50 Cent still wants the last laugh when it comes to his rivalry with Sean “Diddy” Combs.
The “21 Questions” rapper hit Combs with yet another savage Instagram trolling on Friday — this time, with the help of a bizarre AI baby oil fashion show video.
The clip showed an artificial Combs walking down a fashion runway while wearing a pink dress fashioned with the Johnson & Johnson baby oil logo across the front.
And the roasting didn’t end there — The video was set to the song “Baby Oil Freak Off Party.”
50 Cent continued to troll his longtime rival Sean “Diddy” Combs on Friday with a bizarre AI clip. Getty Images
“I didn’t know Diddy walked in the Michael Amiri show, when did he make Bond! 😟” 50 captioned the video.
The joke was in reference to the shockingly copious amounts of baby oil found and confiscated by the FBI during the raids Combs’ Miami and Los Angeles mansions last year.
The “Many Men” hitmaker hasn’t held his tongue regarding Diddy’s long list of legal troubles over the last year.
He also trolled the Bad Boy Records founder’s affinity for baby oil during his trial in May by sharing a string of AI-generated photos to Instagram, beginning with a screenshot of a People headline that read: “Cassie Says Diddy Asked Her to Get in Inflatable Pool Filled With Baby Oil.”
“Damn he did all that sh–t to go out like this, SMH,” 50 captioned the collection of faux photos. “This s–t crazier then [sic] regular crazy.”
The “BMF” producer, 49, had an out-of-character take on Combs’ verdict in his sex trafficking trial earlier this month.
After the disgraced music mogul was found guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution and not guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering, 50 — in an odd turn for the infamous internet troll — congratulated his longtime rival on social media.
“Diddy beat the Feds, that boy a bad man !” he wrote via Instagram alongside three clapping emojis.
Shubhanshu Shukla and three crew members lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 25.
This mission not only marks Mr Shukla as the second Indian astronaut in space.
India’s space exploration efforts are poised to mark a historic milestone as Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian to visit the International Space Station (ISS), prepares to return to Earth following a successful mission under the Axiom-4 program. This mission, named Akash Ganga, is a collaborative effort among Axiom Space Inc., NASA, and ISRO, representing a significant step forward in India’s human spaceflight ambitions, including the upcoming Gaganyaan mission and the proposed Bhartiya Antariksha Station.
Mr Shukla and three crew members lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on June 25. They docked with the space station on June 26, and, weather permitting in the descent corridor, the mission, which Mr Shukla is piloting, will safely splash down on July 15. ISRO has confirmed that the splashdown is scheduled for 3:00 PM IST on July 15, 2025.
According to NASA’s Commercial Crew Program Manager Steve Stich, the undocking of the Crew Dragon spacecraft carrying Mr Shukla and three other astronauts is scheduled for July 14, 2025, at 4:30 PM IST. Following a series of orbital maneuvers, the spacecraft is expected to splash down in the Pacific Ocean near the coast of California, USA.
In an update on July 11, Axiom Space reported that after spending 17 days living and working aboard the International Space Station, the Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4) crew is wrapping up their research projects. Commander Peggy Whitson, Pilot Shubhanshu “Shux” Shukla, and Mission Specialists Sławosz “Suave” Uznanski-Wisniewski and Tibor Kapu have maximised their time in orbit.
Since arriving, they have conducted over 60 scientific research activities and participated in more than 20 outreach events, advancing research that will contribute to the future of space exploration while inspiring the next generation back on Earth.
During his stay aboard the ISS, Mr Shukla conducted seven India-specific microgravity experiments, showcasing India’s growing capabilities in space science and technology. These experiments are designed to generate critical data for future planetary missions and long-duration space habitation. Some of the experiments include:Tardigrades: Studying the survival, revival, reproduction, and transcriptome of an Indian strain.
Myogenesis: Investigating the impact of microgravity on human muscle cells.
Sprouting of Methi and Moong Seeds: Relevant to crew nutrition and sustainable space farming.
Cyanobacteria: Exploring the growth of two varieties for life support systems.
These experiments are now being prepared for their journey back to Earth for further analysis. Meanwhile, three additional experiments-focused on microalgae, crop seeds, and the Voyager Display-are nearing completion and will also contribute valuable insights to India’s space research portfolio.ISRO’s flight surgeons have been actively monitoring Mr Shukla’s health and psychological well-being throughout the mission via private medical and psychological conferences.
Reports confirm that the astronaut is in excellent health and high spirits, a testament to the rigorous training and support systems in place. Upon splashdown, Mr Shukla will undergo a seven-day rehabilitation program under the supervision of ISRO’s flight surgeons. This phase is crucial for helping the astronaut readjust to Earth’s gravity after spending several weeks in microgravity conditions.
