

Most immigrants seeking permanent residency in the United States will not be required to leave the country while waiting for their green cards, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has clarified, according to The New York Times. The clarification follows confusion over a recent announcement by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which appeared to suggest that applicants would generally have to return to their home countries and wait abroad unless they qualified for “extraordinary” exceptions.

However, DHS said on Friday that there had been no broad change in policy. According to The New York Times, immigration officers have long had the discretion to decide on a case-by-case basis whether an applicant should complete the green card process from outside the United States.

A DHS spokesperson said the latest guidance was simply a reminder of that existing authority and not a new requirement for all applicants. The department stressed that most people seeking permanent residency would still be allowed to remain in the country while their cases are processed.

Officials indicated that certain factors, such as visa overstays or other immigration concerns, could influence individual decisions. However, DHS has not provided detailed guidance on exactly who might be affected.

The clarification represents a notable shift from the impression created by last week’s announcement, which sparked concern among immigrant communities and immigration advocates. Even some officials within the department were reportedly uncertain about the scope of the guidance when it was first publicised.

According to The New York Times, a senior White House official described the move as a routine administrative matter rather than a significant shift in immigration strategy.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/us-green-card-most-immigrants-will-not-have-to-leave-america-says-dhs-11567131?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

Karachi’s water shortages stem from decades of rapid population growth, ageing pipelines, poor urban planning, water theft and delayed infrastructure projects.

Karachi Water Crisis: Pakistan’s financial capital Karachi is facing a severe water shortage, with nearly 70 per cent of the city’s population reportedly experiencing frequent supply disruptions amid soaring temperatures.

The water crisis comes at a time when the Indus Waters Treaty between India and Pakistan remains in abeyance for more than a year, adding to broader concerns over water availability in Pakistan.

The Indus Waters Treaty, brokered in 1960, governs the sharing of waters of the Indus river system between India and Pakistan. Under the treaty, India received unrestricted rights over the eastern rivers while Pakistan received primary rights over the western rivers- the Indus, Jhelum and Chenab.

However, in the aftermath of Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam terror attack which claimed the lives of at least 26 tourists, Indian announced to put Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance.

The crisis, however, is not new. According to a report in Asia News Network, Karachi’s water shortages stem from decades of rapid population growth, ageing pipelines, poor urban planning, water theft and delayed infrastructure projects.

According to ARY News, residents across several parts of the city have been forced to rely on expensive private water tankers as regular supplies remain disrupted. Areas including Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Azizabad, Liaquatabad, North Nazimabad, Nazimabad and North Karachi have reportedly faced acute shortages for more than two weeks.

The issue has also sparked a political row. Jamaat-e-Islami chief Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman accused the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)-led Sindh government of failing to address Karachi’s chronic water shortages despite being in power in the province for nearly two decades.

Speaking to journalists during Eid-ul-Adha celebrations, Rehman said thousands of residents were struggling to access basic necessities. He blamed the PPP-led Sindh government for failing to deliver essential public services and questioned why Karachi’s water woes remained unresolved despite the party’s 18-year rule in the province.

Naeem further lashed out at the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board, claiming that the authority had failed to ensure proper sanitation and disposal of sacrificial animal waste despite receiving a massive budget.

He also rejected the claims by Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab that the city was not facing a shortage.

Karachi currently requires over 1,080 million gallons of water daily for its nearly 30 million residents but faces a daily shortfall of over 400 million gallons, according to the ARY News report.

The city depends on sources including Keenjhar Lake, Haleji Lake, Hub Dam and Dumlottee wells, but supply has failed to keep pace with rising demand.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/is-pakistan-feeling-heat-of-indus-treaty-standoff-karachi-reels-under-water-crisis-ws-l-10120690.html

Russia has signed a military cooperation agreement with Afghanistan’s Taliban. The move could boost India’s engagement space. At the same time, it raises questions about any potential impact on the Ukraine war.

A year after becoming the first country to recognise the Taliban’s rule in Afghanistan, Russia has reportedly signed a military cooperation agreement with Kabul. The two sides signed the Military-Technical Cooperation Agreement at the inaugural International Security Forum hosted by Russia’s Security Council in Moscow.

According to a Politico report, the agreement was signed earlier this week during a meeting between Afghanistan’s Defence Minister Mohammad Yaqoub and Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu. However, exact details of the agreement are still under wraps.

“Interaction with Russia is important for us. Afghanistan and Russia have long-standing and historic relations, and we want to move forward in this direction. Russia is an important country in our region and throughout the world,” Afghan minister Yaqoub said.

Meanwhile, Russia also called for the unfreezing of the assets. “We are convinced that Western countries should unfreeze blocked Afghan assets, fully recognise their responsibility for their 20-year presence in Afghanistan, and bear the burden of the country’s post-conflict reconstruction,” said Shoigu, considered an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

US President Donald Trump left a meeting with top advisers without announcing a “final determination” on a deal with Iran.

A man has pleaded guilty to 14 counts of aiding suicides in Canada after he sold toxic chemicals online.

Kenneth Law, 60, entered the guilty pleas in an Ontario court on Friday, as part of a deal with prosecutors, who withdrew more serious murder charges.

Authorities said the former chef also sold about 1,200 packages of the toxic substances to recipients – who he met in online suicide forums – in 40 countries, roughly a quarter of which were sent to the UK.

The charges all relate to Canadian victims – but families of British victims have said they were angry UK prosecutors would not charge Law over the deaths of 79 Britons, which authorities say are linked to products he supplied.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said it had agreed to the Canadian plea bargain on the basis Law’s sentence take the British deaths into account.

A letter from the CPS, seen by the BBC, said Law would not face charges in the UK because he could challenge the extradition after being convicted of similar offences in Canada.

Specialist CPS prosecutor Andrew Hudson said that including UK victims in the Canadian sentencing process was the “quickest and most effective route” to justice.

Hudson said a successful extradition was “far from guaranteed and would have taken years to conclude”, while any UK prosecution “could have been blocked under double jeopardy principles”.

Ontario man Ashtyn Prosser-Blake, 19, was one of Law’s victims who died by suicide in March 2023.

“He was just such a super happy, really gentle soul, always looking to stand up for the underdog, the kids that got picked on,” his mother, Kim Prosser, told the BBC.

Prosser-Blake’s mental health declined after the Covid pandemic – he went to college for a year in Toronto before dropping out and moving home, where he “just continued to struggle” before dying by suicide, his mother said.

“The pain of losing my son Ashtyn doesn’t ease because someone sits behind bars,” she said. “There is no solace in my healing journey to see someone else suffer.”

In the UK, David Parfett’s 22 year-old son, Thomas, used the substance said to have been sold to him by Law.

“Tom was somebody who really saw the joy in life. He would find humour in the weirdest places. I often think about his laugh,” Parfett said.

“Tom was a massive football fan and he was a good footballer as well. I miss the opportunity to enjoy the 2026 World Cup with him.”

Tom paid the equivalent of £50 ($67; C$92) for the substance. His body was found in a hotel in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, in 2021.

Parfett said that while it was good Law had “admitted guilt”, he said it was still “a moment of unbelievable frustration”.

“I would have preferred Kenneth Law to be tried here [in the UK]. I would have wanted to have seen him in court answering charges related to my son’s death,” he told the BBC on Friday.

Parfett is calling on the UK government to hold a public inquiry into the deaths, as he wanted authorities to “understand this issue and stop other people unfortunately suffering the loss of a family member due to a very preventable suicide”.

“The toll here is astonishing – multiple deaths including of children – and yet we don’t see any coordinated attempt to really understand it.”

In a statement, the Home Office said its “thoughts are with the families and friends of those who lost a loved one in this case”.

“We are working closely with law enforcement partners to identify and intercept harmful substances entering the UK.”

Law was arrested in May 2023, following a complex investigation by at least 11 law-enforcement agencies that involved investigators from around a dozen countries, including the UK, Italy and the US.

His arrest came a week after a Times investigation alleged he was selling poison to young people, after a journalist posed as a customer and spoke to Law directly.

Law reportedly counselled the journalist on how to use his products to “best ensure death”.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c70vg7glglyo

The scene outside Delaney Hall detention center turned chaotic again Friday night with more clashes between anti-ICE protesters and agents – despite New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill’s attempt to establish a “peaceful” protest zone.

The mob throughout the evening continued their vile chants and ignored orders from police to disperse or face arrests as law enforcement used tear gas and pepper spray to restrain the unruly crowd, according to footage.

“Kill yourself, quit your job, quit your job,” the rabble-rousers chanted at one point.

“F—k ICE,” they barked, labeling federal officers as “murderers.”

ICE agents were seen reaching into crowds of protestors, grabbing them by the shoulders or head, and slamming them into the ground.

A graphic T-clad protester pestered an agent, asking “Why the f–-k do you have an AK out… sorry, an AR?”

“What the f–k is this for?”

New Jersey state police on horseback tried to force the hooligans away from the Newark facility after other cops in full riot gear holding shields held a solid line, the video shows.

Demonstrators were seen breaching an orange protective fence at the facility, dragging the barrier to the sides of the street and continuing to trespass.

Sherrill had announced Friday afternoon that the “peaceful” protest zones would be established “immediately” and that “we all need to do everything we can to cool things down now.”

The governor claimed that she will not give ICE “the pretext to expand operations” in New Jersey.

“Our top priority is public safety – and we need to take this opportunity to lower the temperature now,” she added.

Sherrill deployed New Jersey state police to Delaney Hall on Friday night after being accused of preventing local cops from helping out the feds.

Captain John Chrystal, president of the Newark Police Superior Officers’ Association, told The Post that his department has been effectively handcuffed by the governor.

“Our administration is getting orders from the mayor and from the governor,” Chrystal said earlier Friday.

“From what I’ve been told, police have been told to stand down and it’s a shame could not help control the crowd, and that the administrative debacle was a “political hot potato.”

Source : https://nypost.com/2026/05/29/us-news/newarks-delaney-hall-anti-ice-clashes-continue-despite-new-jersey-gov-mikie-sherrills-peaceful-protest-zone/

Carol Ross can’t stop smiling at dance practice as she shouts out the steps of a routine to members of her tap and jazz troupe for women age 50 and older.

“I’ve been dancing my whole life, it’s the best,” said Ross, who founded the Rodeo City Wreckettes group 23 years ago at an age when many people are getting ready for retirement.

Now 87, Ross and her husband and lifelong dance partner John, also 87, have long known what more older adults are now discovering: Moving to music is one of the best ways to stay healthy. Medical professionals say it doesn’t matter if it’s Western line dancing, ballroom steps, salsa, tap, Zumba at the gym, or with a group like the Wreckettes.

“Dancing is one of the most powerful activities for older people,” said Julio Loya, a nurse and geriatric program coordinator at the Tucson Medical Center.

Why dancing helps balance, strength and more

Dance, like other exercise, can help people lose weight, get stronger, reduce fall risk, increase mobility and flexibility, and even improve brain health.

“ It engages their brain, it changes their mood, and it connects them socially while getting them moving,” said Loya. “And it’s fun. Everybody has a good time.”

Dr. Thomas Johnson, a geriatrician at the UCHealth Seniors Clinic in Aurora, Colorado, said he remembers one man in particular whose passion for dance was so strong that he willed himself to attend one last class before he died in his late 80s.

“His No. 1 priority was that he danced until the day that he died,” Johnson said of his patient.

Johnson said dance can improve the balance of his patients at the clinic, which serves about 2,500 people 75 and older a year.

He said older patients can benefit from adding two to three dance sessions to the 150 minutes of aerobic exercise he recommends for them each week, because dancing often involves movements that help with balance, such as walking backward or standing on one foot.

Meeting people by dancing together

The Wreckettes practice their routines during two-hour sessions at least twice a week in a rented dance studio.

After studying ballet as a girl, then moving on to everything from ballroom to tap as an adult, Ross said it made sense to keep dancing when she and her husband moved from Philadelphia to retire in Tucson.

John Ross is a key part of the Wreckettes’ routines, typically joining his wife for at least one number. At one recent practice, it was a saucy saunter to Merle Haggard’s “Let’s Chase Each Other Around the Room.”

“I learned early on that dancing was a great way to attract the chicks,” joked John Ross, who slid across the floor like a much younger man.

Wreckettes member Cindy Soffrin said that watching her mother suffer as she aged convinced her to stay active as she got older.

“My mom was sedentary the last 20 years of her life. It was pretty rough,” said Soffrin, 74.

For 67-year-old Gail Kowalski, joining the Wreckettes three years ago meant finding new friends after her husband died and she moved from Utah to Tucson.

“Plus, it’s so dang fun,” Kowalski said.

The fun of performing

The Wreckettes perform throughout the year, from holiday events to rodeo shows, dressing up in a series of matching sparkly costumes.

But they all said what they love the most is being hired by retirement homes to perform for memory care patients. Wreckette members take turns picking a favorite charity to donate their earnings.

“When we first arrive, people will be distracted or sleeping,” said Soffrin. “But once the music comes on, they perk up right away.”

A similar dance group for older women in Las Vegas, the Vegas Golden Gals, also performs at retirement homes, said Cheryl Cortez, the group’s president. They add pompoms to their routines.

“I must now know close to 40 routines,” said Cortez, 69. “And that alone has to be great for the memory.”

Source : https://apnews.com/article/mental-physical-health-aging-dance-0408e20084b24026125df19faff77988

The vendors of wild meat at the sprawling Masina Market in the Congolese capital don’t always display their goods openly. Customers must ask for whatever they’re looking for, whether it is a giant swamp rodent or the severed parts of an antelope.

Others occasionally sell in the open, like the women who preside over impossibly large baskets of squirming caterpillars at the market in Kinshasa.

For many in Congo and elsewhere in Central and West Africa wild meat is a craving and a key part of the cultural milieux. Even a disease as punishing as Ebola, currently ravaging a remote part of eastern Congo, has failed to stem demand for wild meat from the Congo Basin, an expansive forested ecosystem sometimes called Earth’s second lung.

The Congo Basin is rich in all kinds of wildlife, from great apes to serpents — both of which are hunted for their meat. One consequence for locals is exposure to zoonotic diseases such as Ebola.

Although Ebola is generally not spread by food, cases in Africa have been associated with hunting, butchering and processing meat from infected animals, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said.

“Once there is human, animal and environment interface, we have these kinds of outbreaks on a frequent level,” said Dr. Tolbert Geewleh Nyenswah of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. “And this is why one health approach in dealing with virus outbreaks is important, because we still interact with the bats, and our hunters are still killing monkeys, and we are close to the environment.”

The link between wild meat and Ebola

The Congolese government has confirmed more than 1,000 suspected cases, with at least 220 deaths, since it declared an outbreak of Ebola on May 15. It appears the virus spread undetected for weeks, and the World Health Organization suspects it is much larger than what has been reported.

Ebola, named for a tributary of the Congo River, was first discovered in 1976 in simultaneous outbreaks in Congo and present-day South Sudan. Outbreaks are believed to start with the virus spilling over into humans from an infected animal such as a fruit bat. These cross-species infections often happen when people handle and eat wild meat, experts say.

But since Ebola outbreaks happen only sporadically in communities that regularly eat wild meat, some people “don’t believe the linkage” and others are “totally ignorant” of the health threat from eating wild meat, said Dr. Misaki Wayengera, a microbiologist who advises Uganda’s Ministry of Health on epidemics.

“It is very difficult to change some of these core practices,” he said.

Locals have paid a heavy price for occasional outbreaks of Ebola, whose bloody symptoms can terrorize entire villages and cause many to believe they are under an evil spell.

The Ebola virus is responsible for 17 outbreaks in Congo and many others elsewhere in the region. The deadliest outbreak, in West Africa between 2014 and 2016, infected an estimated 28,000 people and killed more than 11,300.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization — which studied the Ebola risk stemming from the eating and handling of wild meat after West Africa’s epidemic — animal-to-human spillovers of Ebola are rare, but “their consequences are nonetheless disastrous.”

Once Ebola has infected one person, the virus then spreads through close contact with sick or deceased patients’ bodily fluids, such as sweat, blood, feces or vomit. Health workers without sufficient protective gear are seen as highly vulnerable.

The current outbreak in eastern Congo is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, a rare type of Ebola that has no approved medicines or vaccines.

The outbreak is occurring in a part of Congo that also faces armed violence by rebel groups and the displacement of large numbers of people fleeing the violence.

A need for education

While Congolese authorities have prohibited hunting endangered wildlife, including great apes sent to the brink of extinction by poachers, there is no blanket ban on the wildlife trade and illegal hunting persists for totemic creatures like the bonobo.

Many in and around the Congo Basin have wild meat as their primary source of animal protein. The yearly extraction rate of wild meat from the Congo Basin is estimated at 4.5 million tons, according to the Center for International Forestry Research.

Viande de brousse, as wild meat is known in French, is a popular food, even served in trendy restaurants. That’s intensified pressure on the dwindling resources of the Congo Basin. Despite the ongoing biodiversity losses, the Congo Basin remains the world’s largest carbon sink, surpassing the Amazon in its ability to capture and store carbon.

Public health campaigners need to step up education campaigns on how Ebola starts and is spread among communities that face recurring outbreaks, said Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, founder of the Uganda-based Conservation Through Public Health group.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/ebola-congo-wild-meat-3ef8a5555bce331d1c0f9af50940e028

The United States and Iran reached ​an agreement on Thursday to extend their ceasefire and lift restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, sources told Reuters, though U.S. President Donald Trump has yet to approve ‌it and Iranian state media said it had not been finalized.
According to four sources familiar with the matter, the agreement would extend the truce for another 60 days and allow traffic to flow through the strategic waterway while negotiators tackle difficult issues such as Iran’s nuclear program.

If approved by leadership in Washington and Tehran, it would amount to the biggest step towards peace since the conflict began on February 28. News of the possible agreement came after a round of tit-for-tat attacks between the two ​countries, the latest such incident since the ceasefire took effect in early April.
Trump has not yet approved the deal, the sources said. Iran has yet to comment on news of the proposed ​deal, which was first reported by Axios.
Iran’s Tasnim news agency, citing a source close to the negotiating team, said the text of the agreement had not been ⁠finalized or confirmed.

“We’re not there yet, but we’re very close and we’re going to keep on working at it,” U.S. Vice President JD Vance told reporters in Washington.
“I can’t guarantee that we’re going to get there, ​but right now I feel pretty good about it,” Vance said.
The Trump administration has several times said a deal to end the fighting was close, only to have Iran dispute or downplay the claims.
The deal would ​specify unrestricted shipping through the strait and would require the U.S. also lift its blockade of Iranian ports. The U.S. would also lift some sanctions on Iranian oil sales.
The reports prompted oil prices to fall on hopes of a potential reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a key transit route for roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supply.
Earlier, U.S. Central Command said its forces had shot down five Iranian attack drones and struck a ground control station in the ​port city of Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a sixth. Kuwaiti forces then intercepted a ballistic missile fired towards the country, which hosts a large U.S. base.

A U.S. official also said no American aircraft ​were shot down near Bushehr, Iran, contradicting a report by Iran’s state television that a U.S. aircraft had been downed there.

The incidents, while limited, highlighted the fragility of negotiations to turn the tenuous ceasefire into a lasting agreement to ‌end the three-month-old war, ⁠which has killed thousands and upended global energy markets.
A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the strikes were defensive and intended to maintain the ceasefire.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had targeted the U.S. base responsible for the Bandar Abbas attack, and that any repeat would lead to a “more decisive response”, Tasnim news agency reported.
Kuwait condemned the attack and demanded that Iran immediately halt what it called a serious escalation.
The violence, the second flare-up this week, coincided with the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha celebrated across the region, where multiple countries have been caught up in the conflict.
Mediator Pakistan said its foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, would meet U.S. ​Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on Friday, ​although the significance of his visit was unclear.
Trump ⁠has repeatedly said an end to the war is close since mid-March, though the two sides have shown little public movement toward common ground. Iran has called for sanctions to be lifted, foreign assets to be unfrozen, and U.S. forces to be withdrawn from the region. Washington has called for Iran to dismantle its nuclear ​program, which Tehran says is for peaceful purposes.
Iran says any peace deal must also end U.S. ally Israel’s attacks in Lebanon, but that conflict shows ​no signs of flagging. Israel ⁠said it had targeted infrastructure of Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in the southern city of Tyre and had carried out a strike in the capital Beirut. Israel has displaced hundreds of thousands of people with a push deep into Lebanon in pursuit of Hezbollah. The Lebanese army said a strike had killed one of its soldiers.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-us-trade-air-strikes-after-trump-dismisses-report-hormuz-deal-2026-05-28/

The United States plans to designate Brazil’s two biggest criminal gangs as terrorist organizations, U.S. ​Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, opening the door for more aggressive interventions ‌after appeals from the opposition in Brasilia.
The administration of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has tried to avoid such designations, fearing they may pave the way for eventual U.S. military action or sanctions against banks that unknowingly ​do business with gang members.

In a meeting with Trump this week in Washington, Brazilian ​Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, who is preparing a run for president with the ⁠blessing of his father, ex-President Jair Bolsonaro, said he asked for the U.S. to label ​the groups as terrorists.
Aides to the senator, who also met with Rubio, have flagged the issue ​as a way to raise the prominence of voter concerns about crime in the October presidential election, while playing up his alignment with the Trump administration.
While the FTO designation was planned to take effect from ​June 5, the U.S. Department of State also designated the gangs Primeiro Comando da Capital, ​known as PCC, and Comando Vermelho, known as CV, as “Specially Designated Global Terrorists” on Thursday, Rubio said in ‌a ⁠statement.

Rivals for trafficking routes and influence in Brazilian prisons, the PCC and CV dominate the drug trade in much of the country and have expanded ties around Latin America.
Rubio said the gangs were two of the “most violent criminal organizations in Brazil” and their influence and networks extend ​across the region and ​into the United ⁠States.
“The Trump Administration will continue to use all available tools to protect our nation and our national security interests by keeping illicit drugs ​off our streets and disrupting the revenue streams funding violent narco-terrorists,” Rubio ​said.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-intends-designate-two-brazilian-gangs-terrorist-organizations-rubio-says-2026-05-28/

FIFA faces legal action from at least three US states over claims it has pushed up World Cup ticket prices by limiting supplies and switching categories.

Lawyers in New York, New Jersey and California want answers, along with Congress.

A Sun probe found some US venues have sold less than half their seats — just days before the big kick-off for Harry Kane and his Three Lions.

The US Congress has also raised concerns about “potentially deceptive practices”, including restricting ticket supply in order to inflate prices.

England supporters welcomed the investigation, which is being seen as a test case for all 16 host cities facing identical concerns.

Attorneys general for New York and New Jersey have formally subpoenaed Fifa officials to demand answers over rocketing prices and the “fake scarcity” of tickets.

California’s attorney general has also written to Fifa questioning the legality of World Cup ticketing maps, which have been branded misleading.

New York consumer and worker protection commissioner Samuel A A Levine warned that Fifa’s conduct — if proven — would be “in violation of the city’s consumer protection law”.

Many England fans have so far shunned the biggest-ever World Cup, deterred by sky-high match ticket prices on top of soaring travel and hotel costs.

Thomas Tuchel’s Three Lions’ first group match at the 80,000-seat AT&T Stadium at Arlington near Dallas still has tickets available in most blocks — but the cheapest is £524.

The best Category One seats for the June 17 clash against Croatia currently cost £1,431.

The match is one of nine games being staged at the glitzy venue.

But civic leaders were shocked to learn this week that more than 350,000 tickets are still unsold.

Arlington’s deputy city manager Jennifer Wichmann told a council meeting: “Approximately 700,000 tickets are available for matches in AT&T Stadium.

“Between 35 per cent and 50 cent of those have been sold to date.”

Experts predict Fifa will slash ­prices in the week before kick-off, as they did at the Club World Cup last year, when seats were eventually given away.

A ticket probe was announced into the 82,500-seat MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, which will host games including England’s June 27 group match against Panama, and the final on July 19.

Investigations were announced jointly on Wednesday by New York’s attorney general, Letitia James, and her New Jersey counterpart Jennifer Davenport.

Their concerns centre on fans’ claims they were misled about the location of the seats – and Fifa’s own statements pushed up prices.

Ms James said: “No one should be manipulated into paying sky-high prices for seats, and fans should be able to trust the tickets they purchase will be the ones they receive.”

Ms Davenport also raised the issue of “fake scarcity” in ticketing, where blocks are excluded from sale to drive up prices.

New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill added: “No one should be allowed to exploit New Jersey fans or those coming to our state.”

California attorney general Rob Bonta has also written to Fifa’s legal department to assess whether its law “may have been violated” during the ticket sales process at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.

He said he was “particularly concerned about reports that Fifa sold tickets by categories based on seating zones on stadium maps then changed those seat categorisations”.

Colour-coded maps are reported to have been altered to move seats into more expensive categories during different sales phases.

Fifa later claimed that the maps were for “guidance” only.

The game’s ruling body supremo Gianni Infantino has also been stung by a letter demanding explanations from US Congress.

Energy and Commerce committee member Frank Pallone and Homeland Security taskforce member Nellie Pou raised concerns including “Dynamic Pricing Rip-Offs”.

The letter alleges “deception” and adds: “Fifa also appears to be restricting ticket supply to shape demand. Time is running short.

“These patterns of questionable ticket pricing raise serious questions about fairness, transparency, and potentially deceptive practices in ticket sales.”

The attorney general’s office in Washington state — where games will be played in Seattle — also confirmed complaints had been received about suspect ticket sales.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/sport/16425270/world-cup-chaos-fifa-legal-action-ticket-price-hikes/

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that he directed the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to increase control of Gaza to 70%.

Speaking at a conference on Thursday, he said: “We are currently squeezing Hamas; we now control 60% of the territory of the Strip – you know this. We were at 50, we moved to 60. My directive is to move to,” he said before pausing as someone in the crowd said, “100”.

“Let’s go step by step. First of all, 70. Let’s start with that. We’re pressing them from all sides, we’ll deal with the remnants.”

The expansion in control by Israel would contradict the terms of the Donald Trump-led ceasefire Israel and Hamas agreed to in October 2025.

Netanyahu’s statement comes as Israel continues strikes on Gaza despite the ceasefire, and as Israel and Hamas remain deadlocked in indirect, US-brokered talks to advance Trump’s peace plan.

At least 738 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire came into effect in October, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures the UN considers reliable.

Netanyahu has made several public remarks confirming that the IDF controls more than 60% of the Strip, up from the 53% agreed in October. Under the ceasefire agreement, the IDF withdrew to a demarcation line, known as the “yellow line”.

