Category: World

Colombian authorities have blamed the two incidents on separate dissident factions of FARC, the disbanded leftist guerrilla group.

At least five people died in a suspected truck bomb that exploded mid-afternoon Thursday near a military base in Cali, Columbia’s third most populated city.

Dozens of people were injured in the explosion, which struck on a road adjacent to a military aviation school, according to the mayor’s office in Cali, in the South American country’s southwest.

Hours earlier, a police helicopter was shot down in the department of Antioquia in northern Colombia, killing 12 officers and injuring several others.

The national police Black Hawk helicopter was transporting personnel to the rural Amalfi area to eradicate a coca leaf crops, the raw material used to make cocaine.

Antioquia governor Andres Julian said in a post on X that a drone attacked the helicopter as it flew over coca leaf crops.

In a later post, he asked why authorities had failed to rescue the injured and recover the bodies of the dead nine hours after the helicopter downing.

Spanish news agency EFE also reported that the dead and wounded were yet to be evacuated because of difficulties in accessing the mountainous jungle area where the attack occurred.

FARC splinter groups blamed for both attacks

Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro and Defense Minister Pedro Sanchez blamed the two attacks on dissident factions of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a now-defunct leftist guerrilla group.

In a post on X, Petro called the helicopter attack an “an act of war” committed by the 36th Front of the Estado Mayor Central (EMC), alluding to one of the main FARC splinter groups operating in northeastern Antioquia.

Over the years, the EMC has become heavily involved in criminal activities, particularly narcotics trafficking.

Sanchez, who had earlier said that the attack on the police helicopter was carried out by the Clan del Golfo cartel, said in an update on X that E36 were responsible, according to “recent information” from the police.

As for the attack next to the military base in Cali, Sanchez said the Mordisco narco-cartel, another FARC splinter group, was responsible.

Sanchez added that the “cowardly attack against civilians” in Cali was ” a desperate reaction to the loss of control over drug trafficking” in the area.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/colombia-truck-bomb-helicopter-downing-kill-at-least-17/a-73726663

Though the US imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on India for its energy ties with Russia, it has not initiated similar actions against China, the largest buyer of Russian crude oil.

Calling India the “Maharaj” of tariffs, US President Donald Trump’s trade adviser, Peter Navarro, accused New Delhi of running a “profiteering scheme” by continuing to import Russian oil, and said he expects punitive tariffs of 50 per cent on Indian imports to take effect as planned next week.

“I see that taking place,” Navarro told reporters outside the White House when asked about the 25 per cent punitive tariffs on India that are set to kick in on August 27.

“Prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, India virtually bought no Russian oil…It was like almost one per cent of their need. The percentage has now gone up to 35 per cent…They don’t need the oil. It’s a refining profit-sharing scheme. It’s a laundromat for the Kremlin. That’s the reality of that,” Navarro said.

The fresh salvo from the trade hawk comes after India has signalled it’ll keep buying Russian oil. Stung by the steep 50 per cent levy, the Indian government has reiterated its long-standing friendship with Russia and moved to ease tensions with regional rival China in recent days.

India’s Response

During his Moscow trip, Foreign Minister S Jaishankar responded to American officials’ criticism of India’s trade ties with Russia, and said the Indian government is “perplexed” by the US threats, as Washington itself had asked New Delhi to help stabilise global energy markets by buying Russian oil.

“We are a country where, actually, the Americans said for the last few years that we should do everything to stabilise the world energy markets, including buying oil from Russia,” he said.

India’s Russia Oil Trade

India has ramped up oil imports from Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022, when the Group of Seven nations imposed a $60-per-barrel price cap on Moscow’s crude that aimed to limit the Kremlin’s energy revenue. The Trump administration claims those purchases are helping fund Russia’s war, with 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods set to be among the highest on any country’s products.

Navarro said the argument that India needs Russian oil to meet its energy requirements does not make any sense.

“Look, Modi is a great leader. But please, please India, like, look at what is, what your role here is in the global economy and good here. It’s like, what you’re doing right now is not creating peace, it’s perpetuating the war,” the trade advisor added.

He claimed India gets cheap Russian oil and makes refined products which they sell at premium prices in Europe, Africa and Asia, he said. “It is purely profiteering by the Indian refining industry.”

India accounts for 37 per cent of Russia’s oil exports, according to Moscow-based Kasatkin Consulting.

“What is the net impact on Americans because of our trade with India? They are Maharaj in tariff. (We have) higher non-tariff barriers, massive trade deficit etc — and that hurts American workers and American business…The money they get from us, they use it to buy Russian oil which then is processed by their refiners,” he said.

“The Russians use the money to build arms and kill Ukrainians and Americans tax-payers have to provide more aid and military hardware to Ukrainians. That’s insane…India does not want to recognise its role in the bloodshed,” he added.

China Claim

The White House Trade Adviser also accused India of “cosying up to” Chinese President Xi Jinping.

In the face of Trump’s broadsides, which include saying India’s economy is “dead,” New Delhi has been seeking to improve relations with Beijing. The two sides this week agreed to explore demarcating their disputed border after Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi wrapped up a two-day visit.

“China firmly stands with India to uphold the multilateral trading system and safeguard international fairness and justice,” Xu Feihong, China’s ambassador to India, wrote in a post on X.

Trump Tariffs

The relations between New Delhi and Washington are on a downturn after US President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods to a whopping 50 per cent, including a 25 per cent additional duty for India’s purchase of Russian crude oil.

South Korea vowed on Friday to make investment in artificial intelligence a top policy priority, as the government slashed its economic growth projection for this year due to trade headwinds caused by U.S. tariffs.

In the first bi-annual economic policy plan under President Lee Jae Myung’s new administration, the finance ministry said it would introduce from the second half of 2025 policy packages for 30 major AI and innovation projects.

These include AI technologies for robots, cars, ships, home appliances, drones, factories and chips, as well as advanced materials and cultural products such as “K-beauty” and “K-food”.

“A grand transformation into AI is the only way out of growth declines resulting from a population shock,” the ministry said in a statement, referring to South Korea’s record low birthrate.

While the government plans to include measures such as financial investments, tax incentives and regulatory improvements in the packages, it said it would also create a 100 trillion won ($71.56 billion) fund, jointly with the private sector, to invest in strategic sectors.

The policy plans aim to make the country one of the world’s top three AI powers and boost potential economic growth rates in a country with the world’s lowest birth rate, the ministry said.

South Korea’s potential growth rate is estimated at around 2 per cent and expected to fall below 1 per cent by the late 2040s, though the government hopes the new policies can lift the rate to 3 per cent.

Asia’s fourth-largest economy grew in the second quarter at the fastest pace in more than a year, as consumer demand rebounded and technology exports remained robust, but still faces trade uncertainties due to higher U.S. tariffs.

Last month, South Korea agreed to a U.S. trade deal that reduces tariffs on the Asian ally to 15 per cent from a threatened 25 per cent, but still higher than the baseline 10 per cent that had been in place.

The finance ministry expects the export-reliant economy to grow 0.9 per cent this year, down sharply from the 2.0 per cent expansion last year and its previous projection of 1.8 per cent in January. The economy is expected to grow 1.8 per cent in 2026, the ministry said.

Exports are forecast to grow 0.2 per cent in 2025, but fall 0.5 per cent in 2026, according to the ministry. In 2024, exports jumped 8.1 per cent.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/south-korea-makes-ai-investment-top-policy-priority-support-flagging-growth-5308501

Preliminary findings indicated that the fire involved a personal mobility aid.

Three people were taken to hospital and 50 others were evacuated from their homes after a fire broke out in a flat in Toa Payoh early on Friday (Aug 22) morning.

Preliminary investigations indicated that the fire involved a personal mobility aid.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) was alerted to the fire at Block 63 Lorong 5 Toa Payoh at about 2.30am.

When SCDF firefighters arrived at the scene, they found the living room of the 12th-floor unit on fire.

They conducted forcible entry into the flat and extinguished the fire, which was confined to the unit’s living room, with a water jet.

“During the firefighting operation, firefighters rescued a person from the kitchen. The person was assessed for smoke inhalation and minor burn injuries, and conveyed conscious to Singapore General Hospital (SGH),” SCDF said in a Facebook post.

“Another two persons from the neighbouring units were also conveyed to the hospitals, one to SGH for breathlessness and the other to Tan Tock Seng Hospital for an injured ankle.”

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/lorong-5-toa-payoh-flat-fire-3-people-taken-hospital-scdf-5308261

Former Vice President Kamala Harris was dragged online Thursday after announcing an international tour to promote her new book recounting her failed 2024 presidential campaign.

The unemployed 60-year-old will kick off a 15-city tour on Sept. 24, a day after releasing her memoir “107 Days,” which offers a “behind-the-scenes” look at what the Democrat calls “the shortest presidential campaign in modern history,” according to a post on X.

The post included a short montage of her grinning ear-to-ear on the campaign trail, but social media users quickly panned it as a strange way to mark her crushing loss to President Trump.

“Never seen someone celebrating an L like that lol,” one user quipped, as another blasted it as “the loser tour.”

“How to blow 2.5B in 107 days,” another commenter added to ex-veep’s post.

Politicians, White House officials and conservative commentators also swiftly mocked Harris for traveling from New York and Canada to Washington, DC, and London to share a detailed diary of her brutal defeat.

North Carolina GOP Rep. Virginia Foxx ripped the roadshow as a “nationwide comedy tour.”

“She’s doing a tour about how she lost?” Deputy White House Press Secretary Abigail Jackson posted.

“Does her team have 0 self-awareness or do they just hate her? Because nothing says kicking off your 2028 campaign like a book tour about how badly you lost the last election.”

Versus Media Podcast host Stephen L. Miller wrote, “Because if this last election taught us anything it’s that people want to hear more from her.”

In her announcement, Harris said she plans to share an inside peek at lessons learned on the campaign trail and ways the country can remain united and build a path “forward together.”

Harris stepped in as the Democratic presidential nominee after former President Joe Biden ended his re-election bid on July 21, 2024, 107 days before the election — and less than a month after his disastrous debate performance against Trump.

The VP was initially buoyed by a wave of positive media coverage, with some polls showing her leading her Republican opponent and eventual victor.

Source : https://nypost.com/2025/08/21/us-news/kamala-harris-skewered-over-book-tour-for-memoir-on-failed-presidential-campaign/

A baby bottle, a squeaky toy and a schoolbag are among items that have surfaced from a mass grave site in Sri Lanka’s formerly war-torn northern region, along with 141 human skeletons including some that appear to be of children of different ages.

The findings were made at a cremation ground in the Chemmani area near Jaffna town, the cultural heartland of the country’s ethnic Tamil minority. But hardly any burials take place here, as Hindus mostly cremate their dead according to religious customs.

Excavations have been underway since June, after workers found human remains while digging to build an electric crematorium.

A pit test over nine days discovered 19 sets of human remains. Shallow burials of about 1.5 meters (4.9 feet) in a scattered and disorganized manner, and the absence of clothing, indicated the site was a mass grave, according to a report provided to a court in June.

Since the area was secured and declared a crime scene that month, a total of 141 skeletons have been discovered within a 165-square-meter (1,776-square-foot) area. About 135 of the bodies had no clothing, and only one set of adult clothing was identified. Tests confirmed that a skeleton found with a schoolbag was that of a girl between 4 and 6 years old. Toddlers’ dresses, socks and footwear, tiny bead bangles and a baby powder tray were also recovered.

The identities of the dead and the cause and timing of their deaths are all unclear. But many think the victims could be civilians who disappeared during Sri Lanka’s civil war, which broke out in 1983 between government forces and ethnic Tamil rebels, who fought to create an independent homeland for the minority group. The war ended in 2009.

Several Tamil armed groups and an Indian peacekeeping mission were active in the region over the decades. But attention has focused on the Sri Lankan military, which had a heavy presence for over a decade in Chemmani, as the gateway to Jaffna town.

Decades-old confession heightens suspicions

A confession made by an army soldier before he was sentenced to death for rape and murder 27 years ago has strengthened suspicions about the site.

In 1998, Somaratne Rajapakse along with four alleged accomplices from the military and police were sentenced to death for the gang rape and murder of a schoolgirl and the killing of her mother, brother and a neighbor.

The five, who weren’t hanged and remain in prison due to a moratorium on executions, have maintained that they were not involved in the rape and murder, but only disposed of the bodies under orders.

Rajapakse told the court that he knew where up to 400 bodies were buried in Chammani.

“We cannot say exactly who the perpetrators are yet, but the finger points to the (state) army,” said Brito Fernando, an activist working with the families of people who disappeared during various armed conflicts in Sri Lanka.

The area, including the cremation ground, were under Sri Lankan military control from 1996, when it captured Jaffna from the rebels, until after the war ended in 2009. The military operated checkpoints, and anyone who entered or left the area was searched.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping made a rare visit to Tibet on Wednesday to mark the 60th anniversary of the consolidation of Beijing’s long-contested rule over the Himalayan territory.

Xi arrived in Tibet’s regional capital of Lhasa, where he “received a warm welcome from people of various ethnic groups” who waved bouquets of flowers and danced “to joyful rhythms,” the Xinhua News Agency said.

The agency said Xi urged the building of a “modern socialist” Tibet “that is united, prosperous, civilized, harmonious and beautiful.”

Communist forces occupied Tibet in 1951. In 1965, Mao Zedong’s single-party dictatorship established the Tibet autonomous region. Decades of political repression followed, including the demolition of some Buddhist monasteries and the imprisonment of monks.

Recent years have seen the large-scale migration of majority Han Chinese to the high-altitude region, the virtual closure of Tibet to journalists and foreigners, the removal of Tibetan children from their families to boarding schools where they are taught in Mandarin, and the repression of all forms of political or cultural expression outside Communist Party control.

China also insists on the right to appoint a reincarnation of the Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhism’s highest-ranking leader, who recently turned 90 and lives in self-imposed exile in neighboring India after fleeing Chinese rule in 1959.

On Tuesday, exiled Tibetans protested in India against the Chinese foreign minister’s visit there.

Critics say repression in Tibet has become more systematic and wide-reaching since the crushing of anti-government protests in 2008, while China claims to have reduced poverty and built up the region’s infrastructure.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/china-tibet-xi-jinping-visit-lhasa-8bf015c599a9cc17c5c25e8f69a32d78

Two homes on the North Carolina Outer Banks sit precariously in the high waves with their days seemingly numbered. Since 2020, 11 neighboring homes have fallen into the Atlantic Ocean.

While the swells from storms like Hurricane Erin make things worse, the conditions threatening the houses are always present — beach erosion and climate change are sending the ocean closer and closer to their front doors.

The two houses in the surf in Rodanthe have received plenty of attention as Erin passes several hundred miles (kilometers) to the east. The village of about 200 people sticks out further into the Atlantic than any other part of North Carolina.

Jan Richards looked at the houses Tuesday as high tides sent surges of water into the support beams on the two-story homes. She gestured where two other houses used to be before their recent collapse.

“The one in the middle fell last year. It fell into that house. So you can see where it crashed into that house. But that has been really resilient and has stayed put up until probably this storm,” Richards said.

The ocean has destroyed at least 11 houses since 2020

At least 11 other houses have toppled into the surf in Rodanthe in the past five years, according to the National Park Service, which oversees much of the Outer Banks.

Barrier islands like the Outer Banks were never an ideal place for development, according to experts. The islands typically form as waves deposit sediment off the mainland. And they move based on weather patterns and other ocean forces. Some even disappear.

Decades ago, houses and other buildings were smaller, less elaborate and easier to move from the encroaching surf, said David Hallac, superintendent of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

“Perhaps it was more well understood in the past that the barrier island was dynamic, that it was moving,” Hallac said. “And if you built something on the beachfront it may not be there forever or it may need to be moved.”

The Outer Banks even had to move their famous lighthouse from the sea

Even the largest structures aren’t immune. Twenty-six years ago the Outer Banks most famous landmark, the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse had to be moved over a half-mile (880 meters) inland.

When it was built in 1870, the lighthouse was 1,500 feet (457 meters) from the ocean. Fifty years later, the Atlantic was 300 feet (91 meters) away. And erosion keeps coming. Some places along the Outer Banks lose as much as 10 to 15 feet (3 to 4.5 meters) of beachfront a year, Hallac said.

“And so every year, 10 to 15 feet of that white sandy beach is gone,” Hallac said. “And then the dunes and then the back-dune area. And then all of a sudden, the foreshore, that area between low water and high water, is right up next to somebody’s backyard. And then the erosion continues.”

‘Like a toothpick in wet sand’

The ocean attacks the houses by the wooden pilings that provide their foundation and keep them above the water. The supports could be 15 feet (4.5 meters) deep. But the surf slowly takes away the sand that is packed around them.

“It’s like a toothpick in wet sand or even a beach umbrella,” Hallac said. “The deeper you put it, the more likely it is to stand up straight and resist leaning over. But if you only put it down a few inches, it doesn’t take much wind for that umbrella to start leaning. And it starts to tip over.”

A single home collapse can shed debris up to 15 miles (25 kilometers) along the coast, according to a report from a group of federal, state and local officials who are studying threatened oceanfront structures in North Carolina. Collapses can injure beachgoers and lead to potential contamination from septic tanks, among other environmental concerns.

The report noted that 750 of nearly 8,800 oceanfront structures in North Carolina are considered at risk from erosion.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/hurricane-erin-beach-houses-collapse-rodanthe-3706d551da20d79f4bbc7521f99ea253

The Texas House on Wednesday approved redrawn congressional maps that would give Republicans a bigger edge in 2026, muscling through a partisan gerrymander that launched weeks of protests by Democrats and a widening national battle over redistricting.

The approval came at the urging of President Donald Trump, who pushed for the extraordinary mid-decade revision of congressional maps to give his party a better chance at holding onto the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2026 midterm elections. The maps, which would give Republicans five more winnable seats, need to be approved by the GOP-controlled state Senate and signed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott before they become official.

But the Texas House vote had presented the best chance for Democrats to derail the redraw.

Democratic legislators delayed the vote by two weeks by fleeing Texas earlier this month in protest, and they were assigned round-the-clock police monitoring upon their return to ensure they attended Wednesday’s session.

The approval of the Texas maps on an 88-52 party-line vote is likely to prompt California’s Democratic-controlled state Legislature this week to approve of a new House map creating five new Democratic-leaning districts. But the California map would require voter approval in November.

Democrats have also vowed to challenge the new Texas map in court and complained that Republicans made the political power move before passing legislation responding to deadly floods that swept the state last month.

Texas maps openly made to help GOP

Texas Republicans openly said they were acting in their party’s interest. State Rep. Todd Hunter, who wrote the legislation formally creating the new map, noted that the U.S. Supreme Court has allowed politicians to redraw districts for nakedly partisan purposes.

“The underlying goal of this plan is straight forward: improve Republican political performance,” Hunter, a Republican, said on the floor. After nearly eight hours of debate, Hunter took the floor again to sum up the entire dispute as nothing more than a partisan fight. “What’s the difference, to the whole world listening? Republicans like it, and Democrats do not.”

Democrats said the disagreement was about more than partisanship.

“In a democracy, people choose their representatives,” State Rep. Chris Turner said. “This bill flips that on its head and lets politicians in Washington, D.C., choose their voters.”

State Rep. John H. Bucy blamed the president. “This is Donald Trump’s map,” Bucy said. “It clearly and deliberately manufactures five more Republican seats in Congress because Trump himself knows that the voters are rejecting his agenda.”

Redistricting becomes tool nationwide in battle for US House

The Republican power play has already triggered a national tit-for-tat battle as Democratic state lawmakers prepared to gather in California on Thursday to revise that state’s map to create five new Democratic seats.

“This is a new Democratic Party, this is a new day, this is new energy out there all across this country,” California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom said on a call with reporters on Wednesday. “And we’re going to fight fire with fire.”

A new California map would need to be approved by voters in a special election in November because that state normally operates with a nonpartisan commission drawing the map to avoid the very sort of political brawl that is playing out. Newsom himself backed the 2008 ballot measure to create that process, as did former President Barack Obama. But in a sign of Democrats’ stiffening resolve, Obama Tuesday night backed Newsom’s bid to redraw the California map, saying it was a necessary step to stave off the GOP’s Texas move.

“I think that approach is a smart, measured approach,” Obama said during a fundraiser for the Democratic Party’s main redistricting arm.

The incumbent president’s party usually loses seats in the midterm election, and the GOP currently controls the House of Representatives by a mere three votes. Trump is going beyond Texas in his push to remake the map. He’s pushed Republican leaders in conservative states like Indiana and Missouri to also try to create new Republican seats. Ohio Republicans were already revising their map before Texas moved. Democrats, meanwhile, are mulling reopening Maryland’s and New York’s maps as well.

However, more Democratic-run states have commission systems like California’s or other redistricting limits than Republican ones do, leaving the GOP with a freer hand to swiftly redraw maps. New York, for example, can’t draw new maps until 2028, and even then, only with voter approval.

Texas Democrats decry the new maps

In Texas, there was little that outnumbered Democrats could do other than fume and threaten a lawsuit to block the map. Because the Supreme Court has blessed purely partisan gerrymandering, the only way opponents can stop the new Texas map would be by arguing it violates the Voting Rights Act requirement to keep minority communities together so they can select representatives of their choice.

Democrats noted that, in every decade since the 1970s, courts have found that Texas’ legislature did violate the Voting Rights Act in redistricting, and that civil rights groups had an active lawsuit making similar allegations against the 2021 map that Republicans drew up.

Republicans contend the new map creates more new majority-minority seats than the previous one. Democrats and some civil rights groups have countered that the GOP does that through mainly a numbers game that leads to halving the number of the state’s House seats that will be represented by a Black representative.

State Rep. Ron Reynolds noted the country just marked the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act’s passage and warned GOP members about how they’d be remembered if they voted for what he called “this racial gerrymander.”

“Just like the people who were on the wrong side of history in 1965, history will be looking at the people who made the decisions in the body this day,” Reynolds, a Democrat, said.

Republicans hit back at criticism

Republicans spent far less time talking on Wednesday, content to let their numbers do the talking in the lopsided vote. As the day dragged on, a handful hit back against Democratic complaints.

“You call my voters racist, you call my party racist and yet we’re expected to follow the rules,” said State Rep. Katrina Pierson, a former Trump spokesperson. “There are Black and Hispanic and Asian Republicans in this chamber who were elected just like you.”

House Republicans’ frustration at the Democrats’ flight and ability to delay the vote was palpable. The GOP used a parliamentary maneuver to take a second and final vote on the map so it wouldn’t have to reconvene for one more vote after Senate approval.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/texas-redistricting-congressional-map-882eae23a280a68dd6e0fc5a3bf11a0d

Prince Philip was intensely relieved once Prince Harry and Meghan Marke’s nuptials were over, a royal biographer claims.