This mission not only marks Mr Shukla as the second Indian astronaut in space, following Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma’s historic flight in 1984-but also positions India as a serious contender in the global space community.
The success of Mission Akash Ganga is expected to accelerate India’s roadmap for human spaceflight and deepen international collaborations in space science.
DRAMATIC footage captures a fleet of Chinese tank boats charging through the sea in tight formation during military drills near Taiwan.
The show of force by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) comes as Taiwan kicks off its largest-ever military exercises.
Armoured amphibious units practise naval formation
Footage released by China’s state broadcaster CCTV on Wednesday shows amphibious armoured units conducting live-fire exercises as tensions in the Taiwan Strait escalate.
The drills were carried out by the PLA’s 72nd Group Army just off the southern coast of Fujian province – directly across from Taiwan – in what analysts see as a deliberately provocative move.
A video released on Thursday shows reconnaissance troops from the 73rd Group Army practising armed swimming, underwater combat and long-range coastal infiltration drills.
Military experts say the drills are “counter-display” as Taiwan launched its own large-scale military exercises on Wednesday.
A SEX scandal has rocked the Kremlin as a top Putin official has been revealed using $100million military planes to transport his mistress around Russia.
Maria Shalaeva, 23, shared online she was being flown on a defence ministry Ilyushin-76 aircraft for a weekend getaway to Rostov-on-Don – the same location of Russian armed forces war headquarters.
Maria Shalaeva boasted about taking an armed forces plane to the closed airport in Rostov-on-Don for a weekend getawayCredit: East2West
One independent media outlet has dragged in the name of Putin’s trusted defence minister Andrei Belousov, 66, as the suspected lover.
He is said to be a known womaniser from earlier email leaks, and his photograph appears on a video she posted.
It is also clear from one video her lover has grey hair, as does Belousov, who was a Kremlin apparatchik before becoming defence minister.
Yet there are strong indications that her man – apparently seen in shorts from behind on the plane – could be younger.
Whether the affair is Belousov or another senior official figure in the Russian power structure, the disclosure triggered fury over what is seen as a security breach.
As the scandal unfolded today, military sources indicated that the Kremlin “sugar daddy” had been visited at work by the secret services after the mistress’s revelations.
Shalaeva, from Yekaterinburg, boasted in now-deleted posts – that she was flying to Rostov-on-Don, a city she had visited before with her lover.
The airport, however, is being closed to all but military planes.
The 23-year-old went on to reveal her beloved booked her a manicure appointment in the city.
She posted: “Who’s saying planes don’t fly to Rostov?
“They do – just not all of them, and not for everyone. Anyway, I flew back to Rostov again. Can’t seem to let it go.”
She said her lover is “a Kremlin man, though, that’s another story. Reliability level is 200%.”
She admits to bringing her three-year-old son Tim on the trip, leading to speculation he is her lover’s offspring.
“At three years old, he’s already flown in a military aircraft,” she posted.
“Tim got to sit right in the cockpit and even grabbed some crisps from the pilot.
“We were greeted warmly. Timmy was chilling, watching cartoons the whole ride.”
Shalaeva says her lover calls her “yebobo [crazy]” and sometimes asks if she’s ever had a concussion.
She insisted he was “not military!! Not FSB either! Now, I know who he is, but I’m not allowed to say.”
Belousov, an economist and civilian technocrat, is not a career soldier and holds no formal military rank – but his authority rivals that of Russia’s top generals.
In Rostov, Shalaeva, her son, and her mystery man were reportedly picked up by a “very expensive foreign car,” rumoured to be a Maybach.
Nexta independent media – a respected outlet originally from Belarus and now Warsaw-based – linked her to Belousov, but without giving any verification.
“In private posts, Shalaeva hints that it’s Belousov himself, the new defence minister of the Russian Federation [who is her lover],” stated Nexta.
“The Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation flies his mistress on a military plane.”
It was local media in Rostov that first flagged the scandal, without naming names.
Russian outlets have so far avoided identifying the man.
Retire Major General Vladimir Popov didn’t mince words: “Everyone will be found and punished.”
He made it clear Belousov bears ultimate responsibility for the military flight.
“If this reaches the defence minister, I expect he’ll come down hard for such poor oversight. And from there, the punishment will trickle down.”
Pro-Kremlin military blogger Andrey Medvedev added: “It seems the Military Counterintelligence Department has plenty to do.”
“I can imagine how much information the SBU [Ukrainian security service] and Western intelligence agencies get just from monitoring social networks,” he wrote.
“In a photo posted by this reckless girl, you can find all sorts of interesting details to understand which planes fly to Rostov, who arranged those rides for her. And so on.”
It comes as the Kremlin was accused of covering up the death of a sacked Russian minister after signs of torture were allegedly found on his body just 24 hours before his apparent suicide.