The next steps in the 20-point peace proposal would see Hamas disarm and Israeli troops withdraw, but indirect talks between Israel and the Palestinian armed group have stalled.

On Wednesday, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz wrote on X that his country had “pledged to eliminate everyone who led the October 7 massacre” in 2023.

“We pledged that Hamas will not rule Gaza civilly or militarily,” he said.

He also said that what he called the “plan for voluntary emigration from Gaza” would be implemented “at the proper time and in the proper manner”.

Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich have previously publicly defended what they describe as the “voluntary migration” of Palestinians from Gaza – which could amount to the forced displacement of civilians, a war crime – and resettling it with Jews.

This week has also seen several strikes in Gaza. At least 10 people, including five children, were killed in an Israeli strike on a building in Gaza City late on Wednesday, according to local hospitals.

The Israeli military has released a short statement saying it struck “two central Hamas terrorists in the northern Gaza Strip”, without disclosing their identities.

The target of the attack appeared to have been Hamas battalion commander Imad Asleem, who was killed alongside his teenage daughter Israa.

The Gaza City attack came a day after the newly chosen head of the Hamas military wing, Mohammed Odeh, was killed along with his wife and two sons in an Israeli strike. One other woman was reportedly killed.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ceqpelq5reqo

The US and Iran still need to work out several sticking points before an agreement on the war can be reached, Vice-President JD Vance has said.

Asked by the BBC if President Donald Trump was close to signing a deal, Vance said it was too early to say “when or if” the two sides would finalise an agreement.

The deal would reportedly extend the ceasefire for 60 days and launch talks on the future of Iran’s nuclear programme.

Earlier on Thursday, US officials told the BBC that the two countries had agreed a framework of a deal, pending the approval of Trump and Iran’s leadership.

But Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported the deal had not been finalised or confirmed.

According to reports, the deal could allow “unrestricted” passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and that Iran would have 30 days to remove mines from the narrow shipping passageway.

The US would also lift its blockade, and issue sanction waivers to allow Iran to resume selling oil.

Axios, which first reported a tentative agreement between the US and Iran on Thursday, said Trump had been briefed on the proposal but did not immediately sign off on it and would take a couple of days to consider it.

One-fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas and oil normally pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and its closure has impacted global fuel trade.

Speaking on Thursday evening, Vance said negotiators were “going back and forth on a couple of language points”, which include the “question of enrichment”.

“We’re not there yet, but we’re very close and we’re going to keep on working at it,” he told reporters.

The US has long demanded that Iran stop producing highly enriched uranium and dispose of its existing stockpile, which in theory could be used to create nuclear weapons.

Vance struck an optimistic tone as he spoke to reporters in Washington DC, saying the US believed the Iranians were negotiating in “good faith”.

On Wednesday, Iranian state media reported elements of what they described as an unofficial draft of a 14-point memorandum of understanding between the two countries.

The report included the lifting of Washington’s naval blockade of Iranian ports, the withdrawal of US forces from the “vicinity of Iran”, and the restoration of non-military traffic through the Strait of Hormuz with Iran and Oman in control of the management and routing of vessels.

The White House called the purported memorandum draft a “complete fabrication”.

Since the initial ceasefire between the US and Iran came into effect on 8 April, Trump has suggested – repeatedly – that the two sides are close to a deal and that negotiations are progressing, but so far there have been no substantive results.

The president is facing mounting pressure to end the war, including from Gulf state allies, Democrats who oppose it, and some Republicans in Congress who have raised concerns about the length of the conflict.

Thursday’s conflicting reports on a possible deal underscored how fluid the negotiations remain.

Both countries contradicted each other’s claims and offered few details on the reported proposal, raising questions again about how close the sides actually are to ending hostilities.

Trump and other officials have warned that “option B” – a return to combat operations – is still on the table.

Extending the ceasefire, meanwhile, would allow US and Iranian teams to discuss the far more complicated and technical issues at play, particularly about Iran’s nuclear programme and its remaining stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

Trump had suggested that the US could take it, or, together with Iran, dilute it in place or in a third location.

Leading the White House briefing earlier on Thursday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent declined to confirm that an agreement had been reached.

“It’s always a mistake to get out ahead of the president and it is all going to be the president’s decision,” he said.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87qng40wz9o

North Korea prefers to focus instead on self-reliance and military deterrence, says Singapore’s foreign affairs minister.

North Korea is not ready to open significant channels of communication with the United States or South Korea, instead focusing on building up its self-reliance and military deterrence, Singapore’s foreign affairs minister said on Thursday (May 28).

Dr Vivian Balakrishnan was speaking to Singapore media at the end of his five-day visit to Northeast Asia, during which he made stops in China, South Korea and North Korea – formally known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

“As far as Singapore is concerned, we are an outsider to the region and we have an independent relationship with DPRK,” he said.

“All we can offer from outside as a friend is to say that it would be, in our opinion, a good idea to keep lines of communication open. But in the end, these are decisions that have to be made by them and by them alone.”

Responding to a question from CNA on North Korea’s relationships with its regional neighbours and the implications for Singapore, Dr Balakrishnan acknowledged it was “a potentially sensitive question”.

The sanctions regime has been tough on North Korea, but his observations in Pyongyang pointed to a country that has continued to develop. He noted new housing estates, shops stocked with goods and merchandise, and e-commerce services.

“They have the accoutrements of modern life,” said Dr Balakrishnan, who last visited the country in 2018.

“They continue to show signs of economic progress, and all the more remarkable if you think about the isolation that they’ve been through, especially during the COVID years.”

Another shift since his last visit is North Korea’s “outright categorical rejection” of reunification with South Korea – a hardened position he attributed to domestic factors.

A ROLE FOR SINGAPORE?

On whether his visits to both Koreas could signal a mediating role for Singapore, Dr Balakrishnan said this was speculative.

“We are not putting our hand up to offer any role. Our relationship with DPRK is one based on friendship and mutual respect,” he said.

Singapore is constrained by United Nations Security Council resolutions, which limit its economic ties with North Korea.

Within those limits, however, it remains committed to keeping a line of communication open and to encouraging Pyongyang to engage, Dr Balakrishnan said.

He said he had invited his North Korean counterpart, Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui, to attend the ASEAN Regional Forum, a key Asia-Pacific security dialogue.

“I told her that it was still important for the voice of the DPRK to be heard on the international stage, and to look for appropriate opportunities in an appropriate way, manner and timing which fits their own political priorities, for them to continue to engage the larger world,” he said.

DANGEROUS TIME FOR SMALL STATES

Dr Balakrishnan’s Northeast Asia trip concludes a month in which he held meetings across 13 countries, spanning the Middle East, South America and Southeast Asia.

“We live at a time of great global volatility, disruption to supply chains, exploitation of choke points, war and confrontations,” he said, describing it as particularly dangerous for small states like Singapore.

The trips were necessary to shore up partnerships, secure new growth opportunities and sources of supplies, including for energy.

The world order has not yet settled, Dr Balakrishnan said, with the old order giving way to a new one whose shape has yet to emerge.

Dr Balakrishnan welcomed the recent meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leadership, noting both sides appeared pleased with the outcome.

He said the current US-China rivalry differs fundamentally from the Cold War, when the US and Soviet Union operated in entirely separate economic systems separated by an iron curtain. Washington and Beijing, by contrast, are embedded in the same economic universe.

“The old strategies of containment and exclusion will not work, so the key point is somehow, one way or the other, sooner or later, the United States and China need to find a modus vivendi,” he said.

The recent presidential-level engagements and mutual recognition of each other as long-term peer superpowers are positive and stabilising in the short term, he said.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/vivian-balakrishnan-north-korea-south-united-states-china-communications-6146971

The announcement follows the World Health Organisation’s declaration of an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo as a global public health emergency.

The United States, Mexico and Canada on Thursday (May 28) announced aligned public health travel measures for people coming from African regions at the greatest risk from Ebola, they said in a joint statement, as they aim to protect citizens and visitors during the World Cup.

“The health and safety of every person in the region remains our highest priority as we welcome the world to North America,” they said in the statement, which did not detail the aligned measures.

The World Health Organisation on Sunday, May 17, declared an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo a Public Health Emergency of International Concern and said there was a high risk it could spread to neighboring countries.

The decision has prompted governments to step up travel-related containment measures.

Washington last week banned non-citizens who had travelled to the DRC, Uganda or South Sudan in recent weeks from entering the United States. On Friday, the ban was extended by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention to green card holders who have been in those countries in the previous 21 days.

Canada has banned residents from the DRC, Uganda ‌and South Sudan from entering the country for 90 days, which started on Wednesday.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/us-mexico-canada-announce-ebola-related-travel-measures-ahead-world-cup-6148421

Experts say there is a need for governments to allocate resources to support the long-term recovery, rehabilitation and empowerment of domestic violence survivors.

A few months ago, Mira (not her real name) reached breaking point.

The 49-year-old mother of five from Shah Alam, Selangor, stood sobbing hysterically in her bedroom, holding a knife to her skin.

Just moments earlier, her husband had loomed over her, brandishing a machete, demanding the password to her phone.

“It was just before the start of fasting for the day and I was scrolling through social media when he suddenly flew into a rage, and accused me of cheating on him,” she told CNA.

The accusation was followed by physical assault. Hysterical and exhausted by the mental toll of continuous violent abuse over the course of her 20-year marriage, Mira grabbed the knife in a desperate act of self-harm.

Her husband, who is a fisherman, eventually wrestled the blade away, handed her some money, and told her to go shopping for the festive season.

Instead, Mira went to the police. She sat outside the station for a full hour before she finally walked inside and lodged a police report.

She was subsequently admitted to the hospital for three days of treatment. She never returned home and today, she lives in a women’s shelter with other victims of domestic violence.

“I told myself that enough was enough,” she said. “My time with him had to come to an end.”

Mira, who used to operate a cafe, feels she has been granted another chance at life. She compares her case against the recent high-profile news in the country of a civil servant who was so severely beaten by her husband that she suffered a miscarriage.

The woman also reportedly suffered from a broken arm and broken ribs from her husband – whose violent history had left his previous wife in a coma for five years – allegedly punching her in the stomach and using clothes hangers, a garden hose, a curtain rod and a broomstick to beat her.

“I really can’t imagine what she is going through,” said Mira.

These cases paint a grim picture of wider regional statistics. While data collection and tabulation methods vary significantly across Southeast Asian nations, the underlying trend remains: Reported domestic violence cases are climbing sharply.

In Malaysia, the number of recorded domestic violence cases has risen from 5,507 in 2023 to 7,116 in 2024, and 7,391 by 2025, according to media reports citing Women, Family and Community Development Minister Nancy Shukri.

The National Commission on Violence Against Women in Indonesia released its 2025 annual report in March, revealing that gender-based violence cases in the country rose by over 14 per cent last year from 2024, to 376,529 cases.

Almost 90 per cent occurred in the personal sphere, said the commission, reinforcing that the home and intimate relationships remain the most dangerous spaces for women.

And the numbers may not be fully representative of the situation, said experts.

“Reported cases do not tell us the full picture, because many survivors never report to the authorities at all,” Nazreen Nizam, executive director of the Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO), a Malaysian non-governmental organisation (NGO) that deals with issues of domestic violence, told CNA.

“When we see numbers rise, it may reflect a real increase in violence, but it can also mean that more survivors are recognising abuse, feeling safer to seek help, or finding more channels to report,” she added.

WHAT IS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND WHY DOES IT OCCUR?

Domestic violence, as defined by the United Nations (UN), is a pattern of behaviour used by one partner to gain control over another in an intimate relationship.

Experts categorise domestic violence into several overlapping dimensions: physical, psychological, social, and financial, all of which serve to isolate and control the victim.

Around one in four reported domestic violence cases in Malaysia last year were against males, according to the country’s women, family and community development deputy minister. Reports citing Lim Hui Ying said that out of 7,391 domestic violence cases reported nationwide, 1,961 involved male victims.

“Abuse happens because domestic violence is about power and control,” said Nazreen of WAO. “So … men can also be subjected to physical, emotional, psychological or financial abuse … but one of the biggest issues is that male survivors often face strong stigma when it comes to speaking up.”

She added that social expectations about masculinity could make it harder for men to admit they are being abused or to seek help, making it possibly even more challenging for them than for women to come forward and report it.

“Many may fear shame, ridicule, disbelief, or not being taken seriously,” she said.

Still, the statistics are skewed towards female victims being the vast majority.

Malaysian civil society organisation Sisters in Islam (SIS) provides legal aid through its free helpline, “Telenisa”. It told CNA that many women reach out only after years, at the point where abuse has escalated to life-threatening physical injury or total psychological breakdown.

“The data from both national reporting and Telenisa cases makes clear that domestic violence is not isolated. It is systemic, often hidden, and deeply tied to issues of power, access, and inequality,” a SIS spokesperson said.

They added that domestic violence was also a leading factor in marital breakdown, ranking among the top three causes of divorce.

Siti Aminah Tardi, executive director of the Indonesian Legal Resource Center (ILRC), told CNA that domestic violence was still a pervasive issue in the archipelago, noting that according to the 2024 UN Population Fund Indonesian Women’s Life Experience Survey, one in five Indonesian women had experienced domestic violence within the past year.

She posited that the society largely adhered to a patriarchal culture, exacerbated through the interpretation of religion, customs, and laws that state the husband as the head of the family and the wife as the manager of the household.

“This social construction triggers the perception and belief that husbands have the right to control, dominate, punish and exploit weaker family members, especially wives and daughters,” she said.

“This unequal relationship will be expressed or worsened when there is poverty, unemployment, financial difficulties, debt bondage, or where women are considered disobedient to patriarchal norms.”

In other countries, societal stigmas keep domestic abuse shielded inside the home, said experts.

“Culturally, it’s considered to be a private family matter and should stay there,” said Am Sam Ath, operations director of the Cambodian human rights group Licadho.

According to Cambodia’s 2021 to 2022 Demographic and Health Survey, 53 per cent of women who have experienced physical or sexual violence have never sought help or told anyone about the violence.

According to the survey, 21 per cent of women who have ever had an intimate relationship have experienced emotional, physical, or sexual violence by their current or most recent partner, with 13 per cent having faced such abuse in the 12 months leading up to the study.

Sam Ath said that women were considered to be subservient partners who had to be obedient and tolerate abuse.

“There is still a lot of shame against divorce and separations,” he added.

The struggle is mirrored in the Philippines, where political and environmental factors have been observed to contribute to cases of reported domestic violence.

Jean Enriquez, who chairs the Civil Society Advisory Group for Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse in the country, told CNA that the political climate under the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte from 2016 to 2022 significantly normalised violence against women.

Enriquez said that Duterte was openly sexist towards women, including those who were in positions of influence and also spoke about how his own abusive acts went unpunished.

In a 2018 speech, Duterte had recounted confessing to a priest how he had sexually assaulted his maid when she was sleeping.

Duterte’s spokesperson, cited in media reports, has since said the former president “made up” and “added and spliced” the speech referencing the confession.

During a 2016 campaign rally, he sparked outrage by joking about the 1989 sexual assault and murder of an Australian missionary in Davao.

Recalling the incident from his time as mayor, he stated he was angry about the crime but added that the victim was so beautiful that, as mayor, he “should have been first”. He has since apologised.

“All these emboldened abusers,” said Enriquez.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns denied women access to resources and kept them trapped inside homes with their abusers, leading to unabated violence, she said, adding that seasonal typhoons and other disasters caused similar stresses.

According to Enriquez, the barriers to safety are even higher for some communities, especially in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas where essential services are nearly inaccessible.

“In these regions, the prevalence of child, early, and forced marriages further complicate the legal and social landscape, leaving young women particularly vulnerable to a cycle of abuse that the state is often too far away to break,” she said.

Survivors can face a “trap” where leaving requires access to financial resources, legal protection, and social support, said experts.

According to Nazreen of WAO, fear heavily prevents survivors in Malaysia from leaving. This includes the fear of bodily harm, the fear that their children will be taken away, the fear of not being believed, and the dread of what comes next.

She said that financial dependence is a huge barrier, especially when the survivor has no income, no savings, or nowhere safe to go.

SIS echoed this and said that women also faced uncertainty around legal processes, concerns about child custody, and social pressures that discourage leaving.

“In many cases, remaining in the relationship is a response to limited options rather than acceptance of abuse,” said the SIS spokesperson.

Another domestic violence survivor from Malaysia, who wanted to be identified only as Siti, 52, told CNA that the physical violence in her marriage began when she sought a divorce from her husband of nine years, following his repeated infidelity.

He subjected her to slapping, choking, pulling her hair, and on one occasion, threw her against a cupboard.

Despite the danger, Siti found herself trapped in the home by her financial constraints and her concern for her son’s schooling.

“It was my house and I was paying for it, but there was no way I could afford to leave because I couldn’t pay rent for another place,” she said, adding that her ex-husband refused to leave the house.

“People ask me why I didn’t leave, but it is not as easy as that. There are so many factors that one has to consider. I had to bear this for nine months.”

Her husband eventually moved out once their divorce was finalised.

LACK OF PROTECTION

Experts said that while there is more awareness around domestic violence, a significant gap remains between the existence of laws and their effective enforcement on the ground.

NGOs in the Philippines for example have to organise workshops in villages, with Enriquez saying that this indicated the lack of accessible legal assistance for marginalised communities.

“More than legal clinics, what has been necessary were trauma-informed and survivor-centered violence against women desk officers within villages, as well as women’s desks within police stations,” she said.

She said that some public hospitals have women and children protection units that have the presence of social workers and police, although there was still a lack of psychological assistance.

According to Sam Ath, in Cambodia, when a survivor first reports domestic violence to the local police or communal authority, the immediate advice is often towards reconciliation rather than protection or legal action.

“They would bring both partners together and tell them to sign a contract where the woman will be told to change her behaviour and not agitate her partner, while the husband would have to agree not to be violent. Typically there is no impact and the solution usually escalates,” said Sam Ath.

He added that the organisation had documented 146 people – 96 women, 46 children, and four men – killed in the context of domestic and sexual violence from 2020 to 2025.

Nazreen of WAO said that despite increased awareness and crucial infrastructure in Malaysia, such as the hospital-based One-Stop Crisis Centre (OSCC) providing integrated medical, legal, and counselling aid, consistency is still an issue.

A survivor’s experience and the quality of support they receive still depend entirely on the specific personnel on duty.

“From our own case management experience – we found that Malaysia’s response system remains uneven and needs strengthening to better match policy intentions with actual service delivery.

“So I would say there has been progress, but not yet the consistency or survivor-centred quality we need across the board,” she said.

Agreeing, SIS said that there have been improvements in awareness and recognition of domestic violence as a public issue, along with better coordination between agencies but that the quality of responses remains inconsistent.

The spokesperson added that responses also tend to be less effective in cases involving non-physical forms of violence, such as psychological abuse or sexual coercion within marriage.

“Survivors still report experiences of being dismissed or advised to resolve matters privately,” said the spokesperson.

Mira said that she was even called to the police station for counselling with her husband, days after she lodged the report.

“I didn’t understand the purpose of it. I want my husband to be sent to prison and I had no intention of getting back with him,” she said, adding that her husband had still not been charged for his abuse.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/southeast-asia-increase-in-reported-domestic-violence-6146291

An Austrian court sentenced a man for plotting an attack on a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna in 2024. He admitted to planning the attack during the trial.

The 21-year-old, who was also found guilty of forming a terror cell, was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

The defendant, identified as Beran A. in accordance with Austrian privacy laws, is an Austrian citizen of North Macedonian descent.

Before the court adjourned to consider a verdict on Thursday, he said, “I would just like to say that I am sorry.”

What do we know about the plot?

In April, Beran A. admitted to planning an attack on the Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna in August 2024. The venue was scheduled to host three performances by the US pop megastar during her “Eras” tour.

According to prosecutors, he planned to carry out a jihad-inspired massacre of Swift fans with knives and a bomb.

Before the planned attack, Beran A. allegedly communicated with members of the “Islamic State” group about purchasing weapons and making bombs.

Prosecutors also said that, in the days before the performance, the defendant sought to illegally purchase weapons and swore allegiance to the militant group.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/taylor-swift-attack-plot-conviction-sentence-vienna-austria/a-77338187

With Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding just around the corner, fans can’t help but wonder who’s been invited to attend the singer and NFL player’s big day.

While it was previously reported that Swift and Kelce were slated to tie the knot in NYC Fourth of July weekend, a source told Page Six that no longer seems to be the case.

It’s now suspected that the previous save-the-dates that were sent out were an attempt by Swift to thwart attention away from her true plans. TMZ also reported that Swift has been personally calling people to invite them to her wedding.

Take a look at all of the celebrities who were invited to the wedding below.

Zoë Kravitz

The U.S. military carried ​out new strikes targeting an Iranian drone operation that posed a threat to U.S. forces and commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a U.S. official said, hours after President Donald Trump dismissed an Iranian ‌report of a deal to restore traffic through the strategic waterway.
The U.S. official, who requested anonymity to speak candidly about military operations, told Reuters on Wednesday the military shot down four Iranian attack drones and struck a ground control station in the port city of Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a fifth drone. A ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran took effect in early April.

“These actions were measured, purely defensive and intended to maintain the ceasefire,” the official said.
Iran’s Tasnim news agency cited a military source as saying that the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Navy fired toward a U.S. ​oil tanker that was trying to transit the strait, forcing it to turn back. The source said the U.S. military then struck open ground around Bandar Abbas, with no casualties or damage reported.
Iranian media later reported that a ​military official said four vessels had tried to transit the strait early on Thursday, only to be turned back by warning shots fired in their direction.

The U.S. military also carried out ⁠strikes in southern Iran on Monday, in what it described as defensive action but which Iran said was a “gross violation” of their ceasefire.
Oil prices, having fallen more than 5% on Wednesday, rebounded after Reuters reported the new strikes. U.S. crude futures gained close ​to 2% to $90.38 a barrel in early Asian trade on Thursday.

TRUMP SAYS NO COUNTRY TO CONTROL STRAIT

At a cabinet meeting attended by media on Wednesday, Trump dismissed an Iranian state TV report that it had obtained an unofficial draft of an agreement to ​restore commercial shipping through the strait to prewar levels within a month, with Iran and Oman jointly managing traffic.
Trump said no single country would have control over the waterway, and appeared to threaten Oman, a country with which the U.S. has decades-long military and economic ties.

“Nobody’s going to control (the strait),” Trump said. “It’s international waters and Oman will behave just like everybody else or we’ll have to blow them up. They understand that, they’ll be fine.”
The White House and Oman’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations ​was not immediately available for comment.
The U.S. Treasury Department later added the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, the Iranian body set up to manage passage through the strait, to a list of sanctioned people and entities seen as posing threats to U.S. national security.

The ​Iranian TV report of a framework deal said the United States would also lift its blockade of Iranian ports and withdraw military forces from Iran’s vicinity.
But Trump’s comments and reports of new U.S. military action showed that the two countries remain far apart even after suggestions ‌from the White ⁠House in recent days that an initial deal to end the war could be imminent.
Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee, said Trump’s “rhetoric” would not force Iran to back away from its demands to enrich uranium, wield authority over the strait and see sanctions against it lifted.
“It is obvious Trump, seeking a way out of this strategic deadlock, alternates between issuing threats and appealing for an agreement,” Azizi said in a post on X.
The three-month-old war has killed thousands and sent global energy prices sharply higher since it began on February 28 with U.S. and Israeli strikes. Trump has repeatedly said that a deal is close at hand.
The strait, which handled a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas traffic before the war, the dismantling ​of Iran’s nuclear capacity and ongoing sanctions are the sticking ​points in talks seeking to end the three-month-long conflict.

U.S. FORCES

The waterway ⁠is covered by international law that guarantees foreign vessels the right to pass through.
Trump has also asked Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt and Jordan to join the Abraham Accords normalizing relations with Israel as part of a deal to end the war, which they have declined to do.
Iranian state TV said the draft deal would also have the U.S. withdraw military forces ​from the immediate vicinity, though it said the issue of U.S. troops in the region needed further discussion. The White House dismissed the report as a “complete fabrication.” Tehran did not ​comment.
The U.S. military has some 15,000 ⁠troops enforcing a blockade of Iran and thousands of additional forces at bases throughout the region, including in Gulf states like Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
U.S. naval vessels, some with thousands of sailors and Marines aboard, regularly transit the region, stopping in ports including in Oman. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Iranian TV report on the draft agreement did not mention Iran’s nuclear program, which the U.S. wants disbanded.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-could-open-strait-hormuz-within-month-if-terms-agreed-state-tv-says-2026-05-27/

Israel’s military on Wednesday declared a new swathe of southern ‌Lebanon as a combat zone and said residents in the area should move north, warning it would act “with great force” against Lebanese armed group Hezbollah in the zone.
The military’s statement, posted on X, appeared to signal further escalation after more than 120 strikes on Tuesday hit Lebanon’s south and east, despite a ceasefire announced ​on April 16.

“We advise residents of southern Lebanon to evacuate to the north of the Zahrani River, as all areas ​south of the river are considered a combat zone,” an Israeli military spokesperson posted on X.
The Zahrani ⁠River runs east to west about 40 kilometres (25 miles) north of Israel’s border with Lebanon, and the Lebanese territory south of it covers ​about 2,000 square kilometres.

ISRAEL RESTRAINED IN BEIRUT, OFFICIALS SAY

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that Israel needed to take further action ​in Lebanon to protect communities in northern Israel from Hezbollah.
The Israeli military has previously ordered people below the Litani River further south to leave. It already issued individual evacuation orders and carried out strikes in several dozen towns between the Litani and Zahrani.

Wednesday’s order was the first time that residents were ordered to ​evacuate the entire zone south of the Zahrani.
The Israeli military urged civilians to stay away from Hezbollah operatives, facilities and weapons sites.
Lebanese ​security sources told Reuters that people were fleeing north to the port city of Sidon, already hosting thousands of displaced from other parts of southern Lebanon. ‌The ⁠new statement came as Muslims across Lebanon were celebrating Eid al-Adha.

More than 1.2 million Lebanese have been displaced by Israeli strikes and evacuation orders since March 2, when Hezbollah fired at Israel in support of its ally Iran.
Since then, Israeli strikes have pummeled Lebanon’s south, east and its capital Beirut, killing more than 3,200 people, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.