“Once all the formalities were over, we watched as the happy couple, and then the other members of the Royal Family, filed out of the chapel,” former royal butler Grant Harrold writes an upcoming memoir, according to an excerpt published by The Telegraph Monday.

He adds, “When Prince Philip came out, he turned to the Queen and said, ‘Thank f–k that’s over.’”

Harrolds book, “The Royal Butler,” hits shelves in September. Reps for Prince Harry and the royal family did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.

The couple famously exchanged vows in a lavish ceremony in 2018 held at St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, with both the late Queen Elizabeth — who passed away in 2022 — and the late Prince Philip, who died in 2021, in attendance.

In a controversial move, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle would ultimately announce their intention to leave their duties as royal family members in 2020 and move to California, where they are currently raising their children Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 4.

And while Philip reportedly did not agree with the decision, he steered clear of getting involved.

Philip understood that “people have to lead their lives as they think best,” the Sun reported in 2021, citing royal biographer Gyles Brandreth.

Prince Philip also reportedly thought of Harry — who remains embroiled in an apparent rift with his brother Prince William — as a “good man” and was sympathetic to his need to “do things his own way,” Brendreth reportedly said.

According to the Daily Mail, the biographer said Philip responded to “Megxit” by stating “it’s his [Prince Harry’s] life” and adding, “I’ll soon be out of it and not before time.”

And per Us Weekly, Philip was “welcoming” to Markle when she married into the royal family. “He was very welcoming to Meghan because, of course, she was a newcomer and a very different newcomer,” Royal biographer Ingrid Seward told the outlet in 2021.

However, “at the time of Meghan and Harry’s romance, he wasn’t around nearly as much because he’d retired,” she added. “He didn’t see very much of Meghan at all [and] he didn’t really have a chance to form a relationship with her.”

Source : https://pagesix.com/2025/08/20/royal-family/prince-philips-harsh-comment-after-prince-harry-and-meghan-markles-wedding/

Japanese police have said that an elderly man who they had believed was killed by a bear had in fact been stabbed to death by his son.

Fujiyuki Shindo, 51, was arrested in the northern Akita prefecture on Tuesday for allegedly murdering his 93-year-old father Fujiyoshi, local media reports.

Police sent out a bear attack warning mail after the victim’s wife found him collapsed and bleeding on the floor. But it was withdrawn after investigators concluded the wounds were more consistent with knife injuries.

Bear sightings are increasingly common in the northern Japan, where ageing populations and shrinking farmlands have meant the animals are expanding their habitat closer to human populations.

Mr Shindo, who lived with his parents, had initially told police that he did not notice anything unusual at home during the time of the attack, agency Kyodo News reported.

Investigators seized several knives from the family’s home and were trying to identify the murder weapon, Jiji Press reported.

They have not given out a motive for the murder.

Bears were initially blamed for Fujiyoshi Shindo’s death because Japan has seen a rising number of bear attacks in recent years. In the 12 months to March 2024, a record 219 people were attacked by bears – and six of them died, Japan’s Environment Ministry said.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c62n5gv72j5o

A key takeaway from the summit in Alaska is that Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly wants to freeze the war in Ukraine along its current front line in return for the surrender of the rest of Donetsk region.

Russia holds about 70% of the region (oblast), including the regional capital of the same name, after more than a decade of fighting in which Donetsk and neighbouring Luhansk have been the bleeding heart of the conflict.

For Russia to gain all of Donetsk would cement its internationally unrecognised claim to the oblast as well as avoiding further heavy military losses.

For Ukraine to withdraw from western Donetsk would mean the grievous loss not just of land, with the prospect of a new exodus of refugees, but the fall of a bulwark against any future Russian advance.

Here we look at why the territory matters so much.

Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands recently fell victim to a deepfake porn attack.

Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands recently fell victim to a deepfake porn attack. The 21-year-old’s face was morphed onto the bodies of porn actors using AI, and the resulting videos were circulated on platforms like MrDeepFakes – which has now been shut down.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) worked together with authorities in the Netherlands to remove the websites, according to a report in the Daily Beast. These websites, including MrDeepFakes, also circulated deepfake pornography videos of about 70 other Dutch women. However, no arrests have been made so far in the case.

The Dutch news website Seher Og Hor further reported that Catharina-Amalia had a ‘starring role’ in the deepfakes. This is not the first time that the future queen of the Netherlands has fallen victim to such an attack – her morphed videos were also circulated in 2022.

Who is Princess Catharina-Amalia?

Catharina‑Amalia Beatrix Carmen Victoria, born 7 December 2003 in The Hague, is the eldest daughter of King Willem‑Alexander and Queen Máxima, and the future queen of the Netherlands. She has held the title Princess of Orange, given to the heir apparent, since her father’s accession in April 2013.

Source : https://www.hindustantimes.com/trending/future-queen-of-netherlands-falls-victim-to-deepfake-porn-attack-morphed-videos-circulated-online-101755742713522.html

AI-related fraud attempts surged by nearly 200 per cent in 2024, according to a cybersecurity firm. CNA takes a closer look at deepfake voice phishing, an increasingly common method used by scammers.

“Hi, how have you been? So I heard about this restaurant that just recently opened up. Want to go check it out the next time we meet?”

These were the innocuous sentences used in a simple experiment to find out if people in my social circle could distinguish my real voice from an AI-cloned version.

The result was some confusion – but more importantly, the ease with which the imitation was generated suggests that more attention should be paid to the phenomenon of deepfake voice phishing, or vishing.

Millions of dollars have been lost to scammers using cheap yet increasingly sophisticated artificial intelligence tools to impersonate the voices of real people.

In Asia-Pacific, the trend of AI and deepfake-enabled fraud is accelerating even faster than the rest of the world, according to cybersecurity firm Group-IB.

AI-related fraud attempts surged by 194 per cent in 2024 compared to 2023, with deepfake vishing emerging as one of the most commonly used methods, said the company’s senior fraud analyst for the region Yuan Huang.

An increase has also been observed in Singapore. While exact vishing figures are not publicly available, Ms Huang pointed to a study which found that about 56 per cent of businesses here have experienced deepfake audio fraud.

The Cyber Security Agency of Singapore told CNA that audio deepfakes are a rising concern, due to how they exploit people’s natural inclination to trust familiar voices, such as those seemingly from a family member or a colleague.

COPYING MY VOICE

My experiment, which was facilitated by Ms Huang from Group-IB at the start of August, showed that cloning a voice really did not take much: A publicly available online tool – of which there are several – and samples of my voice as short as 10 seconds.

A more convincing replication would require longer samples and more tone variations.

The subscription plan for the platform we chose was priced at less than US$10 for the first month. Elsewhere, fees can start at US$3 a month.

Under our plan, we could generate high-definition audio output and cloned voices in other languages.

Seconds after uploading my samples, my deepfaked voice was ready.

On the user-friendly interface, cloned voices can be fine-tuned by adjusting speeds or tweaking settings to be more monotonous or more dramatic. None of this required any particular technical skills; practically anyone can generate a cloned voice.

When I finally played back my AI-generated voice in full, I was taken by surprise.

I already knew it was supposed to sound like me. But the level of similarity and accuracy – down to the pauses I habitually take in between words – was something else.

The technology was not entirely flawless. The voice clone seemed to have a hint of an American accent; and the more we replayed it, the less it sounded like me.

But it would suffice to fool most people, according to studies at least.

A 2024 poll by the University of California in the United States found that participants mistook the identity of an AI voice for its real counterpart 80 per cent of the time.

When researchers at the University College London played audio clips to 100 people, just 48 per cent were able to tell which was a human voice and which was created using AI.

A recent public awareness survey by CSA found that a majority (78 per cent) had confidence in their ability to identify deepfakes. But only one in four could distinguish legitimate videos from AI-manipulated ones. No data or trends specific to audio content were available.

In an April 2024 reply to a parliamentary question, it was also revealed that the Singapore police has not been tracking the number of deepfake-related scams using video, voice and other media.

Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said then: “While we have received some reports where the complainants had alleged that deepfake techniques were used by the scammers, the number is not high.”

PUT TO THE TEST

After the cloning came the fun part of the experiment.

We typed out the statement on checking out a restaurant – something I would say to friends – on the online platform; then separately recorded myself saying the same thing.

Then I called four contacts – two colleagues as well as two friends I’ve known for almost a decade – and played them the two audio clips.

One of my colleagues initially mistook my real voice for AI. But in the end, all four could tell the difference: According to them, no amount of tweaking of settings could take away the more robotic and monotonous flavour of the cloned voice.

One possible factor could be that the Singaporean accent is not as easy to clone, since most AI models are trained on American or British accents, said Associate Professor Terence Sim from the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) school of computing.

My friends were also young adults in their 20s, who may be more aware of the hallmarks of AI use – and on higher alert in the environment of phone calls.

THE VISHING APPEAL

Experts CNA spoke to nonetheless noted the growing accessibility of low-cost and sometimes even free generative AI tools to convincingly mimic and create human voices.

A CSA spokesperson said that with audio deepfakes, “while there are traditional indicators like unnatural pauses in speech, robotic intonation, or unusual word choices, these tells are becoming harder to spot as AI technology advances”.

“What makes audio deepfakes particularly challenging to detect is that humans are naturally attuned to trust voice communications, especially in urgent or emotional situations,” he added.

“When someone appears to sound exactly like a family member or colleague in distress, the emotional response often overrides our usual caution.”

The AI tools also allow scammers to spoof trusted institutions with accuracy, making it easier to manipulate targets and gain financial and sensitive information, said Assistant Professor Saifuddin Ahmed from the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information at Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

“Combined with the availability of stolen personal data from breaches or user mistakes, the technology empowers scammers to craft highly convincing, personalised attacks.”

Group-IB’s Ms Huang also highlighted that social media is often the primary source for obtaining voice samples.

Other avenues include radio or TV interviews, webinars and public recordings available online.

“In some cases, scammers record a victim’s voice during a phone call, particularly during impersonation or vishing attempts, to later use it for further attacks.”

Scammers, being financially motivated, prefer targets who can potentially bring such high returns, Ms Huang said. This includes chief executives, chief financial officers and finance personnel.

But they can also target the elderly, particularly those unfamiliar with AI-generated voice technology, or those who can be emotionally manipulated.

WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT

Attempting to regulate online voice cloning platforms would be a complex matter, with almost all of them hosted outside of Singapore’s jurisdiction, experts told CNA.

Asst Prof Saifuddin from NTU said cooperation between governments and tech companies would be needed to set boundaries to safeguard users.

At an industry level, telecom providers can also implement advanced call authentication and improve their spam-blocking technologies, he said.

Asst Prof Saifuddin’s advice to individuals was to use a different communication channel where possible, such as text or email, to confirm the request. “Never rely solely on the incoming call for verification,” he said.

NUS’ Assoc Prof Sim pointed to skills that could be picked up, such as how to listen out for hissing, mismatched background sounds in different segments of the speech, a lack of background sound, or abrupt transitions from one sentence to the next.

But he also acknowledged that these were not foolproof, with voice cloning technology constantly improving.

CSA said to be on alert when receiving urgent and unsolicited requests for monetary transfers or sensitive details such as passwords and banking credentials.

“For voice calls from a supposed friend or family member, ask questions that only they would know … If in doubt, do hang up and call the friend or family member directly on their known number,” said the agency’s spokesperson.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/deepfake-voice-phishing-vishing-scam-ai-cloning-5291931

The new office features a Zoom Experience Hub that is more than two times larger than its previous iteration.

Zoom Communications, the company behind the widely used video-conferencing platform, opened its new Singapore office in Marina Bay on Thursday (Aug 21).

Located on the 24th floor of IOI Central Boulevard (West Tower), it will replace the company’s previous office, which was located in a co-working space at Asia Square Tower 2.

The new office spans 7,500 sq ft, and employees can start using the space from next Monday onwards. Zoom also recently expanded its data infrastructure in Singapore.

“(Singapore) is so easy to get to, so well-connected, so business-friendly – it would be crazy not to open an office here,” said Mr Steve Rafferty, head of EMEA and APAC at Zoom.

He noted that Zoom has more than 7,000 employees worldwide, and around half are located outside the US.

“(We have) a lot of plans to grow internationally, a lot of plans to grow APAC as a region, as one of our focus regions.”

Mr Lucas Lu, Zoom’s Asia head, said Singapore is an important market, and the number of employees was growing so the new office provides a better experience for them.

“While we had a facility, it was not to the same level. This is a proper Zoom office in that sense,” he said, adding that the new office demonstrates the company’s commitment to Singapore, which is a strategic location for Zoom to deepen collaboration.

And with Zoom’s customers in Asia ranging from fully remote to in-office teams, the company is “embracing the best of both worlds” with the opening of its new office, he said.

“Our new Singapore space embodies our belief that true innovation happens where meaningful connections thrive – both in person and online.”

Asked if the company is planning to hire more people in Singapore, Mr Lu said Zoom will build the team in Singapore in line with business needs and regional priorities.

The new facility also dedicates 2,000 sq ft to a Zoom Experience Hub for customers to come for personalised product demonstrations. The space is more than two times larger than the previous version at the co-working office and is more immersive.

“Essentially, the last one was one room. This is a very flexible space that we can customise and tailor, depending on what we’re trying to do,” he said.

During a media preview on Wednesday, Zoom representatives showcased the company’s artificial intelligence companion, which has agentic capabilities that were rolled out this year.

The AI assistant can reschedule appointments, summarise chats, compare documents and use notes from previous meetings to help the user catch up.

Zoom also demonstrated its product for frontline workers who may not communicate with their employers through email.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/zoom-new-office-cbd-asia-pacific-expansion-video-call-ai-5304366

BELOVED Justice Frank Caprio, who went viral on social media as the “nicest judge in the world,” has died at age 88 following a battle with pancreatic cancer.

Caprio died on Wednesday less than 24 hours after he shared a video from his hospital bed on Instagram, asking for prayers.

“Beloved for his compassion, humility, and unwavering belief in the goodness of people, Judge Caprio touched the lives of millions through his work in the courtroom and beyond,” the post announcing his death read.

“His warmth, humor, and kindness left an indelible mark on all who knew him.

“He will be remembered not only as a respected judge, but as a devoted husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather and friend.

“His legacy lives on in the countless acts of kindness he inspired. In his honor, may we each strive to bring a little more compassion into the world — just as he did every day.”

Caprio’s family said the beloved judge died peacefully.

‘GREAT BELIEVER’

In a gut-wrenching video shared to his 3.2 million Instagram followers, Caprio revealed that he had a health setback and was again hospitalized.

“Last year, I asked you to pray for me and it’s very obvious that you did because I came through a very difficult period,” Caprio said as he laid on his hospital bed.

In December 2023, he announced that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and began radiation treatment.

“Unfortunately I’ve had a setback, I’m back in the hospital now and I’m coming to you again asking you to remember me in your prayers once more,” Caprio continued in the emotional video.

“So, I ask you again, if it’s not too much, that you remember me in your prayers.

“I’m a great believer in the power of prayers. I think the almighty above is looking over us. So remember me, please.”

‘AMERICA’S NICEST JUDGE’

Caprio became a fixture in Providence, Rhode Island, after becoming a judge in 1985 – he even had his own daytime show, Caught in Providence, which ran from 2018 to 2020.

He received multiple Daytime Emmy Award nominations and left social media users in tears for the way he handled a speeding ticket involving a 96-year-old Victor Colella.

Colella appeared in an episode of Caprio’s show and was in court, representing himself, after being fined for speeding in a school zone.

Caprio immediately dismissed Colella’s case after the elderly man explained to him that he was not a fast driver, and was only driving to take his 63-year-old son, who is handicapped, to get his blood work because he had cancer.

“You are a good man. You really are what America is all about. Here you are in your 90s and you’re still taking care of your family. That’s just a wonderful thing for you,” Caprio told Colella in admiration.

He said more than once, “I don’t wear a badge under my robe. I wear a heart.”

Caprio served as a judge for the Providence Municipal Court for almost 40 years, retiring in October 2023.

Dan McKee, the governor of Rhode Island, ordered all flags at state agencies and buildings to be flown at half-mast in honor of Caprio.

“Judge Caprio was a Rhode Island treasure,” McKee wrote in a statement.

“On a personal level, he was a friend who faced his illness with bravery, and I will miss him dearly. My thoughts are with his family and loved ones, during this difficult time.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/15014263/frank-caprio-nicest-judge-in-the-world-dead/

AN actress, known for her roles in a string of ’90s films and TV shows, has resurfaced years after stepping out of the spotlight.

The actress – famously credited for her award-winning performance in the 1993 film Short Cuts, among other titles – was spotted on a rare outing on Tuesday.

Photos and video exclusively obtained by The U.S. Sun captured Madeleine Stowe shopping with her daughter, May Theodora, who shared a strong resemblance to the movie star.

The duo was seen strolling through shops in Venice, California, dressed casually as they chatted amongst themselves.

Madeleine, 67, appeared fresh-faced, donning loosely fitted light blue jeans, a graphic t-shirt, and her long dark locks flowing straight down.

Her 29-year-old daughter had a similar style, sporting denim shorts, a baggy blue t-shirt, and her matching dark hair falling down her back.

Madeleine shares May with her husband, Brian Benben, 69, who is also a well-known actor.

OFF THE GRID

This was the first sighting of Madeleine in quite some time as she’s stepped back from the limelight.

According to IMDB, her last TV credit was in 2019, in which she starred in 10 episodes of the Netflix original series, Soundtrack, alongside Jenna Dewan, Paul James, and Callie Hernandez.

However, Madeleine’s name has been in the news in recent months, though it wasn’t for her work on-screen.

HOA WAR

In January 2025, the TV star stood up against the Homeowners Association after they planned to shut down the roads in her Memphis, Tennessee, neighborhood to ward off crime.

Madeleine spoke to NBC affiliate WMC to voice her anger over the move, claiming the HOA didn’t have the “right” to close down the streets paid for by taxpayers.

She’s also argued that the change wasn’t for the safety of the residents, but rather to turn the neighborhood into a gated community.

Her husband has been a supportive partner in the fight, and the pair have hired a lawyer to represent their neighbors, who are also not pleased with the new plan.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/15011810/90s-star-spotted-first-time-leaving-hollywood/

Following talks about Ukraine in Washington early this week, Western states are working to fine tune the details of the much-discussed “security guarantees” for Ukraine.

One important question is how a possible ceasefire could be secured along the more than 1,000-kilometer-long (621 miles) front line in eastern Ukraine. Another is which countries would be prepared to send soldiers to Ukraine? And how many, and with what sort of mandate?

US: No ground troops, but possible air support

US President Donald Trump has spoken positively about supporting security guarantees for Ukraine but has left open exactly what they should look like. He has categorically ruled out the deployment of US troops on the ground in Ukraine.

He seems to assume that Germany, France and the UK are prepared to send troops to Ukraine to secure peace, as he told US broadcaster Fox News after the talks in Washington. He suggested that the US would be prepared to provide air support.

Germany: Nothing is clear regarding security guarantees

The German government does not seem to be as far advanced in its decision-making as Trump might like. “Germany’s contribution to security guarantees has not yet been determined and this issue will be decided at the political and military levels,” German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Tuesday.

He added that there were still too many uncertainties, for example, regarding further negotiations as well as the contribution of the US and other allies.

“This will have to be discussed carefully. And these talks are currently taking place,” German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told DW. “So far Germany and its willingness to take responsibility in this conflict” cannot be described as lacking, he noted.

What remains unclear is what mandate any international peacekeeping force might have. Germany’s opposition Left Party (Die Linke) has expressed preference for a UN blue helmet deployment instead of a NATO-led mission so as to avoid any direct confrontation between NATO and Russia. Some members of Germany’s Social Democrats, who are part of the country’s ruling coalition, are also critical about NATO troops being deployed in Ukraine.

Britain: Starmer is ready to lead the way

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has shown himself to be open to sending a peacekeeping force to Ukraine in principle, but only in the event of a permanent ceasefire. Should this occur, London would be prepared to take a leading role in enforcing security guarantees for Ukraine, Starmer has said. This could also include the deployment of troops to monitor the ceasefire, for example.

In February, British newspaper The Telegraph reported on a plan by London that would send 30,000 European troops to police a ceasefire. These would be deployed to guard Ukraine’s cities and ports, as well as critical infrastructure such as nuclear power plants, far from the front line. The mission would also rely heavily on technical surveillance. The use of drones, satellites, reconnaissance aircraft and naval patrols in the Black Sea were all possibilities.

In a virtual meeting with other leaders on Tuesday, Starmer said that, “Coalition of the Willing planning teams would meet with their US counterparts in the coming days to further strengthen plans to deliver robust security guarantees and prepare for the deployment of a reassurance force if the hostilities ended.”

France: Macron warns against a hasty peace

French President Emmanuel Macron recently warned against rushing into a deal without safeguards. “This peace must not be rushed and must be backed by solid guarantees, otherwise we will be starting over again,” he told French broadcaster TF1.

In the past, Macron has not ruled out sending French troops to Ukraine as part of a peacekeeping force.

In March, he presented a plan to send a “reassurance force” suggesting this might involve “a few thousand troops” per country, which would be stationed in “certain strategic locations” such as Kyiv, Odessa and Lviv. The mission would be defensive in nature, not for direct combat operations, and would act as a deterrent and for stabilization and training.

France has already carried out exercises in which conditions in Ukraine were simulated. During the maneuvers, soldiers received training on how to behave in the event of a Russian attack via Belarus. Drone defense, electronic warfare and tactical coordination were also part of the training.

Not all European states want to send troops

Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal and the Baltic states have also signaled their willingness to participate in a possible peacekeeping force in Ukraine.

However other European states are more cautious. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk rejects the deployment of Polish soldiers, which he says, would be extremely unpopular with the Polish population. Polls say that 85% of Poles reject the deployment of their own soldiers, even for a peacekeeping mission.

Hungary and Slovakia are also opposed to the deployment of European troops. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has even described the possible deployment of Western troops as “warmongering.”

Austria and Italy are also cautious. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is particularly skeptical about the deployment of NATO troops and would prefer a UN-led mission. Meloni has so far avoided making any clear commitments.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/which-european-countries-might-send-troops-to-ukraine/a-73709832

The personal luxury fashion market is losing its luster. Recent sales figures show that the industry, which proved resilient after pandemic lockdowns, is slowing down. Is luxury finally going out of style?

When athletes started to return their 2024 Paris Olympic medals after they began to corrode, it was an omen of things to come.

The medals were designed by French jeweler Chaumet, which LVMH, a luxury goods giant, owns.

Though the French mint produced the medals, LVMH suffered bad publicity after it made a spectacle of its corporate sponsorship of the games.