Roman Starovoit, who was Vladimir Putin’s transport minister for less than a year, was dismissed from his post on July 7 – just hours before he was found dead.
Telegram channels with links to the Russian security forces reported Starovoit’s cause of death as suicide – claiming the minister was found dead with gunshot wounds.
However, an independent Russian media outlet now reports that he had been beaten before his death.
Mohammed was held in secret CIA prisons up until his transfer to Guantánamo Bay in September 2006
THE chief architect of the 9/11 terrorist attacks could be sentenced to death after a court tossed out a plea deal that would have saved his life.
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is accused of masterminding the September 11, 2001 attacks against the United States – and was regarded as one of al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden’s most trusted henchmen.
In 2003, the CIA captured him in Pakistan, after which he spent three years in secret prisons before arriving at Guantanamo in 2006.
He is said to have planned out the deadly attacks from “A to Z” — and was also involved in a string of major plots against the US, where he attended university.
Mohammed as well as two alleged accomplices — Walid bin Attash and Mustafa al-Hawsawi — struck a deal with prosecutors on July 31 and agreed to plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence.
The deal would allow the trio to be spared from the death penalty and remain jailed on the southern portion of the American Naval base in Cuba.
The agreement has sparked outrage from family members of victims who died during the 9/11 attacks.
But a US appeals court on Friday scrapped the agreement, saying that both they and the American public deserved to see the defendants stand trial.
Lloyd Austin, the Secretary of Defence under the Biden administration, attempted to halt the agreement by filing a motion to a military appeals court.
In his brief, Austin cited the magnitude of the 9/11 attacks and argued that as defence secretary, he should decide on any plea agreements that would save the three men from the death penalty.
Austin “acted within the bounds of his legal authority, and we decline to second-guess his judgment,” judges Patricia Millett and Neomi Rao wrote in a ruling today.
Congressional lawmakers have also slammed the plea deal, calling it a “national disgrace” and a “total miscarriage of justice.”
“The Biden-Harris Administration’s weakness in the face of sworn enemies of the American people apparently knows no bounds,” said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell at the time.
“The plea deal with terrorists – including Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks that killed thousands of Americans – is a revolting abdication of the government’s responsibility to defend America and provide justice.
“The only thing worse than negotiating with terrorists is negotiating with them after they are in custody.”
Mohammed and al-Hawsawi were captured on March 1, 2003, in a joint CIA and Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence operation in the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi.
Walid bin Attash was captured in Karachi, Pakistan, in April 2003.
Mohammed was held in secret CIA prisons up until his transfer to Guantánamo Bay in September 2006.
However, before he was moved to Guantánamo, government officials interrogated Mohammed and his accomplices for years, torturing them and keeping them isolated in undisclosed locations.
Mohammed endured 183 rounds of waterboarding – a form of torture where a person experiences the sensation of drowning when water is poured over a cloth covering their face.
TERROR ATTACKS
At least 2,753 people died at the site of the World Trade Center, where two planes crashed into the towers on September 11, 2001.
A third plane hit the Pentagon, while a fourth, which was planned to strike Washington DC, crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after crew members and passengers stormed the cockpit.
The heinous attacks sparked the war on terror after President George W. Bush ordered the US military to invade Afghanistan and Iraq in search of the terrorists responsible.
The US government was warned by the CIA that the likely targets would be famous landmarks or symbols of US capitalism – but they did not know when or how.
And none of them could have imagined the extent or horror of 9/11 when it did happen.
On May 1, 2011, the most classified operation of the last 25 years was launched to kill Osama Bin Laden.
The Saudi-born terror chief became the world’s most wanted man, hiding in plain sight in Pakistan for years before U.S. Navy SEALs took him out in a daring raid.
ACCUSED child murderer Travis Decker would not be able to survive in the wilderness long alone, but authorities still have a challenge on their hands, experts say.
Decker, 32, vanished six weeks ago after he allegedly murdered his three daughters during a scheduled custody visit on May 30 in Washington.
Travis Decker [right] is a homeless army vet suffering from PTSD, cops saidCredit: U.S. ArmyPaityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5, were found suffocated to death at an abandoned campsite near Icicle Creek on June 2.
There have been a few sightings of a man resembling Decker more than 500 miles away in Idaho, and now multiple agencies are working on the case.
Although a camper’s report in the Bear Creek area in Idaho has been ruled out by US Marshals, a nurse also claimed to have seen a man resembling Decker in Idaho City.
He appeared to be hiking but was underprepared with a sleeping roll, no sleeping bag, and long-sleeved top and pants in hot weather, as he was seen walking across a parking lot towards a public bathroom.
Michael Lanza, founder of The Big Outside, a writer, outdoor photographer, and backpacker for more than three decades, spoke to The U.S. Sun about the possibility Decker could disappear into the nearby mountains in Idaho.