Fighting has continued in southern Lebanon despite a U.S.-brokered ceasefire announced on ​April 16. The World Health Organization ​has said at least 608 ⁠people in Lebanon have been killed in Israeli attacks since the truce.
The Israeli military said that 10 of its soldiers had been killed since the April 16 ceasefire, six of them by Hezbollah’s explosive ​drones.
The Israeli military expanded its ground operations in southern Lebanon past a security zone its troops are ​occupying, but gave ⁠no details on the extent of the advance beyond the so-called Yellow Line.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-declares-new-swathe-lebanon-a-combat-zone-warns-residents-leave-2026-05-27/

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton decisively defeated longtime Senator John Cornyn in Tuesday’s Republican runoff for U.S. Senate, handing President Donald Trump a high-profile victory and giving Democrats the matchup ​they had long preferred in Texas.
While the result was a personal win for Trump, who endorsed Paxton at the 11th hour, it risks endangering Republicans’ narrow Senate ‌majority.

CORNYN IS NOW A WILD CARD

The endorsement of Paxton put Trump at odds with Senate Republican Leader John Thune and Senator Tim Scott, who chairs the Senate Republicans’ campaign arm.
Unburdened by another reelection campaign, Cornyn for the remainder of his term this year could become another free agent like retiring Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who blocked Kevin Warsh’s nomination as Federal Reserve chair, or Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who lost a runoff in his state’s primary and voted with ​Democrats last week to advance an Iran war powers resolution.
Cornyn now joins that group of senators, though it’s unclear whether a former member of Republican leadership would buck Trump on ​his way out of office after tying his campaign closely to the president.

PAXTON HAS A MONEY PROBLEM

In his victory speech on Tuesday, Paxton implored supporters ⁠to donate through his campaign website, warning them that his opponent, state Representative James Talarico, will “raise more money than any Democrat in America.”
The candidates’ most recent financial reports showed Paxton with $2.3 million ​in the bank in early May and Talarico with $9.9 million on hand in early April.
In an internal memo last year, Senate Republicans’ campaign arm warned that a Paxton nomination could “cause Republicans to divert hundreds of ​millions that would otherwise be spent winning key battlegrounds.”
Now that Paxton’s won, it’s unclear where that money would come from. Senate Republicans’ primary super PAC, Senate Leadership Fund, did not respond to a request for comment. Neither did MAGA Inc, Trump’s $356 million super PAC.

“This is the wrong election to have someone who’s as weak of a nominee as Paxton up against someone who’s as strong a fundraiser as Talarico,” one Texas political consultant said, predicting that ultimately, “MAGA ​Inc. will have to step in.”

TEXAS IS GETTING MORE COMPETITIVE

Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics shifted their ratings for the Texas Senate race from “likely ​Republican” to “lean Republican,” validating the sentiment that Paxton is a weaker nominee than Cornyn.
Trump won Texas by nearly 14 points in 2024, but now Republicans will have to spend millions in what promises to be a bruising campaign ‌to save what ⁠was once a safe seat.
A Talarico campaign memo released Wednesday frames him as “the best positioned candidate in a generation to win Texas.” He described Paxton as “the most corrupt and damaged nominee in the modern Texas GOP,” a reference to his felony indictment, Texas House impeachment, allegations of corruption and reports of extramarital affairs.

Paxton and his allies have signaled they will attack Talarico on culture-war issues, including his defense of transgender children, describing God as nonbinary, prior “non‑meat campaign” in which it purchased only vegan products and comments suggesting there are more than two biological sexes.
An ad released on Wednesday, also seized on Talarico likening the border to a “front porch” ​with “a giant welcome mat.”

OTHER SENATE BATTLEGROUNDS AT RISK

In ​the Senate, Republicans hold a 53-47 advantage, and ⁠Democrats would need to net four seats to win control.
Democrats are defending two states Trump won in 2024 – Georgia and Michigan – and targeting Republican-held states such as North Carolina, Maine, Ohio and Alaska.
Lauren French, a spokesperson for the Democratic group Senate Majority PAC, said Republicans will likely have a “tough conversation” over ​which battleground states they might need to divert resources from.
In North Carolina, former Governor Roy Cooper is running against former Republican National Committee ​Chairman Michael Whatley to succeed ⁠Tillis, who’s retiring. And in Ohio, former Senator Sherrod Brown is challenging incumbent Republican Senator Jon Husted. Both races are considered toss-ups and will be key to whoever wins the Senate in November.
“Will it be less in North Carolina, where their candidate is already down?” French asked. “Less in Ohio, where they put an astronomical amount of money signaling their concern over Husted?”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/us/five-ways-paxtons-big-win-texas-could-backfire-trump-2026-05-27/

Zoo officials reportedly said the move was intended to protect the animal amid the viral attention and to give visitors a chance to see it safely.

A buffalo that went viral online for its resemblance to Donald Trump has been rescued from an Eid sacrifice and relocated to Bangladesh’s national zoo, news agency Reuters reported. The animal, weighing nearly 700kg, drew attention on social media in the days leading up to Eid al-Adha after photos and videos showed its distinctive white forehead patch and comb-over-like hair pattern. Viewers quickly dubbed it the “Donald Trump buffalo,” and clips racked up millions of views.

The animal was earlier sold by its owner, 38-year-old Zia Uddin Mridha. But amid growing public interest, government officials intervened at the last minute. They purchased the animal and transferred it to Dhaka’s Bangladesh National Zoo, where it will remain on public display rather than being sacrificed.

A ministry official said that the animal was saved because of the security concerns. “At the last moment, the decision was taken to spare the buffalo from sacrifice due to security concerns and the unusual level of public interest,” the official said as quoted in multiple reports.

Zoo officials reportedly said the move was intended to protect the animal amid the viral attention and to give visitors a chance to see it safely. The buffalo is now housed in a designated enclosure and is expected to become one of the zoo’s most photographed residents.

#Watch | People gather to see the viral albino buffalo with blond locks, nicknamed ‘Donald Trump,’ before it is sacrificed as part of the Eid al-Adha festival’s ‘Qurbani’ ritual. pic.twitter.com/jrzX8go4LJ

— NDTV (@ndtv) May 26, 2026

Earlier this month, when the animal had become popular, its owner, as quoted by The Business Standard, said, “My younger brother jokingly named it Donald Trump after seeing the hair on its head.”

“It is very calm in nature. Albino buffaloes are generally peaceful and do not become aggressive unless provoked,” Mridha.

Those who saw it in person had also embraced the comparison. “When I saw his pictures on Facebook, he looked exactly like Donald Trump,” one woman recently told Bangladeshi newspaper, Prothom Alo.

“His facial structure and even hairstyle match that of Trump.” But she was quick to add a key difference as she noted that the buffalo is very “calm and polite” in nature.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/bangladesh-moves-viral-donald-trump-buffalo-to-zoo-spares-from-eid-sacrifice-11557529?pfrom=home-ndtv_topstories

Travis Kelce gave a sign that he and Taylor Swift are changing their last names after getting married.

The NFL athlete, 36, “liked” an Instagram post Tuesday from the podcast “Bussin With the Boys,” in which hosts Will Compton and Taylor Lewan discussed if Swift will change her last name to Kelce after tying the knot.

A guest on the podcast noted that Swift was “way more globally famous” than Kelce, and that Kelce would have to change his name. The hosts joked that “Travis Swift” was a fitting name for Kelce, but that “Taylor Kelce” also sounded good.

They then landed on the two hyphenating their last names to “Swift-Kelce.”

“No, you gotta go Swift-Kelce — Travis Swift-Kelce,” they enthusiastically said.

Fans loved Kelce liking the post, with one fan commenting, “Travis liking this is hilarious 😂😂 that’s why he’s perfect for her.”

Another wrote, “love that travis liked this video 😂😍.”

Kelce proposed to Swift in August 2025 after two years of dating. A source told Page Six that they’re expected to wed this summer in New York City.

The couple hasn’t been shy about going on public date nights ahead of their big day.

On Saturday, they attended a Knicks game in New York, though Kelce — an Ohio native — was of course cheering for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Though the Cavaliers ended up losing, Kelce appeared to enjoy himself, at one point shotgunning a beer courtside while Swift covered her face in amusement.

With their wedding just weeks away, lawyer Sarah Luetto, a partner in Blank Rome’s Matrimonial & Family Law Group, exclusively spoke with Page Six about what a potential prenuputial agreement between the pair might entail.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/05/27/entertainment/travis-kelce-hints-he-and-taylor-swift-are-considering-huge-life-change-after-highly-anticipated-wedding/

Jill Biden feared her husband was having a stroke as she watched then-President Joe Biden stumble through a disastrous debate performance that led to the end of his 2024 reelection campaign, the former first lady said in a recent interview.

“I was frightened, because I had never ever seen Joe like that before or since. Never,” Jill Biden told CBS News in an interview scheduled to air Sunday.

Joe Biden’s shaky, mumbling and sometimes confused delivery against Donald Trump in June 2024 gave fuel to questions voters already had about his fitness for a second term. His attempts to explain away his performance and offer reassurance that he could handle four more years of the demanding job did little to assuage voters. Under mounting pressure from within his party, he stepped aside, and Democrats nominated Vice President Kamala Harris.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/jill-biden-joe-debate-stroke-frightened-7c99dbf996a4952a981d9fdf0c2ac7cf

Crews resumed the grim search Wednesday for nine people presumed killed at a Washington state paper mill where a chemical tank ruptured a day earlier in one of the deadliest U.S. workplace accidents in years.

The likely death toll rose to 11, including the missing, after another person who was injured died, authorities said Wednesday.

Authorities said there was no hope of finding more survivors following Tuesday’s tank failure at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. in Longview, which also injured another eight people, including a firefighter who was treated and released by a hospital.

If the 11 deaths are confirmed, it would be one of the deadliest industrial accidents in the U.S. in recent decades — alongside a series of blasts that killed 16 people at an explosives plant in Tennessee last fall; a fire and detonation that killed 14 people at a fertilizer plant in Texas in 2013; the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion that killed 11 people in 2010; and an explosion at a West Virginia coal mine that killed 29 people in 2010.

Officials said Wednesday that the paper mill tank spilled more than 500,000 gallons (1.9 million liters) of “white liquor,” a highly destructive chemical mixture used in paper manufacturing.

After delaying the search over concerns that the tank might collapse further, crews determined it contained less liquid than initially thought and that the tank was stable enough to resume efforts to find the missing. Fire officials said the search will be slow and methodical.

“We do not know where all nine are,” said Scott Goldstein, a Cowlitz County fire chief.

Authorities said the rupture hasn’t affected the safety of the air and drinking water in Longview, a Columbia River city of about 40,000 people with long ties to the Washington and Oregon paper and lumber industries.

Some contamination had reached the Columbia River, one of North America’s largest waterways, but the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reported that no effects on the river had been observed. Officials warned residents to keep away from ditches and dikes.

It was the second notable issue with a chemical tank in days on the West Coast, following the evacuation of thousands of Southern California residents due to an overheated tank at an aerospace plant before those orders were lifted Tuesday night.

The paper mill tank could hold about 900,000 gallons (3.4 million liters) and was more than half full when it ruptured, Goldstein said. White liquor, which is made mostly of sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide, is used with heat to break down wood to make kraft paper, a durable material used in packaging, shopping bags and other products.

The sprawling plant, which employs about 1,000 people, makes material for tissues, printing paper, cups, plates, and cartons. It sits along the river next to other timber, paper and chemical businesses.

Paper mill worker was always there to help, friend says

The rupture happened at shift change Tuesday morning, causing the huge circular tank to buckle on one side. The cause remained unclear.

Authorities haven’t released the names of the dead or missing, but some have begun to trickle out.

Todd Cornwell said his friend, Gilbert Bernal, was an electrician at the plant and was the first confirmed death. They knew each other through church and were in the same Bible study group, he said.

“We actually had our group last night and instead of doing Bible study, we talked about him,” Cornwell said. “He was always there willing to help in whatever needed to be done. When the local church school started flooding, he was one of the people there.”

Brian Williquette, a chemical supplier for the region’s mills, was at the plant Tuesday morning when he heard an alarm over the intercom and first wondered if it was drill. He was able to get out safely and didn’t see any of the damage.

“It’s just unfathomable,” he said at a community vigil Tuesday. “There’s not anybody that lives here that doesn’t know somebody at a paper mill.”

Crystal Moldenhauer, a Longview resident, said she has friends at the plant who remained unaccounted for. She said people called and texted each other all day trying to figure out what happened.

“We’re all still waiting for answers,” she said. “There’s families that have been torn apart, and we don’t know why.”

Authorities press for answers about the rupture

Nippon Paper Group in a statement said Wednesday that it was offering its “deepest condolences and heartfelt sympathies to the bereaved families.”

Some of those who were injured suffered burns or inhalation injuries, authorities said.

Following the tank’s rupture, the liquid spilled into a drainage ditch, said Brittny Goodsell, a state Ecology Department spokesperson.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/paper-mill-explosion-washington-white-liquor-317b2491baf6e44c0a5f66ef98af31b5

Prime Minister Mark Carney said the Canadian Armed Forces need the plane to detect and deter threats across the Arctic.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Wednesday that his government would not purchase early warning radar planes from the United States, opting instead for a European model.

Canada will purchase Swedish Saab’s GlobalEye, which is based on the Canadian-manufactured Bombardier Global 6500 jet.

“With a suite of advanced sensors and mission systems, Saab’s GlobalEye will be a key resource for the Canadian ‌Armed Forces to detect and ⁠deter ⁠threats across the Arctic,” Carney told a defense conference in Ottawa.

The decision comes after Carney linked Canada to a major European Union defense fund last year, and as the Canadian prime minister has made a point of diversifying his country’s military spending away from the United States.

Carney has also previously vowed to spend no more than 70 cents of every dollar of Canadian military capital spending to the United States.

The prime minister had pledged earlier this year that Canada would take full responsibility for protecting its vast Arctic territory, after decades of relying on a partnership with the US to monitor over 4.4 million square km (1.7 million square miles) of Canadian land and sea.

“Saab’s GlobalEye will be a key resource for the Canadian Armed Forces to detect and deter threats across the Arctic,” Carney said.

What is Saab’s GlobalEye?

The Saab GlobalEye plane is equipped with a powerful radar. It provides situational awareness of aircraft and missile movements over hundreds of kilometers.

The plane can also detect hostile activity in the air or from ships and can direct fighter jets to their targets. Carney did not elaborate on the size of the fleet or the cost of a potential contract.

Meanwhile, in a statement, Saab said it planned to invest in research and development work in Canada as part of any deal.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/canada-to-buy-swedish-surveillance-plane-over-us-models/a-77321014

Asian shares turned hesitant as news of a fresh US military strike in Iran challenged investor optimism on a near-term peace deal.

Oil prices bounced higher on Thursday (May 28) while Asian stocks mostly fell, as new US strikes on Iran marked the latest test of a shaky ceasefire in the Middle East war.

The price jumps erased much of Wednesday’s declines on the hopes of an imminent deal to end the conflict that has all but halted shipping through the crucial Strait of Hormuz for months.

An American official said the military had shot down four Iranian drones and struck a control centre in the southern city of Bandar Abbas.

The official, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, described the latest actions as “measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire”.

Tehran’s state media said Iranian forces had fired at four ships in the strait, while Kuwait said its air defences were responding to missile and drone attacks.

The developments came despite an Iranian official saying renewed hostilities with the United States were unlikely, and a threat from US President Donald Trump to “finish the job” if a peace deal was not reached.

The mixed signals underscored the fragile state of talks aimed at ending the Middle East war, which has profoundly shaken global energy markets.

Brent North Sea crude, the main international benchmark, rose by 1.8 per cent in Thursday morning trade to US$95.95 a barrel, while the main US contract, WTI, increased by 1.7 per cent to US$90.17.

“Over the next two weeks, we expect either a deal for a new ceasefire, or the current ceasefire will have collapsed with active hostilities resuming,” said Madison Cartwright, a senior geo-economics analyst at CBA.

He put a 70 per cent probability on a deal being agreed, while cautioning that the fate of the strait was up in the air.

“Insurance through the strait has become prohibitively expensive and it’s unclear how and at what price insurance will be made available,” he added. “It is also not clear if Iran will charge a toll, or a toll by another name.”

Stock markets across Asia were mostly down, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index dipping more than 1.5 per cent.

Seoul was down nearly 1 per cent, while Shanghai ticked 0.3 per cent lower.

Taipei’s main index gained more than 1 per cent, while Tokyo was flat at the midday break.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/oil-prices-us-iran-strikes-6146076

Former US first lady Jill Biden says in an upcoming interview that her husband’s disastrous 2024 debate performance against Donald Trump was so alarming, she thought he was having a stroke on stage.

“I was frightened, because I had never ever seen Joe like that before or since. Never,” she told CBS News Sunday Morning as part of an interview airing this weekend.

“I don’t know what happened,” she said in the clip released Wednesday (May 27). “As I watched it, I thought, ‘Oh, my God, he’s having a stroke.’ And it scared me to death.”

In the debate, then 81-year-old President Joe Biden stumbled on his words, stared open-mouthed and lost his train of thought as he struggled to counter his bombastic rival.

Yet immediately after the debate, Jill Biden praised her husband’s performance, telling him in front of a crowd of supporters: “Joe, you did such a great job. You answered every question, you knew all the facts.”

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/joe-biden-wife-jill-feared-stroke-2024-us-presidential-debate-6145986

AN AMERICAN vlogger has defended himself after being slammed over leaving a can of Coke for an uncontacted Indian Ocean tribe.

He said he wanted to “say hello” and left the “offering” after failing to make contact with the isolated group.

Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov, 25, has been slammed for puting the tribe at risk of being completely wiped out.

The YouTuber was arrested in March last year after he stepped onto the prohibited territory of North Sentinel Island.

The social media creator spent an hour on the island, blowing a whistle to attract attention in a bid to meet people from the solitary Sentinelese tribe.

The island is part of India‘s Andaman and Nicobar Islands, an archipelago nearly 750 miles east of India’s mainland.

Polyakov filmed his entire journey as a stunt for his YouTube channel, but had no response from the islanders, according to Indian police.

After failing to contact the tribe, he left a can of Diet Coke and a coconut as an offering.

The creator uploaded unseen footage on Friday, showing his journey last year.

He explained he wanted to see the tribe and “say hello”, as well as offer them a Coke to “transport them thousands of years into the future”.

Polyakov was slammed for the social media ploy for potentially putting the lives of the tribe members at risk from disease.

On Monday, he spoke to Dutch media, saying that he was “vaccinated against the flu and measles”.

“I never intended to come into direct contact with them,” he told AD.

“And as far as I know, you can’t catch diseases simply by looking at each other.

“I am receiving a lot of reactions, both positive and negative. I am open to that – a lively debate is healthy,” he added.

His video, titled: “The Last Island Part 2” which captured his real-time journey on the island, was uploaded on Friday.

The YouTuber has not revealed how he got the footage back after being forced to surrender it to Indian authorities at the time of his arrest.

“I wanted to give them a gift that is representative of our civilisation,” he said.

“I have reservations about India’s policy regarding this island, but I understand the reasons that led the government to adopt this position.

“But I have no illusions about what people think of me. Everyone is free to think what they want.”

Friday’s upload was part of a series Polyakov has produced, with the third video set to be added.

AD reported that the creator assured them he had no contact with the tribe.

When he returned from the prohibited island Polyakov was spotted by local fishermen, who later reported him to the local authorities.

He was then arrested in Port Blair, the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Police launched an investigation against Polyakov for violating Indian laws banning any outsider from interacting with the isolated islanders.

A court in Port Blair rejected his application for bail in April, extending his judicial custody.

The YouTuber was charged with entering a prohibited tribal reserve area and violating Indian laws regarding outsider interaction with the tribe.

Visitors are banned from travelling within three miles of the island.

The tribal population has remained separate from the rest of the world for thousands of years.

Inhabitants use spears, bows and arrows to hunt animals that roam the small, heavily forested island.

They are known to be deeply suspicious of outsiders and attack anyone who lands on their beaches.

Indian officials have limited contact to rare “gift-giving” encounters, where small teams of officials and scientists leave coconuts and bananas for the islanders.

Local ships also monitor the waters around the islands in an attempt to ensure that outsiders don’t contact the Sentinelese, who have repeatedly made it clear they want to remain isolated.

Police released a statement at the time of Polyakov’s arrest, saying his actions had posed “a serious threat to the safety and well-being of the Sentinelese people, whose contact with outsiders is strictly prohibited by the law to protect their indigenous way of life”.

A preliminary investigation revealed that Polyakov had made two previous attempts to visit the island – in October last year and again in January.

On one of the occasions, he attempted to reach the land in an inflatable kayak.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16420118/youtuber-gave-coke-deadliest-tribe-risked-wiping-them-out/

MATTHEW Perry’s live-in assistant has been jailed for three years and five months after injecting the actor with ketamine and leaving him alone to die.

Kenneth Iwamasa, 60, learned his fate as he appeared in federal court in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

He was the fifth and final defendant to be sentenced for playing a role in the actor’s 2023 overdose death.

Iwamasa, who was previously out on bail, avoided photographs by turning up to court at 7am when the doors opened, two hours ahead of the hearing, a source told The U.S. Sun.

He was then granted a delayed surrender date of July 17.

Los Angeles Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett also ordered him to pay fines of $10,000 and $100 and be on supervised released for two years.

Iwamasa wore a grey suit and matching tie with a white shirt for the hearing.

“Kenny wishes he would have had the strength to push back and say no and for that he will forever be remorseful,” his lawyer, Alan Eisner, said as he stood beside him outside of the court.

“Kenny is not the only person here who partook in this tragic event.”

He said Perry had agency, and his family should have also been there for him during his relapse.

“Mr Perry’s family could have said no along the way,” he bizarrely stated.

His loved ones previously insisted they had no idea he had fallen back into addiction.

The attorney said the blame shouldn’t all fall on his client, a man who is at the “low end of the totem pole” and wasn’t benefiting financially like those who sold him the drugs.

Asked why he left him alone to die after injecting him with the drug, the lawyer called the comments “vindictive” and said it was an unfair narrative.

Perry’s stepfather, Keith Morrison, who arrived with the actor’s mother, Suzanne, gave an emotional impact statement, along with estate manager, according to the New York Post.

Iwamasa was reportedly on the verge of tears as Morrison addressed him in court but he did not speak to reporters outside.

Although he pleaded guilty, his counsel argued that he was trapped in a toxic employer-employee dynamic and felt unable to refuse Perry’s requests.

The actor’s publicist, Lisa Calio, who was close to him for 30 years and is now the CEO of The Matthew Perry Foundation, wrote a heartbreaking letter to the judge and slammed Iwamasa.

She claimed he hatched a delusional plan to get rid of those tasked with keeping Perry safe so he could run the show and live a lavish lifestyle, before sourcing drugs for him.

She wrote, “His narcissistic, outrageous, irresponsible behavior, his psychotic plan, caused him to heat up the jacuzzi, give Matthew the giant shot he requested and leave him alone to die.”

Referencing the day Perry was found dead, she recalled, “I received a text from Kenny at 4 a.m. as he was driving one of Matthew’s cars from the house in the Hollywood Hills to the house in the Palisades. And he was loving it.”

She claimed, “Kenny convinced Matthew that there were too many people around and that he didn’t need to spend the money on them anymore. And that battle, Kenny won. I was not aware.”

Calio claimed that it was “the beginning of the end.”

She added, “Whatever sentence he receives, it won’t be long enough.

“He will always be known as the man who killed Matthew Perry, I suppose there should be some comfort in that.”

Before he was Perry’s live-in assistant, the star had other staff members and a sober companion who saved his life.

Iwamasa had been working for Perry’s manager, Doug Chapin, since the 1990s and took a more hands-on role as the actor’s live-in assistant around 2022, according to reports.

Court documents showed he was paid around $150,000 a year to assist Perry around the clock and was tasked with helping to manage his sobriety.

They lived together at a Beverly Hills rental after Perry sold his “mansion in the sky” in Century City and was waiting for renovation work to be completed on his new home in the Pacific Palisades.

As Perry relapsed, Iwamasa obtained ketamine from suppliers and was taught how to administer it, according to court documents.

Iwamasa admitted to injecting Perry with the drug three times on the day he died, including twice in 40 minutes.

He then left him alone near his hot tub at the star’s home in the Pacific Palisades, and when he returned, he found the actor unresponsive in the water.

Iwamasa was accused of repeatedly lying to investigators, including allegedly hiding the fact that he injected Perry with several ketamine shots on the day of his death, court documents also show.

He later admitted he “cleaned up the scene” during a phone call with middleman Erik Fleming, officials claimed.

The assistant reportedly said he got rid of syringes and bottles, changed passwords on Perry’s devices and “deleted everything.”

It was several months before it was revealed that Iwamasa played a part in Perry’s death, shocking not only his family and friends but thousands of fans worldwide.

He pleaded guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine resulting in death and initially faced 15 years behind bars.

But prosecutors said in court documents that he provided significant cooperation in the government’s investigation, leading to a reduced sentencing recommendation of three years and four months.

Perry’s mum, Suzanne Morrison, also described Iwamasa in a victim impact statement ahead of sentencing as a “man without conscience” and said the family felt betrayed by him.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/16417418/matthew-perry-assistant-kenneth-iwamasa-sentencing/

US President Donald Trump has said he is “not satisfied” yet with the terms of the deal being negotiated with Iran.

He said Tehran was “very much intent” on reaching an agreement to end the conflict, but added “so far they haven’t gotten there”, repeating Washington’s willingness to resume strikes if one is not reached.

His remarks came after Iranian state TV reported what it said were details of a draft agreement, which included reopening the Strait of Hormuz and the withdrawal of US forces from the region.

The White House branded the text a “complete fabrication”.

Both sides signalled progress had been made towards a deal late last week, prompting speculation an announcement was close.

However, Tehran soon cautioned a deal was “not imminent” while Trump said he had instructed his negotiators “not to rush into” one.

Speaking to reporters at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, the US president said: “They just want to make a deal – I don’t think they have a choice.”

He added: “They’re negotiating on fumes.”

Trump also said: “Iran is very much intent, they want very much to make a deal.

“So far, they haven’t gotten there and we’re not satisfied with it, but we will be. Either that or we’ll have to just finish the job.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said there had been “some progress and some interest” in negotiations, adding: “We’ll see over the next few hours and days whether progress could be made.”

While both Trump and Rubio continued to express optimism that talks were progressing well, neither gave any details of which specific disagreements continued between the two sides.

Trump did not directly address the purported draft agreement reported by Iranian media earlier on Wednesday, which included a claim that the US would lift its naval blockade of Iran’s ports.

It also claimed that in return, Iran would restore commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz to pre-war levels within a month, with the management and routing of vessels to be handled by Iran and Oman.

The report did not mention Iran giving up its nuclear ambitions or handing over its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

BBC News has not seen the purported framework.