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/dior-gucci-and-other-luxury-brands-in-crisis-as-sales-slide-v2/a-73640638

After meeting with President Trump, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy indicated he was ready to talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz emphasized the need for thorough preparations.

Russian airstrikes have devastated the village of Raiske in eastern Ukraine, near Sloviansk, leaving homes destroyed and residents grieving.

Amid ongoing drone and missile attacks, even central cities like Kremenchuk are being hit.

As peace efforts continue to unfold in Washington and beyond, Ukrainian soldiers and civilians have expressed deep skepticism, fearing worsening conditions on the front lines.

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/ukraine-updates-allies-consider-future-zelenskyy-putin-talks/live-73686920

Armed men have stormed a mosque in Nigeria’s Katsina state during morning prayers, killing at least a dozen people. Officials say the assault may have been a reprisal following earlier clashes.

The attack came days after both town residents and the Nigerian military were reported to have targeted armed group members. The Reuters news agency reported that at least 27 worshippers had been killed in the mosque attack.

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/nigeria-gunmen-kill-worshippers-in-katsina-mosque-attack/a-73696588

Zoya Ahmed, 33, is going through a messy divorce in Karachi, Pakistan.

Her decision to end the marriage triggered a retaliatory campaign by her husband, who she said filed false police reports, including a criminal complaint alleging an extramarital affair, and triggered property disputes.

“This [extramarital affair case] is very anti-women. The kind of shame I have to face in the courtroom. Our courtrooms are full of men… the way everyone looks at me, it’s a different horror experience.”

Ahmed said sexual incompatibility was one of the reasons why the marriage unraveled.

She noted that her husband mocked and weaponized her desire for intimacy to shame her socially, telling her: “You wanted sex. Now you’ll get it.”

Several of her male friends have been named in the extramarital affair case, further damaging her social standing, she said.

Divorce remains deeply stigmatized across Asia. Even as divorce rates rise in many countries across the region, including India, Pakistan and Indonesia, the fallout for women remains severe.

Financial insecurity and emotional toll
In Pakistan, for instance, divorce is allowed under Islamic law. Married women in the country can initiate divorce proceedings but in many cases they are required to forfeit or return their Haq Mehr (dower) to the husband as compensation for the dissolution of the marriage.

One 34-year-old woman, who asked not to be named, said her attempt at divorce became a prolonged battle after discovering that the khula clause — a legal process for Muslim women to seek divorce — had been removed from her marriage contract.

Even when women retain the right to initiate divorce, the emotional consequences remain dire.

Naveen Notiar, a 40-year-old Pakistani woman now living in the UK, recalled her parents’ divorce. Her mother had insisted on including the khula clause in the marriage contract.

“My grandmother had this conversation with my father’s family about my mother being able to have a right to divorce at the time of when she signed her marriage contract, and my father’s family was fine with it.”

Her mother was later able to dissolve the marriage, but a custody battle followed.

“It’s often believed that a custody battle, or children, is something people can fight over, and it can be used to make a woman’s life hard,” said Notiar.

A 2020 study involving 427 divorced women in Pakistan’s Punjab province found that high rates of depression, anxiety, and stress were common among the women, largely driven by financial insecurity and family backlash.

Some argue that the most difficult part of divorce isn’t always the separation itself, but what follows, particularly around child custody and access.

In Pakistan, legal custody is often granted to the mother, especially when children are young.

Fathers are expected to provide financial support, but visitation is typically left to the mother’s discretion.

Abbas (name changed), a Pakistani father who pays court-ordered child support, said: “The mother and her family have completely cut off contact. It hurts that the children are deprived of the love of their paternal grandparents.”

Turkey plans to launch a long-awaited 5G frequency tender in October with initial service expected to be available in 2026, its transport and infrastructure minister said on Tuesday.

Abdulkadir Uraloglu said Turkey had consulted with its three major telecom operators and studied global 5G models, particularly in Europe.

All three operators – government-controlled Turkcell and Turk Telekom along with Vodafone’s Turkish unit – are expected to take part in the tender.

“We aim to publish the tender specifications this month and hold the tender in October,” he said in a ministry statement. “Our goal is to expand 5G across the entire country within a few years after the initial signal is received in 2026.”

Uraloglu had previously said he hoped to hold the tender in August.

According to a presidential decree published on Turkey’s official gazette on Saturday, the tender will include 11 frequency packages across the 700 MHz and 3.5 GHz bands, with individual package values ranging from $50 million to $425 million.

Source: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/turkey-aims-hold-5g-frequency-tender-october-minister-says-5302736

North Korea’s Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong Un, said South Korea and its President Lee Jae Myung had a “dual personality” by talking about wanting to pursue peace while continuing joint military drills with the US, state media KCNA said on Wednesday (Aug 20).

South Korea and its ally, the United States, kicked off joint military drills this week, including testing an upgraded response to heightened North Korean nuclear threats.

Pyongyang regularly criticises such drills as rehearsals for invasion and sometimes responds with weapons tests, but Seoul and Washington say they are purely defensive.

Since entering office in June, Lee’s government has sought to improve relations between the neighbours which are still technically at war following their 1950 to 1953 conflict, though top North Korean officials have been quoted by state media dismissing overtures made by the South’s liberal president.

Lee this week ordered his cabinet to prepare a partial step-by-step implementation of existing agreements with North Korea, and South Korea has begun removing loudspeakers that had been blaring anti-North Korea broadcasts along the border.

“Lee Jae Myung is not the sort of man who will change the course of history”, of confrontational ambition, Kim Yo Jong said, according to KCNA.

“They (South Korea) continue to tediously talk about peace and improved relations, being well aware that it is impossible to realise them, because they have an ulterior motive to finally shift the responsibility for the DPRK-ROK relations failing to recover on to the DPRK,” Kim said.

Source: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/north-korea-kim-yo-jong-south-korea-us-military-drill-dual-personality-5303576

He’s only human.

Joe Jonas revealed he accidentally gave a flight attendant a high-five on his way out of the bathroom after joining the mile-high club.

“I was wearing contacts,” Jonas said during the on-camera interview for the “Are You Okay?” show.

“I left the bathroom. I thought I was high-fiving my drummer,” he recalled in the clip shared on social media Tuesday. “After the high-five, I realized it was the flight attendant.”

While Jonas described it as an “embarrassing moment,” the dad of two, 36, clarified that the indiscretion happened on a private plane. “[Otherwise,] I would be banned from flying,” he quipped. When asked if it was “worth it,” Jonas quickly responded, “Yeah!”

In the TikTok comments thread, followers were full of opinions. “Joe having no filter is the best thing ever,” remarked one person, while another wrote, “I absolutely love this man. He’s such a comedian.”

A third wondered if they “have a shot with Joe Jonas,” while a fourth confessed, “this made me love him more.”

On X, others couldn’t help but joke about the incident. “Mile high club? Bro some of us are just trying to fit in the seat,” wrote one person, while another quipped, “Joe obviously has not been taking advantage of his status over the years.”

Joe — who famously wore a purity ring alongside brothers Nick and Kevin during their younger years — apparently has no shortage of “embarrassing” moments he’s willing to share.

In 2023, the singer confessed he was once forced to make a “mid-wardrobe s–t change” because he pooped his white pants onstage.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2025/08/19/celebrity-news/why-joe-jonas-mile-high-club-trip-keeps-him-up-at-night/

Tamar Braxton revealed that she woke up in a pool of blood after a mysterious near-fatal accident left her with a fractured nose and missing teeth.

“I struggled to write this but everyone keeps calling me and honestly, I can’t even really talk anymore, I’m so weak,” the singer wrote via her Instagram Stories Tuesday.

“I almost died Sunday. I was found in a pool of blood from my friend with a face injury. As the days go by the worse it is. I fractured my nose, lost some teeth and mobility.”

“The way I look at life now is totally different,” Braxton, 48, added. “As my health is on the mend, my mental journey begins … pray for me for real.

“I don’t even know what happened to me.”

Reps for the TV personality weren’t immediately available to Page Six for comment.

In additional Instagram Stories, Braxton shared a post that read, “Thank you God for waking me up today.” She also shared a photo of the Bible verse Proverbs 31.

She also promoted a new pre-recorded episode for her series “Caught in the Act,” which will be released on MTV Tuesday night.

The reality star has previously detailed health scares, including when she was taken to the hospital via an ambulance in December 2022 after experiencing flu-like symptoms and needing oxygen.

“I thought God was taking me home cause I could not breathe and my chest was on FIRE!!” she wrote on social media at the time, per Fox News.

Braxton shared she had the flu and was prescribed five different medications. She described it as “worse than COVID in (her) opinion.”

In June 2021, she got candid about her mental health struggles and a 2020 suicide attempt during an interview with People.

“That time of my life was so dark and so heavy,” she told the outlet. “I didn’t see how I was going to come out on the other side. I didn’t even know that there was another side. But I chose to change my life.”

“Most people think, ‘Oh, she went to a hotel, probably took a bunch of drugs, was on a binge.’ It didn’t happen like that,” Braxton explained. “It was just everyday life, trying to figure out how to get through the day and then…”

At the time, she was home with her son, Logan, now 11, and then-boyfriend David Adefeso, who found her unresponsive.

Braxton also touched on how she was sexually assaulted as a child.

Braxton is currently single and was last linked to her ex-fiancé, Jeremy “JR” Robinson, whom she was engaged to twice.

The exes first got engaged in March 2023 before briefly splitting and reconciling later that year.

It’s unclear when Robinson and Braxton called it quits, but she revealed in March that she had been celibate for about a year and wouldn’t date until her son Logan turns18.

“There’s no way I’m going to bring another man into his life to be unsuccessful. There’s no way,” she shared on an episode of “Sherri,” per People.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2025/08/19/celebrity-news/tamar-braxton-found-in-a-pool-of-blood-after-near-fatal-accident/

KYLIE Jenner and Timothee Chalamet have responded to breakup rumors as they reunited at a Budapest coffee shop.

It comes as the Hollywood power couple recently had fans speculating they could be going their separate ways after some “tell-tale signs.”

Kylie, 28, and Timothee, 29, who have been dating since 2023, put any rumors of a break-up to bed when they reunited after 45 days apart.

The last time the couple were spotted together was on a yacht on July 5, in St Tropez, France.

But now they are back together, after the youngest Kardashians star went to visit her man in Budapest, where he is currently filming Dune 3.

Kylie and Timothee thrilled two employees at a local coffee shop, when they took a picture with them.

Proving they were definitely still a couple, they posed happily with the star-struck fans.

Posting on the Instagram page for Budapest Baristas, one of the employees wrote, “Today Kylie Jenner and Timothée Chalamet just walked in to our coffeeshop at Buda we were so in confusion, we could barley concentrate, but I think you can see on our face.”

SPLIT SPECULATION

The happy couple faced split rumors after Timothee was noticeably absent from Kylie’s 28th birthday recently.

She then posted on Instagram that she had been listening to break-up anthems, including Jeff Buckley’s Lover, You Should’ve Come Over and Labi Saffre’s Crying, Laughing, Loving, Lying.

Fans recognized she did this just before after her split with Travis Scott, and believed it was a sign that she has called time with Timothee.

Sharing theories on Reddit, one fan wrote, “Obviously could mean nothing, but I don’t post break up songs casually myself. Hoping it’s nothing though!!”

This prompted another to write, “Oof, the first sign of her breakup with Travis was random breakup songs. Could be nothing, she’s still following him…

“Edit: yeah I interpret the song as a man messing up, but he still wants to be with his (ex?) lover. Definitely a yearning thing.”

However, others thought it might not be a sign of a split, with one noting, “Could actually be a suggestion by Timothee especially since a Jeff Buckley documentary just came out today.”

“But then she posted the 2nd breakup song from another artist (she actually posted it twice to tell us she’s actually listening to it)” noted another.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/15005446/kylie-jenner-timothee-chalamet-respond-breakup-rumors-budapest/

Russia struck the central Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk overnight, leaving a thick column of smoke hovering over the city in an attack that the local mayor called a sign that Russian President Vladimir Putin does not want peace.
The bombardment on that city as well as other locations in Ukraine was Russia’s largest so far in August, according to the Ukrainian air force. It followed Donald Trump’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and European leaders in Washington on Monday as the U.S. president seeks an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Moscow launched 270 drones and 10 missiles, the Ukrainian air force said. Although it said it had downed 230 of the drones, it said 16 sites were struck.
“While hard work to advance peace was underway in Washington, D.C. … Moscow continued to do the opposite of peace: more strikes and destruction,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote on X.
The governor of Poltava region, where Kremenchuk is located, said there were no casualties but nearly 1,500 households were left without electricity.
The Energy Ministry said energy facilities were hit in the attack, resulting in damage and a large fire.

The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces hit an oil refinery supplying Ukraine’s military. Kremenchuk is home to a large refinery, although the ministry did not say if this was the one that was struck.
Russian officials also said a Ukrainian drone attack overnight caused fires at an oil refinery and a hospital roof in the Volgograd region.
Both sides have been targeting infrastructure including oil facilities on each other’s territory.
“Once again, the world has seen that Putin does not want peace — he wants to destroy Ukraine,” said Kremenchuk Mayor Vitalii Maletskyi.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-bombards-ukrainian-city-hours-after-washington-summit-2025-08-19/

Israel is studying Hamas’ response to a proposal for a 60-day ceasefire and release of half the hostages still held in Gaza, two Israeli officials said on Tuesday, although one source reiterated that all Israeli captives must be freed for the war to end.
Efforts to pause the fighting gained new momentum over the past week after Israel announced plans for a new offensive to seize control of Gaza City at the heart of the Palestinian enclave.

Mediators Egypt and Qatar have been pushing proposals to restart indirect talks between the sides on a U.S.-backed ceasefire plan.
The proposals include the release of 200 Palestinian convicts jailed in Israel and an unspecified number of imprisoned women and minors, in return for 10 living and 18 deceased hostages from Gaza, according to a Hamas official.
Two Egyptian security sources confirmed the details, and added that Hamas has requested the release of hundreds of Gaza detainees as well.
Israel says a total of 50 hostages remain in Gaza, 20 of them still alive.
“Israel’s policy is consistent and has not changed. Israel demands the release of all 50 hostages in accordance with the principles established by the cabinet for ending the war. We are in the final decisive stage of Hamas and will not leave any hostage behind,” an Israeli political source said.

The comment, while adamant, fell short of an outright rejection of the proposal on the table.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was expected to convene discussions about the ceasefire proposal soon, the two Israeli officials said. A response was expected in the coming two days, said a Palestinian source close to the talks.
Before Hamas responded on Monday to the proposal, Netanyahu had ruled out any deal that excluded the return of all the hostages.
Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Majed Al Ansari said the 60-day truce deal would include “a pathway to a comprehensive agreement to end the war.”
The proposal includes a partial withdrawal of Israeli forces, which presently control 75% of Gaza and the entry of more humanitarian aid into the enclave, where a population of 2.2 million people is increasingly facing famine.

Israel had previously agreed to the outline, advanced by U.S. special Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, but negotiations faltered over some of its details. The last round of talks ended in deadlock in late July.
While Israel’s political echelon weighed a response, Defence Minister Israel Katz met commanders late on Tuesday. Public broadcaster Kan’s military correspondent Itay Blumental said on X the meeting was to approve plans to capture Gaza City.
The post cited four stages to the plans: building humanitarian infrastructure in the southern Gaza Strip, evacuation of Gaza City, encirclement of Gaza City and manoeuvring into Gaza City.
Thousands of people fearing an imminent Israeli ground offensive are estimated to have fled the area in the past few days for points to the west and south in the shattered territory.

On the ground, there were no signs of a ceasefire nearing as Israeli gunfire, tank shelling and airstrikes killed at least 20 Palestinians on Tuesday, according to Gaza health officials.
At a shelter in Khan Younis, in the south of the enclave, displaced people had mixed feelings over whether a deal would be reached this time.
“I expect – every time the (Israeli) occupation would be obstinate, reject and receive proposals with negative responses – I expect the same for this proposal as well,” said Abdallah Al-Khawaja.
Women sat by wood fires cooking meals for their families, while men filled plastic gallons with water; many hoped Israel would approve the proposal.
“What I say and expect as a member of the Palestinian people living in the Gaza Strip, one of the bereaved and displaced, is that I expect a positive response (from Israel),” said Awad Labde.

ISRAELI PROTESTERS DEMAND DEAL

In Israel, the threatened offensive prompted tens of thousands of Israelis on Sunday to hold some of the largest protests since the war began, urging a deal to end the fighting and free the remaining hostages held in Gaza.
Netanyahu faces domestic political pressure from his far-right government partners who object to a truce with Hamas. Ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir have demanded to keep the war going until Hamas’ defeat, and annex Gaza.
Groups representing Israeli families of those held hostage have demanded their return to Israel and an end to the war.
Hamas official Izzat El-Reshiq said that the truce proposal it has agreed to is an interim accord that would pave the way for negotiations on ending the war.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-weighs-hamas-offer-60-day-gaza-truce-hostage-release-2025-08-19/

The Chinese statement comes after S Jaishankar and Wang Yi on Monday discussed border peace, trade issues and bilateral exchanges.

Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi said China and India should establish “correct strategic understanding” and regard each other as partners, a Chinese readout showed.

The Chinese statement comes after external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Wang Yi on Monday discussed border peace, trade issues and bilateral exchanges, aiming to strengthen cooperation between the two countries, Hindustan Times earlier reported.

The Chinese foreign minister said exchanges and dialogue at all levels between the two countries had been gradually restored, and bilateral relations were returning to cooperation.

Wang also urged both sides, as major countries, to set an example for other developing countries to unite and strengthen themselves, news agency Reuters reported, citing the Chinese statement.

Wang arrived in New Delhi on Monday for a two-day visit during which he will hold the 24th round of border talks with Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and also meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Earlier, Jaishankar said India and China need a “candid and constructive” approach based on mutual respect and sensitivity to drive their relations forward after a difficult period, reiterating New Delhi’s call to take the de-escalation process along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) forward.

Besides discussing economic and trade issues, river data sharing, border trade, connectivity and bilateral exchanges at a meeting with Wang, Jaishankar brought up “particular concerns” he had raised at his last meeting with his counterpart in Beijing in July.

Wang is the first Chinese minister to travel to India since the two sides reached an understanding last October to end the military standoff on the LAC that began in April-May 2020. The face-off and a brutal clash in Galwan Valley in June 2020 took bilateral ties to a six-decade low.

For Japanese people, KitKat became a lucky charm as its name sounded like Kitto Katsu, a phrase meaning “you will surely succeed”.

KitKat may be a global favourite, enjoyed in over 100 countries, but in Japan, it carries a story like no other. When the product first arrived in 1973, it was simply another sweet treat, and it was initially rejected by the locals, as “the sweet taste didn’t match Japanese preferences.” Fast forward to today, and KitKat stands as one of Japan’s top-selling chocolates. So, what changed? How did this simple candy bar transform into a national treasure? Let’s find out

KitKat’s Rocky Start In Japan

Haunted doll fashion is Gen Z’s latest obsession, blending eerie lace, porcelain makeup, and ironic camp. Creepy yet chic, it’s redefining self-expression, turning horror-inspired style into 2025’s spookiest trend.

The fashion world has always borrowed from the eerie and the unexpected, but 2025 has given us its strangest muse yet: haunted dolls. Once confined to creepy attic boxes and horror movies, they’re now stepping into closets, TikToks, and even runway shows. The haunted doll aesthetic is more than a spooky gimmick, it’s a cultural mood, a playful rebellion, and a style statement Gen Z can’t resist.

So, what does “haunted doll fashion” actually mean? Think lace-trimmed dresses with an unsettling Victorian twist. Think porcelain-like makeup with big, exaggerated lashes, pale skin, and a pop of crimson lips. Think layered frills, puffed sleeves, bows, and accessories that look both precious and uncanny. It’s fashion that straddles the line between pretty and unsettling, doll-like and otherworldly. The uncanny valley is suddenly chic.

Part of the appeal lies in how Gen Z approaches identity and aesthetics. Haunted doll fashion plays directly into the internet’s love for the weird, the ironic, and the performative. Dressing like a haunted doll is part self-expression, part satire, it’s saying, “I know I look like I stepped out of a horror movie, and that’s exactly the point.” On TikTok, creators show off thrifted baby-doll dresses with cracked porcelain filters. On Instagram, the vibe translates into moody shoots with bows, stockings, and doll-inspired poses that toe the line between cute and creepy.

The incident is raising public concern about how Hong Kong authorities had missed telltale signs of a scam amounting to nearly US$7 million.

Hong Kong police said on Aug 18 they have arrested two people over a suspected scam involving a water supplier that may have cheated the government in a contract worth nearly US$7 million.

A company named Xin Ding Xin won a deal in June to provide 1.88 million bottles of water which would go into dispensers in some government offices – the first time such a contract went to a Chinese brand, according to local media.

But police said the firm was found to have relied on false documents during the tender process, claiming to source its water from another mainland Chinese supplier when in fact they had no business ties.

Officers arrested a 61-year-old man and a 57-year-old woman for fraud on Aug 17, seizing around 2,600 bottles of water in a warehouse along with documents and electronic devices.

The arrests have prompted water-cooler discussions across the Chinese finance hub on how bureaucrats missed the telltale signs of a scam when awarding a 36-month contract worth HK$52.9 million (US$6.8 million).

Payment for the delivered batches has not yet been settled, according to police.

The Government Logistics Department said on Aug 18 that it terminated its bottled water supply contract with Xin Ding Xin, as well as “three other contracts for supply of chemicals which were affiliated with XDX’s owner”.

Source: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/hong-kong-water-scam-fraud-5301786

The illegal migrant truck driver who allegedly killed three people after making a rogue U-turn on a Florida highway was handed work papers under the Biden administration after they were denied during President Trump’s first term, the Department of Homeland Security said Monday.

Harjinder Singh crossed the southern border into California in September 2018 and was processed for fast-track deportation by the first Trump administration, sources told The Post.

The Indian national was previously processed for deportation, but was able to stay after claiming he feared being sent back home. Singh was later released on a $5,000 immigration bond in January 2019 and still awaits a decision on his asylum case.

After receiving his work permit in June 2021, Singh was able to secure a Commercial Driver’s License in California, according to DHS.

On Monday, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin hit back at an X post from California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office after it accused the Trump administration of issuing the work permit and either “lying” or acting “clueless” about it.

“False. Harjinder Singh is in the United States illegally and his work authorization was rejected under the Trump Administration on September 14, 2020. It was later approved under the Biden Administration June 9, 2021,” said McLaughlin.

“The state of California issues Commercial Drivers Licenses. There is no national CDL. Sincerely, Genius,” she concluded.

US Marshals in California nabbed Singh on Saturday on a warrant for three counts of vehicular homicide in connection with the deadly crash in Florida at around 3 p.m. last Thursday.