Asked whether he would accept such terms, Trump told reporters “nobody” would exercise control over the Strait of Hormuz and that it would open “immediately”.

The president also denied reports that he was considering easing American sanctions on Tehran, or was willing to allow Russia and China to remove Iran’s highly enriched uranium – both of which would likely draw political criticism in the US.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c74dy9jw1q9o

South Korean authorities have arrested a YouTuber who allegedly made defamatory claims about actor Kim Soo-hyun, fuelling a scandal that halted the A-lister’s career.

Police and prosecutors allege that Kim Se-ui, who runs the popular YouTube channel Hover Lab, had manipulated evidence to falsely claim that Kim Soo-hyun had dated an actress while she was a minor – allegations that the actor has always denied.

The Seoul Central District Court granted an arrest warrant for the YouTuber on Tuesday, citing concerns that he might destroy evidence or flee.

In a statement on Wednesday, Kim Soo-hyun’s agency said that the “truth has been proven”.

“The investigation confirmed that all suspicions and evidence raised by Hover Lab against Kim Soo-hyun were unfounded,” said the statement, which also thanked the supporters who had stood by the actor.

Speaking to reporters outside the court on Tuesday, ahead of the court’s decision, YouTuber Kim Se-ui denied the charges and said the warrant “did not even properly organise the basic facts”.

He said he would lodge complaints against the police and prosecutors who requested his arrest.

The allegations against Kim Soo-hyun surfaced last year, shortly after actress Kim Sae-ron killed herself at the age of 24.

Months after her death, the Hover Lab channel – which has nearly a million subscribers – posted a voice recording in which the actress could be heard saying she had been dating Kim Soo-hyun since she was in middle school.

Police say that the voice recording was generated by AI.

They also allege that the YouTuber had manipulated screenshots of text messages sent from the actress’s phone to make it look like she had been texting Kim Soo-hyun.

Hover Lab is considered a controversial channel in South Korea, and frequently posts commentary on politics and entertainment. It is also a popular channel for celebrity gossip.

The allegations against Kim Soo-hyun shocked South Korea, where he is the star of multiple hit TV shows and appears in advertisements across the country.

The claims made on Hover Lab “collapsed Kim Soo-hyun’s social base and his economic activities across the board, and destroyed the basis for his professional survival”, according to a police filing reported by news outlet JoongAng Ilbo.

Police also say the actor is “still receiving psychiatric treatment”.

The actor has not made official public appearances since a tearful press conference in March 2025, where he said that he had dated Kim Sae-ron for a year, but only when she was an adult.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c759y6pvezgo

The Israeli military has issued evacuation orders for large parts of southern Lebanon, declaring the areas “combat zones” ahead of fresh strikes against Hezbollah.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) urged residents to move north of the Zahrani River, about 40km (25 miles) from the border. The IDF said it would act “with extreme force”, accusing Hezbollah of repeated ceasefire violations.

It is the largest evacuation order since the ceasefire took effect on 17 April, covering about 14% of Lebanese territory.

Earlier on Wednesday, Israel carried out strikes on the southern city of Tyre. Hezbollah, which itself accused Israel of violating the ceasefire, said its fighters had clashed with Israeli troops.

Wednesday’s strikes came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced an expansion of its ground operation following Hezbollah drone attacks on troops occupying part of southern Lebanon and on civilians in northern Israel.

The IDF has issued nine evacuation warnings in the past 24 hours, fuelling fears of a major escalation along the Israel-Lebanon border and the prospect of renewed mass displacement.

Wednesday’s order for Tyre, one of the biggest cities in southern Lebanon, was swiftly followed by air strikes. Residents watched with horror from balconies, filming on their phones, as Israeli forces hit the city.

Rida, 52, owned a cafe near the beach that was destroyed alongside his home in an air strike minutes before the ceasefire started last month. He previously told the BBC he would never leave Tyre.

Now, the feeling is different. “I went to the port next to the beach and a lot of people are there,” Rida said over the phone on Wednesday. “People packed up their stuff. Everyone is scared.”

The later evacuation order for areas south of the Zahrani River covers about 300 towns and villages. Many residents, including those already displaced from other parts of southern Lebanon, have nowhere obvious to go.

Officials and humanitarian workers said Sidon, a coastal city south of the capital Beirut, could no longer absorb the growing influx of displaced families. They urged civilians to relocate to the Beqaa Valley and Mount Lebanon further east.

Also on Wednesday, Lebanese media reported a wave of Israeli strikes across the south and the eastern Bekaa Valley, with four people killed in the towns of Choukine and Nabatieh.

The latest bombardment followed a devastating 24-hour period that saw more than 150 Israeli air strikes tear through some 50 towns and villages across southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley.

Lebanon’s health ministry said at least 31 people were killed on Tuesday, including 15 in the town of Burj al-Shamali, east of Tyre.

Hezbollah said on Wednesday that its fighters had clashed with Israeli forces “at point-blank range” in Zawtar al-Sharqiyeh, north of the Litani River. The town, about 30km (19 miles) from the border, lies outside the Israeli-declared “buffer zone”.

On Tuesday evening, Netanyahu told a cabinet meeting that Israeli troops were “deepening” their operation beyond the strip of land they are already occupying in southern Lebanon, which extends 10km from the border in some places.

“We are fortifying the security zone to protect the communities of the north [of Israel],” he said.

Israeli officials have said Hezbollah’s attacks are violating the temporary ceasefire deal between the Israeli and Lebanese governments, which has been extended twice since it came into force last month.

Lebanese officials have pointed to the Israeli strikes themselves as violations.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj3pgrpmlklo

A former US government official has been arrested after FBI investigators found hundreds of gold bars worth more than $40 million (£29.6 million) in his Virginia home.

David Rush made several requests to the US government to receive the bars for “work-related expenses” over the past year, according to court documents. He has been charged with criminal theft of public money in a complaint filed last week.

According to the New York Times, Rush held a senior position in the CIA up until recently.

He was arrested and is being held in detention until his hearing this week. His attorney declined to comment.

Agents also uncovered about $2 million (£1.5 million) in US currency in Rush’s home, along with 35 luxury watches, many of them Rolexes.

Rush, who court documents say had top secret clearance and access to classified information, has also been accused of lying about his education and military service when applying for his government job, and fraudulently taking military leave with thousands of dollars in pay.

Rush is a former senior executive in a US government agency in Virginia, court documents state.

Asked about Rush’s case, the FBI said in a written statement that it arrested an individual on 19 May following a referral from the CIA.

“After a CIA internal investigation identified potential violations of the law, CIA Director John Ratcliffe referred the information to the FBI for a law enforcement investigation,” the FBI said.

Between November 2025 and March 2026, Rush made several requests to the US government “to obtain a significant quantity of foreign currency and tens of millions of dollars in gold bars for work-related expenses”, which he later received, court documents state.

During a review, the CIA “was unable to locate the gold bars or significant amounts of the foreign currency”, court documents state.

The government was also unable to locate “any record of Rush providing information to his employer regarding the disposition of the currency or gold bars that he received for work-related purposes”.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5yezdl054po

Global carmakers are facing a reckoning as US, European and Japanese brands lose ground to Chinese rivals setting the pace not only in electric vehicles, but also in batteries, design and software.

The BBC visited factory floors in Beijing and Hefei on the sidelines of Auto China 2026 – the world’s largest car show – and found striking levels of automation and software development speed, leaving foreign brands that once dominated the Chinese market struggling to keep up.

“We have no chance against this,” Honda chief executive Toshihiro Mibe told Japanese media after visiting a highly automated factory in Shanghai.

Ford chief executive Jim Farley has also warned that Western carmakers, are “in a fight for our lives” as Chinese rivals expand globally.

After decades spent investing in joint ventures with Chinese partners to build vehicles, foreign carmakers are now changing the nature of those partnerships to stay competitive.

“The biggest mistake that the developed world is making is believing that the transition is only about electric cars,” says Shanghai-based auto analyst Bill Russo. “It’s about who will lead the next generation of mobility technology.”

Smartphones on wheels

China’s dominance goes beyond the cars themselves.

It makes the most exports in more than 315 product categories, up from 163 in 2016, according to a report by Rhodium Group. Many of these are linked to electric vehicle (EV) supply chains, including batteries, components and manufacturing machinery.

The International Energy Agency estimates it is at least 30% cheaper to produce a small electric SUV in China than in more advanced economies, largely because of lower battery costs and elaborate supply chains.

That advantage was built through years of state support. Rhodium estimates China has channelled tens of billions of dollars into EV and battery manufacturing in recent years alone.

Those subsidies, heavily criticised in the EU and US for distorting markets, have helped companies expand rapidly and cut prices.

Competition inside China has also sped up innovation. Tech giants like Xiaomi, Huawei and Alibaba are now making EVs, bringing consumer technology into the car industry.

“They’re not racing the West anymore,” says Russo. “They’re racing each other.”

As cars increasingly rely on software, from driver assistance to entertainment systems, these companies are giving Chinese carmakers yet another edge.

The shift is most visible inside Xiaomi’s EV factory outside Beijing, where a car rolls off the production line roughly every 76 seconds.

Xiaomi only launched its first EV in 2024 but it is already one of China’s top-selling brands. Its strategy is to connect cars with phones, apps and smart-home devices to create a single system.

At Nio’s Hefei plant, parts of the production line are almost fully automated.

BYD has developed ultra-fast charging systems capable of adding 400km (249 miles) of range in around five minutes, close to the time it takes to refuel a car with petrol.

XPeng’s founder and CEO He Xiaopeng told the BBC the company is prioritising humanoid robots and flying cars alongside EVs.

“In the next decade, any car company will also be a robotics company,” he said.

Rethinking China

Foreign carmakers already rely on China to supply global markets. Tesla exports Shanghai-built Model 3s to Europe, while BMW’s Chinese-made electric Minis are also sold overseas.

But many have struggled inside China itself.

Foreign brands’ share of China’s car market has fallen from 64% in 2020 to 32% this year, according to consultancy Automobility.

The decline has hit earnings at General Motors (GM) and German manufacturers, which once relied heavily on China for profits.

Luxury brands are also under pressure. Huawei’s Maextro S800 luxury sedan has become China’s best-selling car above $100,000 (£74,145), outselling imports like Porsche Panamera and the BMW 7 series combined, which once dominated the Chinese market.

For decades, foreign carmakers brought technology and branding while local partners provided factories and a market.

Now that relationship is changing.

Stellantis has just signed a €1bn ($1.16bn; £863m) deal with state-backed Dongfeng to produce Peugeot and Jeep models in China to sell at home and abroad.

Stellantis will also bring Dongfeng’s Voyah electric brand into Europe, and has said it is exploring producing Chinese-designed vehicles at a plant in France.

Volkswagen is paying $700m for access to XPeng’s software architecture and autonomous driving systems to develop its next generation of EVs – technology it has acknowledged it could not develop fast enough at home.

XPeng’s He says the relationship is two-way: “We study each other, so we trust each other, so we help each other.”

Toyota, Hyundai, Ford and Nissan are also expanding research operations in China or exploring production of Chinese-designed vehicles in overseas factories – using local talent and knowledge for development rather than simply manufacturing.

Not every strategy is working though.

Audi has had to offer heavy discounts on its E5 model, which it had specifically made for China, after weaker-than-expected demand.

GM has written down billions of dollars from its China operations and reported a more than 21% decline in sales in the first three months of this year.

Japanese manufacturers have been slower to shift towards fully electric vehicles, leaving them vulnerable in China and, increasingly, in South East Asia, where Chinese brands are rapidly gaining market share.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4g8vg72z43o

THE Real Housewives of Beverly Hills might be getting an injection of billion dollar energy from a familiar face in the Kardashian circle, The U.S. Sun can exclusively reveal.

However, a contract dispute over a crucial detail that neither side can come to an agreement on is threatening to tank the whole Bravo deal.

A source has revealed that powerhouse entrepreneur, Emma Grede, 43, is in active talks to join the glitzy reality show for its upcoming season.

Emma has a long history with the famous family – most notably as a founding partner of Skims alongside Kim Kardashian.

She is also the co-founder and CEO of Khloe Kardashian‘s Good American brand and helped launch Safely, the chemical-free cleaning line from Kris Jenner.

And according to the insider, this isn’t the first time Emma has been approached to join the RHOBH cast.

“She’s been asked numerous times and always declined, but she’s seriously considering it this time due to the need to pump new life into her businesses,” a source claimed.

However, a massive roadblock has parked itself right in the middle of negotiations between Emma and production company, Evolution Media.

Evolution and Bravo’s infamous “Bethenny Clause” – which requires reality stars to give the network a percentage of any brands promoted on the show – is apparently what’s causing a complete standstill.

The unofficial name comes from RHONY star Bethenny Frankel, who famously skyrocketed her SkinnyGirl drink mix past $1 billion in revenue while filming early seasons of the Bravo show.

While the network did not receive a cut from Bethenny’s company, they have since made it standard to get a portion of sales for Housewives products featured on the show.

“The holdup is, Emma and Evolution can’t come to an agreement on the network getting a stake in sales of the company,” the insider claimed.

“Emma, understandably so, does not want to give up any equity or sales percentage to Bravo even if they advertise it on the show.

“They require a cut from all Housewives products shown, so that would be the reason the deal falls through.”

Emma, who has also appeared as a Shark on Shark Tank, has built a staggering empire reportedly worth upwards of $400 million alongside reality TV’s first family.

However, aside from the runaway train that is Skims which is worth over $1 billion, Emma’s other brands have reportedly taken a massive hit, prompting her sudden willingness to step in front of the Bravo cameras.

“She wants to give a new platform to her brands that aren’t selling as well.

“Besides Skims, many of her businesses have taken a downturn, and this could breathe new life into bringing in consumers.”

The main priority for the British-born mogul? The body-inclusive denim brand she famously launched with Khloé, 41, a decade ago.

“Good American’s annual revenue and monthly sales volumes have been declining over the past year, couple of years.

“She’d use the show to boost the brand and use her platform to boost her businesses as a whole.”

The business downturn aligns with a chilly shift in Emma’s relationship with her long-time partner and co-founder, Khloé.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/tv/16414174/emma-grede-rhobh-khloe-kardashian-skims-good-american/

A JUDGE has ruled that the man behind the bombshell JPMorgan lawsuit, accusing a female boss of treating him like a sex slave, cannot remain anonymous in his filing.

Chirayu Rana, 35, filed a lawsuit against high-ranking executive Lorna Hajdini, 37, in April under the pseudonym John Doe, claiming she sexually assaulted, racially abused, and drugged him.

Rana will have to refile his lawsuit since he can no longer stay anonymous, which comes after both JPMorgan and Hajdini’s legal teams challenged his attempt to mask his name.

“You can’t put the genie back in the bottle,” New York Supreme Court Judge Dakota Ramsuer told the courtroom on Tuesday afternoon.

Her decision came after she heard from all parties and then headed into chambers to discuss the issue with the attorneys.

Rana’s lawyer, Daniel Kaiser, was against the request, arguing that his client is a victim of sexual abuse and that he has never revealed his name.

Just hours before the hearing, Kaiser filed to discharge himself as Rana’s attorney, stating in court documents that he was searching for new counsel to take on his case.

He then asked the judge in court for a 60-day pause for Rana to find a new lawyer, but his request was denied, and he was asked to proceed and appear on his behalf.

Hajdini’s lawyers, who appeared on her behalf, argued she would be “severely prejudiced” if Rana was able to remain anonymous while her name is “allowed to be dragged through the mud.”

Her team further argued that “the identity of the plaintiff is already known,” saying he included “an excruciating amount of detail” in his complaint, naming supervisors and immediate colleagues.

They claimed “any reporter” could figure out who he was.

Rana first sued Hajdini in April, accusing the high-ranking executive of abusing him when they worked together.

He originally filed the lawsuit anonymously under the pseudonym John Doe to protect himself and his family, but was later identified by the New York Post.

JPMorgan’s counsel said his name being made public led to several bombshell revelations as the press began investigating his background and time at the bank.

They mentioned several news reports that allegedly exposed times when Rana lied, including about his father’s death.

Attorneys claim Rana took paid days off work in the months leading up to filing the lawsuit, after telling bosses that his father had died

He used five days of bereavement and other various forms of paid leave, the Post also reported.

However, his father, Chaitanya Rana, is still alive, per an interview he gave to the Post.

The elder Rana said he didn’t know about the lawsuit and added that his son is “a good guy.”

JPMorgan’s lawyers said Rana’s colleagues sent him flowers, and they only learned the truth about his father after the report came out.

Another claim mentioned in court cited details about why Rana begged to remain anonymous, out of fear that his family would be harassed.

Court documents reviewed by The U.S. Sun showed Rana was concerned about his mother, who runs a “New York state licensed daycare.”

However, records indicate she ran the business from their home in Virginia.

JPMorgan’s lawyers brought up the fact that he also confirmed his mother’s business is now based in New York in an interview he gave to media outlet The Juggernaut.

Speaking about the article, they also argued that it named him and featured direct quotes from Rana about his early life, education, and employment, along with his feelings about becoming an internet fascination after filing the case.

It was also claimed in court that bosses discovered Rana’s resume did not match up with his work history later revealed in the media.

They further noted that his crisis management firm had provided a comment to a media outlet naming him.

Kaiser, Rana’s attorney, said that “despite the media attention this case brings, it remains a confidentiality concern,” but his motion was denied.

Rana will now have to find new counsel if he wants to continue his legal fight ahead of the next court hearing on June 23.

The judge wrapped up the hearing by adding, “I do want to encourage on the record that everyone talk to their respective clients to the extent that they can and find out what, if anything, can make this case resolve itself.”

After appearing in court, Rana’s lawyer was overheard mentioning JPMorgan while talking animatedly on his phone outside of the building, as he paced up and down.

He then declined to comment on the case when approached by The U.S. Sun.

Rana alleged in the bombshell lawsuit that Hajdini turned him into her “sex slave” by drugging him with a date rape drug and Viagra, threatening to cut his bonus if he did not comply.

He did not directly report to Hajdini and instead had a different boss, meaning she would not have control over his annual bonus, sources told The Post.

Hajdini denied the allegations in a statement from her lawyers soon after they were made.

“Lorna categorically denies the allegations. She never engaged in any inappropriate conduct with this individual of any kind and has never even been to the location where the alleged sexual assault supposedly took place,” the statement read.

Rana claimed the abuse started soon after he joined the JPMorgan team in the spring of 2024.

A company spokesperson told The Post that an internal probe conducted by in-house lawyers and the HR department reportedly found no evidence to support Rana’s claims.

“Following an investigation, don’t believe there’s any merit to these claims,” the spokesperson said.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16412812/jpmorgan-sex-slave-lawsuit-anonymous-lorna-hajdini-chirayu-rana/

The check-up followed questions about his apparent sleepiness in meetings and bruising on his hand.

US President Donald Trump said an annual medical check-up had gone “perfectly” Tuesday (May 26), as the health of the oldest US president ever to take the oath faces growing scrutiny with the approach of his 80th birthday.

It was Trump’s third medical examination since returning to office last year and follows mounting speculation about issues including bruising on his hands and apparent sleepiness during meetings.

“Everything checked out PERFECTLY,” Trump posted on his Truth Social network as he drove back to the White House from the Walter Reed Military Hospital near Washington.

But Trump has long been accused of a lack of transparency about his health – and the chronology of his various check-ups during his second term has added to the confusion.

He referred to Tuesday’s check up as a “six-month physical,” despite the White House billing it as an annual dental and medical examination when it announced it earlier this month.

Trump’s last scheduled annual check up was in April 2025. But it was followed by an unannounced hospital visit that October, which the White House then also described as an annual physical.

The Republican billionaire’s claims about his health are all the more subject to scrutiny given his repeated boasts about his mental and physical vigor compared to Democratic predecessor Joe Biden.

Trump turns 80 on Jun 14 – an event that will coincide with an Ultimate Fighting Championship cage fight held on the White House lawn.

“I feel the same as I did 50 years ago,” Trump said during an Oval Office event earlier this month.

Trump said that was despite his well-documented love of fast food, steak and Diet Coke, adding: “Maybe junk food is good.”

Officially standing at 191cm tall, Trump weighed 101.6kg as of his last full annual medical in April 2025, down from 110.2kg in 2019.

Trump has also spoken dozens of times about “acing” a cognitive test that he claims his presidential predecessors have not taken.

VEIN PROBLEM

But last summer, the White House disclosed that Trump had been evaluated for swelling in his legs and diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency – a common condition in which faulty vein valves allow blood to pool, causing swelling, cramping and skin changes.

The revelation came after Trump was seen with swollen ankles on a number of occasions.

Since returning to office in 2025, Trump has also often appeared with bruising on his right hand, usually covered with makeup. He also had a rash on his neck during one Oval Office appearance.

The White House has attributed the marks on his hand to the aspirin he takes as part of a “standard” cardiovascular health regimen.

During a number of White House events, Trump has also been seen apparently closing his eyes for several seconds, although he has repeatedly denied dozing off.

After his October check-up, Trump said an MRI taken during the visit showed his cardiovascular health was “excellent”.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/donald-trump-annual-medical-exam-health-80-6142686

Nasa has released details of robotic landers, hopping drones and vehicles it aims to send to the Moon as part of US plans to build a lunar base.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’s space company Blue Origin is one of several companies picked to build the machines.

The US wants to land Americans back on the Moon before President Donald Trump leaves office in 2029.

But Nasa is competing with China to return humans to the lunar surface, meaning the space agency is under pressure to appear to be winning the new space race.

China is forging ahead with its own plans to land humans on the Moon by 2030.

On Monday it launched its Shenzhou-23 spacecraft, sending a crew of astronauts to the country’s Tiangong space station.

In March, Nasa announced a $20 billion programme to construct a permanent base powered by nuclear and solar energy at the Moon’s south pole by 2032.

Nasa administrator Jared Isaacman said on Tuesday that the announcements mean the US will “never give up the Moon again”.

A base would allow the US to carry out scientific experiments, potentially mine valuable resources, and travel to Mars more easily.

But most experts agree that Nasa’s timeline is unrealistic.

Despite the US’s success in sending four astronauts around the Moon in its Artemis II mission in April, some scientists believe China is likely to be the next country to land humans on the lunar surface.

“It would not surprise me at all if China gets there first,” Dr Simeon Barber, Lunar Scientist at Open University, told BBC News, citing Nasa’s setbacks in securing a craft that can land humans on the Moon.

Nasa’s Ignition Moon Base programme has three phases.

Before humans travel there, the space agency wants to send robotic landers and hopping drones to explore and map the Moon’s challenging terrain.

Delivery vehicles would also be taken that could drive astronauts over the lunar surface and carry communications and scientific instruments.

On Tuesday, Nasa said companies including Blue Origin, Intuitive Machines, and Astrobotic have been awarded the contracts to build the machines.

Nasa wants Blue Origin’s lunar lander, called Endurance, to be able to carry out precise landings, as well as autonomous navigation and control.

Astrobotic’s Griffin-1 lander is expected to land at Nobile Crater near the South Pole.

The machines will also deliver scientific instruments for Nasa, including high-resolution cameras and tools that use reflected laser light to help the craft land.

This robotic exploration should last until 2029, with 25 launches and 4 metric tonnes of cargo landed on the Moon, Carlos García-Galán, Moon Base programme executive said on Tuesday.

Next, Nasa wants to build nuclear and solar power facilities on the Moon, including fission reactors.

By 2032, the space agency wants humans to be able to live on the Moon in “semi-permanent” housing.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c39228nxyr4o

Akira was always a fast learner, her father Al Amin says with pride.

At 6 months she was already saying her first words. At just over 4 years old, she had started to say some words in English.

He stops, his voice catching.

“She was never short of love from both families. She was the crown of all.”

Al Amin, who lives with with his family in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka, says his daughter had all her vaccines, apart from measles.

They took her four times to get it; twice she was turned away because she had a cold. “Don’t stress,” he says the health care worker told them, “the vaccine can be administered up until she reaches 5.” The third and fourth time, he says, they were told the vaccine was unavailable.

On 8 March Al Amin took Akira to hospital, suffering with what he thought was a normal fever. She improved, went home, then started developing a rash, a high fever and sores in her mouth. She was discharged and readmitted to hospital a total of five times, Al Amin says; only on the fifth occasion did a doctor tell him she was suffering from measles.

Akira was put on life support. She died 27 days after she was first admitted.

Over 500 children with suspected and confirmed cases of measles have died in Bangladesh since March, according to the country’s health ministry.

The health minister said last week that doctors and nurses treating those with the virus have had their Eid holiday leave cancelled and the government has been running a mass vaccination campaign to slow the spread and save lives.

Al Amin says he and his wife still torture themselves, thinking that their daughter may have picked up the virus in the hospital.

“From the ticket counter line to the x-ray room, there was a measles patient everywhere,” he says.

He is angry; that his child couldn’t get a vaccine, that her symptoms were missed, that he feels the hospitals failed to keep patients with measles apart from others.

In just over two months, the number of suspected cases of measles have reached over 60,000 in Bangladesh, according to the health ministry. The exact number has not been confirmed, as many are waiting for results from the laboratory.

Highly contagious, measles spreads quickly through coughs and sneezes and is particularly dangerous for unvaccinated young children under the age of 5.

There are multiple reports of parents struggling to find space for their sick children in Bangladesh’s hospitals.

UNICEF told the BBC that during field visits the hospitals they went to were overwhelmed. They say that their staff are helping to isolate and triage children arriving at hospitals where such measures are lacking.

Where local health clinics can’t help, many people are travelling to the cities, hoping the hospitals there will be able to.

“Poor people do not usually come to government hospitals until the last moment, as they have to buy medicine and tests,” Dr Mushtaq Husain, former Principal Scientific Officer at the Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control and Research says.

If healthcare were better resourced at a local level, he adds, fewer would need emergency hospitalisation.

“It feels like a bit of a perfect storm,” Rana Flowers, Bangladesh country head for UNICEF said during a press conference.

Flowers explained that the agency had identified several factors which increased the risk of infection, including pockets of cases since 2023 where children were missing out on routine vaccination, high population density in certain areas – especially Dhaka or Cox’s Bazar – and big population movements for holidays.

But one element in particular has stood out: delays ordering vaccines.

In 2024 Bangladesh’s long-term ruler, Sheikh Hassina, fled from the country after mass protests against her rule. An interim government was appointed, and elections were held in February 2026.

UNICEF says that the interim government decided to change the way Bangladesh bought vaccines, which led to delays in placing orders. Flowers said they had 10 separate meetings with the interim government where UNICEF flagged risks associated with delays to vaccine procurement.