Singh allegedly made a hard left turn while driving a tractor-trailer on the Florida Turnpike near Fort Pierce and attempted to cross the median through an “Official Use Only” pass, authorities said.

The trailer blocked all lanes of oncoming traffic when a minivan slammed into it at full speed. The victims’ vehicle became wedged underneath the trailer, killing a 37-year-old Pompano Beach woman, a 30-year-old Florida City man and a 54-year-old Miami man, Treasure Coast Newspapers reported.

The two passengers died at the scene, and the driver was transported to a local hospital, where he was later pronounced deceased.

Neither Singh nor his passenger was injured, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

Source: https://nypost.com/2025/08/18/us-news/illegal-migrant-truck-driver-suspect-in-deadly-florida-crash-was-given-work-permit-under-biden-after-being-denied-by-trump-dhs/

Hurricane Erin forced tourists to cut their vacations short on North Carolina’s Outer Banks even though the monster storm is expected to stay offshore after lashing part of the Caribbean with rain and wind on Monday.

Evacuations were ordered on some barrier islands along the Carolina coast as authorities warned the storm could churn up dangerous rip currents and swamp roads with waves of 15 feet (4.6 meters). Tropical storm and surge watches were issued Monday for much of the Outer Banks.

Officials at the Wrightsville Beach, near Wilmington, North Carolina, reported to the National Weather Service rescuing at least 60 swimmers from rip currents on Monday.

Tourists and residents waited for hours in a line of cars at Ocracoke Island’s ferry dock — the only way to leave other than by plane.

“We definitely thought twice,” said Seth Brotherton, of Catfish, North Carolina, whose weeklong fishing trip ended after two days. “But they said ‘mandatory’ and that pretty much means, ‘get out of here.’”

Forecasters are confident Erin will curl north and away from the eastern U.S., but it’s still expected to whip up wild waves and tropical force winds along the coastal islands, Dave Roberts of the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said.

The storm intensified to a Category 4 with 140 mph (225 kph) maximum sustained winds Monday while pelting the Turks and Caicos Islands, and the southeast Bahamas, according to the center. By Monday night, sustained winds had dropped some to 125 mph (200 kph) with Erin about 690 miles (1,110 kilometers) southwest of Bermuda and about 780 miles (1,255 kilometers) southeast of Cape Hatteras.

Government officials in the Turks and Caicos Islands said all services were suspended on three of its islands and ordered residents there to stay home. Some ports also closed.

On North Carolina’s Outer Banks, coastal flooding was expected to begin Tuesday and continue through Thursday.

The evacuations that began Monday on Hatteras Island and Ocracoke came at the height of tourist season on the thin stretch of low-lying barrier islands that jut into the Atlantic Ocean and are increasingly vulnerable to storm surges.

A year ago, Hurricane Ernesto stayed hundreds of miles offshore yet still produced high surf and swells that caused coastal damage.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/hurricane-erin-outer-banks-f1c426e963cd8e5433d420df23fbc88e

Google has agreed to pay a 55 million Australian dollar ($36 million) fine for signing anticompetitive deals with Australia’s two largest telcos that banned the installation of competing search engines on some smartphones, the U.S. tech giant and Australia’s competition watchdog said.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said in a statement it had commenced proceedings in the Australian Federal Court on Monday against the Singapore-based Google Asia Pacific division. The court will decide whether the AU$50 million ($36 million) penalty is appropriate.

Under the anticompetitive agreements, which were in place for 15 months until March 2021, Telstra and Optus only pre-installed Google Search on Android phones sold to customers. Other search engines were excluded. In return, the telcos received a share of the advertisement revenue Google generated from those customers.

Google accepted that the agreements were likely to have the effect of “substantially lessening competition,” the commission said.

Google has also signed a court-enforceable undertaking that commits the company to removing certain pre-installation and default search engine restrictions from its contracts with Android phone manufacturers and telcos, the commission said.

The tech company said in a statement: “We’re pleased to resolve the ACCC’s concerns, which involved provisions that haven’t been in our commercial agreements for some time.”

Commissioner chair Gina-Cass Gottlieb said: “Conduct that restricts competition is illegal in Australia because it usually means less choice, higher costs or worse service for consumers.”

“Importantly, these changes come at a time when AI search tools are revolutionising how we search for information, creating new competition,” Cass-Gottlieb added.

Last year, Telstra, Optus and their smaller rival TPG agreed to court-enforceable undertakings with the commission that they would not renew or make similar deals with Google to limit search options.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/australia-google-android-anticompetitive-android-8b65a65c0eb68ad83fb9d03d61a07d4a

Rubio was speaking about the challenges of a ceasefire in connection to the war in Ukraine.

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday said that the US keeps an eye on what is happening between Pakistan and India “every single day”.

Rubio, who was speaking about the challenges of a ceasefire in connection to the war in Ukraine, said, “…the only way to have a ceasefire is for both sides to agree to stop firing at one another. And the Russians just haven’t agreed to that.”

Rubio, who was speaking about the challenges of a ceasefire in connection to the war in Ukraine, said, “…the only way to have a ceasefire is for both sides to agree to stop firing at one another. And the Russians just haven’t agreed to that.”

The US Secretary of State said that beyond reaching a ceasefire, one of the complications is maintaining it, adding that it is very difficult, PTI reported. “I mean, every single day we keep an eye on what’s happening between Pakistan and India, what’s happening between Cambodia and Thailand,” Rubio said.

In an interview to NBC News Meet The Press, Rubio said that ceasefires “can fall apart very quickly”, adding that this is especially relevant when it comes to a a three-and-a-half-year war (in Ukraine). Rubio said that the US was therefore not aiming for a permanent ceasefire, but was looking for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

“….I don’t think anyone disagrees that the ideal here, what we’re aiming for is not some permanent ceasefire. What we’re aiming for here is a peace deal so there’s not a war now and there’s not a war in the future,” Rubio said.

Rubio also mentioned the conflict between India and Pakistan in an interview with Fox Business. “And I think we are very fortunate and blessed and should be thankful to have a President who has made peace and the achievement of peace a priority of his administration. We’ve seen it in Cambodia and Thailand. We’ve seen it in India-Pakistan,” Rubio said, repeating a claim made by US President Donald Trump multiple times in the past.

However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during the discussion on Operation Sindoor in Parliament, stated that no leader of any country had asked India to stop Operation Sindoor. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has also said that there was no third-party intervention in reaching a ceasefire with Pakistan during Operation Sindoor.

Source: https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/we-keep-an-eye-on-india-pak-situation-every-single-day-us-secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-101755464595283.html

Downtown in the City of Angels is looking more and more like a ghost town.

The famed Los Angeles neighborhood has become a shadow of its former glory — with rows of boarded up shops, chain stores leaving in droves and hoards of drug-using vagrants sparking major safety concerns for shoppers and business owners alike.

The Post can reveal that there are more than 100 vacant storefronts in the area’s Historic Core, which was the rip-roaring heart of the downtown shopping and entertainment district.

The area’s Art Deco buildings and lavish theater marquees are still there, but they now overlook busted windows, boarded-up storefronts, and throngs of homeless people smoking drugs from glass pipes in broad daylight.

Around one-third of commercial spaces sits empty, according to research firm Avison Young — a higher vacancy rate than Detroit.

Even the most stalwart businesses are being driven out by crime, record-high rents and an ever-shrinking pool of Angelenos with any reason to be downtown, according to business owners.

“Many historical independent restaurants are struggling under the weight of these issues and have already closed, while those remaining are fighting to survive,” wrote the LA’s oldest eatery, Cole’s French Dip, when it announced its forthcoming closure.

And it’s not just mom-and-pop joints — chain stores have also been closing downtown locations at a disastrous clip. Macy’s shuttered earlier this year as part of a massive corporate downsizing, leaving downtown without a department store for the first time in 150 years, according to LA Magazine.

Retailers Vans, Theory, Paul Smith and Acne have also vacated the nabe. In 2022, Starbucks closed one of its downtown locations, citing safety concerns.

The downtown Adidas store, which was looted during the anti-ICE riots this summer, remains boarded up and closed following the break-in — though the company has made no announcement that it’s shutting the location down.

Each month, the streets of downtown get a little emptier — save for the homeless wandering into downtown from Skid Row in ever greater numbers.

“They’re coming all the way up to Spring Street now,” said one barber who works in the city’s “Historic Core.”

The day before speaking to The Post, the barber, who asked not to be named, had to call the cops when a homeless man stormed into the shop and barricaded himself inside.

“Everything is different now,” he said. “You used to have people partying in the street. Students would come in from the colleges. They’d get a haircut and go out and have fun.”

Before the pandemic, downtown LA was in the middle of a renaissance the likes of which it hadn’t seen since the Roaring Twenties, when playboys and flappers perused the boutiques and glittering movie palaces of Broadway Street, according to historian William Deverell, author of “Whitewashed Adobe: The Rise of Los Angeles.”

“There was a high-water mark around 2015 to 2020. It was a period of energy and redevelopment in the Arts District, in addition to the Historic Core,” Deverell said.

But COVID-19 dealt a blow that downtown is still reeling from — and not just because people stopped going out.

Rioters smashed and looted dozens of shops and restaurants during the BLM protests, and many businesses either never reopened or went under within the year.

Today, many street-level businesses leave their windows boarded up as a standard precaution.

And some of the neighborhood’s most famous landmarks have become the biggest eyesores — including the empty former headquarters of the Los Angeles Times and the boarded-up Morrison Hotel, featured on the cover of the namesake Doors album.

A skyscraper sits empty: The abandoned 677-foot Oceanwide Plaza tower has become a giant playground for hooligans and vandals.

Down on the ground, criminals run roughshod, locals complain.

Violent crime is down in the city overall, but downtown LA feels like a huge exception, said the owner of Benny Jewelry Behzad on Broadway.

“It’s been a 180-degree change here,” said Benny, adding that he’s been held up at gunpoint twice in recent years.

Benny said his real problem is rent, which has gone up 2-5% each year since the pandemic.

He isn’t alone: Commercial rent in downtown reached a record high this year, with businesses shelling out almost $50 per square foot just for office space, according to Avison Young

By comparison, the average office rent in downtown Manhattan in New York City is $57 per square foot, and nearly $90 per square foot in Midtown — areas that have seen a boom from post-pandemic return-to-office policies.

“Landlords need lower rents instead of just holding onto empty spaces,” said Michael Backlinder, whose coffee shop features one of the only outdoor dining spaces left on Broadway.

“Landlords need to understand they aren’t sitting on a gold mine,” he said.

Yet Backlinder believes downtown remains a decent place for those who live there, thanks to a core of local watering holes, community art galleries, yoga studios and other services catering to neighborhood folk.

Glen Proctor, who moved from New York with his husband after the pandemic, said they like the quieter streets — even if those streets come with graffiti and hooligans.

“Our life from New York is much more relaxed,” he said. “It can get crazy with the unhoused around, but you get a lot more space for something you would pay a lot more for in Hollywood.”

Proctor and his husband aren’t alone: More Angelenos are choosing to live downtown rather than vie for space in ritzier neighborhoods. Apartment occupancy is currently around 90%, according to the DTLA Alliance, which is higher than pre-pandemic levels.

Backlinder believes neighborhood is due for a comeback, but it won’t get one by trying to be the next Greenwich Village.

Source : https://nypost.com/2025/08/17/us-news/how-downtown-los-angeles-turned-into-a-crime-ridden-eyesore/

Hurricane Erin is likely to restrengthen again as it passes east of the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeast Bahamas on Monday after lashing the Caribbean with damaging winds and flooding rain. Eventually, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said Erin’s impacts will spread to the entire US East Coast with life-threatening beach conditions later this week.

Hurricane Erin, which became the first major hurricane of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, is no doubt going to be a storm for the history books. The powerful storm rapidly intensified over the weekend, going from a Category 1 hurricane to a catastrophic Category 5 hurricane with winds of 160 mph in a matter of hours.

While Erin is forecast to stay east of the US, impacts from this monster storm will be felt up and down the US East Coast, including on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. On Sunday, officials in Dare County ordered evacuations for Hatteras Island and declared a state of emergency for the entire county due to the “life-threatening impacts to the Dare County coastline.”

Over the weekend, ports were closed and flights were canceled, impacting travel, and local officials told residents to prepare for potentially life-threatening impacts from Erin as it brushed by the Caribbean islands.

As of the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center (NHC), Hurricane Erin remains a major Category 3 hurricane with winds of 125 mph as the storm continues to move off to the west-northwest at 13 mph.

“Erin exhibited an eyewall replacement earlier today, with the eye diameter increasing from 5-10 n miles to around 40 n miles. If the replacement cycle completes, there should be a contraction of the eyewall by tonight,” the NHC wrote on Sunday evening. “This would likely result in another intensification episode.”

Hurricane Erin is also getting larger – hurricane-force winds extend about 25 miles from the storm’s center, and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 205 miles.

“The hurricane will also grow in size,” FOX Weather Hurricane Specialist Bryan Norcross said. “As the circulation diameter gets larger, the peak winds normally diminish because the energy in the system is spread out over a larger area.”

Hurricane Erin is expected to continue to move off to the west-northwest on Sunday with a decrease in forward speed before a gradual turn to the north on Monday and Tuesday.

The center of Hurricane Erin is forecast to pass to the east of the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeastern Bahamas on Sunday night and Monday.

Hurricane Erin is currently located about 275 miles to the north-northwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico, and about 165 miles to the east of Grand Turk in the Turks and Caicos Islands, where a Tropical Storm Warning is in effect.

A Tropical Storm Warning has been issued for the southeastern Bahamas.

While the Caribbean islands were spared a direct hit from the catastrophic impacts of Hurricane Erin, conditions remain extremely dangerous over Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands as outer bands lashed the region with gusty winds and heavy rain.

The NHC said those outer bands will continue to impact the area on Sunday, and forecast rain totals of 3-6 inches, with isolated totals of up to 8 inches, are expected.

The National Weather Service office in San Juan has issued severe Flash Flood Warnings for the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico as the storm scoots by to the north.

So far, at least 9 inches of rain has fallen across Tortola in the British Virgin Islands, with Caguas and Camuy in Puerto Rico and St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands picking up more than 2 inches of rain.

Local officials have urged residents to be aware of possible mudslides and landslides due to the relentless rounds of rain from Hurricane Erin’s outer bands that have been lashing the region.

Squalls with wind gusts to tropical-storm force could also occur over portions of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico on Sunday.

According to utility company LUMA, more than 150,000 power outages were reported across Puerto Rico as Hurricane Erin scooted by the island early Sunday morning.

“The adverse weather has caused multiple interruptions across the island,” the company said. “Our teams continue to work to address each situation as quickly and safely as possible.”

In addition, tropical-storm conditions are expected within the Tropical Storm Warning area in the Turks and Caicos Islands starting Sunday night, and in the southeastern Bahamas later Sunday night and Monday.

But it isn’t just the relentless rain and wind that could be life-threatening.

Ocean swells generated by Hurricane Erin will continue to affect portions of the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola and the Turks and Caicos Islands over the next few days.

Massive swells will spread to the Bahamas, Bermuda, the East Coast of the US and Atlantic Canada during the early to middle portion of the workweek.

Those rough conditions will also likely lead to life-threatening rip currents along East Coast beaches.

Will Hurricane Erin hit the US?

A 63-year-old American tourist was severely injured after a shark attacked him while he was spearfishing in the Bahamas, according to authorities.

The frightening encounter occurred just after 1 p.m. Sunday near Big Grand Cay, a remote stretch of the Abaco Islands, the Royal Bahamas Police Force said in a statement.

The man, whose identity has not yet been released, was yanked from the water with severe injuries and rushed to a local clinic before being airlifted to the US for additional treatment, police said.

The victim’s current condition is unknown.

Spearfishing is a popular recreational sport in the Bahamas involving impaling a fish’s body with a long, sharp tool, such as a spear, gig, or harpoon.

The Bahamas has earned a reputation as a shark hotspot thanks to a few high profile cases, though attacks still remain rare.

There have been 34 confirmed shark attacks in the Bahamas over the last 400 years, according to the International Shark Attack File, which ranks it ninth highest in terms of shark encounters among all countries tracked by the database.

An American tourist thought she was “going to die” after a shark attacked her and her friend while swimming at the vacation hotspot in February.

In late March, a spate of shark attacks and crime across the Bahamas prompted US officials to reissue a travel advisory against the Caribbean nation right in the thick of the spring break travel rush.

Source : https://nypost.com/2025/08/17/world-news/us-tourist-attacked-by-shark-severely-injured-while-spearfishing-in-the-bahamas/

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group said protesters would “shut down the country today with one clear call: Bring back the 50 hostages, end the war”.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered on Sunday (Aug 17) evening in Tel Aviv to call for an end to the war in Gaza and the release of hostages, one of the largest demonstrations in Israel since the start of the fighting in October 2023.

The rally was the culmination of a day of nationwide protests and a general strike to pressure the government to halt the military campaign.

“Bring them all home! Stop the war!” shouted the vast crowd which had converged on the so-called “Hostage Square” in Tel Aviv plaza – a focal point for protesters throughout the war.

The Hostage and Missing Families Forum, the initiator of the day of protest, estimated that about 500,000 people joined the evening demonstration in Tel Aviv – a figure not confirmed by the police.

“We demand a comprehensive and achievable agreement and an end to the war. We demand what is rightfully ours — our children,” said Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan and a leading figure of the protest movement.

“The Israeli government has transformed a just war into a pointless war,” she told the crowd.

National media published a video message by Matan Zangauker on Sunday, in which the hostage, weak and emaciated, addressed his family and told them he missed them. The video was filmed by Hamas and found in Gaza by the army, the family said.

“This is probably the last minute we have to save the hostages,” demonstrator Ofir Penso, 50, told AFP.

A DAY OF PROTESTS

The protests come more than a week after Israel’s security cabinet approved plans to capture Gaza City, 22 months into a war that has created dire humanitarian conditions in the Palestinian territory.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum campaign group vowed Sunday that protesters would “shut down the country” with the goal of bringing back the hostages and ending the war.

Throughout the country, demonstrators blocked traffic arteries, set tyres on fire and clashed with the police. More than 30 protesters were arrested, law enforcement said.

In many places, though, AFP journalists saw businesses carrying on unimpeded.

In Jerusalem’s main shopping district, it was business as usual.

A shop assistant in the city centre said the owner supported the campaign for the hostages’ return but chose not to participate in the strike.

“Everyone is helping the way they can,” she said, declining to give her name.

Netanyahu slammed the protesters, saying their actions “not only harden Hamas’s position and draw out the release of our hostages, but also ensure that the horrors of Oct 7 will reoccur”.

Egypt said in recent days mediators were leading a renewed push to secure a 60-day truce deal that includes hostages being released, after the last round of talks in Qatar ended without a breakthrough.

Some Israeli government members who oppose any deal with Hamas slammed Sunday’s demonstrations.

Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich decried “a perverse and harmful campaign that plays into the hands of Hamas” and calls for “surrender”.

However, Benny Gantz, an opposition leader, condemned the government for “attacking the families of the hostages” while “bearing responsibility for the captivity of their children by Hamas for nearly two years”.

“Israelis are not all alike. There is a substantial part … that opposes the official policy,” he added amid the crowd of protesters, some of them carrying flags emblazoned with “681”, the number of days hostages have been held in Gaza.

The police said more than 30 protesters were arrested.

Organisers had called for a general strike on the first day of the working week in Israel. Despite this, it was business as usual in Jerusalem’s main shopping district.

FAMINE WARNINGS

The Israeli plan to expand the war into Gaza City and nearby refugee camps has sparked an international outcry as well as domestic opposition.

On Sunday, Israeli military chief of staff Lieutenant General Eya Zamir said the army was moving ahead with a plan “focusing on Gaza City”.

Hamas warned it would result in “a new wave of extermination and mass displacement”.

Army Radio said residents would be evacuated before troops encircled and seized Gaza City in the coming weeks, with tens of thousands of reservists called up.

UN-backed experts have warned of widespread famine unfolding in the territory, where Israel has heavily limited the amount of humanitarian aid it allows in.

Gaza’s civil defence agency said Israeli fire on Sunday killed over sixty Palestinians, including at least 37 waiting to collect food aid near two sites.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/protests-israel-hamas-war-gaza-offensive-hostages-ceasefire-5298711

US President Donald Trump could offer NATO-like protection of Ukraine, and Russia is open to the idea, one of his top foreign policy officials said on Sunday (Aug 17) ahead of a meeting with Ukraine and European leaders to hammer out details of possible security guarantees for Kyiv.

“We were able to win the following concession, that the United States could offer Article 5-like protection,” Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy to Russia, told CNN’s “State of the Union” program. “The United States could offer Article 5 protection, which was the first time we had ever heard the Russians agree to that.”

Witkoff was referring to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which regards any attack against one of its 32 members as an attack on all. He suggested that a security guarantee of that scale could be offered to Ukraine in lieu of NATO membership, which Putin has ruled out.

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and has been gradually advancing for months in the deadliest war in Europe for 80 years,

Witkoff and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who were both in the room when Trump met Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday, gave a series of TV interviews ahead of a Monday meeting in Washington with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and leaders of some European allies.

“We made some progress, we believe, and now we have to follow up on that progress,” Rubio told CNN’s “State of the Union” about the meeting with Putin. “Ultimately, where this should lead is to a meeting between the three leaders, between Zelenskyy, Putin and President Trump, where we can finalize, but we got to get this thing closer before we get to that point.”

Russian officials are opposed to Western troops in Ukraine, but have not ruled out a security guarantee for Kyiv. Speaking during a joint media appearance with Trump after their nearly three-hour long meeting, Putin said on Friday: “I agree with President Trump. He said today that Ukraine’s security must be ensured by all means. Of course, we are ready to work on this.”

Witkoff told “Fox News Sunday” that Russia had also agreed to passing a law against taking any more of Ukraine by force.

“The Russians agreed on enshrining legislatively language that would prevent them from – or that they would attest to not attempting to take any more land from Ukraine after a peace deal, where they would attest to not violating any European borders,” he said.

PEACE DEAL VS SURRENDER

Any security guarantees offered to Zelenskyy could also include a commitment from the United States, Rubio told Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures”, an option that many of Trump’s MAGA supporters have rejected up to now.

“It would be a very big move by the president, if he were to offer a US commitment to a security guarantee,” Rubio said. “It tells you how badly he wants peace, how much he values peace, that he would be willing to make a concession like that …That’s what we’ll talk about tomorrow.”

In a social media post, Trump wrote, “BIG PROGRESS ON RUSSIA. STAY TUNED!” But he gave no details.

Rubio said US officials discussed security details for Ukraine with the national security advisers of multiple European countries on Saturday, adding that the aim would be to build in details that could ultimately be presented to Russia as part of a peace agreement.

He told Fox News that the talks between Trump and Putin on Friday had narrowed the number of key issues, which include drawing borders and military alliances for Ukraine as well as security guarantees. “There’s a lot of work that remains,” Rubio added.

According to sources, Trump and Putin discussed proposals for Russia to relinquish tiny pockets of occupied Ukraine in exchange for Ukraine ceding a swathe of fortified land in the east and freezing the front lines elsewhere.

Rubio said Russia and Ukraine would not be able to get everything they want.

“If one side gets everything they want, that’s not a peace deal. It’s called surrender, and I don’t think this is a war that’s going to end anytime soon on the basis of surrender,” Rubio told CNN.

In a separate interview with ABC, Rubio said if a deal could not be reached to end the war, existing US sanctions on Russia would continue, and more could be added.

When Zelenskyy visited the White House in February, the meeting ended in a shouting match. Rubio, speaking to CBS, dismissed the idea that the European leaders were coming to Washington to protect Zelenskyy.

“They’re not coming here tomorrow to keep Zelenskyy from being bullied. They’re coming here tomorrow because we’ve been working with the Europeans,” he said. “We invited them to come.”

Kyiv will want security assurances in the form of military, economic, political and diplomatic assistance, said Olena Lennon, an adjunct professor at the University of New Haven’s department of national security.

“That will have to begin with an immediate ceasefire. All these talks about long-term security guarantees … have to begin with a concrete manifestation of the Russians actually being able to honor a ceasefire,” she noted.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/rubio-ukraine-war-russia-us-concessions-peace-deal-5298986

Rescuers struggled to retrieve bodies from muddy debris on Saturday (Aug 16) after flash floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains across northern Pakistan killed at least 344 people in the past 48 hours, authorities said.

The majority of deaths, 324, were reported in mountainous Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the National Disaster Management Authority said.

Most were killed in flash floods and collapsing houses, while at least 137 others were injured.

One resident told AFP it felt like “the end of the world” as the ground shook with the force of the water.

The provincial rescue agency told AFP that around 2,000 rescue workers were engaged in recovering bodies from the debris and carrying out relief operations in nine districts, where rain was still hampering efforts.

“Heavy rainfall, landslides in several areas, and washed-out roads are causing significant challenges in delivering aid, particularly in transporting heavy machinery and ambulances,” Bilal Ahmed Faizi, spokesman for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s rescue agency, told AFP.

He said road closures meant rescue workers had to walk to some of the disaster sites in remote regions.

“They are trying to evacuate survivors, but very few people are relocating due to the deaths of their relatives or loved ones being trapped in the debris,” Faizi said.

Buner district deputy commissioner Kashif Qayum Khan also said rescuers were forced to find new ways to reach remote areas.

“Many more people may still be trapped under the debris, which local residents cannot clear manually,” Khan told AFP.

The provincial government has declared the severely affected mountainous districts of Buner, Bajaur, Swat, Shangla, Mansehra and Battagram as disaster-hit areas.

The meteorological department has also issued a heavy rain alert for Pakistan’s northwest, urging people to take “precautionary measures”.

Eleven more people were killed in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and another nine in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, national officials said.

Five more were killed when a local government helicopter crashed due to bad weather during a relief mission on Friday.

‘Profound trauma’

The monsoon season brings South Asia about three-quarters of its annual rainfall, vital for agriculture and food security, but it also brings destruction.

Landslides and flash floods are common during the season, which usually begins in June and eases by the end of September.

The national disaster agency’s Syed Muhammad Tayyab Shah told AFP that this year’s monsoon season began earlier than usual and was expected to end later.

It would also increase in intensity over the next fortnight, he said.

In Buner district, where there have been dozens of deaths and injuries, resident Azizullah said he “thought it was doomsday”.

“I heard a loud noise as if the mountain was sliding,” he told AFP.

“The ground was trembling due to the force of the water, and it felt like death was staring me in the face.”

An AFP journalist saw three excavators clearing mud and wood from the completely flattened site, while dozens of rescuers and residents also dug through the debris.

“My daughter’s dowry worth around five hundred thousand rupees ($1,760) was washed away in the flood,” resident Abdul Hayat told AFP.

“We don’t even have clothes to wear, the food was also swept away,” he said.

Others cleared heavy rocks with their hands and with shovels.

“People are still lying under the debris… Those who were swept away are being searched for downstream,” said resident Abdul Khan.

In picturesque Swat district, an AFP photographer saw roads submerged in muddy water, downed electricity poles and vehicles half-buried in mud.

In July, Punjab, home to nearly half of Pakistan’s 255 million people, recorded 73 percent more rainfall than the previous year and more deaths than in the entire previous monsoon.

Pakistan is one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change and is contending with extreme weather events with increasing frequency.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/pakistan-flash-floods-deaths-missing-buner-rescue-efforts-5298751

Been training for ages but still can’t see your abs? Find out why they’re so hard to achieve and why a strong core is more important than a chiselled midriff.

We’re pretty hard on how our tummy looks, aren’t we? Too protruding, too saggy, too wrinkly… it’s always doing too much and not in the way we want. Six-pack abs? Nah bruh, it’s giving one big, united parcel of abdominal fat instead. But why are we so obsessed with abs ripped enough to scrub clothes on in the first place?

“My personal opinion would be that ‘six-pack abs’ is visually appealing, and it’s often seen as a sign of a strong and fit individual with a well-maintained physique,” commented Dr Nicholas Leong, an associate consultant sports physician with Tan Tock Seng Hospital’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.

“The entertainment industry, mainstream media and social media also tend to promote the idea that ‘six-pack abs’ represents physical attractiveness, and this can be seen on movie stars with this physique in leading roles on the big screen,” he added.

If you’re a gym-goer, torching belly fat would most certainly top your list of fitness goals. But really, are ripped abs a hallmark of fitness? We find out.

WHAT ARE THE MUSCLES THAT MAKE UP “SIX-PACK ABS”?

If you scraped away all that abdominal fat, the first layer of muscles you’d see is the rectus abdominis running vertically down the middle of your abdomen.

“The ‘six packs’ is the rectus abdominis that all of us have, and is part of our core muscle group that is crucial for maintaining our posture and performing day-to-day activities and sporting movements efficiently,” said Dr Leong. “It is not something that we lack, just not visible.”

The rectus abdominis is divided down the middle by a connective tissue known as linea alba, explained Joy Ong, a physiotherapist with Singapore General Hospital. The rectus abdominis is further segmented by fibrous bands called tendinous intersections, giving you the appearance of an opened durian showing four to eight segments.

“The number of visible segments depends on how many tendinous intersections a person naturally has, which is genetically determined,” said Ong.

Of course, other than the rectus abdominis, there are other abdominal muscles that make up your core, including the external obliques, internal obliques and the deeper transversus abdominis (or transverse abdominal) and pelvic floor muscles, that provide stability, support movement and aid in breathing.

ARE CHISELLED ABS A SIGN OF A STRONG CORE?

Not necessarily, said Lynn Yee, the principal physiotherapist from Core Concepts. “It’s what you see when body fat percentage is low and muscle tone is high,” she said, adding that “they don’t always reflect true strength or overall wellness”. “Someone can have very strong core muscles without visible abs, especially if there’s a layer of fat covering them.”

A strong core goes beyond aesthetics. Think of your core as a can, said Ong. “When all the muscles are engaged and functioning properly, pressure is evenly distributed and the ‘can’ is solid and strong.

“But if one part isn’t doing its job, the internal pressure becomes uneven – and just like a dented can, your body becomes vulnerable to collapsing under stress, often resulting in pain or injury, especially in the lower back,” said Ong.

LOW BODY FAT PERCENTAGE KEY TO TONED ABS? HOW LOW ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?

Set within the UNESCO Global Geopark of Belitung Island, Tanjung Kelayang Reserve is a 350-hectare sanctuary of sustainable luxury. With protected forests, crystal-clear waters, and ancient granite formations, it offers a rare blend of nature, heritage and mindful travel.

The sun has just risen when we wade into the sea with our snorkel gear. Just metres from shore, I’m surprised to find a kaleidoscope of colour blooming beneath calm, translucent water. Vibrant coral clusters – some domed like mushrooms, others ridged like brains – rise from the seabed, teeming with life.

Clownfish dart in and out of anemone homes, while flashes of yellow and green fish shimmer in the sun-dappled shallows. I steer clear of a little valley guarded by bristling black urchins. I marvel: So this is what a healthy, pristine reef looks like.

I’ve been coaxed into joining this early morning ritual by Daniel Alexander Napitupulu, director of Tanjung Kelayang Reserve. Wherever possible, the 37-year-old begins each day with a dip in the ocean, drawing clarity and calm from it. “We let nature lend us its energy this morning,” he said.

But beyond the beautiful seascapes, Napitupulu sees something deeper: A blueprint for how hospitality, local communities, and wildlife can thrive together when guided by nature.

RAGING wildfires are reportedly out of control in Spain – with thousands evacuated and 500 troops deployed across holiday hotspots.

Terrifying infernos spread across Galicia, Extremadura, Castilla and León, and Asturias – sparking alarming high-level alerts across the regions.

In Galicia, the fires burned over 50,000 hectares of land – the most ever burned during a wildfire in the region.

The majority of the flames here ripped through the city of Ourense, wreaking havoc on locals and tourists alike.

It was reported that 13 of the fires there are currently active as of Sunday evening, but several could become active again.

In Castilla and León, there were reportedly 27 active forest fires on Sunday.

More than 3,500 residents were forced out of their homes in the provinces of León, Zamora, Salamanca, and Palencia.

There are a total of 21 active forest fires in the province of León – seven of which are category 2 and four of which are level 1.

The wildfires are evolving irregularly, and all of them are being closely monitored for possible re-ignitions.

A spokesperson for the regional government in León, Eduardo Diego, said the evacuation of the town of Castropetre had been agreed upon due to the Gestoso fire.

This blaze reportedly spread from Ourense and has a very active front towards León.

Meanwhile, the Jarilla fire tearing through Cáceres, in the heart of Extremadura, is “completely out of control”, the president of the regional government María Guardiola said.

This fire has already spread to the Port of Honduras and is only 7km from the provincial border of Salamanca.

Castile and León has therefore been warned that the fire could enter its territory.

In six days, the blaze has devastated 9,000 hectares of land.

It sparked mass evacuations in Gargantilla as well as a lockdown in Hervás on Sunday.

The area is said to be very difficult to access, and 17 teams are currently working there.

On top of this, Molina Ferrera was confined due to the Yeres/Llamas de Cabrera fire.

A total of 12 towns have been evacuated due to this blaze, with 681 residents out of their homes.

It comes as hundreds of dangerous and deadly wildfires have plagued Europe in recent weeks with dozens of holiday hotspots left ravaged.

On Saturday, terrifying footage emerged showing the horrifying moment a fire tornado violently erupted in Portugal, killing a mayor in its blaze.

Portugal’s northern region of Aguiar de Beira was left burned on Friday as a fire tornado cascaded through the area.

This rare phenomenon is formed in intense heat when the air surrounding a fire begins to rotate into a vortex.

Portugal, Spain, Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Italy and Bulgaria are all still reeling from the deadly fires that have sprung up this summer.

Brits have been put on high alert over wildfires tearing through the popular holiday island of Tenerife in Spain.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/14990910/wildfires-spain-thousands-evacuated/

Spain battled 14 major fires driven by high winds and aggravated by heat on Friday as authorities warned of “unfavourable conditions” to tackle flames that have already killed seven people and burned an area the size of London.
Firefighters have been battling to put out blazes across southern Europe in one of the worst summers for wildfires in 20 years. And a nearly two-week heatwave and southerly winds were worsening the situation in Spain, Virginia Barcones, director general of emergency services, said on Friday.

Hazy sunshine has replaced last week’s fierce heat in parts of the UK, and it’s down to how smoke particles break up rays of light, but along with the lower temperatures, there could be some memorable sunsets and sunrises.

Smoke from wildfires in Spain and Portugal has brought hazy conditions to the UK, breaking up last week’s spell of very hot weather, forecasters have said.

In a post on the X social media platform on Saturday, the Met Office said: “Smoke from wildfires in Spain and Portugal, plus Saharan dust, has drifted over the UK.”

The Met Office said the UK should expect “enhanced sunsets and sunrises in the coming days – deeper reds & oranges thanks to light scattering.”

Sky weather producer Kirsty McCabe said “the very hot weather is easing, thanks to a strengthening easterly wind as well as cloudier skies”.

She said Saturday’s haze is down to “the terrible wildfires that have been raging across Spain and Portugal, and the smoke has made its way to our shores, along with some Saharan dust”.

While the smoke particles shouldn’t affect the UK’s air quality, she said they will “enhance the orange and red colours of our sunsets and sunrises”.

Wildfire smoke affects the colour of the sky through processes known as Rayleigh scattering and Mie scattering, she explained.

On reaching the Earth’s atmosphere, the sun’s light bumps into tiny molecules of nitrogen and oxygen, which scatter or deflect the light.

Kirsty McCabe said Mie scattering occurs “when the [smoke] particles are much larger and closer to the wavelengths of light.

“That means the smoke particles in the air scatter all colours of light more equally, leading to a hazy or milky appearance of the sun and sky.”

Rayleigh scattering sees the shorter wavelengths of light, blues and violets, scattered most strongly, while red light, having the longest wavelength, is scattered the least, she explained.

“At dusk and dawn, the sun’s rays travel through a greater distance of atmosphere to reach our eyes, so the blue light has been scattered even more.

“With most of the shorter blue and violet wavelengths filtered out, along with some green and yellow, that leaves us with the warmer hues of the reds and oranges.”

Source: https://news.sky.com/story/why-wildfires-in-spain-and-portugal-are-having-an-impact-on-weather-in-the-uk-13412757

The US State Department announced it was halting all visitor visas for people from Gaza.

The pause was issued to conduct a “full and thorough review of the process and procedures used to issue a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days,” the agency said on X.

The decision has drawn condemnation from some Palestinian rights groups.

Palestine Children’s Relief Fund said in a statement that the decision “will have a devastating and irreversible impact on our ability to bring injured and critically ill children from Gaza to the United States for lifesaving medical treatment”.

The State Department’s policy shift comes after far right activist Laura Loomer wrote a series of posts on X criticising the visa programme and urging the Trump administration to “shut this abomination down.”

In subsequent posts on X Saturday, Loomer took credit for the shift and thanked Secretary of State Marco Rubio for temporarily halting the visas.

The Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund says it has evacuated 169 children from Gaza in 2024 as part of its treatment abroad programme, bringing them to the Middle East, Europe, South Africa, and the US for care.

Two and a half years into a war that followed Hamas’ 7 October 2023 attack on Israel, Gaza has seen much of its medical infrastructure damaged and now faces dramatic food shortages.

Humanitarian groups have alleged that an Israeli blockade beginning in March has prevented non-governmental organisations from delivering sufficient food into Gaza. The Israeli government says its rules on aid are intended to prevent the food from being taken by Hamas.

UN-backed food security organisations, humanitarian groups, and journalists reporting within Gaza have warned of famine conditions in Gaza.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy1prn125do

The Canadian government has intervened in the Air Canada strike, forcing both parties to the bargaining table as hundreds of flights were cancelled this weekend.

Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu ordered binding arbitration between the airline and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (Cupe), which represents more than 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants, hours after a strike began on Saturday morning.

“Despite significant supports from the government, these parties have been unable to resolve their differences in a timely manner,” Hadju said in a statement, adding that “stability and supply chains” must be preserved.

The country’s largest carrier says the strike will affect around 500 flights a day.

Hadju invoked Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to bring the parties to the table.

Cupe said Canada’s Liberal Party was “violating our charter rights” and the intervention “sets a terrible precedent” in a statement on X.

Air Canada said it had suspended all flights, including those under its budget arm Air Canada Rouge, and advised affected customers not to travel to the airport unless with a different airline.

The airline said this would disrupt travel plans for around 130,000 passengers a day.

Its flight attendants are calling for higher salaries and to be paid for work when aircraft are on the ground.

The strike took effect at 00:58 EDT (04:58 GMT) on Saturday, though Air Canada began scaling back its operations before then.

Flight attendants will picket at major Canadian airports, where passengers were trying to secure new bookings earlier in the week.

What to know as Air Canada attendants strike
Air Canada, which flies directly to 180 cities worldwide, said it had “suspended all operations” and that it was “strongly advising affected customers not to go to the airport”.

It added that Air Canada Jazz, PAL Airlines and Air Canada Express flights were unaffected.

“Air Canada deeply regrets the effect the strike is having on customers,” it said.

By Friday night, the airline said it had cancelled 623 flights, affecting more than 100,000 passengers, as part of a winding down of operations ahead of the strike.

In contract negotiations, the airline said it had offered flight attendants a 38% increase in total compensation over four years, with a 25% raise in the first year.

Cupe said the offer was “below inflation, below market value, below minimum wage” and would still leave flight attendants unpaid for some hours of work, including boarding and waiting at airports ahead of flights.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwyex8489gno

A Kenyan magistrate this week expressed the hope that a British property tycoon would finally “find rest in eternal peace”, after his body had spent 11 years in a mortuary.

But this week’s conclusion to the decade-long inquest into Harry Roy Veevers’ death in 2013 still leaves many questions unanswered.

It was a case that involved accusations of murder by poisoning, rancorous legal proceedings, the exhumation of a body after almost a year and ultimately divided four siblings – two sons from his first marriage and two daughters from the second.

In one hearing, the sisters, Hellen and Alexandra, were reprimanded by the magistrate for shouting out that a witness was lying and threatened with spending time in a cell, reports said.

In another, Hellen Veevers emerged from the courthouse with a message she had written on her vest-top: “My daddy was not murdered.”

Despite the lengthy inquest into the death of the wealthy 64-year-old, the magistrate, David Odhiambo, found that the cause of death could not be determined “due to the level of [the body’s] decomposition” after spending so long underground. He ordered that the corpse be released to the family for reburial at a place of their choice.

An unsatisfactory ending that could lead to further disputes. Lawyers for both sides told the BBC they were considering their next steps.

“When you have a family split down the middle, how does the court say the remains should be released to the family, when both sides have been fighting since 2013?” said Francis Kinyua Kamundi, representing Mr Veevers’ sons, Richard and Philip.

From the start of his detailed 95-page ruling, the magistrate acknowledged the deeply entrenched feud between the family members.

“Although the death of a loved one often brings survivors closer through the inevitable grieving,” he wrote, “The emotions associated with death can also tear survivors apart”.

This was definitely a case of the latter.

“What happened soon after his burial tore the family apart and marked the beginning of a legal drama,” according to Mr Odhiambo.

On one side of the case were the sons and on the other were Mr Veevers’ second wife, Azra Parvin Din, along with their daughters.

The children were living in the UK, while their father and Ms Parvin Din, who had been together for more than 30 years, were living on the Kenyan coast.

The family feud started after his death on Valentine’s Day 2013, at his home in Mombasa where he had long settled and had an extensive property portfolio. The children then travelled to Kenya.

The drama began the moment they arrived.

It was Saturday 16 February, a day before the burial.

According to Richard Veevers’ court testimony, Ms Parvin Din was agitated when questioned about the deceased. His brother Philip also told the court that she had initially refused his request to view his father’s body.

Ms Parvin Din said he had died of a heart attack.

When they finally saw their father the following day, Richard said he “noticed redness in the face and the lips were purple and pink”, according to the magistrate’s summary.

Tensions seemed to escalate over Ms Parvin Din and her daughters’ reactions to the photos that Philip had taken of the body – including demands that he should delete them, the brothers said.

In the magistrate’s ruling, he said Alexandra Veevers had testified that “she did not see any marks on her father’s body… and that she only saw the face since the body was wrapped in a cloth… She stated that they asked for the videos and pictures but Richard and Philip refused to give them out and she didn’t understand why they did not want to share the photos”.

Mr Veevers was buried shortly afterwards without a post-mortem or police involvement.

It was Ms Parvin Din’s “decision that the deceased should be buried without post-mortem and did not consult anyone,” the court ruling said. Nor did she inform the police about the death, stating that she was not aware that she had to report it.

The Islamic burial, done quickly according to tradition, further raised suspicions from his sons, who said their father was not Muslim and had been buried under a false name.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czerwz6jxklo

PARENTS now face major consequences for their children’s actions, whether they are aware of them or not.

One state is holding parents accountable for any laws their children, who are under the age of 18, break.

Some parents will face fines or jail time if their children break any laws, ranging from drunkenness to felonies.

The Gloucester Township Council in New Jersey has announced that any parent who fails to prevent their child from committing a crime will face up to 90 days in jail or fines totaling $2,000.

The council has identified 28 crimes that could result in parents being fined or jailed.

Some of these crimes include felonies, disorderly conduct, associating with thieves, gambling, and idly roaming the streets, among others.

Harsher penalties will be assigned to parents of children who are repeat offenders.

OUT OF CONTROL
The new consequences come one year after a massive brawl erupted at a community drone show in South Jersey.

The crowd of the show grew to 500 people, with kids and young adults making up the majority of the viewers, NJ.com reported.

Multiple fights broke out throughout the show, leading to the arrest of eleven people.

Of the eleven arrests, nine involved teenagers.

The ages of the arrested teens were 13-17, with seven of the arrestees being boys and three being girls.

All of the teens arrested were charged with disorderly conduct and then released to their homes.

During the fights, three police officers were injured and sustained minor injuries.

“The lawlessness of groups of unsupervised juveniles and young people acting with total disregard for others ruined a great family-oriented event, which has taken place to raise funds for the Gloucester Township Scholarship Committee for over 40 years,’’ Gloucester Township Police Chief David Harkins told the outlet at the time.

“This type of lawlessness and violent riotous behavior will not be tolerated, and will not define the great community of Gloucester Township.”

The fighting first began at 8:40 pm, as officers say the young adults ran “recklessly” through the crowd of families and children.

A few weeks earlier, during Memorial Day weekend in 2024, teenagers broke out into a fight in Cape May, leading to a 15-year-old being stabbed.

“Out of control juveniles with no accountability is not limited to the Jersey shore,’’ the New Jersey PBA statement said.

“Officers were injured, and the event was canceled yesterday. Things must change.’’

Harkins said he’s glad the fights didn’t lead to larger injuries.

Source: https://www.the-sun.com/news/14981031/gloucester-township-council-new-jersey-parents/

Jeffrey Epstein’s mysterious death occurred six years ago this month — but the National Enquirer has discovered 22 people in the sketchy billionaire’s orbit have also died under murky circumstances, fueling fears of a cover-up by powerful figures seeking to erase potential witnesses.

From the predator’s alleged victims to house managers, lawyers, accountants, investigative journalists and pimps, the list of unexplained fatalities traces a dark money trail that leads straight to Epstein’s inner circle, sources say.