“I can tell you I sat with the interim advisor and staff on at least ten occasions,” she said. “Saying we are worried, look at my face, I am worried you are going to face an outage.”

In a post on social media, Md Sayedur Rahman, former Special Assistant to interim chief advisor for the health ministry, said that “no change was implemented in the vaccine procurement process during the tenure of the interim government”.

“A regular and consistent collaborative relationship regarding vaccine matters was maintained with UNICEF,” he added.

Others also say that gaps in vaccination which opened during the Covid pandemic were never closed.

“Previously health workers went from door to door to convince parents to get their children vaccinated,” Husain says. “But during Covid they were discouraged from doing that to avoid transmission. Some parents were afraid that they could contract Covid if they took their child to hospital to receive the vaccine too.”

Bangladesh launched an emergency vaccination campaign at the start of April, assisted by international aid agencies. UNICEF says this has helped numbers start to plateau in some badly affected areas – which were the first to be the focus of the vaccination campaign – and that the number of new infections has declined.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy2d5d7wn5o

A train has crashed into a school bus near a town close to Brussels, killing at least four people, including two children.

At least four people, including two children aged 12 and 15, were killed when a train collided with a school minibus carrying seven children in northern Belgium on Tuesday, officials said.

The victims also included the bus driver and an adult accompanying the children, according to RTL TV, which cited Transport Minister Jean-Luc Crucke.

What do we know about the accident in Belgium?

Crucke said two other people were severely injured in the accident, which occurred on a level crossing near the town of Buggenhout, some 23 kilometers (about 14 miles) from the capital, Brussels.

Security cameras showed that the crossing’s security barriers had come down, Crucke said, something confirmed by railway infrastructure operator Infrabel.

“The impact was extremely violent,” Infrabel spokesman Frederic Sacre told the AFP news agency, describing the toll as “dramatic.”

“It happened at around 8:08 am (0608 GMT) when a minibus was struck by a train that was due to stop at the next station, which was about a kilometer away,” he said.

“The minibus was thrown about 15 meters (50 feet) into a metal pylon,” he said.

The other five children on the bus were hospitalized with critical injuries but were in a stable condition, according to Lisa De Wilde, a spokeswoman for the regional prosecutor’s office.

The other two fatalities were the bus driver, 49, and a 27-year-old accompanying adult, she said.

The bus was reportedly headed for a special education school.

Official condolences

Belgian Interior Minister Bernard Quintin said on X that “it is with deep ⁠sadness ​that I learned of ​the tragic accident that occurred in Buggenhout,” adding that his “thoughts go out to the victims and their loved ones.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she was “heartbroken” at the news.

“My deepest condolences go out to the victims’ families and their loved ones. Today, Europe grieves with Belgium,” she posted online.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/belgium-train-collides-with-school-bus-several-dead/a-77296681

The US, India, Japan and Australia have agreed to jointly surveil maritime operations in the Indo-Pacific to assert domiance over the region. Meanwhile, Indian politicians mark 12 years of Modi as PM.

Quad ministers ‘seriously’ concerned over South China Sea tensions

The US, India, Japan, and Australia, or members of the so-called “Quad” group of nations, voiced concerns over the East and South China Seas without calling out Beijing by its name.

“We remain seriously concerned about the situation in the East China Sea and the South China Sea. We reiterate our strong opposition to any destabilizing or unilateral actions, including by force or coercion, that threaten peace and stability in the region,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his three counterparts said in a joint statement after talks in New Delhi.

In clear but unstated references to China, the foreign ministers criticized “dangerous maneuvers by military aircraft” and “ramming and blocking actions in the South China Sea” and said they were “seriously concerned by the militarization of disputed features” in the waters where Beijing stakes wide claims.

What to know about East and South China Seas

The East and South China Seas are two distinct water bodies, and each of these contains land features claimed by China and at least one ally of the US.

To Beijing, the East and South China Seas are all part of its “near seas,” and China continues to take steps to assert control over this space as one unified maritime periphery.

The disputed land features in these seas are small — islands, reefs, and rocks — but the maritime and security stakes associated with them are large.

The Quad group is also seen as a counterweight to growing Chinese influence and aggression in the Asia-Pacific region.

Scientists knew they had encountered something special when they first saw the tiny blue octopus in the depths of the Galapagos Islands.

There’s a new octopus on the ocean floors of Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands that is tiny and blue (and cute) but with a long name — Microeledone galapagensis.

The news is exciting because the octopus is the size of a golf ball and because scientists know very little about octopuses that live deep in the tropical Pacific Ocean, as described in the study about the octopus published on Monday in the journal, Zootaxa.

And it must have been very exciting for the one person who knew there was something special about the octopus when she first saw it more than ten years ago — the scientist who led the study describing the new animal.

“Right away, I knew it was something really special. I’d never seen anything like it,” said Janet Voight, the lead author of the study.

In 2015, scientists aboard the E/V Nautilus submersible were studying the ocean floor using the sub’s remotely operated camera when they noticed the octopus, about 5,800 feet (1768 meters) below the water’s surface.

“He’s tiny!”

“It’s blue!”

That’s how researchers described the octopus when they first saw the animal, according to the study.

The crew aboard the submersible then collected the octopus and noted they saw two others that looked like it over the course of their deep-sea mission.

But when the octopus was brought back to the Charles Darwin Research Station on the Santa Cruz island in the Galapagos Islands, researchers were not sure what species it belonged to.

They then contacted Janet Voight and went out of their way to make sure she had the specimen.

Little octopus posed challenges for scientific research

The octopus was little and one of a kind, which meant that researchers had to take specific measures to make sure they could study it.

The octopus’ body was preserved in alcohol and formalin and then sent from the Galapagos Islands to Chicago for Voight to examine the animal at the Field Museum, which is one of the world’s largest natural history museums.

“When you describe a new species of octopus, you have to look at all the parts, including the mouth, the beak, and the teeth. And to see those things, you have to cut the specimen open. We only had the one specimen, so I didn’t want to take it apart,” Voight said.

She worked with a team to create micro CT scans of the octopus and put together a 3D model of the animal, inside and out.

That was the first time in her four-decade career on octopus evolution that she led a study that described a new species of octopus.

“These are little octopuses that live in the deep sea, and hardly anybody on Earth has ever gotten to see them. I just feel lucky that I got to work with them,” she said.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/scientists-discover-new-little-blue-octopus-in-galapagos-islands/a-77300108

North Korea said Wednesday its latest launches involved multiple weapons systems, including a nuclear-capable cruise missile that leader Kim Jong Un plans to deploy with front-line units facing South Korea, as he continues expanding his military capabilities.

The report by North Korean state media came a day after South Korea’s military said it detected the North launching multiple projectiles, including at least one close-range ballistic missile, toward its western waters. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile flew about 80 kilometers (50 miles) but didn’t specify other types of weapons involved.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said Kim supervised Tuesday’s tests that featured ballistic missiles with new warheads designed for battlefield nuclear use, nuclear-capable cruise missiles guided by artificial-intelligence technology, and 240-millimeter rocket artillery equipped with “ultra-precision” navigation systems. South Korea’s military did not immediately comment on the North Korean claims.

KCNA said Kim expressed satisfaction with the tests, particularly the performance of cruise missile systems intended for deployment with front-line long-range artillery units near the border with South Korea. He called for faster efforts to modernize and strengthen his artillery forces so that “no one can match,” the agency said.

Kim has sped up efforts to modernize North Korea’s nuclear and missile arsenal since his diplomacy with U.S. President Donald Trump collapsed in 2019. He has also adopted a hard line toward South Korea, which he declared as his country’s “most hostile enemy” and moved to sever longstanding inter-Korean ties. During a meeting with military commanders last week, Kim discussed strengthening frontline units along the border in line with a state goal of turning the frontier into “an impregnable fortress,” state media said.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/north-korea-kim-ballistic-cruise-missiles-nuclear-720cea7dfc5f7ec555ff9bb1f423507c

Israel’s military clashed with the Iran-backed militant Hezbollah group Tuesday along a strategic river in southern Lebanon as Israeli troops pushed farther north, days ahead of talks in Washington between Lebanese and Israeli delegations.

A U.S.-brokered ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah conflict appeared more nominal by the day, complicating efforts at a broader peace in the Iran war as Tehran wants an agreement to include an end to the fighting in Lebanon.

The Litani River has been a de facto boundary in Lebanon, with large areas to the south under Israeli military control despite the ceasefire that’s been in place for over a month.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said after meeting with his defense minister and senior military officials that Israel will expand its operations in Lebanon.

“The (Israeli Defense Forces) are operating with large forces on the ground and seizing strategic areas,” he said, adding that Israel is trying to fortify an area of southern Lebanon under its control, which it says is necessary to protect residents in its northern border towns from Hezbollah rocket and drone attacks.

Israeli strike kills 12

Meanwhile, an Israeli security official said the military had called up an additional battalion to Lebanon, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Israel’s military said it struck more than 100 Hezbollah sites across southern Lebanon and the eastern Bekaa Valley area overnight, adding that it targeted storage facilities, command centers and observation points used to attack Israeli troops and residents in northern Israel.

One strike hit the eastern village of Mashghara, killing 12 people including several members of the same family, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said.

Israel in recent days has intensified strikes in the city and province of Nabatiyeh, just north of the river. On Tuesday it warned city residents to leave.

Hezbollah, meanwhile, said it launched several rocket, artillery and exploding drone attacks on Israeli troops and vehicles mobilizing along the river toward the Nabatiyeh villages of Yohmor al-Shaqif and Zawtar al-Sharqieh. Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV said the militant group repelled attacks along the river banks.

Elsewhere in eastern Lebanon, Israel struck an area near the Qaraoun Dam, the country’s largest along the Litani River. The Litani River Authority said there was no direct damage to the dam.

Beirut, the Lebanese capital, has been spared from strikes since the start of the ceasefire, but Israel’s latest moves have caused fear.

“By just saying a few words on TV, (Netanyahu) causes everyone to panic and flee their homes,” said Tony Aboud in Beirut’s bustling Hamra district. “I don’t know what’s going to happen and how long we can live like this.”

Israeli military struck over 100 Hezbollah sites overnight

Israel struck multiple locations including the village of Mashghara and Nabatieh district. Hezbollah said Israeli troops were moving toward villages in the south-east of the district.

Lebanon hopes for an agreement that will see Israeli withdrawal

The Lebanese government, which came to power on a platform of reform and disarming Hezbollah and other armed groups, hopes that the direct talks with Israel — which Hezbollah opposes — will lead to a permanent ceasefire and withdrawal of Israeli troops.

Israel says it will not withdraw until Hezbollah no longer poses a threat to residents of its northern towns. Hezbollah has vowed to fight until Israel stops its daily airstrikes and withdraws its troops from Lebanon.

In recent weeks, Hezbollah has boasted that it is using new fiber-optic drones that Israeli troops have struggled to intercept, hitting both Israeli forces and northern Israeli villages.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/lebanon-israel-hezbollah-war-strike-032806ee1d45539b9cffc92b6e61ad56

Just a few years ago, America’s public schools were rushing to get every child a laptop. Los Angeles middle school teacher Anna Soffer remembers it well: “The idea was that technology is the future, so we need to put tech in every child’s hands.”

Now, the conversation has flipped. After pouring billions of dollars into laptops, tablets and learning apps, many schools are facing a digital reckoning. Classrooms have become saturated with screens, and a growing number of parents, teachers and school districts are saying it is time to scale back.

“The Chromebook is just a world of distraction,” says Soffer, who teaches sixth-grade English and history. She favors pen-and-paper assignments but is required to use laptops and online apps for certain activities. “Every day, I’m battling, ’Who would you rather listen to, Ms. Soffer or Minecraft?’”

The Los Angeles Unified School District, where Soffer teaches, recently became the first major school district to say it will stop giving devices to its youngest students. It is part of a new screen time policy taking effect in the fall across the country’s second-largest school system.

A sweeping resolution passed last month by the Los Angeles school board requires the district to eliminate devices until second grade; set daily and weekly screen limits for all higher grades; block YouTube on school devices; and ban the use of devices at lunch and recess in elementary and middle school. The district will also audit its education technology contracts, which the teachers union says amount to $1.6 billion.

The Los Angeles crackdown is adding momentum to calls for reform emerging around the country. In many cases, parents lobbied a few years ago for school cellphone bans, which have now become the norm. Realizing phones weren’t the only classroom distraction, they pivoted to a new target: school-issued devices.

The campaign for change is becoming a public policy issue. At least 14 states have proposed laws to limit screen time in schools, according to Ballotpedia. The federal government issued an advisory last week warning that excessive screen use among youth is becoming a growing public health concern.

Parents say school-issued devices undermine screen limits at home

In Los Angeles, concerned parents last year formed a group, Schools Beyond Screens, and pressured the district by speaking out at school board meetings, on social media and in private talks with administrators. Many are frustrated by trying to curb screen time at home, only to have screens mandated by school.

As a mother of three, Katie Pace does everything in her power to limit screens. There is one family iPad and one television at home, no screen time during the week and no screens allowed in bedrooms. Her eighth grade daughter, Clementine, does not have a phone.

But as soon as Clementine gets on the Wi-Fi-enabled school bus, her day takes a turn for the digital.

For the 30-minute ride to school, Clementine watches YouTube videos on her school Chromebook.

In Spanish class, assignments are on the app Duolingo, but many students use Google Translate for answers, Clementine said. Often, kids are playing games on their phones, which are supposed to be locked away. In algebra, Clementine writes with her finger on a touch screen to solve equations. In history, quizzes, tests and writing assignments are on the computer.

Almost all homework is online. Until recently, Clementine would come home and read a book, her mother said, but not anymore. On her daughter’s device history, Pace sees she spends hours a day streaming music, making Spotify playlists, and watching makeup tutorials and cat videos on YouTube.

“It makes me furious,” said Pace, a member of Schools Beyond Screens. “My daughter went to middle school and was sent home with a screen addiction in her backpack.”

The pandemic supercharged student access to devices

A push to put a device in every child’s hand and close the “digital divide” started over a decade ago, but it accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Overnight, education shifted online in March 2020. Schools raced to get kids the devices needed to connect to school. When the 2021-2022 school year started, 96% of U.S. public schools reported they had given digital devices to students who needed them, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

Many schools switched funding away from textbooks, workbooks and paper printouts to digital alternatives. Educational technology, or “edtech,” exploded into a multibillion-dollar industry.

“During the pandemic, getting kids devices was a lifeline. Now, it’s time that we reset,” said Nick Melvoin, the LAUSD school board member who drafted the new resolution.

Melvoin estimates that few Los Angeles classrooms are using screens effectively in ways that benefit learning. Too often, he said, teachers are replacing instruction with online apps and using screens “as a crutch.”

Some schools are introducing new limits

The challenge, educators say, is that technology has become so entwined with learning, especially for older students, that unplugging from screens at school is complicated.

In the affluent Philadelphia suburb of Lower Merion, parents launched a petition campaign for the right to opt their children out of digital devices during school, citing questions about edtech’s benefits. The district has said that opting out is not possible.

“If there’s really no evidence that it helps, and in fact there’s evidence that it’s harmful, what are we doing? Test scores are at their lowest point,” said Alex Bird Becker, one of the founders of the group PA Unplugged.

Other schools are finding that it makes financial sense to stop sending a device home with every child.

Fresno Unified School District, the third-largest in California, is spending $4 million a year to repair and replace laptops. Partly to cut costs, the district has told its 40,000 elementary school students to return their take-home laptops and it will shift computer access to in-class only in the fall, spokesperson A.J. Kato said.

The Simi Valley Unified School District, near Los Angeles, stopped sending devices home for its younger students this year, partly because of costly repairs but also because they were being used for “inappropriate Google searches” and video games, according to a memo to parents. The district now stores the devices in carts at school.

A group of parents in Arlington, Virginia, gathered on a recent Saturday night to share their children’s struggles with screen addictions and other side effects of school-issued devices.

“None of us are Luddites. I know that technology adds value, but I also don’t want my son on YouTube all the time,” said LuAnn Oliver, who hosted the group in her living room. Her sixth grade son struggles to keep track of online assignments and resist the temptation the iPad offers for video games. “We get reports on websites he’s visited. He’s visiting a game site in nearly every class.”

Source : https://apnews.com/article/school-screen-time-technology-edtech-07958fb159c7cfbceb7bfdb37b2bb726

Canada and the Bahamas said on Tuesday they will ​temporarily ban residents from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda ‌and South Sudan amid an Ebola outbreak.
Residents from those countries will be banned from entering Canada for 90 days starting Wednesday, the Canadian government said. It said ​the temporary border measure aimed to reduce the risk of ​Ebola entering and spreading within Canada.

The Bahamian government added that ⁠its entry restrictions would take immediate effect and remain in place ​for a period of 30 days, subject to review by the Caribbean ​country’s health ministry.
Reuters first reported that the archipelago would impose such a travel ban.
The World Health Organization on Friday raised to “very high” the risk of the Bundibugyo strain ​of Ebola turning into a national outbreak in the Democratic Republic ​of Congo and has declared the outbreak there and in Uganda an emergency of ‌international ⁠concern.
Last week, Washington banned non-citizens who had traveled to the DRC, Uganda or South Sudan in recent weeks from entering the United States.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/canada-imposes-ebola-related-travel-ban-as-bahamas-plans-similar-move-2026-05-26/

Iran said on Tuesday the United States had violated a ceasefire ​by striking targets near the contested Strait of Hormuz, potentially complicating efforts to bring the war to a close.
Further straining peace efforts, Israel pounded Lebanon with more than 120 air ‌strikes on Tuesday in one of the heaviest days of bombing in weeks, Lebanese security sources said. Iran has sought an end to Israeli attacks in Lebanon as part of any deal.

Iran’s foreign ministry said U.S. strikes in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province, where Iranian media reported sounds of explosions early on Tuesday, represented a “gross violation” of a tenuous ceasefire in place for nearly seven weeks. The U.S. said its attacks were defensive in nature, targeting missile sites and boats attempting to ​lay mines.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said it could take “a few days” to negotiate a deal to halt the conflict, after both sides had previously indicated progress on an initial agreement ​that would end hostilities and restart shipping through the Strait. That initial agreement would give negotiators 60 days to tackle more complex issues including Iran’s nuclear ⁠program.

Iranian media reported that the country’s negotiators had been pushing for the memorandum to include the release of billions of dollars of frozen assets.

OIL RISES AGAIN

Following the U.S. strikes, Rubio told reporters on his ​plane in India that the Strait of Hormuz had to be open “one way or the other.”
The war, which began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, has caused an unprecedented oil supply ​shock, pushing up the costs of fuel, fertilizer and food.
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries about a fifth of global trade in oil and liquefied natural gas, has been a fraction of its usual level since the war began.
Global benchmark Brent crude futures rose by about 3.5% on Tuesday to around $100 a barrel.

‘CLOCK CANNOT BE TURNED BACK,’ SUPREME LEADER SAYS

The Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday they reserved the right to retaliate to the strikes. They said air defense ​units had downed a U.S. drone and fired at another drone and a fighter jet which they said had entered Iranian airspace over the Gulf region.

In comments posted on his Telegram channel on the ​occasion of the annual hajj pilgrimage, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei said: “From now on, the slogans ‘Death to America’ and ‘Death to Israel’ will be the slogans of the Islamic nation and the oppressed people of the world.”
U.S. President Donald ‌Trump has previously ⁠cited the slogans while justifying military action against Iran.

FROZEN IRANIAN FUNDS

Iranian and U.S. officials have indicated that recent indirect talks made progress on a memorandum of understanding, or initial deal, that would lead to further negotiations over a final agreement.
Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, returned to Iran from Qatar after seeking the release of around $24 billion of frozen Iranian funds as part of the initial agreement, Iranian media reported.
Iran’s Fars news agency cited a source saying the funds were the last sticking point in the deal. Iran’s ISNA news agency said the negotiations in Qatar were “overall positive.”
While Iran’s core preconditions center on lifting the U.S. naval ​blockade, nuclear issues, and sovereignty guarantees, Iran also wants ​a stop to the conflict in Lebanon, ⁠where a mid-April ceasefire has failed to halt fighting between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement on Tuesday that Israel was “deepening its operations in Lebanon” and operating with “large forces in the field.”
Lebanese security sources told Reuters that Israeli strikes had hit across southern and eastern ​Lebanon on Tuesday. Lebanon’s health ministry said Israeli strikes in recent hours had killed 31 people and wounded 40, state news agency NNA reported ​early on Wednesday.

INITIAL DEAL WOULD ⁠ESTABLISH 30-DAY FRAMEWORK

According to Iranian sources, an initial deal would end hostilities on all fronts, get traffic moving through the strait over 30 days, and possibly provide some financial relief. More difficult issues such as Iran’s nuclear program would be negotiated in a second phase.
Iran has been letting some ships through the strait, giving preference to vessels linked to countries with which it has close ties, Reuters has reported.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/rubio-says-iran-deal-could-take-days-us-launches-fresh-strikes-2026-05-26/

Unionised workers at Samsung Electronics (005930.KS), have approved a highly contentious bonus pay deal – ‌one that averts a massive 18-day strike but also exacerbates deep disparities in fortunes among workers at the tech conglomerate.
Two unions for the world’s largest memory chip maker said on Wednesday that 74% of the 62,616 workers ​who cast their votes had backed the deal.

Shares in Samsung surged 6%, also helped ​by investor frenzy over the AI boom that has driven chip sector ⁠shares higher.

The government-mediated agreement, which came after a bitter five-month dispute, has led to wide relief ​across South Korea as Samsung accounts for roughly a quarter of the country’s exports.
Forged under much ​pressure to narrow the gap with sky-high bonuses at rival chipmaker SK Hynix (000660.KS), the deal mainly benefits workers in the company’s memory chip division, which has seen profits soar due to the colossal investments globally in AI. ​Some of those workers are set to receive bonuses of around $416,000 this year.
Workers in Samsung’s ​other chip units will receive less but still substantial bonuses, while employees in its consumer electronics divisions are ‌set ⁠to receive very little by comparison.

“The atmosphere is pretty gloomy and many of us lost motivation,” said one chip foundry worker in Pyeongtaek, declining to be identified.
“It really is an ironic situation — being depressed despite receiving more money.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/world-at-work/samsungs-unionised-workers-south-korea-approve-wage-deal-2026-05-27/

Pope Leo on ​Monday issued the clearest apology yet from a pontiff for the Catholic Church’s ‌role in slavery, acknowledging both its delay in condemning the practice and its historic involvement in legitimising it.
In a key passage of his first papal encyclical, Leo said the Church had taken centuries to fully recognise “the ​scourge of slavery” as incompatible with human dignity, calling the legacy “a wound in Christian ​memory.”

“For this, in the name of the Church, I sincerely ask for ⁠pardon,” he wrote in the wide-ranging manifesto, expressing “deep sorrow” for the suffering endured by enslaved ​people.
Leo acknowledged that Church authorities had, at times, responded to rulers by regulating and legitimising ​forms of subjugation, including the enslavement of non-Christians.
He also acknowledged that before that time, in the Middle Ages, ecclesiastical institutions had their own slaves.
He said the Church only reached a “formal, absolute and universal condemnation” of ​slavery in the 19th century, under Pope Leo XIII, after what the current pope described ​as a long period of inconsistency in teaching and practice.

PREVIOUS PAPAL STATEMENTS ON SLAVERY

The remarks mark the most ‌explicit ⁠papal admission to date of institutional responsibility, going beyond earlier statements by previous popes that focused on the actions of individual Christians rather than the Vatican itself.
Pope John Paul II, during a 1985 visit to Africa, asked forgiveness from Africans for the suffering caused by “men belonging ​to Christian nations” in ​the slave trade.
Leo’s predecessor ⁠Francis condemned the plight of modern-day slaves and formally repudiated papal documents from the 15th century which were used by colonial powers to ​give legitimacy to their actions, which included slavery.
But such statements stopped ​short of ⁠directly addressing the role of the papacy, instead framing responsibility in broader terms tied to Christians or historical circumstances.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/pope-leo-apologises-churchs-historic-role-slavery-2026-05-25/

U.S. forces on Monday conducted strikes in southern Iran against targets including boats attempting to lay mines and missile launch sites, in what it described as defensive actions.
The strikes ​came as Iran’s top negotiator and its foreign minister were in Doha for talks with Qatar’s prime minister on a potential deal with the U.S. to end the three-month-old war, an official briefed on ‌the visit said on Monday, after Washington and Tehran played down hopes for an imminent breakthrough.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in New Delhi earlier that the U.S. would give diplomacy every chance to succeed before considering whether to deal with Iran in “another way”.
There was a “pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open up the strait (of Hormuz), get the strait open, enter into a very real, significant, time-limited negotiation on the nuclear matter, and hopefully we can pull it off,” Rubio said.
In a lengthy ​post on Truth Social on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump said talks with Iran were going “nicely”, but warned of fresh attacks if they failed. It “will only be a Great Deal for all, or no Deal at ​all,” he wrote.

Hours later, U.S. Central Command said in a statement it had carried out fresh strikes designed “to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces.”
“U.S. Central ⁠Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” said Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a Central Command spokesperson.
Also Monday, Iran said it had downed a “hostile” stealth drone using a new air defence system, Iranian news ​agencies reported, without saying where it had come from.
“This is a sign from us that no more stealth drones can penetrate the skies of the Persian Gulf,” Fars quoted unnamed officials as saying.
In another indication of the region’s tensions, ​Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday Israel would intensify strikes against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. Israel’s military soon thereafter said it was attacking Hezbollah infrastructure in Lebanon’s eastern Bekaa Valley and other areas.

Israel and Lebanon agreed to a ceasefire in mid-April, but Israel has continued airstrikes it says are acts of self-defence against Hezbollah, which was not party to the truce.
The official briefed on the Iranians’ Doha visit told Reuters the discussions focused on the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, while ​Iran’s central bank governor attended to discuss the potential release of frozen Iranian funds as part of a final deal.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said earlier that nuclear issues would only be negotiated after the framework accord was ​agreed.
Trump has said his key aim in the war is to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon with its highly enriched uranium. Tehran has consistently denied it has plans to do that.

TRUMP PUSHES ABRAHAM ACCORDS

In his Truth Social post, Trump also called ‌on more Arab ⁠and Muslim states to sign up to the Abraham Accords, brokered during his first term in office and aimed at normalising ties between those states and Israel. He said Saudi Arabia and Qatar should immediately sign and Pakistan, Egypt, Jordan and Turkey should follow suit, calling his request mandatory.
Netanyahu’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
A Pakistani source familiar with the matter said that the statement reflected an attempt to use the Iran diplomacy for a wider push around the accords – but that the two issues were “not interlinked and cannot be made so.”
Others saw the suggestion as aimed at making an Iran deal more palatable to sceptics.
“Trump is trying to sell an Iran deal as an Abraham Accords sequel: good for Israel, good ​for the region, tough enough for Washington,” said Ali Vaez, ​Iran project director at the International Crisis Group.
“But ⁠he is trading one fantasy for another — from forcing Iran to surrender to pretending a fragile deal can anchor a new Middle East order.”

IRAN DEAL STICKING POINTS

Baghaei said the potential Iran deal contained no specific details on management of the Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas usually flows.
Iran will not charge ​tolls for ships to pass through but there will be a cost for services offered such as navigation and steps to protect the environment, he said, under a ​protocol to be agreed with Oman, ⁠which lies on the opposite shore of the waterway.
Citing a Middle East diplomatic source, Japan’s Nikkei newspaper reported the U.S. and Iran were discussing a plan to open the strait about 30 days after reaching a deal to end hostilities.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/rubio-says-us-will-find-another-way-if-iran-talks-fail-2026-05-25/

In a lengthy statement posted on Truth Social, Trump said negotiations with Iran were “proceeding nicely” and framed the moment as a potential turning point.

When Donald Trump set out his latest vision for a sweeping Middle East realignment, there was one person’s name missing in a plethora of Presidents, Prime Ministers and Kings mentioned in the American leader’s social media post.

In a lengthy statement posted on Truth Social, Trump said negotiations with Iran were “proceeding nicely” and framed the moment as a potential turning point. He warned that failure would mean a return “to the battlefront… bigger and stronger than ever before,” but argued that success could produce a historic agreement anchored in an expanded framework of the Abraham Accords.

He wrote that, during discussions with regional leaders — including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed, Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, and Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa — he had urged that all should “simultaneously” sign on to the accords.

Pakistan was included in that list. But its civilian leadership was not.

Instead, Trump identified the country’s representative as Field Marshal Asim Munir rather than Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Trump described the accords as a proven success, citing what he called a “Financial, Economic, and Social BOOM” for existing members, which include the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco, Sudan and Kazakhstan. He argued that expanding the framework — potentially even to include Iran — would create “true Power, Strength, and Peace… for the first time in 5,000 years”.

He suggested that Saudi Arabia and Qatar should sign immediately, with others following. Those unwilling, he said, “should not be part of this Deal in that it shows bad intention”.

But amid that sweeping geopolitical pitch, the reference to Pakistan stood apart. While other leaders were identified by their constitutional offices, Pakistan was represented by its military chief. There was no mention of Sharif.

During the recent diplomatic activity in Islamabad in the US-Iran engagement hosted in the Pakistani capital, it was Field Marshal Munir who took centre stage, receiving delegations, interacting directly with US Vice President JD Vance, and remaining visibly engaged throughout the process.

Pakistan’s civil-military imbalance is not new. Since independence, the armed forces have exercised decisive influence over foreign policy and national security, often overshadowing elected governments.

The episode that continues to define that dynamic unfolded in 1999. Then Prime Ministers Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Nawaz Sharif had sought to stabilise relations through the Lahore Declaration, committing to dialogue and restraint after both countries declared nuclear capabilities.

While PM Vajpayee travelled to Lahore in a symbolic bus journey, Pakistani troops under General Pervez Musharraf had already occupied strategic positions in Kargil along the Line of Control.

India regained control of the heights by July 1999. By October, Musharraf had overthrown Sharif in a coup, arresting him and imposing military rule.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/donald-trump-abraham-accords-asim-munir-shehbaz-sharif-iran-us-no-shehbaz-sharif-in-trumps-abraham-accords-post-asim-munir-makes-the-cut-11546605?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

The exchange referred to an incident in April when US President Trump shared on social media a derogatory post by a podcaster that described India as a “hellhole”.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio faced a curveball from an American journalist about his recent remarks on India during a press briefing in New Delhi on Sunday, as he stood alongside External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

A reporter raised the issue of Indians facing racism online and referred to a specific social media post involving US President Donald Trump. Rubio responded by saying he did not know who the reporter was referring to and had assumed the question concerned general online content.

“I don’t know who he was talking about. I figured, I assumed that he was talking about people posting stuff online,” Rubio said. “I don’t even know, some of those could be a troll, it could be a bot, I don’t know. So that’s why I asked him specifically, can you tell me what you’re talking about and who you’re talking about. He didn’t have a specific example.”

The reporter then added that it was something that Trump posted on online where he referred to India being a “hellhole”. Rubio replied that he had given the reporter an opportunity to specify, but the details were not provided.

“Well, I gave him a chance to tell me that, that’s not what he said,” he stated. “The president loves India. He said it last night, were you guys there when he called in for the event last night, the 250? The president’s a big fan of India, a big fan of Prime Minister Modi. I wouldn’t be here if the president didn’t want me to be here. He wouldn’t have sent someone like Sergio to be our ambassador, someone who’s very close to the president. But I gave that reporter a chance to tell me who he was referring to, and he didn’t.”

“So I just assumed he was talking just about random voices out there. I mean, people say stupid stuff all the time on social media, and every country in the world, unfortunately,” he added.

The exchange referred to an incident in April when US President Trump shared on social media a derogatory post by a podcaster that described India as a “hellhole”. At the time, the Ministry of External Affairs responded without naming Trump directly. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the comments “certainly do not reflect the reality of the India-US relationship, which has long been based on mutual respect and shared interests.”

During the Sunday briefing, Rubio addressed concerns about racist remarks faced by Indians and Indian Americans.

“I’ll take that very seriously about the comments. I’m sure that there are people who have made comments online and in other places because every country in the world has stupid people. I’m sure there are stupid people here; there are stupid people in the United States who make dumb comments all the time,” he said.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/donald-trump-marco-rubio-india-trump-called-india-a-hellhole-reporter-tells-marco-rubio-his-response-11545252?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

The legislation replaces a 2006 statute that was never implemented and was brought in following recent border tensions with Thailand.

Cambodia’s new conscription law, which establishes penalties of up to five years in prison for those who evade military service, has come into effect, the country’s Prime Minister Hun Manet said Monday (May 25).

The law was signed on Saturday by Senate president Hun Sen in his capacity as acting head of state while King Norodom Sihamoni undergoes medical treatment for prostate cancer in China.

The initiative for a new conscription law followed significant border fighting with Thailand that flared twice last year, resulting in approximately 100 deaths and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people.

The new law consists of eight chapters and 20 articles, replacing a 2006 statute that was never implemented and was considered outdated. It now requires Cambodian men aged 18 to 25 to serve two years in the military, while women may serve voluntarily. Individuals summoned for service must appear within 30 days of receiving notice or be considered as evading duty, unless a valid excuse is provided.

Penalties for evasion vary according to whether Cambodia is at peace or at war.

During peacetime, an individual may face six months to two years in prison and a fine of US$250 to US$1,000. During war or a foreign attack, the penalties increase to between two and five years in prison and a fine ranging from US$1,000 to US$2,500.

Exemptions to serving are granted to monks, priests, persons with disabilities and those with specialised skills in science and technology. After completing their required service, individuals become part of reserve forces until age 45.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/cambodias-new-conscription-law-takes-effect-in-wake-conflict-thailand-6141151

Brent crude dropped below US$97 a barrel after both sides said talks had made progress.

Oil prices fell nearly 7 per cent on Monday (May 25) as optimism grew that the United States and Iran were moving closer to a peace deal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, even though Washington and Tehran played down hopes for an imminent breakthrough.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 were down US$7.24, or almost 7 per cent, at US$96.30 a barrel at 2:29pm ET (Tuesday, 2:29am, Singapore time) and US West Texas Intermediate CLc1 futures were down US$6.30, or 6.5 per cent, at US$90.88.

Trading volumes were light due to the US Memorial Day holiday.

Iran’s top negotiator and its foreign minister were in Doha for talks with Qatar’s prime minister on a potential deal with the US to end the three-month-old war, an official briefed on the visit said Monday.

Both sides said they have made progress on a memorandum of understanding that would halt the war and give negotiators 60 days to reach a final deal.

“GET SOME OIL MOVING”

“Even though it’s not done, there seems to be some hope that we will start to get some oil moving through the Strait of Hormuz,” said Phil Flynn, senior analyst with Price Futures Group.

But Rory Johnston, founder of the Commodity Context newsletter, sounded a note of caution.

“We’ve routinely gotten close and then collapsed on the details multiple times over the past couple of months and Hormuz remains closed,” Johnston said.

In a lengthy Truth Social post on Monday, US President Donald Trump said talks with Iran were going “nicely,” but warned of fresh attacks if they failed.

He urged more Arab and Muslim states to sign up to the Abraham Accords, which were brokered during Trump’s first term in office and aim to normalise ties between Arab and other Muslim-majority states and Israel.

“That could mean a significant reduction of risk premium in the Middle East, especially if a deal with Iran can be done and Iran gives up their nuclear material,” Flynn said.

Iran’s foreign ministry said on Monday Iran was negotiating an end to the war and was not currently discussing nuclear issues.

Even if a peace deal is reached, analysts expect a return to normal oil flows through the strait will take months, while damaged oil and gas facilities are repaired.

“The underlying supply shortfall of 10-11 (million barrels per day) of crude oil does not go away immediately and will see markets still drawing inventories until Middle Eastern crude production is back online, which is months away,” said Sparta Commodities analyst June Goh.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/oil-prices-us-iran-peace-deal-hormuz-6139536

WITH human faeces smeared on the walls and patients allegedly raped, campaigners say this is the most dangerous hospital in the world.

Guatemala’s only psychiatric hospital, Federico Mora, operates more like a prison than a hospital, a court revealed.

The sick abuse was exposed over ten years ago and the court ordered the facility to crack down on rampant abuse.

It found that 334 children and adults locked up inside were subjected to physical and sexual abuse, denied medical care and exposed to “serious and contagious” illnesses and infections.

Many contracted HIV – a problem compounded by the “widespread sexual abuse in the institution”.

“The stench of urine and faeces is overwhelming”, said one campaigner upon visiting the facility.

Some practices can be described as “torture” under guidelines of the UN.

Patients were shut into pitch-black isolation rooms for several days, and it was claimed that staff at the hospital set up a sex-trafficking ring and sold patients for sex.

Despite a crackdown, very little has changed in the last decade.

The Sun spoke to the lawyers and campaigners Eric Rosenthal and Priscila Rodriguez, who last visited Federico Mora in February of this year.

They got a court order to force the Guatemalan government to give them access to the facility.

Speaking to Rosenthal and Rodriguez, detainees claimed that they were victims of sex trafficking.

They said staff collected money from outsiders and forced the patients to have sex with them.

It is also claimed that outsiders would be brought to the hospital to rape the detainees, and patients were sometimes taken outside to be trafficked by hospital staff.

One woman told Rodriguez she was raped in exchange for a cigarette for the guard.

Officers from the National Civil Police patrol the facility with loaded guns.

There are no separate rooms in the facility, with just a long corridor with beds, according to Rodriguez.

Over 60 people are crammed into a space with half that capacity.

Rosenthal said: “People remain crowded in rooms with nothing but beds and nothing else to do. People have no privacy, almost no personal possessions, no control over their lives”.

“Many people spend their days laying on floors or on the ground outside or sitting in chairs with nothing to do but stare into space.

“We still saw some people tied to wheelchairs”.

People with disabilities are said to be locked up against their will, or beyond the time they were supposed to be detained.

Nurses in the hospital told Rosenthal and Rodriguez that some staff “have links to criminal gangs” operating in the area.

Others say they are “forced” to work there and angry at the conditions.

Despite the rampant alleged sexual abuse and bleak conditions, there are still 330 people living in the facility – and a long waiting list to get in.

Patients live in “inhumane and degrading conditions” with a “lack of food and water”, Rodriguez said.

What food they are given is often rotten and cooked in kitchens with visible mould.

“Of course they have to eat it or otherwise they starve”, Priscila said.

Gangs congregate around the Federico Mora hospital, which is located next to a prison in one of the most dangerous parts of Guatemala city, Zone 18.

Criminals are also sent to live with the hospital patients, and their wards are often cleaner and nicer than those in care, according to Rosenthal.

He said: “On our last visit, we did not see people covered in urine or feces”.

But he added: “There we’re powerful smells of cleaner in sections that had clearly just been washed before the visit”.

“Conditions are still bleak and utterly dehumanizing”, he concluded.

Now, a new lawsuit has been launched against the hospital by Disability Rights International and other human rights organisations – in America’s highest court.

“Federico Mora is the most violent and dangerous facility we’ve discovered anywhere in the Americas,” Rosenthal said.

He condemned the hospital as “a dumping ground for people with any kind of disability and none” – and criticised the Guatemalan government for having an “old-fashioned, 1950s era understanding of mental illness”.

For patients inside the hospital, they have no means to complain as they have to gain permission of their legal guardian to file a lawsuit.

However, their legal guardian is in fact the director of Federico Mora Hospital.

The new case demands that people with disabilities have the right to decide on their own treatment – and to not be imprisoned against their will.

They also want the government to investigate the violence and sexual abuse towards patients and to pay out thousands in compensation.

Advocates also seek punishment for the rapists and abusers within the facility.

Currently, the Guatemalan government blows most of its mental health budget on Federico Mora – estimated at over $12million a year.

But a chief psychiatrist told Rosenthal: “This is a facility you would never go to for your mental health”.

Rosenthal and Rodriguez estimate that about 70 per cent of patients are sent to the hospital because they have no place else to live.

“People need a place to live, get food”, explained Rosenthal.

Guatemalan disability rights advocate Silvia Quan said that there is “almost nothing set up for people with disabilities”.

“They are abandoned,” she added.

“Poor families cannot pay for their care… so the way the state takes care of them is to send them to Federico Mora”.

Extreme stigma, fuelled by myth and superstition, still surrounds people with disabilities in Guatemala.

Quan said that some Guatemalans believe a pregnant woman “cannot eat avocadoes because it could cause a malformation of the fetus”.

And disability in children is seen as a generational curse triggered from someone in the family doing wrong.

In Guatemala, people with disabilities are regarded as incapable of making their own decisions.

The new lawsuit – which will be heard in autumn of this year – hopes to overturn their lack of legal rights.

Disability Rights International hopes community care can become the norm for people with disabilities so that inhumane hospitals like Federico Mora can be shut down, once and for all.

The Sun has reached out to Dr Romeo Minera, the current director of Federico Mora.

He was fired in 2022 after accusations of mismanagement, leading to severe shortages of medicine and water, but subsequently re-hired.

Guatemala’s Ministry of Health said that the hospital was “committed to public health, continuous improvement of services, and unwavering respect for human dignity”.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16407131/worlds-most-dangerous-hospital-patients-sexually-assaulted/

THE US military launched a fresh wave of strikes on Iran overnight, as the fragile ceasefire between the two countries is pushed to the brink.

Explosions rocked the southern port city of Bandar Abbas and nearby coastal areas along the Strait of Hormuz late on Monday.

Targets included a missile launch site and two Iranian boats trying to lay mines in the Strait, according to US Central Command (Centcom).

In a statement, Centcom spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins confirmed that the US conducted the hits in “self-defence”.

“US forces conducted self-defence today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” Hawkins said.

“Targets included missile launch sites and Iranian boats attempting to emplace mines.

“US Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire.”

A military official told Fox News forces “reacted” when they saw two Iranian boats laying mines and a missile site that was targeting American aircraft.

The official said the overnight blitz was not an effort to break the ceasefire.

This comes after Trump warned that Iran’s enriched uranium – used as a fuel in nuclear weapons – should be handed over to the US or destroyed.

As Iran and the US are still exploring a deal to end the war, the President outlined his conditions for handling the material – a major obstacle in the negotiations.

“The Enriched Uranium (Nuclear Dust!) will either be immediately turned over to the US to be brought home and destroyed or, preferably, in conjunction and coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, destroyed in place or, at another acceptable location…” he wrote on TruthSocial.

Trump suggested that the Atomic Energy Commission – an agency of the US government – “witness” the event.

Iran stockpiles 440kg of 60 percent enriched uranium, and Israel and the US have ​long accused the country of building nuclear weapons.

Trump has said his key aim is to prevent Iran from developing the bomb – something that the regime has consistently denied it has plans to achieve.

In an earlier post online, he said talks with the Islamic Republic were going “nicely,” but added an ultimatum: “It will only be a Great Deal for all, or no Deal at all.”

But Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, said on Tuesday morning that negotiating a deal with Iran could still “take a few days.”

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16410332/us-strikes-iran-trump-warns-hand-over-uranium/

Rescuers are racing against time to free seven people who have been trapped for nearly a week in a flooded cave in Laos.

The seven were part of a group of villagers from the central province of Xaysomboun who had gone into the cave on Wednesday in search of gold and wildlife, but could not get out as rain and landslides blocked the cave’s entrance.

Footage shared by the rescue groups show the cave divers crawling into the cave through narrow, muddy passageways that are almost completely flooded.

Several experts involved in the dramatic rescue of a team of teenage footballers trapped deep inside a Thai cave back in 2018 are among those helping with the current rescue effort.

A survivor who had managed to escape alerted the authorities about those still trapped, according to reports.

The cave in question is frequented by villagers looking for gold deposits, Bounkham Luanglath, who leads the Laos’ Rescue Volunteer for People, told the Associated Press.

The cave system, which extends deep underground, is also extremely narrow, with some chambers measuring only about 50cm (20in) wide, rescuers say.

Rescuers are working to pump water out of the cave.

They managed to clear out some rocks at the front of the cave on Monday and were able to survey the deeper sections of it, but water levels have continued to rise, preventing them from going further, rescuers say.

They have not detected any signs of life so far, but Kengkard Bongkawong of the Thai rescue group Metta Tham Rescue believe they are reaching close to the point where they believe the people are trapped, saying he estimated they were “less than 20m (65ft) away”.

“All day, all night, water was still being pumped out,” Kengkard wrote on Facebook last night.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cglpp1g388zo

Luxury sports car maker Ferrari has unveiled its first fully electric car – the $640,000 (£474,320) Luce.

The new model departs from the look of typical Ferraris as the Italian brand’s first ever five-seater, created in collaboration with the LoveFrom agency founded by former Apple design chief Sir Jony Ive.

Responses on social media to the launch have ranged from describing it as “straight to the junkyard trash” to an “absolute masterclass in design”.

Supercar rivals like Lamborghini and Porsche have scaled back on their EV plans due to poor demand and intense competition from Chinese brands.

Ferrari chief executive Benedetto Vigna said in Rome that the Luce, Italian for “light”, has taken half a decade to develop.

Ferrari plans to roll out the electric vehicle (EV) after previously ruling out such a move, opting instead to make hybrid cars that are powered by both petrol and electricity.

The Luce runs with a Ferrari-made electric motor on each wheel, helping the car to hit 60mph (96km/h) in around 2.5 seconds.

The firm said that all of the components are made in-house, so that the car can be repaired by the company well into the future, protecting the Luce’s resale value.

The shift by motor industry giants to EVs has faced major obstacles in recent years.

Carmakers including Ford and Volkswagen have doubled down on petrol cars, especially in the US, due to poor demand and regulatory changes under President Donald Trump, who has cut incentives for EV buyers.

The launch of Jaguar’s electric concept car was heavily criticised for abandoning the British brand’s classic styling.

Ferrari’s unveiling of Luce has faced similar criticism.

One account on X said: “Ferrari just killed their brand just like Jaguar did. This is straight to the junkyard trash.”

“What is going on with European Luxury car manufacturers? First Jaguar and now Ferrari”, another account posted.

But not all commentators were felt negatively about the new car, with one post saying: “Absolute masterclass in design. Ferrari just unveiled the breathtaking LUCE concept, and it is a total game changer.”

Ferrari’s chief design officer Flavio Manzoni said in an interview with YouTuber Cleo Abram that critics are part of the innovation process.

He acknowledged the concept of an electric Ferrari with a new design is “polarising” but believes people will appreciate it in months to come.

Ferrari has also said it will continue offer petrol and hybrid cars along with its all-electric vehicle.

Meanwhile, Ferrari’s direct competitors have rolled back their EV ambitions.

Lamborghini abandoned its plans to launch all-electric cars, pivoting to hybrid models instead, citing low demand for high-end luxury EVs.

Germany’s Porsche has scaled back its EV plans due to weak demand, caught between poor sales in China and tariffs in the US.

Western carmakers have also faced intense competition from Chinese carmakers, which are able to produce vehicles faster and more cheaply.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy22rddy5no

Authorities say there are 1,933 missing children cases nationwide, up 6.8% from the year before. And, travellers in Germany seem nervous when it comes to air travel, amid the war in Iran, a survey suggests.

Arsenal finally got their ​hands on the Premier League trophy and Tottenham Hotspur managed to stay up to bring ‌joy to all sides of North London on Sunday, but there was despair in the east of the city as West Ham United were relegated on the final day of the season despite a 3-0 home win over Leeds ​United.
Having secured the title when Manchester City dropped points in midweek, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal received ​the trophy at Selhurst Park following a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace.

Arsenal finished top ⁠on 85 points, seven clear of Manchester City in second, with Manchester United seven points further ​back in third after a 3-0 win at Brighton & Hove Albion.
“That was beautiful,” Arteta said. “Look at the ​joy of all of the people, they have been waiting for this for so long. We have had difficult moments along the way, but it is all worth it when you see that kind of reaction.”
Villa’s win over City ​secured fourth place and Liverpool’s 1-1 draw with Brentford secured fifth place and Champions League football next ​term, but all eyes were on Pep Guardiola, who is departing after a trophy-laden 10 years in charge of ‌Manchester ⁠City.

“I leave with an incredible sense of peace, I gave everything. Good things, bad things, it’s part of the sport. I feel so much love, that is the truth,” Guardiola told the BBC after his emotional farewell to the home fans.
At the other end of the table, Tottenham survived a late onslaught to ​emerge with a 1-0 ​win over Everton that ⁠condemned West Ham to the drop, alongside Wolverhampton Wanderers and Burnley who played out a 1-1 draw.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/sports/soccer/west-ham-relegated-arsenal-lift-premier-league-trophy-emotional-final-day-2026-05-24/

HSBC appealed to staff not to fight ​AI on Wednesday, saying it would destroy jobs while creating new ones, as banking rival Standard Chartered sought to ‌calm workers over comments that the technology would replace “lower-value human capital”.
The predictions from two of the world’s biggest banks are the clearest sign yet about the upheaval from a technology that can consume and process vast swathes of data, completing tasks previously done by people.

CEO Georges Elhedery urged HSBC staff to make sure ​they were “not fighting us, not disenfranchised, not anxious, overwhelmed, and resisting the change,” pledging that AI could make them “more productive ​versions of themselves”.
“We all know generative AI will destroy certain jobs and will create new jobs,” Elhedery said.
Standard ⁠Chartered (STAN.L), said on Tuesday it would eliminate almost 8,000 jobs as it replaced what its CEO called “lower-value human capital” with technology.
Bill Winters ​said StanChart would cut 15% of its corporate function roles by 2030, highlighting how staff in so-called back office roles are particularly vulnerable.

HSBC ​employs more than 211,000 people, while StanChart has roughly 83,000 employees.
Underscoring the sensitivity of the issue, Winters sought to limit the fallout in a memo on Wednesday, saying staff were valued and any changes would be handled with “thought and care”.
Morgan Stanley analysts found that companies in banking, technology and professional services had shed ​one in 20 staff in the past year as a result of using AI.
Offshore workers, on which financial services firms rely to run ​many of their IT services at locations including India or Poland, and young, new workers are bearing the brunt, Morgan Stanley’s report said.
Banks have been ‌reluctant to ⁠publicly discuss the scale of job losses, although this is gradually changing.
Goldman Sachs told staff in October of potential job cuts and a hiring slowdown, an internal memo seen by Reuters showed, as the Wall Street giant embraced AI.

Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf said in December it has not reduced the number of people it employs as a result of AI, but was “getting a lot more done” because of the technology.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/legal/legalindustry/dont-fight-ai-hsbc-ceo-tells-staff-banks-begin-job-cuts-2026-05-20/

Russia pounded Kyiv and surrounding areas with hundreds of drones and missiles on Sunday in ​one of the heaviest bombardments of the city since the start of the four-year war, firing an Oreshnik hypersonic missile near the capital.
Russia’s hours-long overnight ‌barrage killed two people in Kyiv and two more in the surrounding area, and it wounded nearly 100, according to Ukrainian officials. Authorities said dozens of residential buildings and several schools had been damaged, many in the centre of Kyiv.

“It’s important that this does not remain without consequences for Russia,” President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on the Telegram messaging app, urging Ukraine’s allies to act. “Decisions are needed – from the United States, from Europe ​and others.”
Officials also reported strikes in other parts of Ukraine and two deaths in the southern region of Kherson.

EUROPEANS DECRY ‘ESCALATION’

European leaders condemned the Kyiv attack, with Britain ​and Germany describing the use of the Oreshnik – an intermediate range missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads – as an “escalation”.
Kaja Kallas, the European ⁠Union’s top diplomat, accused Moscow of resorting to “a political scare-tactic and reckless nuclear-brinkmanship”.

The attack caused minor damage to Ukraine’s cabinet building and to the Foreign Ministry.
Kyiv’s national art museum ​and philharmonic hall, both in the heart of the city, were badly damaged, officials said, with many other historic buildings in the city centre also affected.
“This is a war ​against our culture, memory, and identity,” Zelenskiy’s top aide Kyrylo Budanov said. “For centuries, Moscow has tried to destroy everything that makes us Ukrainian.”
One of the strikes destroyed a newly opened museum commemorating the 1986 Chornobyl nuclear disaster, eliciting angry words from Zelenskiy when he visited the scene.
At a city centre cafe which had celebrated its opening on Saturday, staff were sweeping up glass and rubble on Sunday. Despite the ​damage, they continued to serve customers, some of whom said they had come to show their support.

“Once the emotions die down a bit, we’ll think about whether to ​restore everything … or whether to work at all,” said Yevhenii Prusak, the cafe’s co-owner.