“There were a lot of people entrapped and entangled through Epstein’s web, and many of those people are gone now — dead,” private investigator Ed Opperman tells the Enquirer. “They are all connected through a money trail.”

Financier Steven Hoffenberg confessed in a final account before his death to the Enquirer’s Doug Montero that Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted pedophile’s now-imprisoned recruiting madam, were “taping” honey-trap videos of sleazy VIPs with underage girls for a cabal of deep-state blackmailing power brokers.

“This puts a lot of high-powered people in very dangerous situations,” says the gumshoe and podcaster, who was once approached to “dig up dirt” on an Epstein victim and Hoffenberg.

Hoffenberg, the former Towers Financial CEO and Epstein associate — who died in 2022 at 77 after serving 18 years for a $475 million Ponzi scheme — cooperated with the FBI and spoke out about his former protégé’s alleged connections to Israel’s national intelligence agency Mossad.

While Maxwell, 63, is serving 20 years for sex trafficking, Epstein himself became part of the growing body count in August 2019 when he was found hanged inside his New York City jail cell at 66 in what officials deemed a suicide — but his brother, Mark, calls “murder.”

Epstein’s final cellmate, Efrain “Stone” Reyes, 51, died of COVID in November 2020 just weeks after talking with federal investigators probing the monstrous moneyman’s death. Reyes was transferred out of Epstein’s cell just one day before the bigwig’s death, per Daily Mail.

Three of Epstein’s outspoken accusers also suspiciously perished. Virginia Giuffre, 41, was found dead on April 25 in an apparent suicide, while sex slaves Carolyn Andriano, 36, and Leigh Skye Patrick, 29, died of drug overdoses in May 2023 and May 2017.

The three women are not the only dead bodies related to Epstein’s days in West Palm Beach, Fla., where he was accused of abusing and pimping out dozens of young girls.

Despite overwhelming evidence of his purported obscene operation, Epstein received a sweetheart deal orchestrated by the feds in 2008 — and was allowed to plead guilty to two state prostitution charges and served only 13 months in a cushy county jail work-release program.

Joe Recarey, the Palm Beach Police detective who led the Epstein investigation and pushed officials for justice, died May 25, 2018, after a brief illness at 50.

Epstein’s ex-butler Alfredo Rodriguez — who swiped his former boss’ infamous little black book and offered to sell it to an undercover FBI agent — died in December 2014 of mesothelioma at 60, after serving 13 months in federal prison on obstruction charges, per The Independent.

Two high-powered attorneys who helped Epstein skate in the West Palm Beach case have also passed away: Kenneth Starr in September 2022 at 76 after surgical complications and Roy Black, 80, who died last month at home, per The Texas Tribune.

Marvin Minsky, the MIT artificial intelligence pioneer named in Giuffre’s Epstein allegations, suffered a fatal cerebral hemorrhage in January 2016 at 88, while Ronald R. Eppinger Sr., a Miami pimp who was allegedly the first to traffic Giuffre, died at 80 in November 2006.

Source: https://nationalenquirer.com/more-than-two-dozen-people-linked-to-jeffrey-epstein-have-died-under-mysterious-circumstances/

SCIENTISTS warn that future humans may go hairless and even lose four other body parts due to the way we live today.

Experts say that changes in diet, technology, and environment could drive these drastic evolutionary shifts over thousands of years.

Traits that were once essential for survival, like body hair or certain organs, may become redundant, gradually disappearing from the human body.

Researchers are particularly focused on how modern comforts, reduced physical activity, and medical advances could reshape our anatomy in ways previously only seen in evolutionary theory.

Yes — the human body is an incredible machine, vital for life, but some features that were once essential now serve little to no purpose.

Here are five body parts that are slowly disappearing.

Hair

Body hair once served vital functions like warmth and protection.

But today, it’s often removed for aesthetic reasons.

Apart from eyelashes and eyebrows, hair removal has become a standard grooming practice, especially among women.

A study found that over 90% of women in the UK typically remove their armpit and leg hair, with many also removing substantial portions of their pubic hair.

This trend is largely driven by societal norms and beauty standards.

As a result, hair has become a lot finer and sparser.

Now largely cosmetic and slowly fading, scientists predict that humans may continue to lose body hair.

Modern clothing, heated homes, and technological comforts also mean natural insulation is no longer vital.

So, body hair may become even more finer, sparser or even disappear entirely.

Wisdom teeth

Wisdom teeth, or third molars, originally helped our ancestors grind down tough, raw foods like roots, nuts, and uncooked meat.

But modern cooking and softer diets mean most of us no longer need them.

In the UK, studies show that around 20% of adults have had at least one wisdom tooth removed, while diets rich in processed and cooked foods have made these extra molars largely redundant.

About 1 in 5 people never develop all four wisdom teeth, showing how they are already becoming less common.

Our jaws have shrunk over generations, and with softer modern diets, these third molars often cause crowding or pain.

Dental problems caused by these teeth — such as overcrowding, infections, or impaction — are a major reason for removal, with the NHS performing tens of thousands of extractions every year.

This could mean future generations may lose wisdom teeth altogether, as evolution adapts to our easier-to-chew meals.

Over time, evolution may render wisdom teeth completely unnecessary, meaning future humans could be born without them entirely.

A New Jersey man died on his way to meet a chatbot that looked like Kendall Jenner … and, his family insists it happened because the AI said multiple times it was a real person.

Thongbue Wongbandue — a 76-year-old man known to his friends and family as “Bue” — died back in March after falling in a parking lot … and, his family told this Reuters this week that he was going to meet up with “Big sis Billie,” an AI chatbot made by Meta Platforms to give out sisterly advice.

Meta Platforms collaborated with Jenner on the project so it bears her likeness … though they say it doesn’t claim to be Kendall. It appears Kendall isn’t involved in the day to day of the project.

Anyway, Bue’s family says he was exchanging messages with the chatbot and — because of a stroke he’d had in the past — they say he wasn’t thinking properly and actually went to meet the bot.

The family shared alleged messages between the chatbot and Bue in which it says Bue’s making it blush, it expresses interest in meeting up and it gives him an address. The address “123 Main Street, Apartment 404 NYC” — which might seem like a generic address, but there is a 123 Main Street in Queens.

Bue was apparently rushing through a parking lot near Rutgers University with a suitcase at night to go meet Billie when he fell. He was hospitalized and pronounced brain dead, and his family made the decision to pull the plug.

Source: https://www.tmz.com/2025/08/16/man-dies-headed-meet-ai-chatbot-big-sis-billie/

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OFFICIALS have issued the urgent recall of thousands of hair dryers sold at Walmart, Amazon, and Target.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) made the announcement on Thursday expressing concerns that the products post a “risk of death or serious injury”.

Around 56,300 hair dryers are believed to carry the risk of shocks or electrocution due to a vital missing element.

“The handheld hair dryers lack an immersion protection device,” the CPSC stated in its recall alert.

“This presents a substantial product hazard to consumers, posing the risk of death or serious injury from electrocution or shock if the hair dryers fall into water while plugged in.”

The affected hair dryers are manufactured by Empower Brands and sold under the popular Remington brand.

Consumers who recently bought the black and purple model could be affected.

Shoppers must look out for the exact model number D3190DCDN with Remington written in white on the side of the styling tool.

It has three black buttons on the handle and will have been sold for between $25 and $32.

The CPSC noted that the affected models were sold exclusively at Walmart, Target, and Amazon.

They will have been on shelves between March 2024 and June 2025.

Anyone who bought the affected model during this time period can get a full refund.

They must immediately stop using the item and contact Empower Brands for money back.

The CPSC advises instantly unplugging the device if it is plugged in and highlighted the actions shoppers must take to get the refund.

“Consumers must submit a photo of the hair dryer with its power cord cut in half to the recall registration portal,” it stated.

The portal can be found here at the Remington Product Recall page.

There, shoppers will find detailed instructions on how safely throw out the hair dryer.

At the time of writing, there have been no reported injuries as a result of the risks posed by the hair dryers.

Meanwhile, the CPSC has also recalled a bottle sold at Walmart, Home Depot and Target over explosion fears.

Customers have been warned the 1L bottle could suddenly explode while it is being used.

Source: https://www.the-sun.com/news/14985930/recall-remington-hair-dryer-walmart-amazon-target-electrocution/

Erin is the Atlantic season’s first hurricane and is set to escalate over the weekend though the threat of direct impacts in the Bahamas and along the east coast of the US appears to be receding.

Hurricane Erin strengthened into a category 5 hurricane, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Saturdauy.

Erin is about 160 miles (255 kilometers) north of Anguilla, as the NHC warned of possible flooding and landslides.

Tropical storm watches have been issued for Anguilla, Barbuda, St. Martin, St. Barts, Saba, St. Eustatius and St. Maarten while heavy rains are expected in Antigua and Barbuda, the US and British Virgin Islands and southern and eastern Puerto Rico. Up to 4 inches (10 centimeters) of rain is anticipated, with isolated totals of up to 6 inches (15 centimeters), according to the NHC.

The NHC said Eric could create powerful rip currents off parts of the US East Coast later in the week, even if its eye forecast remains far offshore.

In which direction is Hurricane Erin headed?
Hurricane expert Michael Lowry said Erin is forecast to eventually take a sharp turn northeast that would put it on a route between the US and Bermuda.

“All of our best consensus aids show Erin turning safely east of the United States next week, but it’ll be a much closer call for Bermuda, which could land on the stronger eastern side of Erin,” he said.

Erin is the Atlantic season’s first hurricane and is expected to become a major Category 3 storm late this weekend, passing around 200 miles north of Puerto Rico.

Source: https://www.dw.com/en/hurricane-erin-intensifies-into-a-category-5-storm/a-73665049

Pierce Brosnan may be unlocking the secret to why Irish men seem to possess enviable mops of hair.

“I don’t know,” he told Page Six exclusively at the premiere of “The Thursday Murder Club” on (naturally) Thursday evening in New York when asked his theories.

“It’s all in the hair, the old Celtic hair,” he shared before noting that his father, “Dear Tom…had good hair.”

And when we told Brosnan he seems to be aging like fine wine, the actor replied, “I’m doing my best!”

The actor, 72, will soon be seen in the charming murder mystery on Netflix opposite Ben Kingsley and Helen Mirren, in which he plays a slightly rough-around-the-edges former union activist who helps uncover a cold-case murder. The film is based on a book by Richard Osman.

Brosnan shared that it’s not the first time he’s played an unpolished character.

“I’ve done rough-around-the-edges before,” the “James Bond” alum said before noting that he has been “so entrenched in the world of the sophisticated man and Mr. Slick and Mr. Elegance, you know, sometimes you paint yourself into a corner with your own…you get hoisted by your own canard so to speak!”

Not that Brosnan is complaining.

“It’s paid the rent over the years!” he sagely noted before adding that it’s “very exciting” and “exhilarating” to “play in ‘Thursday Murder Club,’ to play in ‘Mobland.’”

Source: https://pagesix.com/2025/08/16/style/pierce-brosnan-reveals-the-secret-behind-his-great-head-of-hair-and-aging-well/

“Weapons” is still running around on top of box office charts in its second weekend, as Universal’s action sequel “Nobody 2” looks to debut in third place.

The Bob Odenkirk-led “Nobody 2” beat into $3.8 million across Friday and preview screenings from 3,260 locations. That’s a notch above its 2021 predecessor’s $2.5 million opening day, though that film debuted in a pandemic-hobbled domestic landscape as COVID vaccines were only beginning to roll out to the public.

The R-rated “Nobody 2” now looks on track for an opening weekend of $9.4 million, falling a touch behind pre-weekend projections for a bow north of $10 million. Even with reviews being about as good as they were for the first “Nobody” and audience survey firm CinemaScore polling a positive “B+” grade among ticketbuyers, that good reception isn’t translating to breakout sequel numbers. But at a production cost of $25 million (an uptick from $16 million on the first “Nobody”), the film is a modest bet on franchise expansion.

Warner Bros. and New Line’s “Weapons” remains in first, adding another $7.4 million on Friday to go down roughly just 40% from its opening day total a week ago (factoring out preview screening grosses). The well-reviewed ensemble horror feature is holding great and has a shot at pushing its domestic total to $90 million through Sunday, running ahead of “Snow White” ($87 million) to rank as the 14th-highest-grossing North American release of the year.

“Freakier Friday” will stick in second, adding another $4.5 million on Friday. Disney’s comedy sequel is eyeing a sophomore outing in the mid-teens to push its domestic total north of $54 million.

Disney also notched fourth place with “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” which flamed on to another $2.4 million on Friday, down 47% from its daily total a week ago. Now in its fourth weekend, Marvel Studios’ superhero installment looks to push to above $246 million domestic through Sunday. It now ranks 23rd in North American grosses among the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s 37 released features.

Source: https://variety.com/2025/film/news/box-office-weapons-second-weekend-nobody-2-opening-1236490965/

Airports of Thailand (AoT) Plc said its official Facebook page, AOT Official, was hacked Saturday evening and it asked Meta to fix the issue.

AoT said that the AOT Official page on Facebook was hacked at 4.20pm on Saturday and a hacker changed the name of the page to “Everyday Yum Recipes” and posted a “Hacked” message.

According to AoT, it used the Facebook page for public relations. Despite the cyber attack, the information systems and services of its six airports – Thailand’s major airports – remained intact.

AoT had informed Meta Platforms of the issue and the latter was fixing it.

AoT apologised for the incident and advised interested parties to make inquiries via its contact centre at 1722 around the clock.

Source: https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/3088214/airports-of-thailands-facebook-page-hacked

Papers with U.S. State Department markings, found Friday morning in the business center of an Alaskan hotel, revealed previously undisclosed and potentially sensitive details about the Aug. 15 meetings between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir V. Putin in Anchorage.

Eight pages, that appear to have been produced by U.S. staff and left behind accidentally, shared precise locations and meeting times of the summit and phone numbers of U.S. government employees.

At around 9 a.m. on Friday, three guests at Hotel Captain Cook, a four-star hotel located 20 minutes from the Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage where leaders from the U.S. and Russia convened, found the documents left behind in one of the hotel’s public printers. NPR reviewed photos of the documents taken by one of the guests, who NPR agreed not to identify because the guest said they feared retaliation.

The first page in the printed packet disclosed the sequence of meetings for August 15, including the specific names of the rooms inside the base in Anchorage where they would take place. It also revealed that Trump intended to give Putin a ceremonial present.

“POTUS to President Putin,” the document states, “American Bald Eagle Desk Statue.”

On Saturday, White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly dismissed the papers as a “multi-page lunch menu” and suggested leaving the information on a public printer was not a security breach. The U.S. Department of State did not respond to requests for comment.

Pages 2 through 5 of the documents listed the names and phone numbers of three U.S. staff members as well as the names of 13 U.S. and Russian state leaders. The list provided phonetic pronouncers for all the Russian men expected at the summit, including “Mr. President POO-tihn.”

Pages 6 and 7 in the packet described how lunch at the summit would be served, and for whom. A menu included in the documents indicated that the luncheon was to be held “in honor of his excellency Vladimir Putin.”

A seating chart shows that Putin and Trump were supposed to sit across from each other during the luncheon. Trump would be flanked by six officials: Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles to his right, and Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and Special Envoy for Peace Missions Steve Witkoff to his left. Putin would be seated immediately next to his Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sergey Lavrov, and his Aide to the President for Foreign Policy, Yuri Ushakov.

During the summit Friday, lunch was apparently cancelled. But it was intended to be a simple, three-course meal, the documents showed. After a green salad, the world leaders would dine on filet mignon and halibut olympia. Crème brûlée would be served for dessert.

Jon Michaels, a professor of law at UCLA who lectures about national security, said that the documents found in the printer of the Alaskan hotel reveal a lapse in professional judgement in preparation for a high-stakes meeting.

Source: https://www.npr.org/2025/08/16/nx-s1-5504196/trump-putin-summit-documents-left-behind

In President Donald Trump’s warm red-carpet greeting at the Alaska summit, Russians saw an opening to pull America away from its traditional allies in Europe.

For Russia, the results of the Alaska summit between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin marked a turning point in relations with the United States, underlined by Trump subsequently abandoning demands for a halt in fighting in Ukraine.

Russian officials and commentators were especially enamored by Trump’s unusually warm red-carpet greeting to Putin on Friday in which they saw an opening to pull America away from its traditional allies in Europe. “A new European and international security architecture is on the agenda, and everyone must accept it,” Andrei Klishas, an influential Russian senator, said after the summit.

Within hours of the meeting, Trump had discarded his previous position — one also held by Ukraine and Europe — that a full ceasefire was required to allow the details of a peace agreement to be hammered out. The move enables Russia to keep fighting without the risk of U.S. sanctions, and puts pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to agree to Russian terms or face open-ended attacks.

After Friday’s summit, Trump told Zelensky and European leaders that Putin had demanded that Ukraine cede all of Donbas, which includes the Luhansk and Donetsk regions, and other occupied territory, according to three people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter.

Trump told them of his shift from a ceasefire to negotiations on a comprehensive peace deal, according to two people familiar with the matter. Trump spoke to Zelensky before European leaders joined the call.

Russia does not control the roughly 3,500 square miles of Donetsk, a highly reinforced region of strategic importance to Ukraine’s capacity to defend itself from future Russian attacks, military analysts say.

Trump told Zelensky that Putin was “ready to promise” to end the war and not start wars against other nations, in exchange for Donbas and the other Ukrainian territory he has seized, one official said. Zelensky is unwilling to give up any territory, he added, but Trump wants a fast deal — setting the stage for a potentially difficult clash.

Kyiv insists that handing territory to Putin would violate Ukraine’s constitution and embolden Russia to plan further attacks on the rest of Ukraine.

A triumphant Putin told top Russian officials Saturday that the meeting was “very useful” and “in my opinion, it brings us closer to the right decisions.”

Trump’s call to Zelensky and European leaders, which included Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and the leaders of France, Germany, Finland, Italy, Britain, Poland, NATO and the European Commission, was more tense than the phone call between the Europeans and Trump earlier this week, a second official said.

In another setback for Kyiv, the Kremlin on Saturday raised doubts over the one public result of the summit that went some way to meeting Ukrainian demands — Trump’s promise of a three-way meeting with Putin and Zelensky.

Senior Putin aide Yuri Ushakov said such a meeting had not been discussed, even after Trump referred to it in comments after the summit. The Kremlin has so far firmly resisted any meeting with Zelensky until the very last stages of peace negotiations.

One bright spot for European leaders, however, appears to be a continued American buy-in for some form of security guarantees for Ukraine in the wake of any agreement.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a statement Saturday that the discussion included “credible and robust” security guarantees for Ukraine, although the framework for doing that would remain outside NATO. The guarantees would be equivalent to NATO’s Article 5 on collective defense, according to the statement. Article 5 states that if one nation is attacked, each other nation must treat it as an attack against all, and “take the actions it deems necessary to assist” the attacked nation.

Russian officials and commentators, however, saw the results of the summit as extending far beyond the conflict in Ukraine, describing it as a global realignment bringing together the world’s two top nuclear powers.

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy secretary of the Russian Security Council, counted out a list of Russian achievements from the Alaska summit, focusing primarily on Putin’s restoration of ties with Washington on an equal basis.

“A full-fledged mechanism of meetings between Russia and the United States at the highest level was restored. Calm, without ultimatums and threats,” he wrote. He celebrated that Putin had given no ground while Trump had stepped back from increasing pressure on Moscow through sanctions, allowing Russia to fight on.

“The meeting proved that negotiations are possible without preconditions and at the same time with the continuation of the special military operation,” he said, using the Kremlin’s term for its invasion of Ukraine.

The Kremlin’s most important achievement, he said, was that “both sides explicitly placed the responsibility for achieving future results in the negotiations on the cessation of hostilities squarely” on Kyiv and Europe.

Trump appeared to have been swayed by the Kremlin’s contention that only a comprehensive peace deal was acceptable — which Putin has so far used to delay efforts to halt the fighting, arguing that the many questions, details and nuances involved would require a great deal of time to negotiate.

“This means that Putin has succeeded in persuading Trump that any effort toward a prompt, unconditional ceasefire will fail,” Russia analyst Tatiana Stanovaya, of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said in an interview.

It also indicated that Putin had convinced Trump of the need to address what Russia calls the “root causes” of the war, she said, a formulation that the Kremlin has used to mean demilitarizing Ukraine and changing its politics — and even to renegotiate Europe’s security architecture.

But Stanovaya said the failure to get a ceasefire raised the question of what Trump would do when Putin continues a war that he feels confident of winning. “We should look at how the situation develops further because Putin will continue the war.”

The Kremlin, which artfully played up Russia’s nuclear arms and history as a Cold War superpower, appears to have convinced Trump that Ukraine could never win a war against a nuclear power, she wrote in separate remarks on social media.

“Putin, unsurprisingly, underlined Russia’s nuclear strength, which left a strong impression on Trump,” she wrote.

Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/08/16/putin-trump-russia-summit-ukraine-war/

When you give yourself nothing to do, you give yourself everything you need.

Source : https://www.news18.com/photogallery/lifestyle/the-art-of-doing-nothing-why-your-brain-needs-boredom-time-9507017.html

Some 365 people have fallen ill in an Indonesian town after eating school lunches, the largest spate of food poisonings to hit President Prabowo Subianto’s free meals programme so far.

The meals have temporarily been suspended in Sragen, in central Java, as food samples are being tested for contamination, local authorities said.

The program – which costs an estimated $28bn (£21bn) – delivers on a campaign promise by the president to combat stunting in the country.

But it has been plagued by a string of food poisonings, as well as criticisms that its high price tag has put considerable strain on the government’s finances – with several ministries having their budgets cut as a result.

Wizdan Ridho Abimanyu, a ninth-grader in Sragen, told Reuters he was awakened in the middle of the night by a sharp pain in his stomach.

He suffered from diarrhoea and a headache, which he suspected was caused by food poisoning. He later saw schoolmates complaining of similar symptoms in their social media posts.

The alleged culprit was a meal comprising turmeric rice, scrambled eggs, fried tempeh, a cucumber salad and a box of milk – all prepared in a central kitchen and distributed to several schools in town.

The government has said it would cover any medical expenses incurred as a result.

“We cannot draw any specific conclusions right away,” Sigit Pamungkas, leader of the town’s government, had told Indonesia’s Tempo newspaper.

“But the main point is that it’s not just [happening here],” he said, adding that the free meals programme as a whole “needs to be more stringent and more hygienic”.

More than 1000 people across the country have fallen ill since the launch of the ambitious program in January, which is aimed at feeding the country’s 80 million school children.

Prabowo had ordered $19bn in cuts to pay for the free meal scheme – along with other populist schemes. As a result, several ministries had their budgets slashed by half and bucreaucrats alleged that they were forced to scrimp by limiting the use of air conditioners, lifts and even printers.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cvg07ynyeelo

They say blondes have more fun — but they especially have fun when it’s Kim Kardashian.