NUCLEAR-CAPABLE MISSILE

It was only the third time that Russia has used the Oreshnik missile against Ukraine since the war began ‌with Russia’s ⁠full-scale invasion in February 2022. The Oreshnik has a range of several thousand kilometres.
The previous two strikes had hit major cities, but Zelenskiy said this one had struck Bila Tserkva, a city of 200,000 people that lies about 40 miles (64 km) from the outskirts of Kyiv.
The Oreshnik’s warhead appears to have split into 36 submunitions, according to a review of Reuters footage of the strike by Rollo Collins, an investigator at the Centre for Information Resilience, an open-source investigation organisation.
In total, the air force said, Russia launched 90 missiles ​and 600 drones.
Zelenskiy said Russia had also ​targeted water-supply facilities, saying Moscow wanted to ⁠damage them before the summer increased demand.
Moscow said it had used Oreshnik, Iskander, Kinzhal and Zircon missiles in retaliation for Kyiv’s strikes on civilian targets in Russia. Ukraine says it does not target civilians.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said the strikes targeted Ukrainian military command facilities, ​including sites used by land forces and military intelligence, air bases and military-industrial sites.
Moscow also denies targeting civilians, although thousands have ​been killed by its ⁠bombardments of Ukrainian cities during the war.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraines-capital-kyiv-hit-by-massive-missile-drone-attack-2026-05-23/

The building collapsed before dawn after a severe thunderstorm. Officials said rescuers reported “hearing voices” in the rubble.

At least 20 people are feared trapped after an under-construction building collapsed near the Philippine capital, Manila, on Sunday, officials said.

The nine-story building in Angeles city collapsed at around 3:00 a.m. local time (1900 GMT Saturday) after a severe thunderstorm.

There were no immediate reports of fatalities.

Some 26 people have been rescued, including two who were staying in an adjacent hotel that suffered damage.

Those individuals were in a “stable condition,” city information officer Jay Pelayo said.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/philippines-20-feared-trapped-after-building-collapse/a-77277732

The foreign ministers of the Group of Eight Arab-Islamic states on Sunday (May 24) strongly condemned the actions of far-right Israeli police minister Itamar Ben-Gvir towards participants in the Gaza-bound flotilla while they were in Israeli detention.

Governments have expressed outrage after Ben-Gvir posted a video in which he taunted activists who were pinned to the ground. Some of the detainees, who had intended to bring humanitarian aid to Gaza, later alleged that they were physically assaulted in detention, which Israel’s prison service denied.

The eight nations, which include Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Indonesia and Pakistan, said in a statement: “Ben-Gvir’s deliberate public humiliation of detainees is a disgraceful assault on human dignity and a clear violation of Israel’s obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, and international human rights law.”

Many other countries have condemned Ben-Gvir’s actions.

France has decided to ban Israel’s far-right police minister from French territory, Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Saturday, adding that this reflected growing anger among governments around the world over the treatment of an activist flotilla heading to Gaza.

“As from today, Itamar Ben-Gvir is banned from entering French territory,” Barrot wrote on X.

“Along with my Italian counterpart, I am asking the European Union to also take sanctions against Itamar Ben-Gvir.”

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/arab-islamic-states-condemn-israeli-minister-ben-gvir-over-gaza-flotilla-detention-6139261

TAYLOR Swift has been spotted covering her eyes as her fiance Travis Kelce downed beer on a big screen at an NBA game before falling asleep.

The couple attended Game 3 of the NBA’s Eastern Conference Finals on Saturday night as they cheered on his native Cleveland Cavaliers who were playing against the New York Knicks.

Travis, 36, appeared to be living his best life as he was seen on the big screen guzzling beer from a can.

Taylor, also 36, looked slightly embarrassed as she covered her eyes with her hand and giggled awkwardly.

The pair looked more in love than ever as they enjoyed a smooch while sitting court side.

The singer opted for a chic look with a black top with a chain detailing, which she paired with baggy jeans and a black jacket draped over her shoulders.

She dressed up her look with some black heels and went for a striking red lip.

Meanwhile, Travis wore a double denim look with a short sleeved open shirt with a white t-shirt and jeans.

He added some colour to his look with a red snap back cap and some Nike trainers.

However, it looked like things got too much for Travis as he was later seen having a snooze.

He flipped his cap to cover his head as he laid back in his seat, while Taylor looked on.

The two announced their engagement in August last year after two years of dating.

Sharing the exciting news on Instagram, they penned: “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married.”

They’re gearing up for their wedding, which is reportedly taking place on July 3 in New York City.

It’s understood the singer’s best friends – including Selena Gomez and Gigi Hadid – want to honor her career and life achievements in different ways at what promises to be one of the most star-studded nuptials in recent history.

They are reportedly producing a video of approximately six or seven minutes to show the guests during the wedding.

This film will cover Taylor’s journey, the moment she met Travis, and private moments between them.

It features footage from their personal collections of photos and videos that has never been shown to the public, capturing a closer insight into their relationship.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/sport/16403752/taylor-swift-covers-eyes-travis-kelce-downs-beer/

A damaged chemical tank in Southern California has a crack, potentially lowering the risk of a cataclysmic explosion, though an evacuation order remains in effect for some 50,000 area residents with no timeline on when they can return, fire officials said Sunday.

Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Wayhowe Huang said that fire officials were able to evaluate the tank more closely overnight and discovered the tank had cracked.

Huang told The Associated Press earlier Sunday that it did not appear any of the highly volatile chemicals in the tank have leaked. “There’s still the danger of a possible explosion,” Huang said.

Firefighters have been spraying the tank with water in an effort to cool the chemicals inside and prevent an explosion. The inside of the tank reached 100 degrees (37.7 Celsius) Sunday, Democratic state Sen. Tom Umberg said, an increase of 10 degrees Fahrenheit (5.5 Celsius) since Saturday.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who declared a state of emergency Saturday, said in a post on X he had asked President Donald Trump to issue an emergency declaration to bolster federal support for local and state officials.

The pressurized tank overheated Thursday and began venting vapors at a company site in Garden Grove, about 40 miles (60 kilometers) south of downtown Los Angeles, according to the Fire Authority.

No injuries have been reported. Air monitoring tests have found that air pollution around the evacuation zone is within normal limits, and specialized equipment has been deployed to ensure no gas is released from the compromised tank, state and federal environmental officials said Saturday.

The streets were empty in the area Sunday, according to aerial photos taken by the AP.

Tank crack could mitigate damage

A crack could be a welcome development, as it could mean product or pressure inside the tank is being released, reducing the chance the tank explodes, said Andrew Whelton, an engineering professor at Purdue University.

“Think of a soda can. If you leave it in a hot car it can explode,” he said. “But if you put a hole in the can, the product is released and the can itself doesn’t explode.”

Elias Picazo, a chemistry professor at the University of Southern California, agreed that a crack could be a positive development.

“A strategic leak buys more time for the liquid within the tank to solidify as the reaction continues,” he said. “Depending on where the leak is, it can also be used to direct the unreacted liquid out of the tank in a controlled manner.”

Faisal Khan, head of the chemical engineering department at Texas A&M University, said a crack suggests an explosion could still happen — just not in the magnitude initially feared.

“Cooling is happening on the surface of the tank while runaway reaction may be occurring deep inside the tank,” he explained. “Yes, reaction is slowed compared to what it started. However, we are not out of explosive release risk.”

Several shelters for evacuees remained open. The parking lot was full Sunday at an evacuation center at a high school in neighboring La Palma. Some people, including a family of seven, slept in cars or on mats and sleeping bags on the asphalt. The large family also had nine cats with them. They stacked up cat carriers for a makeshift table as they waited around, sipping coffee and tending to the pets.

Meanwhile, some Garden Grove residents filed a class-action lawsuit on Saturday against GKN Aerospace Transparency Systems, the company that operates the facility where the tank is located.

Lawyers for residents living in the evacuation zone argued in their federal court lawsuit that regardless of what happens next, property values in the surrounding community are sure to be impacted.

Spokespersons for the company didn’t comment on the lawsuit itself, but pointed to a Saturday statement in which they apologized to residents and businesses that have been forced to evacuate.

On Sunday, the company released another statement saying it was monitoring the “condition of the affected material” and “working around the clock to mitigate the risk of a leak.”

Officials said the valves on the tank are broken or “gummed up,” which prevented crews from removing the chemical or relieving the pressure on the tank, said Craig Covey, Orange County Fire Authority division chief.

Firefighters’ first hope is to find a way to cool off the chemical inside the tank so it won’t leak or explode. If that is not possible, Whelton said it would be best if the tank sprang a leak so the chemical could be mostly contained. An explosion that could spread the chemical over a broad area and send shrapnel flying would be the worst-case scenario.

If the temperature inside the tank continues to increase, the pressure will continue to build as the methyl methacrylate converts from a liquid to a gas. Whelton said it’s unlikely that firefighters would consider creating a hole in the tank because of fears that could create a spark that might ignite the volatile and flammable gas.

Drones were monitoring temperatures at 10-minute intervals to watch for any spikes, Covey said on a social media post on X. Containment barriers have been set up to prevent the chemical from getting into storm drains or reaching creeks or the nearby ocean in the event of a spill, Covey said.

Exposure could lead to health problems

The damaged tank is located at GKN Aerospace, which makes parts for commercial and military aircraft. It holds 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (22,700 and 26,500 liters) of methyl methacrylate, used to make plastic parts.

GKN agreed to pay state regulators more than $900,000 in 2025 to settle violations involving recordkeeping, permitting issues and nitrogen oxide emissions, according to a report on the South Coast Air Quality Management District website.

Exposure to methyl methacrylate can cause serious respiratory problems and even render someone unconscious. It can also cause neurological problems and irritate the skin, eyes and throat, according to fact sheets about the chemical. But Orange County health officials said the chemical is easy to smell and residents may notice it over a large area without being harmed.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/california-chemical-tank-leak-evacuation-8dca2190fef3db508b9aa218e82d2b9e

China launched the Shenzhou 23 spacecraft Sunday night with three astronauts heading to its space station, including one set to stay in space for a year.

The spacecraft blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China. The much-anticipated launch comes as China prepares for its first crewed lunar landing by 2030.

The astronauts on the mission are Zhu Yangzhu, the commander, Zhang Zhiyuan and Lai Ka-ying, also identified by Chinese authorities as Li Jiaying using the Mandarin transliteration of her name.

Lai, who was born and raised in Hong Kong and has a doctoral degree in computer forensics, is the first astronaut from the city on a space mission.

The crew is set to conduct dozens of science and application projects, state media said. They are also expected to complete an in-orbit rotation with the crew of Shenzhou 21, who has been at the Tiangong space station for more than 200 days.

One of the three astronauts on the Shenzhou 23 mission is scheduled to stay at the orbiting space station for a year in what would be among the world’s longest single stays in space. The astronaut’s mission is to “explore human adaptability and performance limits” in long-duration spaceflight environments, state media reported.

As China steps up its space program, its astronauts have carried out multiple missions to the Tiangong space station, developed after China was effectively excluded from the International Space Station on U.S. concerns over national security.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/china-shenzhou-launch-space-station-1fc9b4cbb302debda6440a693d2c24d0

Angry young men stormed a hospital treating Ebola patients at the heart of the latest outbreak of the disease in eastern Congo on Sunday evening, forcing the medical staff to scramble to evacuate the patients as gunfire rang out in the area.

It was not immediately known if anyone was hurt in the attack on the Mongbwalu General Hospital but Dr. Richard Lokudu, the hospital’s medical director, told The Associated Press the attackers demanded that two bodies of their kin be handed over to them.

There was gunfire and the medics were trying to evacuate the patients and the staff, Lokudu said over the phone.

“Mongbwalu General Hospital is on general alert,” he added. He did not have any further details of the unfolding turmoil.

The attack — the third in a week’s time on health care facilities where medical workers struggle with lack of resources to treat suspected Ebola cases — underlined the challenges of the outbreak, which the World Health Organization has declared a public health emergency of international concern.

Bodies of those who died of Ebola can be highly contagious and lead to further spread when people prepare them for burial and gather for funerals. ‘

In response to the outbreak, Congolese authorities have mandated that the dangerous work of burying suspected victims be managed wherever possible by authorities, which can be met by protests from families and friends. On Friday, the government said funeral wakes and gatherings of more than 50 people would be banned in northeastern Congo in an effort to curb the spread of the virus.

On Saturday, a group of residents of Mongbwalu, located in Ituri province, attacked and set fire to a tent set up for suspected and confirmed Ebola cases by the Doctors Without Borders humanitarian group.

During that attack, 18 people with suspected Ebola infections left the facility and were now unaccounted for, Lokudu had said earlier.

On Thursday, another treatment center, in the town of Rwampara, was burned down after family members were banned from retrieving the body of a local man suspected to have died of Ebola.

WHO has said the outbreak poses a “very high” risk for Congo — up from a previous categorization of “high” — but that the risk of the disease spreading globally remains low.

Earlier on Sunday, the Congolese Ministry of Communication said on X that there were 904 suspected cases of Ebola, mostly in northeastern Ituri Province — a significant jump from the previously announced more than 700 suspected Ebola cases.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/ebola-congo-mongbwalu-funeral-bodies-attack-9c4237e6ed4e26dff22b242749e37e33

Alia – whose name we have changed for her safety – travelled hundreds of miles from her village to Kabul to escape marriage.

The journey by taxi last year with her female cousin – covered from head to toe, only their eyes visible, as the rules decree – was an exceptional thing to do, and risky in Afghanistan, where at any moment they might be caught by the Taliban inspectors enforcing rules banning women travelling long distances without a male relative escorting them.

But Alia, who is 19, and her cousin weren’t stopped at any Taliban checkpoints, and made it to the capital.

“I made up an excuse to my family saying I was coming here to meet my friends and former classmates. But that’s not true. They are not here. The actual reason is that if I stayed in Daykundi, I would be forced to get married.”

Instead, she arrived in Kabul with a plan: she enrolled in an English language course.

These short-term, narrowly-focused private courses – available only to those who can afford them – are, along with madrasas which focus on religious education, the only options for girls to learn past primary school in Afghanistan. But neither are close to being a substitute for formal schooling.

It has now been almost five years since the Taliban stopped girls over 12 going to school, with various reasons given to explain why the ban is still in place.

Years in which girls like Alia have grown up without the education they wanted and needed. Years in which the path to a career has been effectively shut off, narrowing their options until millions of girls in Afghanistan have been left with just one choice: marriage.

Alia’s story is unusual, not just for her bravery. But she also comes from a family which has the funds to pursue the few opportunities available to young women – a rarity in a country where three in four people cannot meet their basic needs, according to the United Nations.

It’s not that Alia’s family do not want her to study – they accepted she wanted to stay in Kabul, and are funding her English course even now – but even they are constrained by the realities of life in Afghanistan.

“Before the ban, my parents passionately encouraged me to go to school. They told me you can definitely achieve your dream of becoming a pilot.

“But now they say the best way for me is to get married because I can’t go to school, to university, I can’t even work.”

Alia has been receiving marriage proposals. She is afraid she might have to accept one, afraid that the family she marries into might not give her the freedom her parents do. “Some families can be very restrictive. It’s possible they could tell me to forget my dreams. I don’t feel positive at all about it.”

But her resolve is steely. “If my family don’t force me to get married, I will wait. I will resist it until my very last breath.”

But resisting is hard.

In a small, bare home in the west of Kabul, we meet Shama.

“If the Taliban had not taken over, I would have almost finished school by now. I would be close to my dream of becoming a doctor. That is what I wanted,” says Shama.

Instead, four years ago, aged 18, she was pushed by her mother to get married. Now she is the mother of an infant and a toddler – both girls.

We have changed the names of her and her family for their safety.

Her mother Kamila – who worked as a cleaner to put her daughters through school after her husband died six years ago – felt she had no choice. She feared that her daughter – a young woman of marriageable age – would attract negative attention and face difficulties if she stayed single.

“I was fearful that they [foot soldiers of the Taliban government] will question why I’m not getting her married,” Kamila tells us.

“I had wanted her to be educated, work and contribute to society. I am illiterate so I am like a blind person. But I wanted my girls to learn. She [Shama] had so many dreams. But it didn’t happen for her.”

The Taliban government’s ban on education has already had an irreversible impact on the lives of countless women and girls. According to the United Nations, if the ban continues until 2030, “more than two million girls will have been deprived of education beyond primary school in a country that already has one of the lowest female literacy rates in the world.”

“Having a husband is not the only dream a woman has. She needs to stand on her own two feet first, become independent and then she can marry and start a family. But I went into this new life with none of that. My dreams remain unfulfilled,” says Shama.

Before the Taliban takeover, Shama turned down many marriage proposals.

“I refused them because my education was more important to me than anything. What I wanted for myself was not what they [prospective husbands] wanted for me,” she says.

Now she says she is constantly stressed, triggered even when she watches movies in which female characters are depicted as working or studying.

She is treated well by her husband, but the grief of not having had the chance to achieve her potential never leaves her. “It is really difficult for me. I feel like I am trapped in my home. I only live for my children,” she says.

Her 18-year-old sister Nora now fears she too will face the same fate.

“I’m too young to get married. I want to continue my education. It’s like being in prison. I fear going out because of the government, and at home my mother tells me I must get married,” Nora, who often dreams of being back in school, says.

But she doesn’t believe she will ever return to school under a Taliban government.

“The Taliban government said that schools are closed for girls until further notice. But it has been four and a half years now. We have been waiting for that message every day.”

Since 2021, the Taliban’s government’s response to the question of when school will reopen for girls has veered from one reason to another, landing now on deflection and silence.

Back in September 2021, in our first interview with a Taliban spokesman after they seized power, the spokesman said schools for girls would open, adding they were “working to improve the security situation”.

A year later, the answer was that “religious scholars have issues with the safety of girls travelling to and from school”, but they were working on the problem.

In 2024, the Taliban government’s deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat told me: “We are awaiting the decision of the leadership.”

This month, I once again met Fitrat, who didn’t want to be pictured with a woman or sit across from me. I asked how they can continue to justify the ban on secondary school and university education for women.

He answered, pointing out “that around seven million boys and five million girls are currently studying”.

“The restriction on education beyond grade six is a separate issue,” he said, directing us to the ministry of education who would “hopefully… provide a satisfactory response”.

When I pressed further, saying women and girls in Afghanistan have told us they do not believe education will ever open under the Taliban government’s watch, his response once again was to ask the education ministry.

We did ask the education ministry the same question. They did not respond.

There are divisions within the Taliban government on the issue of women’s education which have been evident to us, but the supreme leader has only hardened his stance through the years.

The women and girls remember the day schools closed for them as clearly as it was yesterday.

“All I did was cry and sob the whole day and night,” Alia recalls. “I could not sleep for a week. I felt like I was walking around like a dead body.”

“When I see men my age who have graduated and are going to university – I feel very bad, I feel like I am burning in hell,” she adds.

Women face a slew of other restrictions imposed by the Taliban’s supreme leader, vigorously enforced in some places, with a bit more freedom in others.

But the diktats evoke fear among people. The collective impact of government enforcement, and in some cases self-imposed restrictions, is that women are all but absent from public life.

Defending his government, Fitrat says “We have issued thousands of permits to women to run businesses which is a positive step.”

He also claimed that the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice – the Taliban government’s morality police – resolved more than “2,000 cases in which women had been denied their rightful share in inheritance” and “2,500 women who were being forced into marriage, or underage were assisted”.

But in this past week, the Taliban government has written into law rules that imply legal approval of child marriage, and in which a minor girl’s silence is allowed to be interpreted as consent to marriage.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3pgn48wnqo

The Ebola outbreak is posing massive challenges for medical aid organisations, a senior humanitarian official has said.

Kate White, who is a programme manager for the charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), and is flying out to the Democratic Republic of Congo, says she is “extremely concerned about the inability to get resources” to the country.

Three Red Cross volunteers who died earlier this month were among the first known victims of DR Congo’s Ebola outbreak, and likely caught it while managing dead bodies.

The outbreak has resulted in more than 200 suspected deaths and more than 850 suspected cases.

White, who flew from Manchester Airport on Sunday as part of an international relief effort, said: “It really reinforces the need to make sure that we have all of the protective measures in place.”

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently said the disease may be spreading faster than originally thought and have declared a public health emergency of international concern.

There is no approved vaccine for this outbreak, however experimental ones are in development.

There are also no drugs that target it, making the illness harder to treat.

White, from York, who has worked on previous Ebola epidemics in Africa, said: “In terms of how many years we have been seeing these outbreaks for and we still don’t have comprehensive medical countermeasures… [treatment, vaccines, diagnostic testing that can be rolled out rapidly] says something about the state of the world right now.”

She added she was also concerned about the impact of closing airspace on transporting healthcare workers and resources to affected areas.

“The pure volume of what we need to get in right now is massive.”

Improvements in the ability to confirm cases were required “across all of the geographic areas where it’s impacting because we don’t want people stuck in treatment centres if they don’t have it”, she said.

“We want to be able to discharge them as soon as they recover from it so they can go back to their families and we’re not there yet.”

What is Ebola and what are the symptoms?

Ebola is a rare but deadly disease caused by a virus.

Ebola viruses normally infect animals, but outbreaks among humans can sometimes start when people eat or handle infected animals.

It takes two to 21 days for symptoms to appear. They come on suddenly and start like the flu or malaria, with fever, headache and tiredness.

As the disease progresses, vomiting and diarrhoea develop and it can lead to organ failure. Some, but not all, patients develop internal and external bleeding.

The virus spreads from one person to another by contact with infected bodily fluids such as blood or vomit.

Ebola outbreaks used to be small and contained to remote rural areas. However, urbanisation is pushing larger populations closer to these natural reservoirs of Ebola and increasing the risk of transmission.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy421wgr2mpo

At least 20 people have been killed and 70 others injured in an explosion targeting a train transporting military personnel in Pakistan.

The blast occurred while the train was travelling through Chaman Phatak station in Quetta, the capital of the western Balochistan region, on Sunday morning.

Railway officials told BBC Urdu that three coaches and the engine were derailed while two were overturned. The shuttle service had primarily been transporting service personnel and their families who had been returning home for Eid.

The regional government said that the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) separatist group was responsible for the attack, adding that it was a suicide bombing.

The BLA had earlier claimed responsibility for the attack.

Images from the scene show burnt-out and mangled carriages and nearby cars, as well as bomb damage to a nearby building.

“The train was moving and there were passengers on board when the explosion occurred,” Naseer Ahmed, a local resident, told the BBC.

He said that, as it had been a Sunday morning, his family had been asleep when the blast happened, shattering all his windows.

Eyewitnesses said a vehicle laden with explosives drove into the train, causing the explosion.

A police officer and civil administration official in Balochistan confirmed to BBC Urdu that 20 people had been killed, with fears the death toll could rise. Officials said three soldiers were among the dead.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the attack, saying “such cowardly acts of terrorism cannot weaken the resolve of the people of Pakistan”.

“The entire nation stands in solidarity with the people of Balochistan in this hour of grief,” he added.

An emergency has been declared in hospitals treating victims.

Those aboard the train had been on their way to Quetta’s main railway station from a nearby military encampment, officials said. From there, they were due to travel to Peshawar and then on to their home towns for the holiday.

It is not the first time the BLA has targeted trains in Balochistan. In the past two years, the Jaffar Express has come under attack from the armed group many times.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm2pkd58xldo

US President Donald Trump says he has instructed negotiators “not to rush into a deal” with Iran, after earlier suggesting an agreement was close.

The deal under discussion reportedly involves a 60-day ceasefire extension, reopening the Strait of Hormuz and a plan for further negotiations over Iran’s nuclear programme.

In a social media post, Trump said “constructive” talks were proceeding but “both sides must take their time and get it right”.

Trump said on Saturday an agreement had been “largely negotiated”, prompting speculation an announcement could be imminent.

Iranian officials gave similar signals over the weekend, with foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei saying the two sides are both “very close and very far” from reaching an agreement.

According to US media, the mooted deal is not a final settlement and instead leaves some of the thorniest issues to be negotiated later, including the scope and timing of Iranian sanctions relief, the release of frozen Iranian funds, and Washington’s demands for Iran to curb its nuclear ambitions.

On Monday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to journalists in Delhi, said there was a “pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open up the strait” and “enter into a very real, significant, time-limited negotiation on the nuclear matter.”

The reported deal has split Republicans, with some publicly arguing it is too lenient on Iran.

Senator Ted Cruz said it would be “a disastrous mistake”, while Roger Wicker, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, said a 60-day ceasefire would mean “everything accomplished by Operation Epic Fury would be for naught!”

But Representative Mike Lawler, who sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the administration has managed to “force the remnants of this regime into a negotiation, a real negotiation”.

The US and Israel launched wide-ranging strikes on Iran on 28 February, sparking conflict across the Middle East. Iran responded by attacking Israel and US-allied states in the Gulf, and effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas travels. The move sent oil prices soaring globally.

Shortly after a ceasefire was agreed in early April, the US established a blockade of Iranian ports which Trump says will remain “in full force and effect until an agreement is reached, certified, and signed”.

In Sunday’s post on Truth Social, Trump reiterated that Iran “must understand” it cannot develop a nuclear weapon. Tehran has repeatedly said its nuclear programme is solely for peaceful purposes.

Some reports in US media suggest the deal could see Iran agree to eventually hand over its highly-enriched uranium.

At the start of the war, Iran is thought to have had about 440kg (970 lbs) of uranium that was enriched up to 60% purity – a short process away from being enriched further to the weapons-grade 90%, which theoretically could allow it to create a nuclear bomb.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told state TV Iran was ready “to assure the world that we are not after a nuclear weapon.”

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyp0040x7po 

The insistence on financial compensation aligns directly with Iran’s controversial establishment of the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA)

Delivering a severe blow to international expectations of a swift diplomatic breakthrough, Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces, Field Marshal Asim Munir, departed from the Iranian capital on Saturday afternoon without securing a final peace agreement between Washington and Tehran. Acting as the critical “direct messenger” and official intermediary in the hyper-volatile US-Iran conflict, Munir’s high-stakes weekend sprint concluded with Iran’s leadership flatly refusing to sign a permanent truce without immediate economic concessions.

Despite the lack of an immediate signature, top diplomatic sources maintain that the peace track remains alive. Characterising the razor-thin margin of the negotiations, Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, noted that the two warring capitals are simultaneously “very far and very close” to a consensus. Tehran is currently bypassing long-term comprehensive treaties to focus narrowly on finalising a crucial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Washington to prevent a catastrophic resumption of full-scale warfare.

The Dual Proposals: Tehran’s Hardline Leverage on the Table

According to highly placed diplomatic sources close to the backchannel circuit, the Iranian executive framework presented two distinct operational proposals to the Pakistani mediators and visiting Qatari interlocutors during the intense Saturday sessions. Both strategies are anchored to a resolute mandate: “No deal without cash.”