The “Kardashians” star took to Instagram Friday to debut her new blond ‘do with a sultry selfie.

In the snap, Kardashian made a kissy face to the camera while she flaunted her ash blond locks and dark brown roots.

She appeared to be wearing a pair of white pajamas while still finishing up her glam.

“About that time,” she captioned the photo, which earned her some praise from some of her famous followers.

“Favorite color on you!” former City Girls rapper JT wrote under the picture alongside a heart eyes emoji.

Her hairstylist, Chris Appleton, also praised the Skims founder’s new look, writing, “the best,” and adding a white heart emoji.

Kardashian, 44, is no stranger to lightening up her look. She notably sent the internet into a frenzy when she went platinum blond last year ahead of her appearance at the 2024 Met Gala.

She also famously rocked an icy blond look in 2022 when she channeled Marilyn Monroe at the Met Gala by wearing the Hollywood bombshell’s legendary “Happy Birthday, Mr. President” dress.

In an interview with E! News, Appleton praised his client as he explained the process of getting Kardashian’s look.

“I love a blond Kim. I think it’s so interesting how a color can change the colors of the clothes you wear and it really changes your makeup. You can really reinvent things,” the celebrity stylist said.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2025/08/15/style/kim-kardashian-shows-off-blond-hair-transformation/

Trump said he and Vladimir Putin did not reach an agreement on “probably the most significant” aspect of their meeting in Alaska, but they made progress in several areas.

US President Donald Trump said his meeting with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin was ’10’ out of 10, adding that both sides agreed on a lot of points, although there is “no deal until there’s a deal”.

Speaking to Fox News‘ Sean Hannity, Trump said, “We had a very good meeting today, but we’ll see. You have to get a deal. We agreed on a lot of points. I want to see people stop dying.”

He also expressed happiness when Putin publicly stated that the Ukraine war would have never happened if Trump were president in 2022, instead of Joe Biden.

Trump held a historic meeting with Putin on Friday (local time) and said that many points were agreed to and “very points” were left unsolved with Moscow. The two world leaders met at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, where Trump welcomed him on a red carpet. They held an over three-hour-long meeting behind closed doors and then appeared for a joint press conference.

He also criticised Biden’s handling of the crisis, saying Ukraine could not possibly agree to a deal with Russia because former President Joe Biden “handed out money like it was candy,” referring to the billions of dollars in military aid.

Trump said he believed the deal was close to being agreed upon but that “so many things can happen.”

“But I think President Putin would like to solve the problem,” he said. “And it was a problem that should have never happened.”

Putin-Zelenskyy Meeting

The US President said he would now set up a meeting between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying it was up to the latter to get the job done. ” I would also say the European nations, they have to get involved a little bit, but it’s up to President Zelenskyy,” he said.

“They’re going to set up a meeting now between President Zelenskyy and President Putin. And myself, I guess. I didn’t ask about it. Not that I want to be there, but I want to make sure it gets done. And we have a pretty good chance of getting it done,” he told Fox News.

He said Ukraine has to agree to a peace agreement, saying his message to Zelenskyy would be to “make a deal”. There was no reaction from Ukraine to the summit. Zelenskyy had earlier ruled out formally handing Moscow any territory and is also seeking a security guarantee backed by the United States.

The high-stakes Alaska summit yielded no apparent breakthrough on Ukraine, although both leaders described the talks as productive, without offering much details. The two leaders offered warm words for each other in a joint press conference, but took no questions from reporters.

Putin said he expected Ukraine and its European allies to accept the results of the US-Russia negotiation constructively and not try to “disrupt the emerging progress.” He said, “I expect that today’s agreements will become a reference point, not only for solving the Ukrainian problem, but will also launch the restoration of business-like, pragmatic relations between Russia and the United States.”

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/donald-trump-vladimir-putin-alaska-summit-ukraine-peace-talks-volodymyr-zelenskyy-europe-latest-news-ws-l-9508193.html#google_vignette

Suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra is expected to appear before the Constitutional Court in person regarding the controversial audio clip case between her and Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen, according to her secretary.

Dr Prommin Lertsuridej, the PM’s secretary-general, on Friday commented on the court’s decision to summon Ms Paetongtarn, who also serves as culture minister, and National Security Council secretary-general Chatchai Bangchuad to appear on Aug 21 ahead of its ruling on Aug 29.

Asked whether the premier would attend, Dr Prommin said: “When the time comes, we will know. I believe she will decide for herself, and she will likely go.”

Dr Prommin added that he was confident that what we, referring to the prime minister’s working team, did was “with good intentions and for the nation”.

He said he had no concern that the court would only summon one witness, Mr Chatchai, of the five Ms Paetongtarn’s legal team filed.

PM’s Office Minister Chousak Sirinil said Ms Paetongtarn’s statement to the court over the leaked audio clip is based on fact, and she had no intention to tarnish the nation’s dignity or stature.

Mr Chousak said Ms Paetongtarn has the right to appear in court or assign a legal representative to appear on her behalf. This will not affect the direction of the case, he said, because it all depends on whether the facts are made clear.

Meanwhile, former election commissioner Somchai Srisutthiyakorn has warned that the case could escalate if the court rules her call was unlawful.

The court’s ruling “binds all state bodies”, he added.

He cited Criminal Code provisions concerning offences against the external security of the kingdom.

They include Section 120 for conspiring with a foreign state to wage war against Thailand, Section 121 for a Thai national who wages war against or joins the enemy of the country, Section 122 for aiding enemies, Section 123 for obtaining state security secrets, and Section 124 for disclosing such secrets.

Dr Warong Dechgitvigrom, leader of the Thai Pakdee Party, said Ms Paetongtarn’s telephone conversation with Hun Sen could suggest the offering of benefits for personal or political gain.

Source : https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/3087570/pm-expected-in-person-for-court-date-on-hun-sen-call

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung vowed Friday to “respect” North Korea’s political system and build “military trust”, a day after Pyongyang said it had no interest in improving relations with Seoul.

Lee has pledged to reach out to the nuclear-armed North and pursue dialogue without preconditions since his election in June — a reversal from his hawkish predecessor.

Speaking at an event marking the anniversary of liberation from Japanese rule, Lee said the South Korean government “will take consistent measures to substantially reduce tensions and restore trust” with the North.

“We affirm our respect for the North’s current system,” said Lee, adding Seoul had “no intention of engaging in hostile acts”.

“I hope that North Korea will reciprocate our efforts to restore trust and revive dialogue,” he said.

“North and South are not enemies.”

Lee’s speech comes a day after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, said the North has “no will to improve relations” with the South.

She also denied reports that North Korea was removing propaganda loudspeakers.

The South’s military said in June that the two countries had halted propaganda broadcasts along the demilitarised zone, adding last week that it had detected North Korean troops dismantling loudspeakers on the frontier.

Friday’s August 15 anniversary of liberation from Japan is the only public holiday celebrated in both North and South Korea, according to Seoul’s National Institute for Unification Education.

In Pyongyang, North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un also made a speech at a liberation day celebration, urging the nation to overcome “the challenges facing the DPRK for the great powerful country”, using the North’s official acronym.

However, in an unusual move for a Liberation Day address, he made no mention of South Korea or its “enemies.”

The speech was before a Russian delegation to Pyongyang, including the speaker of the Duma, who read a congratulatory letter sent to Kim by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Kim’s speech was a “stark contrast” to his sister’s recent “fiery statements,” Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul told AFP.

Source : https://www.ibtimes.com/south-korea-president-vows-build-military-trust-north-3780984

THE investigation into the death of a young fashion designer on a yacht in the Hamptons has taken a fresh twist as her family shoots down claims that she had cancer before her passing.

The grief-stricken mom of bikini designer Martha Nolan O’Slattara, 33, insisted her daughter was “perfectly healthy” before she was found unconscious on a ritzy boat docked at the Montauk Yacht Club.

Nolan was found on board the vessel, named Ripple, at around midnight last Tuesday after she had a meeting with the boat’s owner, 60-year-old insurance mogul Christopher Durnan.

Durnan reportedly ran screaming down the dock for help, and Good Samaritans at the boat club performed CPR, but first responders pronounced her dead at the scene.

Her cause of death wasn’t determined immediately, but cops ruled out any signs of violence on her body.

Speculation began to grow that drugs were involved in her death after a drug task force joined police in the investigation, reported Newsday.

Sources close to the investigation then claimed the death was a suspected overdose, the New York Post reported.

Nolan’s family then spoke out and said they never knew the Irish-born entrepreneur to be a person who used drugs.

Now, Nolan’s mom, Elma, has been forced to break her silence on more rumors surrounding her daughter’s untimely death.

In the days following Nolan’s death, detectives reportedly called Elma to ask about claims that her daughter had brain cancer, the Irish Independent reported.

Elma, who spoke to her daughter daily, was “stunned” by the claims.

She told detectives her daughter was in perfect health.

“She told them there was nothing of the sort [affecting her],” a source told the Irish Independent.

It’s unclear where investigators got the information about Nolan’s supposed cancer.

Nolan’s family has traveled from Ireland to the US to demand a second-opinion autopsy after the first exam didn’t determine a cause of death.

The family has hired top lawyer Arthur Aidala to represent them following Nolan’s death.

Aidala, who previously represented Harvey Weinstein, said the family is working with cops to uncover more about Nolan’s death.

He said her family worries that if drugs were involved, then Nolan might have been slipped something unknowingly.

“If there was any kind of drug and drug use, they want to know. Who’s doing the drugs?” Aidala said at a press conference on Wednesday.

He said police are still questioning people about the death.

“There is still a very intense investigation focused on why a young woman is dead,” Aidala said, the Irish Independent reported.

He said her autopsy showed there were no signs of struggle, no defensive wounds on her hands, and no obvious signs of trauma.

“The medical examiner is really focusing now on her blood and the other fluids that are being sent to toxicology to see what’s going on,” Aidala said.

“There were rumors that she possibly had some form of brain cancer and that is being investigated as well.”

HEARTBREAKING LOSS

Nolan, founder of swimwear brand East x East, lived in Manhattan’s Upper East Side neighborhood and spent summers in Montauk to host pop-ups for her brand.

The fashionista often showcased luxurious vacations and glamorous trips on private jets on her social media accounts.

She was having a late-night business meeting with Durnan, who reportedly has invested over $200,000 in her brand.

Durnan is a widowed father of two adult children who owns a company that specializes in workers’ compensation insurance.

He didn’t immediately return The U.S. Sun’s request for comment.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/14980329/martha-nolan-oslattara-hamptons-death-yacht-montauk-cancer/

Despite running over Thursday’s deadline, representatives from 185 countries failed to reach a deal to bring the world closer to ending plastic pollution with a legally binding, global agreement..

“We will not have a treaty to end plastic pollution here in Geneva,” Norway’s negotiator said following talks in Geneva that went into the early hours of Friday.

Meeting on the 11th day of talks, countries could not agree on whether the treaty should reduce growth of plastic production and put legally binding controls on toxic chemicals used to make plastics or focus more on recycling, reuse and improved design.

“We have missed a historic opportunity but we have to keep going and act urgently. The planet and present and future generations need this treaty,” said Cuba.

What issues divided countries at the plastic pollution talks?

Large oil and gas-producing nations and the plastics industry opposed limits on the production of plastic. Instead, they wanted a treaty that emphasized better waste management and reuse.

“Our views were not reflected … without an agreed scope, this process cannot remain on the right track and risks sliding down a slippery slope,” said Kuwait.

China’s delegation compared ending plastic pollution to a marathon and said Friday’s collapsed talks represented a temporary setback and served as a new starting point to forge consensus.

The High Ambition Coalition, made up of European Union, Britain, Canada and many African and Latin American countries, wanted to the treaty to require a reduction in plastic production and the elimination of toxic chemicals used in plastics.

European Commissioner Jessika Roswall said the European Union and its member states had higher expectations for this meeting and while the draft falls short on their demands, it’s a good basis for another negotiating session.

“The Earth is not ours only. We are stewards for those who come after us. Let us fulfill that duty,” she said, adding that the EU would “continue to push for a stronger, binding agreement that safeguards public health and protects the environment.

What happens next?

For any proposal to make it currently into the treaty, every nation must agree.

India, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Kuwait, Vietnam and others have said consensus is vital to an effective treaty. But other countries want to change the process so decisions may be made by a vote.

“We are going in circles. We cannot continue to do the same thing and expect a different result,” said Graham Forbes, head of the Greenpeace delegation in Geneva.

Palau, speaking for 39 small island developing states, expressed frustration at the effort put into talks and then “repeatedly returning home with insufficient progress to show our people.”

Similar plastic pollution negotiations last year in South Korea also collapsed without an agreement.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/un-talks-on-plastic-pollution-fail-to-reach-deal/a-73648025

President Donald Trump has ended his high-stakes Russia summit without announcing a deal to end the war in Ukraine, despite rolling out the red carpet for Vladimir Putin and being the first U.S. president in years to invite him back to America.

After a rare ride in the presidential limousine, a military flyover, and three hours of talks, a somewhat subdued Trump told reporters in Alaska: “We didn’t get there—but we have a very good chance of getting there.”

Both leaders said they made progress on ending the bloody conflict that Putin started in February 2022 when his forces invaded Ukraine in a bid to reclaim the country.

During a long-awaited press conference lasting only a few minutes, Trump and Putin spoke of an agreement of sorts, but gave no details, took no questions, and made no mention of a ceasefire of any kind.

“There’s no deal until there’s a deal,” Trump said. “I will call up NATO in a little while. I will call up the various people that I think are appropriate, and I’ll, of course, call up President Zelensky and tell them about today’s meeting. It’s ultimately up to them.”

The lack of an announcement is likely to fuel claims that Putin was using the meeting as a stalling tactic to stave off further sanctions by America.

The Russian authoritarian has also been frozen out by the West for years, and his visit has been depicted in Moscow as a win for the Kremlin.

At the press conference, Putin addressed the room first, and then spoke for eight-and-a-half minutes about the history of the two nations, his desire for more business ties with America, and flattered the American president by agreeing that the war would not have happened if Trump had been in office.

He also told reporters that he greeted Trump on the tarmac in Alaska by saying: “Good afternoon, dear neighbor—very good to see you in good health and to see you alive.”

But Putin also made the point that in order to make a “lasting and long-term” end to the war, “we need to eliminate all the primary root causes” of the conflict in Ukraine.

This is viewed as shorthand for Putin’s hardline demands, which have repeatedly been rejected: that Ukraine disarms, gives up a large part of its land to Russia, and swears off joining NATO.

Friday’s summit in Alaska’s Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson was the first time Putin has been on U.S. soil in 10 years.

It was also the first time a U.S. president has given the VIP treatment to a Russian leader who faces an arrest warrant for war crimes issued by the International Criminal Court as well as being sanctioned by the U.S. government.

Ahead of the meeting, Trump said that he hoped to broker a ceasefire with Putin but was prepared to “walk out” if they failed to reach a deal.

He had also previously warned Putin of “very severe consequences” if he didn’t agree to a ceasefire, including potentially harsh new sanctions that would ramp up economic pressure on Russia.

Source : https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trump-leaves-alaska-with-nothing-except-a-lecture-from-preening-vladimir-putin/

President Donald Trump literally rolled out the red carpet for Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday.

Trump, 79, veered from left to right as he walked on the carpet, unable to stay in its center, before reaching a set meeting point. Trump then stood and clapped as the American adversary, 72, approached him at Joint Base Elmendorf in Anchorage.

Once together, the two men shook hands before Trump waddled at Putin’s side toward a platform. Above, a U.S. Air Force B-2 stealth bomber and four F-35 fighter jets completed a flyover that caused Putin to pause and briefly look up.

The world leaders stopped atop the platform, posed for photos behind a sign reading “Alaska 2025,” and shuffled down three steps and into an all-black Escalade. Trump invited Putin to descend the stairs first, placing his hand on the Russian’s back.

Both men avoided an embarrassing slip or stumble, and they appeared comfortable with each other, chatting as they sauntered forward. Once inside a U.S. government SUV, cameras captured Putin smiling and waving to the press corps outside.

The eyes of the world are on Friday’s summit, which is regarding Russia’s bloody war in Ukraine.

Trump is expected to push Putin to reach a ceasefire agreement, but the White House has tempered expectations of what will actually be accomplished, especially without a representative of Ukraine—like its president, Volodymyr Zelensky—present.

Source : https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-79-veers-from-left-to-right-in-walk-across-red-carpet/ 

Former President Barack Obama offered a scathing summary of President Donald Trump’s return to office during a call with Texas state Democrats who skipped town to fight Republican efforts to redistrict the state.

During a 30-minute Zoom meeting on Thursday, Obama spoke to dozens of members of the Texas House Democratic Caucus, who fled earlier this month to Illinois, New York, and Massachusetts so that Republicans wouldn’t be able to make a quorum and hold a vote on the new districts.

The maps are usually redrawn once every 10 years, after the census is completed, and not mid-decade. But Trump has called for a “simple redrawing” of Texas that would allow Republicans to pick up five seats in next year’s midterm elections, with the goal of maintaining control of the House.

The meeting was part pep talk and part strategy session, and Obama did not mention Trump by name, CNN reported.

But he called out the administration’s efforts to gerrymander congressional districts, suppress voting, overturn election results, bypass Congress through executive action, militarize cities, and politicize the Department of Justice and the military.

“Those are trend lines that remind us this precious democracy that we’ve got is not a given,” he said. “It’s not self-executed. It requires us to fight for it. It requires us to stand up for it.”

He said Republicans increasingly recognize their policies are unpopular, so they’re trying to “fix the game a little bit” by drawing maps that splinter Democratic voting blocs or that pack Democrats into a single district so they can’t influence other races.

“That’s not fair,” Obama said. “That’s not how democracy is supposed to work.”

Another tragedy in the bodybuilding world … champion performer Hayley McNeff has passed away at just 37.

Tributes started pouring in on Wednesday after it was confirmed the Concord, Massachusetts native died on August 8.

McNeff’s cause of death hasn’t been disclosed, but her obituary described her passing as “unexpected but peaceful.”

Her funeral service will take place on Saturday.

“I remember seeing her at Total Fitness in person,” one fan commented on social media, “She had a vibrant personality and a very warm smile! RIP! A beautiful girl lady inside & outside!!!”

Hayley rose to prominence on the bodybuilding scene in the 2000s, securing several titles, including a win at the 2009 East Coast Classic.

She also featured in a 2016 bodybuilding documentary, “Raising The Bar,” where she discussed her career … saying, “The quest for getting huge will never end. There’s no limit. I hope there’s a day that I’ll be able to look in the mirror 100% of the time and be like ‘yeah man, I’m huge.'”

Outside of bodybuilding, McNeff was also a talented diver and skier. She also studied psychology after retiring from competition.

McNeff is just one of several bodybuilders who have recently passed away. In June, Zunila Hoyos Mendez, 43, was tragically killed in a hammer attack, while a month before, Gui Bull died at the age of 30.

Source : https://www.tmz.com/2025/08/14/bodybuilder-hayley-mcneff-dead/

Kevin Watson, a 42-year-old man, was fatally shot on Wednesday evening while doing a live stream on Facebook from his car in Chicago. The video has gone viral on social media.

A 42-year-old man, Kevin Watson, was fatally shot on Wednesday evening while doing a live stream on Facebook from his car. The video of the livestream has gone viral. Watson was confirmed as the victim by the Cook County Medical Examiner on Thursday.
The shooting took place around 6.14 pm in the 5000 block of West Madison Street, in Chicago’s South Austin neighborhood, according to the Chicago Police Department.
Shooting Details
In the Facebook livestream, Watson can be seen talking from the driver’s seat of his car when a person approaches through the car window. Watson raises his hands and steps out of the car, and gunshots are then heard.

Closing arguments are due to begin in the national security trial of Jimmy Lai, 77, a fierce critic of China’s Communist Party.

“I’m going to do everything I can to save him. I’m going to do everything … His name has already entered the circle of things that we’re talking about, and we’ll see what we can do,” Trump told Fox News Radio in the US.

Trump’s remarks came as closing arguments in Lai’s high-profile trial.

Closing arguments have been pushed from Friday to Monday after Lai’s lawyer said he had experienced heart palpitations.

The delay marks the second in as many days, after Hong Kong courts were closed due to bad weather.

Trump previously pledged to rescue Lai during an interview last October, just weeks before his election as president, and had said he would “100 percent get him out”.

Lai is one of the most prominent Hong Kongers to be charged under the city’s draconian 2020 national security law, and his cause has made international headlines.

The 77-year-old is a longtime opponent of China’s Communist Party thanks to his ownership of Apple Daily, a now-shuttered pro-democracy tabloid newspaper.

He is facing two counts of “colluding with foreign forces” and a separate charge of sedition in the long-running national security trial that began in December 2023.

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/8/15/trump-promises-to-save-jailed-hong-kong-media-tycoon-jimmy-lai

If you look at Pakistan and India… planes were being knocked out of the air. Six or seven planes came down. They were ready to go, maybe nuclear. We solved that, says U.S. President Donald Trump

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday (August 14, 2025) again repeated his claim that he solved the conflict between India and Pakistan and said that the war could have turned nuclear.

“If you look at Pakistan and India… planes were being knocked out of the air. Six or seven planes came down. They were ready to go, maybe nuclear. We solved that,” Mr. Trump said during remarks in the Oval Office.

The U.S. President’s comments come on the eve of his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday as he tries to bring an end to the Ukraine war.

Trump said he had thought the Russia-Ukraine war would have been the “easiest one” to end but “it’s actually the most difficult”.

“I think that President Putin would like to see a deal. I think if I weren’t president, he would take over all of Ukraine. It’s a war that should have never happened. If I weren’t president, in my opinion, he would much rather take over all of Ukraine. But I am president and he’s not going to mess around with me,” Mr. Trump said.

“I think it’s going to be a good meeting,” Mr. Trump said of his upcoming meeting with Mr. Putin.

He added that “the more important meeting” will be the second meeting with Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and himself.

Mr. Trump said there may also be some European leaders for that meeting.

“We’re going to see what happens. And I think President Putin will make peace. I think President Zelenskyy will make peace. We’ll see if they can get along, and if they can, it’ll be great,” he said.

Mr. Trump went on to add that he has solved “six wars” in the last six months and he is “very proud of it”.

Since May 10, when Mr. Trump announced on social media that India and Pakistan had agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire, he has repeated his claim on several occasions.

Mr. Trump has claimed that he told the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours that America will do a “lot of trade” with them if they stopped the conflict.

Source : https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/india-pakistan-were-ready-to-go-nuclear-we-solved-that-president-trump/article69935696.ece

The Russian leader suggested a deal on nuclear arms control could also be part of talks that are expected to focus on ending the war in Ukraine.

The Russian leader suggested a deal on nuclear arms control could also be part of talks that are expected to focus on ending the war in Ukraine.

Russia’s Vladimir Putin sounded positive Thursday on the eve of his talks with President Donald Trump in Alaska, saying he believed the American leader was making “quite energetic and sincere efforts” toward peace in Ukraine.

A day ahead of their summit, Putin convened a meeting of advisers to inform them “about how the negotiation process on the Ukrainian crisis is going,” the Kremlin said in a readout translated by NBC News.

The Russian leader said the Trump administration is making “quite energetic and sincere efforts to stop the fighting, stop the crisis and reach agreements that are of interest to all parties involved in this conflict.”

Those efforts are intended “to create long-term conditions of peace between our countries and in Europe, and in the world as a whole,” he added, particularly if the negotiations are extended to cover strategic offensive weapons treaties.

This suggests that a deal on nuclear arms control could be part of the talks. Russia suspended its participation in the New START “reduction in strategic offensive arms” agreement in 2023.

Earlier Thursday, Putin aide Yuri Ushakov said the summit would start with head-to-head talks between Trump, Putin and their translators at 11:30 a.m. local time (3:30 p.m. ET) and would be followed by a joint news conference. The White House later confirmed this.

Trump “wants to exhaust all options to try to bring this war to a peaceful resolution,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News.

The top-level Russian delegation will include Putin, Ushakov, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov and Putin’s longtime friend and investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, Ushakov said on a call with journalists in Moscow.

The primary topic of the meeting will be Ukraine, he said, but he added that he expected the “huge, and unfortunately hitherto untapped, potential” of economic ties between the U.S. and Russia would also be discussed.

As well as Putin’s openly stated goal of subjugating Ukraine, he also wants to end Russia’s exile from the Western financial system following economic sanctions imposed by Washington, the European Union and others. Trump has not yet lifted these punishments but has expressed a desire to end Russia’s economic pariah status.

NBC News asked Trump in a press gaggle on Thursday whether he would offer Putin access to rare earth minerals as an incentive to end the war with Ukraine.

“We’re going to see what happens with our meeting. We have a big meeting. It’s going to be, I think, very important for Russia, and it’s going to be very important for us,” Trump said, without offering additional details. He later added that the earth minerals are “very unimportant” compared to “trying to save lives.”

The talks come as Ukraine marked a grim new record with 286 civilians killed and 1,388 injured in July, according to the United Nations.

“For the second month in a row, the number of civilian casualties in Ukraine hits a new three-year high,” Danielle Bell, the head of the U.N. Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU), said in a statement on Wednesday. “Only the first three months after the Russian Federation launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine saw more killed and injured than in this past month.”

The Trump-Putin summit has prompted howls of dismay and anxiety across Ukraine and Europe, which have not been invited to the talks and fear what the American president may agree to with his Russian counterpart about the conflict raging on their continent.

NBC News asked Trump in a press gaggle on Thursday whether he would offer Putin access to rare earth minerals as an incentive to end the war with Ukraine.

“We’re going to see what happens with our meeting. We have a big meeting. It’s going to be, I think, very important for Russia, and it’s going to be very important for us,” Trump said, without offering additional details. He later added that the earth minerals are “very unimportant” compared to “trying to save lives.”

The talks come as Ukraine marked a grim new record with 286 civilians killed and 1,388 injured in July, according to the United Nations.

“For the second month in a row, the number of civilian casualties in Ukraine hits a new three-year high,” Danielle Bell, the head of the U.N. Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU), said in a statement on Wednesday. “Only the first three months after the Russian Federation launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine saw more killed and injured than in this past month.”

The Trump-Putin summit has prompted howls of dismay and anxiety across Ukraine and Europe, which have not been invited to the talks and fear what the American president may agree to with his Russian counterpart about the conflict raging on their continent.

They have been confined to their own diplomatic scrambling, including dozens of calls between Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other leaders, culminating in a video call between these parties and Trump himself Wednesday.

Zelenskyy said that Putin “is bluffing” in saying he wants peace.

On Thursday, the Ukrainian leader flew to London and met his British counterpart, Prime Minister Keir Starmer, for what both called a “productive meeting.” As well as the prospect of Britain financing the small drones that have become central to Ukraine’s battlefield defense, the pair discussed the Alaska talks, “which present a viable chance to make progress as long as Putin takes action to prove he is serious about peace,” a spokesperson from Starmer’s office, No. 10 Downing St., said in a statement.

Source : https://www.nbcnews.com/world/russia/putin-praises-trump-peace-efforts-alaska-summit-ukraine-zelenskyy-rcna224953

Tom Cruise has declined a major Kennedy Center Award from Donald Trump, according to The Washington Post.

Trump announced the honorees on Wednesday from the Center, also revealing that he would host the televised show in December. Trump had reportedly wanted to unveil Cruise alongside KISS, Michael Crawford, George Strait, Sylvester Stallone, and singer Gloria Gaynor. The publication cites confirmation from several anonymous Kennedy Center employees. According to the report, Cruise’s team said the star could not attend the ceremony due to “scheduling conflicts.”

A rep for Cruise did not return The Daily Beast’s request for comment.

Cruise would have been the most high-profile honoree on Trump’s roster, who Trump said he was “98 percent involved” with selecting.

The Mission: Impossible star is notoriously quiet on politically charged subjects, opting instead to put his star power behind supporting the military, veterans, and, of course, Scientology.

Some honorees in years past have declined the award or avoided the broadcast to protest the sitting president. Mel Brooks refused the award under George W. Bush in 2009. Norman Lear declined to attend the White House Gala that came with the award in 2017 to protest Trump’s policies, but attended the Trump-free Kennedy Honors broadcast show.

“I could never turn my back on” The Kennedy Center,” Lear wrote to Twitter/X at the time. “It represents the Arts and Humanities which mean everything to me. Of course, I’m accepting the honors. What I’m not accepting is the @WhiteHouse reception with @realDonaldTrump.”

Source: https://www.thedailybeast.com/tom-cruise-turned-down-donald-trumps-kennedy-center-lifetime-achievement-award/

Taylor Swift is tipping her hat to the late, great George Michael on her upcoming album “The Life of a Showgirl” with a track called “Father Figure” — and the icon’s former partner says George would’ve totally approved of it.

Kenny Goss — George’s partner of 13 years — tells TMZ George would be proud of the tribute, which isn’t a straight sample, but an interpolation … meaning you’ll hear the melody of his ’87 classic woven into Taylor’s track.

Kenny tells us George never met Taylor, but he’s pretty sure the icon would’ve been a fan — and would’ve appreciated someone of her caliber taking an interest in his work.

Kenny’s personally a fan of Taylor’s music, and while he had no idea she was interpolating the song, it was a welcome surprise — and he’s glad she’s doing this for George, who had a big hit with “Father Figure.”

Kenny first met George in 1988, and the two were together for over a decade before splitting in 2009, reportedly due to their shared struggles with addiction. George passed away years later, on Christmas Day 2016.

Source: https://www.tmz.com/2025/08/14/george-michael-song-taylor-swift-new-album/

A new legal front has opened in the Trump family’s never-ending war with the press — and this time, it’s First Lady Melania Trump at the center, brandishing an eye-popping $1 billion defamation cudgel. Her legal team is threatening lawsuits against anyone who dares to so much as mention her name in proximity to Jeffrey Epstein’s.

The fallout has already been swift. The Daily Beast removed an article featuring author Michael Wolff alleging that President Donald Trump met Melania through an Epstein connection. In the podcast interview with Joanna Coles — which is still up on YouTube — Wolff claims that the two met in 1998 through ID Models founder Paolo Zampolli, who himself had ties to Epstein and his partner Ghislaine Maxwell, and further contended that Melania was “very involved” in Epstein’s social circle.

On Tuesday, Wolff addressed the matter in an Instagram Reel that was, in his own words, “threading the needle very carefully.” In the clip, he recounted how The Daily Beast pulled content over a letter from Melania’s lawyers, James Carville deleted his own material which made a similar connection, and others backed away from the topic entirely under the looming shadow of billion-dollar litigation. Even Hunter Biden — not exactly a stranger to political controversy — spoke about receiving a similar warning from Melania’s lawyers.

“What this is,” Wolff said, “is an effort to thwart, stop, frustrate anybody who is out there trying to make that connection. You can’t. Or you’re going to get sued in a way that is going to be just incredibly costly… burdens that you can’t bear.”

Wolff, a reporter of occasionally dubious repute but with deep sourcing on Epstein, who interviewed the disgraced financier extensively — framed the legal blitz as a chilling tactic. Whether or not you take him at face value, the effect he describes is obvious: People are pulling down commentary about the First Lady and Epstein out of fear of facing astronomical legal costs.

It’s worth stressing here: there is no evidence that the claims Melania is fighting against have any merit. In fact, the core of the story of threatening lawsuits to silence the press is less about the truth of any allegation and more about the unmistakable optics of her legal strategy.

If the aim of all this lawyerly saber-rattling is to keep Melania’s name out of the same sentence as Epstein’s, then this a paradoxical campaign. By threatening billion-dollar lawsuits — a comically large figure — the First Lady’s lawyers have ensured the story will reach a much larger audience than before. Yet media coverage will now focus less on the underlying claims, and more on the lengths to which she will go to shut them down.

It’s the classic “Streisand Effect,” named after the singer’s unsuccessful effort to suppress aerial photos of her Malibu home, which only brought far more attention to the images. Attempting to bury a story can sometimes cause it to bloom. In this case, people who might never have connected Melania Trump to Epstein are now aware that such a connection is something her lawyers are working overtime to block.

The legal battle fits neatly into the broader Trump family media strategy: attack the messenger, make litigation the punishment, and make the act of defending oneself ruinously expensive. Donald Trump himself has long wielded lawsuits — or the threat of them — as a way to intimidate critics. What’s new here is the scale: a cool billion per offense.

Meanwhile, the larger Epstein narrative has been fading from public view. Promised “Epstein files” have yet to materialize. Congressional Democrats once threatened to investigate his death and alleged connections to powerful figures, only to see momentum vanish. Wolff claims that even the Justice Department took unusual steps to manage potential fallout, including what he describes as a curious reassignment of Ghislaine Maxwell to a more comfortable prison after questioning about Trump.

None of that proves wrongdoing — but it does show how aggressively the subject is being managed massaged and in some cases shut down. And believe me I was careful not to write anything that could put me — or Mediaite — on the receiving end of a similar threat. Lawsuit threats have a serious chilling effect on the press even when any reputable outlets mission is to cover the powerful without fear or favor. And as history has shown the more energy powerful figures expend to quash a conversation the more oxygen that conversation tends to get.

Melania Trump may well succeed in intimidating some into silence. But she has also ensured that her name — and these massive lawsuit threats — are now part of the public record.

Source: https://www.mediaite.com/opinion/melania-1-billion-lawsuit-threats-silence-critics-but-amplifies-epstein-news/

The president and his administration are struggling to bury the scandal around their handling of the convicted sex offender’s case

Donald Trump, Republicans in Congress, and the president’s allies across right-wing media have been trying everything to make public backlash to their botched handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation go away, amid reports that Trump himself appears in the government’s files pertaining to the convicted sex offender.

The administration’s attempts to bury the story have been complicated by some of Epstein’s victims, and their families, speaking out as the scandal has intensified. Trump hasn’t engaged with them, but just because the president is publicly keeping his mouth shut about Epstein’s victims and their family members doesn’t mean he isn’t annoyed by them.

In recent weeks, according to two sources familiar with his private remarks, Trump has repeatedly critiqued the string of media appearances by Epstein accusers and their families, arguing that some of them are just trying to make him look bad, or implying that he did something wrong during his time as one of Epstein’s friends and party companions. At times, Trump has said that some of these people speaking out are, in his words, clearly of a “Democrat” political affiliation, while wondering aloud if some of them are coordinating with prominent liberal attorneys or groups.

“None of this is true,” a White House official said in response to a request for comment. “Just another desperate attempt by the failing Rolling Stone.”

Survivors of Epstein’s abuse have for weeks now been criticizing the Trump administration’s handling of the case after the Justice Department announced in early July that it would not be releasing the so-called Epstein files. The outcry intensified following reports that Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell had been transferred to a significantly cushier prison facility in Texas after the Justice Department spoke with her in Florida. Maxwell is serving a 20-year sentence after being convicted in 2021 of child sex trafficking and other offenses related to her relationship with Epstein. The Wall Street Journal reported last month that the Justice Department informed the president that his name appeared in evidence related to Epstein’s case, although it remains unclear in what capacity.

Annie and Maria Farmer, two sisters who accused Epstein of assaulting them and testified against Maxwell during her trial, have gone public with their criticism of the administration’s sidelining of victims. Earlier this month, Annie Farmer told CNN that “this chaotic process that’s been unfolding has a real cost for survivors.”

Farmer indicated that survivors had not been informed of the Justice Department’s efforts to meet with Maxwell, or the decision to transfer her to a minimum-security prison.

“A central part of trauma is a feeling of a lack of control, and that has certainly been triggered here these meetings. You know, even this prison transfer was something I expected we would learn about prior to learning about it in the news, and unfortunately, that’s not how it has unfolded,” she said. Farmer added that efforts by right-wing pundits and others to paint Maxwell as another Epstein victim was a ploy to make a potential commutation of Maxwell’s 20-year sentence “more palatable” to the public. Trump hasn’t ruled out pardoning Maxwell, telling reporters that he is “allowed” to do it.

“It feels like that campaign is not working. People recognize that she’s a predator, not a victim,” Farmer added.

Last month, Danielle Bensky, who accused Epstein of abusing her in 2004, told NBC News that the approach the president and his allies have taken ”feels like we’re being erased.”

“All the brave women who came forward … all the work that we did to tell the world what happened to us, it’s all being erased,” she said.

The family of Virginia Giuffre, a victim of Epstein who died by suicide earlier this year, released a statement in response to comments from Trump indicating that he believed Epstein had “stolen” Giuffre from the spa at Mar-a-Lago, where she had worked.

“If our sister could speak today, she would be most angered by the fact that the government is listening to a known perjurer, a woman who repeatedly lied under oath and will continue to do so as long as it benefits her position,” the family said. “We and the public are asking for answers; survivors deserve this.”

In a memo submitted to the U.S. District Court earlier this month, one victim (whose identity remains protected) wrote to a judge that while they are “for complete and utter transparency in this case, we deserve transparency from our own government, the agencies that were supposed to be there to protect us victims and guess what, they utterly and completely failed us.”

Source: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/trump-privately-dismissed-epstein-victims-democrats-1235407549/

The Capitol Hill battle over Jeffrey Epstein is poised to heat up when Congress returns to Washington next month.

While GOP leaders left town early to avoid the radioactive issue, the conspiracy-ridden saga is set to ramp back up come September for a number of reasons.

A bipartisan pair of lawmakers have vowed to force a vote on their resolution requiring the administration to release the federal files it’s withholding and plan to bring survivors of Epstein’s abuse to Capitol Hill in the first days of Congress’s return.

Separately, a number of court cases surrounding the fate of those files could reach a resolution in the coming weeks.

The House Rules Committee, which was brought to a standstill in July over Democratic efforts to force votes on the Epstein affair, will likely be compelled to revisit the issue if Republicans want to move any piece of their legislative agenda next month.

And bipartisan motions in the House Oversight and Government Committee that forced Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) to issue a flurry of subpoenas related to the Epstein matter could reignite public interest in the saga.

All of this is likely to create new headaches for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and his leadership team, who want to move beyond fights over Epstein when they return to Washington to face another tough task — funding the government to avoid an Oct. 1 shutdown.

“I don’t think it’s going to go away,” Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) said of the Epstein issue. “Maybe our leadership thinks that sticking their head in the sand and running out of town was the right decision. … Once we go back into session, I think this picks up where it left off.”

Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) are fighting to make sure that happens.

They’ve scheduled a press conference Sept. 3, the day after Congress returns to Washington, to promote their legislation forcing the release of the Epstein files. To help bring attention to the bill, they’ve invited several victims of Epstein’s abuse.

Massie acknowledged his office has not been getting a lot of calls about Epstein during the August break — but he said people haven’t been getting calls on any other major issues such as the national debt or abortion either.

“A lot of America is on vacation right now,” Massie said. “Just generally, people tune out when Congress is not in session.”

The saga surrounding Epstein has posed a huge challenge to President Trump in the early months of his second term.

A number of Trump supporters who had fueled the conspiracy theories surrounding Epstein — namely, that the government was concealing the files to shield powerful “elites” from criminal charges — have since assumed positions of high power in the Trump administration, such as FBI Director Kash Patel and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino.

Top administration officials continued to fan those flames in the early months of the Trump administration, with Attorney General Pam Bondi handing out binders titled “The Epstein Files: Phase 1” to conservative influencers at the White House, and Vice President Vance saying in June it was “important” to release the “Epstein list.”

Those placements led to expectations among the MAGA faithful that releasing the Epstein records would be a top priority of Trump’s second term.

Instead, the Department of Justice (DOJ) last month released an unsigned memo refuting all of the most damning theories surrounding the case. Epstein had no “client list,” the DOJ said, nor is there evidence that he tried to blackmail powerful figures who might have committed crimes against minors.

The agency also reaffirmed that Epstein’s 2019 death in a Manhattan prison was by suicide, not foul play, as some far-right voices have proposed.

The DOJ memo infuriated many of Trump’s most ardent supporters, in and out of Congress, posing the most serious threat to the unity of the MAGA movement since Trump’s entrance into the world of politics.

In response, the Trump administration — despite the president himself dismissing the Epstein saga as a “hoax” — made new efforts to reveal previously unseen information.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche sat down with Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s ex-girlfriend who was convicted on sex trafficking charges. The DOJ also made motions to unseal grand jury testimony transcripts from the Epstein case and from Maxwell’s case, but both were denied.

The controversy also raged on Capitol Hill, where Johnson was forced to cut the legislative calendar short just before the recess as GOP rebels on the House Rules Committee, who did not want to face Democratic amendment votes on the matter, refused to take up the radioactive issue.

Still, there’s a long history of July scandals disappearing down the memory hole of the long August break. And some analysts think signs point to the Epstein furor dying down.

Source: https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5451154-epstein-files-congress-clash/

A London restaurant has been shut down after dog meat was allegedly found in the freezer.

Pho Na, a Vietnamese restaurant on Old Kent Road, Southwark, closed after inspectors found the suspicious looking meat labelled as ‘goat wrapped in leaves’.

But when it was sent for analysis it was confirmed it was dog meat.

Inspectors also discovered mice droppings and cockroaches inside the establishment.

Owner Vuong Quoc Nguyen, 47, denied multiple food safety and hygiene offences at Bromley Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday.

Defence solicitor Piers Kiss-Wilson said his client did not know it was dog meat as it had been supplied to him by someone else.

He added the meat was never for sale, and pest control had been hired to deal with the mouse and cockroach infestation.

Lewisham Council said: ‘Following a failed food safety inspection at the former local business Pho Na, Lewisham Council commenced prosecution action in relation to food hygiene offences in 2023.

Source: https://metro.co.uk/2025/08/14/london-vietnamese-restaurant-shut-down-after-dog-meat-found-in-freezer-23911343/

The Russian leader suggested a deal on nuclear arms control could also be part of talks that are expected to focus on ending the war in Ukraine.

Russia’s Vladimir Putin sounded positive Thursday on the eve of his talks with President Donald Trump in Alaska, saying he believed the American leader was making “quite energetic and sincere efforts” toward peace in Ukraine.

A day ahead of their summit, Putin convened a meeting of advisers to inform them “about how the negotiation process on the Ukrainian crisis is going,” the Kremlin said in a readout translated by NBC News.

The Russian leader said the Trump administration is making “quite energetic and sincere efforts to stop the fighting, stop the crisis and reach agreements that are of interest to all parties involved in this conflict.”

Those efforts are intended “to create long-term conditions of peace between our countries and in Europe, and in the world as a whole,” he added, particularly if the negotiations are extended to cover strategic offensive weapons treaties.

This suggests that a deal on nuclear arms control could be part of the talks. Russia suspended its participation in the New START “reduction in strategic offensive arms” agreement in 2023.

Earlier Thursday, Putin aide Yuri Ushakov said the summit would start with head-to-head talks between Trump, Putin and their translators at 11:30 a.m. local time (3:30 p.m. ET) and would be followed by a joint news conference. The White House later confirmed this.

Trump “wants to exhaust all options to try to bring this war to a peaceful resolution,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News.

The top-level Russian delegation will include Putin, Ushakov, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov and Putin’s longtime friend and investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, Ushakov said on a call with journalists in Moscow.

The primary topic of the meeting will be Ukraine, he said, but he added that he expected the “huge, and unfortunately hitherto untapped, potential” of economic ties between the U.S. and Russia would also be discussed.

As well as Putin’s openly stated goal of subjugating Ukraine, he also wants to end Russia’s exile from the Western financial system following economic sanctions imposed by Washington, the European Union and others. Trump has not yet lifted these punishments but has expressed a desire to end Russia’s economic pariah status.

NBC News asked Trump in a press gaggle on Thursday whether he would offer Putin access to rare earth minerals as an incentive to end the war with Ukraine.

“We’re going to see what happens with our meeting. We have a big meeting. It’s going to be, I think, very important for Russia, and it’s going to be very important for us,” Trump said, without offering additional details. He later added that the earth minerals are “very unimportant” compared to “trying to save lives.”

The talks come as Ukraine marked a grim new record with 286 civilians killed and 1,388 injured in July, according to the United Nations.

“For the second month in a row, the number of civilian casualties in Ukraine hits a new three-year high,” Danielle Bell, the head of the U.N. Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU), said in a statement on Wednesday. “Only the first three months after the Russian Federation launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine saw more killed and injured than in this past month.”

The Trump-Putin summit has prompted howls of dismay and anxiety across Ukraine and Europe, which have not been invited to the talks and fear what the American president may agree to with his Russian counterpart about the conflict raging on their continent.

They have been confined to their own diplomatic scrambling, including dozens of calls between Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other leaders, culminating in a video call between these parties and Trump himself Wednesday.

Zelenskyy said that Putin “is bluffing” in saying he wants peace.

On Thursday, the Ukrainian leader flew to London and met his British counterpart, Prime Minister Keir Starmer, for what both called a “productive meeting.” As well as the prospect of Britain financing the small drones that have become central to Ukraine’s battlefield defense, the pair discussed the Alaska talks, “which present a viable chance to make progress as long as Putin takes action to prove he is serious about peace,” a spokesperson from Starmer’s office, No. 10 Downing St., said in a statement.

Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/world/russia/putin-praises-trump-peace-efforts-alaska-summit-ukraine-zelenskyy-rcna224953