The strategic parameters of the twin Iranian proposals outline a strict transactional sequencing:

The Maritime Counter-Offer: Iran has formally offered to fully reopen the heavily blockaded Strait of Hormuz to international shipping—restoring the flow of a fifth of global energy supplies—but strictly in exchange for the United States paying massive, structured financial compensation to Tehran for port and trade damages.

The Sequencing Prerequisite: The Iranian delegation has demanded the total removal of unilateral US banking sanctions and the verifiable release of billions of dollars in frozen Iranian funds overseas before any final, direct bilateral peace talks can legally commence.

The Toll Gate Deadlock: Rubio and Ghalibaf Exchange Warnings

The insistence on financial compensation aligns directly with Iran’s controversial establishment of the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA). Managed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the authority has begun enforcing an aggressive tolling system, demanding up to $2 million per vessel for safe transit through the chokepoint.

The economic demand has met with fierce resistance in Washington. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio explicitly red-flagged the mechanism, warning that a permanent Iranian tolling system over an international waterway remains entirely “unacceptable” to the Trump administration. Rubio noted that while the White House prefers a negotiated solution, the President maintains “other options” on the table—a statement coinciding with intelligence leaks that the US military is actively evaluating fresh surgical strikes if backchannel diplomacy collapses.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/no-deal-without-cash-asim-munir-leaves-tehran-empty-handed-as-iran-demands-us-compensation-exclusive-details-10108757.html

Under a new rule, green cards will be issued in applicants’ home countries.

The US government announced a new rule on Friday requiring foreigners to leave the United States and apply for green cards from within their home countries.

The announcement is as the latest maneuver in a series of attempts the Trump administration has taken to restrict and limit immigration for people from dozens of countries.

What did the USCIS say about the new rule?

“From now on, an alien who is in the US temporarily and wants a green card must return to their home country to apply, except in extraordinary circumstances,” US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) spokesman Zach Kahler said in a statement.

“Nonimmigrants, like students, temporary workers, or people on tourist visas, come to the US for a short time and for a specific purpose,” Kahler said, adding, “Our system is designed for them to leave when their visit is over.”

“Their visit should not function as the first step in the green card process.”

Kahler said having green card seekers apply from their home nation “reduces the need to find and remove those who decide to slip into the shadows and remain in the US illegally after being denied residency.”

Announcement sows confusion

According to The Washington Post, more than one million green cards are issued each year in the US and, up until now, more than half of the applicants are already in the US.

Immigration experts are trying to understand the policy memo to decipher who it would apply to.

USCIS has not clarified the details about the new rule, like when the change would be implemented, whether individuals would be required to stay in another country throughout the entire process, or how the new rule would apply to foreigners whose green card applications are already underway.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/us-tells-green-card-seekers-to-apply-from-abroad/a-77270868

Authorities braced for the possibility that a damaged chemical tank in Southern California could leak or explode as an evacuation order continued into the Memorial Day weekend for 40,000 residents with no timeline on when they can return.

No injuries were reported after the pressurized tank overheated Thursday and began venting vapors at a company site in Garden Grove, according to the Orange County Fire Authority. Garden Grove is about 40 miles (60 kilometers) south of downtown Los Angeles. Several shelters remained open Saturday, including at three high schools.

But officials said the valves on the tank are broken or “gummed up,” so that prevented crews from removing the chemical or relieving the pressure on the tank, said Craig Covey, Orange County Fire Authority division chief.

Firefighters’ first hope is to find a way to cool off the chemical inside the tank so it won’t leak or explode. If that’s not possible, Purdue University engineering professor Andrew Whelton said it would be best if the tank sprang a leak so the chemical could be mostly contained. An explosion that could spread the chemical over a broad area and send shrapnel from the tank flying would be the worst-case scenario.

If the temperature inside the tank continues to increase, the pressure will continue to build as the methyl methacrylate converts from a liquid to a gas, because officials said the pressure relief valves on the tank were no longer working. Whelton said it’s unlikely that firefighters would consider creating a hole in the tank because of fears that could create a spark that might ignite the volatile and flammable gas.

In an early evening post on the social platform X, Covey said drones were monitoring temperatures at 10-minute intervals to watch for any spikes. Planning was underway to ensure that if there is a leak, it can quickly be prevented from spreading into waterways or the ocean, he said.

“Sitting back and allowing these tanks to fail is unacceptable,” Covey said, adding that there was no guarantee that tanks will not breach and leak. “Our goal is to protect your homes — no damage to them — and protect the environment.”

Tank wasn’t cooling as first thought

Efforts to cool the tank appeared to be working Friday, but Covey backtracked the following day, saying a reading conducted by drones actually showed the temperature on the outside of the tank, not the inside.

“Unfortunately I do have to report that the temperature was 90 degrees,” Covey said, up from 77 the previous morning.

Cooling the tank is important because the liquid chemical’s flashpoint is 50 Fahrenheit (10 Celsius), according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Residents are frustrated and stressed

Initially people in Garden Grove were ordered to leave. Evacuation orders were then expanded to some parts of five other Orange County cities — Cypress, Stanton, Anaheim, Buena Park and Westminster. Some people with pets planned to sleep in their cars.

Marco Solano, 32, spent Friday night at his parents’ home, frustrated by the situation and monitoring the news to see if he could go home.

“I don’t think that they should have dangerous chemicals in a neighborhood area, especially that dangerous that they have to evacuate people,” Solano said. “But again, it’s not up to me. I don’t make the laws. I don’t make the rules. We just have to do what is best I guess.”

Solano, who has multiple jobs, said he felt very tired and weak and believed the stress of the chemical leak was exacerbating his anemia and ulcerative colitis.

“This has been affecting me quite a bit,” he said.

Solano also said he went to his apartment after work Friday to grab belongings and saw other residents who had not evacuated, and he was worried for them.

Exposure could lead to health problems

The damaged tank is located at GKN Aerospace, which makes parts for commercial and military aircraft. It holds 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (22,700 and 26,500 liters) of methyl methacrylate, used to make plastic parts.

Exposure to methyl methacrylate can cause serious respiratory problems and even render someone unconscious. It can also cause neurological problems and irritate the skin, eyes and throat, according to fact sheets about the chemical. But Orange County health officials said the chemical is easy to smell, and residents may notice it over a large area without being harmed.

Whelton said the volume of chemical in the tank is much smaller than in the disastrous 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, which he studied when more than 115,000 gallons (435,000 liters) of vinyl chloride was released after officials blew open five tank cars and burned the chemical.

“Many of these are acute, fast-acting effects. But the longer somebody stays in contact with it, the more potential for significant damage that occurs,” Whelton said.

If there is an explosion, officials said they expect “severe structural damage and significant harm” in the blast zone closest to the tank.

If an explosion releases the chemical into the air, Whelton said, it will be crucial to conduct detailed air monitoring specifically for methyl methacrylate and not just generic tests for volatile organic compounds as officials did in East Palestine. General tests, often completed with handheld detectors, may not be capable of detecting the chemical. Indoor tests of buildings and homes may also be needed before residents return home.

The weather will be an important factor in determining where a plume of chemicals would go in the event of an explosion. Officials were developing maps to predict different scenarios about which areas would be most affected.

Meanwhile containment barriers have been set up to prevent the chemical from getting into storm drains or reaching creeks or the nearby ocean in the event of a spill, Covey said.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/california-chemical-tank-leak-c1f922cae0ddb142857d12aee08d2d6b

A gunman who fired at a White House checkpoint ‌was shot by officers and died after being taken to the hospital on Saturday evening, the Secret Service said.
The man approached the ​checkpoint at 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue near the ​White House, pulled a gun out of his bag ⁠and started shooting at officers, according to a Secret ​Service statement sent to Reuters. Officers returned fire and shot ​the suspect, the agency said.

A bystander was struck by gunfire, the statement said, but it did not make clear how badly the person ​was hurt. Another Secret Service statement, cited by multiple news ​outlets, said it was not clear whether the bystander was hit when ‌the ⁠gunman began shooting or during the subsequent exchange of gunfire.
The shooting suspect was identified as an emotionally disturbed person, a law enforcement official told Reuters, adding that a “stay-away order” had ​been issued ​to him previously.
No ⁠law enforcement personnel were injured, the Secret Service said, adding that President Donald Trump was ​at the White House during the incident.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-secret-service-investigates-reports-shots-near-white-house-2026-05-23/

Meta and Google enlisted trusted children’s brands such as Sesame Street, Girl Scouts and Highlights magazine to teach kids to use technology in moderation – even as the companies designed apps that made it difficult for those same young users to unplug, public statements and internal documents show.
Backed by tens of millions of dollars from ​the tech giants, these organizations delivered lessons about personal responsibility to hundreds of thousands of children and parents, using colorful magazines, popular characters and catchy songs, according to public statements.

Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O), Google and Meta’s (META.O), sponsorships of those lessons are fueling ‌criticism that the companies are finding new ways to encourage kids to become dependent on social media, particularly by partnering with brands aimed at children younger than 12, an age pediatricians say is often too young for smartphone ownership.
The partnerships also weaken trust in decades-old institutions families have relied on for advice on raising kids, parent advocates said, at a time when the tech giants are facing down multiple lawsuits accusing them of designing addictive products that harmed youth mental health. The first case to reach trial ended with a $6 million judgment against the two companies.

“It’s like Sesame Street teaming up with Philip Morris to teach kids how to smoke cigarettes safely,” said Rose Bronstein, ​whose 15-year-old son died by suicide after he was bullied online. “How is it any different?”
Meta and Google’s properties generate billions of dollars in advertising revenue from businesses marketing to minors. That economic incentive, critics say, makes it difficult for the companies to offer unbiased ​guidance on screen use.
“Their very business model relies on maximum time on device,” said Emily Boddy, co-lead of U.S. Smartphone Free Childhood, a parent group that advocates against phones in schools. “Their guidance or advice can’t be ⁠neutral, and we see that it’s not.”
Corporations, ranging from soda companies to the tobacco industry, have long made donations to “trusted institutions” to improve their reputations, said Nora Kenworthy, a public health researcher at the University of Washington Bothell.

Republicans in the U.S. Congress have revolted over President Donald Trump’s $1.776 billion fund for people he says ​were victims of government “weaponization,” setting the stage for a searing battle less than six months before midterm elections.
On Thursday, the Senate called timeout on a $72 billion spending bill on immigration enforcement, which ‌has become a battleground over the “anti-weaponization” fund, after many Republican senators demanded that it either be killed or subjected to tough guardrails.

Democrats, meanwhile, have also pledged to use the immigration bill to stage an attack on the fund.
Just one day earlier, Senate Majority Leader John Thune blocked $1 billion in federal funding for a lavish White House ballroom that Trump has already begun building. He said he did not have the Republican votes for it.
On Friday, Trump shot back.
“I am helping others, who were so badly abused by an evil, ​corrupt, and weaponized Biden Administration, receive, at long last, JUSTICE!” the president wrote on his social media platform.
This battle of wills between the president and his party, stoked by recent primary election victories of Trump-endorsed ​challengers over sitting lawmakers, threatens to intensify when Congress returns from recess next month, and could reverberate into the November midterms.

“The American people are going to reject this ⁠out of hand,” Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina said of the anti-weaponization fund, whose beneficiaries could include those convicted in connection with the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
While many Republican senators were uncharacteristically ​mum coming out of a Thursday meeting on the spending bill, Tillis and others were clear on just how politically unpalatable the president’s demands had become.
“(The fund) could potentially compensate someone who assaulted a police officer, admitted their guilt, ​got convicted, got pardoned and now we’re going to pay them for that? That’s absurd,” Tillis, who is not running for reelection, said in a Thursday interview with Spectrum News.

LAWMAKERS MANEUVER OVER ‘ANTI-WEAPONIZATION’ FUND

Republican Representative Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, who faces a tough reelection battle this fall, teamed up with Democratic Representative Tom Suozzi of New York on legislation to prohibit the payment of any claims submitted to the fund.

Retiring Representative Don Bacon of Nebraska said the ballroom and anti-weaponization funds in the immigration spending bill had become “poison ​pills” for House Republicans who face tough reelection campaigns.
With Republicans holding only slim majorities in both houses of Congress, it would only take a handful of defiant lawmakers to defeat Trump’s proposals.
But skepticism runs deep that congressional Republicans, who ​until recently have been loyal to the president on matters from tariffs to spending cuts to the Iran war, were ready to break ranks.
“We’ve heard this talk for 10 years now of rebellion and cracks in the coalition. It has never ‌happened,” said Doug ⁠Heye, a longtime Republican strategist.
He said Republicans are “constantly capitulating” on matters important to Trump, and that any revolt would be “light years” away.

Many of Trump’s backers in Congress, including Republican Representatives Abraham Hamadeh of Arizona and John Rose of Tennessee, have stepped up to defend him.
“Not a single congressional Republican was elected to oppose President Trump,” Hamadeh posted on X, adding: “Yet an insurgency is already brewing” in the Senate. “STOP slamming the brakes on the America First agenda.”
Peter Ticktin, an attorney representing more than 400 January 6 defendants, said he was confident his clients will receive payouts despite congressional pushback.
“They’re fools if they think this is going to work,” Ticktin said of Senate Republicans who oppose the fund. “It’s still ​going to go through, and those opposing the fund ​will suffer in future elections.”

DEMOCRATS IN CONGRESS WILL ⁠FORCE DIFFICULT VOTES

Meanwhile the Democrats, while largely powerless as the minority party in both houses of Congress, are seizing on what they see as the president’s politically tone-deaf proposals.
They have contrasted the plight of U.S. consumers struggling amid inflation to pay their bills, with Trump’s lavish ballroom plans and the large sums of government money he might direct to the ​January 6 rioters or other allies.
“Is it possible on May 21, 2026, Republicans finally found an ethical bridge too far?” Senator Dick Durbin, the second-highest-ranking member of ​the Democrats’ Senate leadership, said ⁠at a Thursday press conference.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer on Thursday portrayed Republicans as being in the throes of a “meltdown” over the ballroom and what they call a Trump “slush fund.”
One possibility for congressional Republicans after they return from recess on June 1 is to seek some sort of middle ground.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/us/republican-defiance-over-anti-weaponization-fund-sets-up-confrontation-with-2026-05-23/

DONALD Trump Jr. has officially married socialite fiancée Bettina Anderson days before the couple was set to enjoy an intimate island ceremony in the Bahamas.

The loved-up couple are still expected to celebrate in a small Memorial Day weekend ceremony in front of family and friends on a private island after quietly wedding on Thursday.

Real estate lawyer and Trump family friend Brad McPherson officiated the Palm Beach union, according to TMZ who published the marriage certificate on Friday.

It comes just hours after Trump Sr. confirmed he would remain at the White House for the weekend and not head to the Bahamas.

“While I very much wanted to be with my son, Don Jr, and the newest member of the Trump Family, his soon to be wife, Bettina, circumstances pertaining to Government, and my love for the United States of America, do not allow me to do so,” he wrote in a statement.

“I feel it is important for me to remain in Washington, D.C., at the White House during this important period of time. Congratulations to Don and Bettina!”

Trump Jr. popped the question to Anderson, 39, on her birthday trip to Camp David, a 125-acre country retreat for the President, on December 13 after two years of dating.

Their romance blossomed in 2024 just as his engagement to ex-Fox News host Kimberly Guilfoyle fell apart.

“I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with Bettina,” the 48-year-old reportedly said during a toast at Anderson’s Enchanted Garden-themed Mar-a-Lago bridal shower in April.

“She is smart, loving and caring.”

The exotic setting for the pair’s nuptials was a last-minute change, Page Six reported, after original plans to hold it at the White House were considered insensitive.

“They’re very aware that a lavish wedding at the White House while people are dying wouldn’t be well-received,” an insider told the news outlet.

Earlier this week, President Trump said that while he is one of the less than 50 people invited to the wedding, he could not confirm his attendance.

“He’d like me to go, but it’s going to be just a small little private affair, and I’m going to try and make it,” Trump told reporters.

“This is not good timing for me,” he added. “I have a thing called Iran and other things.”

Among the guests thought to have attended the ceremony are Ivanka Trump, Lara Trump, Tiffany Trump, and President Trump‘s ex-wife Marla Maples, all of whom previously attended the bridal shower.

Trump Jr.’s five teenage children with ex-wife Vanessa are also likely to have been in attendance as well as his brothers, Eric and Barron Trump.

However, the couple’s wedding comes at a painful time for the family, with Vanessa Trump, 48, revealing just days ago that she is dealing with breast cancer and has already had a procedure.

It is unclear whether Vanessa was invited to the wedding or if she attended given her recent diagnosis.

Vanessa and Trump Jr. were married from 2005 until 2018 and she has now moved on having found love with troubled golfer, Tiger Woods.

Meanwhile, this is Anderson’s first marriage but he was previously engaged to chewing gum heir Beau Wrigley.

“We’re all so excited for Don and Bettina as they start this new chapter together,” Ivanka Trump told Page Six, on behalf of the whole family.

“I’m incredibly happy for both of them,” Eric Trump added.

“Don and I have always been inseparable and I have a wonderful relationship and friendship with Bettina. They are fantastic together.”

On Friday, Bettina marked her birthday with an ultra-luxury dinner complete with a bottle of rare champagne worth around $1,300.

Sharing a glimpse of the indulgent evening on social media, she posted a photo of a waiter pouring the pricey bubbly alongside the caption, “S is for Spoiled.”

She also appeared to hint at her big day coming up, writing, “How sweet it is to be loved by you” while adding a James Taylor track to the post.

She then added a cryptic message, “IYKYK” — internet shorthand for “if you know, you know.”

Don Jr. also reportedly leaned into the romance, giving her a card that read: “I think you’re perfect.”

She also received a jaw-dropping diamond necklace: a 19-inch Y-shaped design crafted in 18-carat white gold and featuring more than 100 diamonds, said to be worth six figures.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16391050/donald-trump-jr-marries-bettina-anderson-wedding/

Over 240 miners were underground at the Liushenyu coal mine in Shanxi Province when the accident occurred on Friday night.

The death toll from a gas explosion at a coal mine in northern China’s Shanxi province has jumped to 90, state media reported on Saturday (May 23), in the country’s deadliest coal mine disaster in over a decade.

The blast occurred at 7.29pm on Friday at the Liushenyu coal mine in Shanxi province.

A total of 247 workers were underground at the time, most of whom were brought to the surface by Saturday morning, Xinhua said.

Nine people remain missing.

Chinese President Xi Jinping called on authorities to “spare no effort” in treating the injured and conducting search and rescue operations, while ordering a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident.

Premier Li Qiang echoed the instructions, calling for timely and accurate release of information and rigorous accountability.

The mine is operated by Shanxi Tongzhou Group Liushenyu Coal Industry, which was established in 2010 and is controlled by Shanxi Tongzhou Coal Coking Group, according to corporate database Qichacha.

Rescue operations were ongoing and the cause of the accident was under investigation, according to the local emergency management authority in Qinyuan. Shanxi is China’s coal-mining heartland.

Executives of the company responsible for the mine have been detained, Xinhua reported.

Footage published by state broadcaster CCTV showed helmeted rescuers carrying stretchers at the site, with ambulances visible in the background.

123 others were sent to the hospital for treatment, four of whom were in critical or severe condition, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Of those sent for treatment, 33 had returned home as of 2:00 pm on Saturday, it added.

A total of 755 emergency and medical personnel were dispatched to the site, with rescue efforts still ongoing Saturday afternoon, CCTV added.

“SULPHUR SMELL”

Survivor and injured miner Wang Yong told CCTV there was a “puff of smoke” and he smelled sulphur.

He recalled seeing people choked by the smoke before he fainted.

“I lay down for about an hour and woke up by myself. I called the people next to me and got out of the mine together,” Wang said, according to CCTV.

The death toll was a sharp rise from the eight fatalities reported on Saturday morning. Xinhua said in an earlier report that dozens were trapped underground after levels of carbon monoxide were found to have “exceeded limits”. Some of those trapped underground were in “critical condition”, the report said.

China has significantly reduced coal mine fatalities – often caused by gas explosions or flooding – since the early 2000s through more stringent regulations and safer practices. The Liushenyu incident, though, was one of the deadliest reported in China in the past decade.

According to official data from the National Mine Safety Administration (NMSA), over 3,000 mine accidents occurred in China between 2010 and 2025.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/china-coal-mine-blast-accident-shanxi-6136551

Police footage taken during Britney Spears’ March DUI arrest showed the princess of pop claiming to officers that her mother, Lynne Spears, once killed a man without facing consequences.

When one of the cops informed Britney that it is “extremely dangerous to drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs or both,” the “Toxic” hitmaker, 44, responded, “Yes, sir, I know. My mom actually killed a man on a bike, but I never did that before,” per video obtained by TMZ.

“And nothing happened to her! … Why didn’t they arrest her? How come my mom got away with everything?”

Britney went on to allege that her mother also “tried to kill” the pop star before starting a tense back-and-forth with cops after they told her she was being arrested.

The story is a true tale, apparently. In her 2008 memoir, “Through the Storm,” Lynne explained that she killed a 12-year-old boy named Anthony Winters in 1975 while in a hurry to rush her brother to a Kentwood, Louisiana, hospital.

“The roads were slick with rain, and as I was rounding the curve, an oncoming car was coming in the left lane,” she writes.

The book continues: “In a split second I could see two young boys riding their bikes on the road. In that flash of time, I had a sick sensation that I would hit one of them, that it would be impossible not to, as I knew my car would not stop, no matter how hard I slammed on the brakes. One boy managed to get his bike out of the way, but his friend, a 12-year-old boy whose house was right by the scene of the accident, was hit.”

Lynne, now 71, was not charged for the incident.

As Page Six reported on Thursday, additional footage taken at the scene showed Britney failing a field sobriety test and telling officers she had only had one mimosa earlier in the day while boasting of her tolerance.

“I could probably drink four bottles of wine and take care of you. I’m an angel,” she said.

Britney’s arrest report showed Britney also claimed that she had taken several prescription drugs, including the mood stabilizer Lamictal and anticonvulsant, antidepressant Prozac and Adderall.

Police caught up with Britney after several drivers reported the “Toxic” songstress, 44, to police when they saw her allegedly driving “erratically” and almost “sideswip[ing]” several vehicles while in Ventura County, according to 911 audio exclusively obtained by Page Six.

“I’m reporting an erratic driving person,” one person said in a 911 call.

The individual told the dispatch responder the location and told them how a BMW was allegedly moving “in and out of lanes” and “slamming on the brakes.”

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/05/22/celebrity-news/britney-spears-told-police-mom-lynne-killed-a-12-year-old-boy-in-dui-arrest-video/

A wedding guest for the upcoming nuptials of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce is furious after allegedly being told they’re not allowed to bring a plus-one.

“My invite did not let me bring a plus-one,” an unnamed guest claimed to the Daily Mail on Friday.

“I mean, what am I supposed to do? Go alone? That is so awkward. I don’t think I am going to attend because I don’t want to go by myself and I am not sure I will know too many people there. I mean, sorry, I am not friends with Gigi and Bella Hadid!”

The reported guest also complained that other guests appeared to have been allowed to bring a plus-one to the celebration, which is happening on July 3 in New York City.

“I know Selena Gomez is bringing her husband Benny Blanco, so she has a plus-one, but I am not allowed to have a plus-one because I am a single woman,” the guest added.

“I get it, the venue can probably allow for only so many people, but it’s not the best feeling.”

The alleged invitation request was so offensive to the guest, she said she was mulling over ditching the high-profile nuptials.

“It’s the wedding of the year, but I may sit this one out because I am shy,” the guest said of the upcoming event — which will take place at a venue only known to guests that morning.

“I get that too, she doesn’t want everyone knowing where she is getting married until the last minute for security reasons,” the insider said.

“Now it is one big guessing game, everyone is wondering where it will be. Probably a massive hotel like the Waldorf Astoria that has amazing security and access,” they added.

The pop star’s friend said she “loves” Swift, wants “the best” for her and “gets it” — but doesn’t wish to come off like a “major complainer,” per the outlet.

A rep for Swift did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment on Friday.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/05/22/entertainment/taylor-swift-travis-kelce-wedding-guest-irked-by-alleged-invite-request/

US authorities allege Iraqi national Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi plotted to assassinate Ivanka Trump in revenge for the 2020 killing of Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani. Arrested in Turkey and extradited to the US, he is accused of ties to Iran-backed militias and multiple attacks. The report comes amid rising US-Iran tensions and discussions over possible US strikes on Iran.

First daughter of US President Donald Trump, Ivanka Trump, was allegedly targeted in an assassination plot by an Iraqi-operated, trained by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, according to a news report by the New York Post.

The suspect, identified as Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, 32, allegedly sought revenge for the 2020 US drone strike ordered by President Donald Trump in his earlier term that killed Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani.

According to the news report, Al-Saadi possessed a blueprint of Ivanka Trump’s Florida residence and allegedly posted online threats warning Americans that “neither your palaces nor the Secret Service will protect you.” Former Iraqi diplomat Entifadh Qanbar told the newspaper that Al-Saadi repeatedly spoke of killing Ivanka Trump “to burn down the house of Trump the way he burned down our house.”

The Iraqi national was arrested in Turkey on May 15 before being extradited to the United States. Authorities accuse him of involvement in 18 attacks and attempted attacks across Europe and North America, including alleged firebombings, shootings, stabbings, and attacks targeting Jewish sites and American diplomatic facilities.

The news report stated that Al-Saadi operated on behalf of the Iran-backed militia Kata’ib Hezbollah and maintained close ties with the IRGC. Researcher and former hostage Elizabeth Tsurkov reportedly said the suspect had close connections to Soleimani and later to his successor, Esmail Qaani.

Investigators also allege that Al-Saadi used an Iraqi service passport and a travel agency as cover to move between countries and coordinate with terror cells. Despite his alleged covert role, he frequently posted on social media, sharing selfies from European landmarks and images involving weapons systems.

Al-Saadi is currently being held in solitary confinement at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn as US authorities continue their investigation, according to the New York Post.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump’s administration on Friday (local time) was preparing for a fresh round of military strikes against Iran, sources with direct knowledge of the planning told CBS News.

No final decision on strikes had been reached, the sources told CBS News.

Several members of the US military and intelligence community are said to have cancelled their plans for the Memorial Day weekend after the news of probable strikes.

As per CBS News, Trump had planned to spend Memorial Day weekend at his golf property in New Jersey but will now return to the White House, as per CBS News.

Trump on Friday (local time) said that he will be missing his son Donald Trump Jr’s wedding owing to ongoing twists and turns in the international community.

Source : https://www.freepressjournal.in/world/iraqi-national-with-alleged-irgc-links-accused-of-plotting-ivanka-trump-assassination-to-avenge-qasem-soleimani-killing-report