Lanza said if he already owned the correct gear and clothing and had experience in backcountry travel, he might be okay for a while, but the challenge of feeding himself would likely become the main issue.
“And in those mountains, winter sets in by sometime in September or October,” he said.
“But his challenge with feeding himself would probably arise long before then.
“It’s summer, so the weather wouldn’t be all that difficult, although a person would still need the gear and skills to make shelter and get food on his own, possibly by fishing and hunting.
“That might not provide enough food, and he wouldn’t likely have a means of preserving food [refrigeration] for more than a day, meaning he’d have to fish or hunt daily.
“Backpackers and horsepackers would typically carry a small gas stove for cooking meals, but those require fuel, so if he has a stove, he would need to be resupplied with fuel as well as food.”
Lanza said in the early summer the creeks and rivers are high so there’s plenty of water, but the crossings can be dangerous.
“Winter would require a more weather-hardy shelter than a tent for a long period of time, and wild food sources become much more scarce and difficult to obtain,” he continued.
“Traveling on foot becomes much more difficult, and there’s avalanche danger.
“Temperatures will drop well below freezing at night and may not rise above freezing on many days.
“Avoiding frostbite or worse would be difficult to impossible without the right footwear and clothing, and those wear out over time or may get wet and not dry for hours or days, depending on the weather and temperatures.
“Look at people and cultures who’ve survived in harsh winter environments, and they’ve done it typically through long-developed skills, having very good shelter, and having communities supporting one another.
“Not many people have survived winters as hermits.”
More than $6 million is said to have been spent on the search for Decker so far, and authorities still have no clue as to where he is.
Lanza said, “It’s difficult because of the mountainous and forested terrain and the vastness of that wilderness.
“Without recent sightings, searchers might not have an area to focus their efforts on, meaning they would need either thousands of people on the ground or aircraft searching with technologies that can locate a person on the ground who’s not within eyesight of them, all of which entails enormous cost.
“I expect he’ll either get captured alive or his body will be found some days, weeks, or months.”
Police recently said there was no clear evidence as to whether Decker is alive or dead and millions of dollars have been spent on fruitless weeks-long manhunt.
Decker is an Army veteran with extensive military skills who previously spent months alone in the outdoors, leading officials to believe he may have planned to survive in the wilderness for a while.
But Chelan County Sheriff Mike Morrison in Washington told CNN Decker isn’t a wilderness “guru,” despite online theories inflating his survival skills.
“We’re not going to glorify his abilities,” Morrison said.
“We don’t think that he’s some kind of special forces guru.
“He could get lucky at times, and eventually luck runs out.”
Elisabeth Brentano, an outdoor photographer, also spoke to The U.S. Sun about adventures in the Sawtooth National Forest, where Decker was initially thought to have been spotted this month.
“It is possible to go off the grid in the Sawtooth National Forest for days, or even weeks, without being discovered if someone has strong survival skills and equipment,” she said.
“For example, one would need a way to purify their water [either by boiling or filtering], they’d need food [they’d have to hunt or forage, and/or pack in dehydrated meals], and once temperatures start dropping, they’d need shelter and heat [i.e., tarp, tent, firewood etc].
“While there are no grizzly bears in the Sawtooths, there are black bears, mountain lions and even wolves, so that’s another element of danger.”
Meanwhile, Dave Canterbury – a veteran survival expert and owner of Pathfinder School in Ohio, an outdoor self-reliance and survival school – previously told The U.S. Sun Decker could be near the Canadian border by now.
Decker was homeless at the time of the murders and has been diagnosed with PTSD.
He has been accused of kidnapping his daughters and killing them after he picked them up from his ex-wife Whitney for a planned visitation on May 30.
The little girls’ bodies were discovered at Rock Island Campground in Leavenworth, over 20 miles away from their home in Wenatchee, with plastic bags over their heads and zip ties around their wrists.
About 100 yards away from the bodies, Decker’s white truck was found abandoned with his wallet inside and bloody handprints containing his DNA on the tailgate.
A neighbor said Decker looked thin and appeared distracted when he arrived for the handoff at Whitney’s home.
Binh Nguyen, who lived next door to the Deckers for years, told People about the conversation he shared with the dad on the day he disappeared.
“He was skinny. He had long hair and a beard,” Nguyen told the outlet.
“I said, ‘Is that you, Travis?’”
The men spoke for about 10 minutes as Decker waited to pick up his daughters.
However, Nguyen noticed that Decker looked distracted and wasn’t fully paying attention to their conversation
“What was strange was that he kept asking me the same question at different points in our conversation,” Nguyen told the Daily Mail.
“Like he wasn’t remembering he already asked.”
The girls’ mom Whitney has said she wants him found “dead or alive.”
Court documents show Whitney claimed Decker was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and didn’t take medication for it, despite treatment being part of the parenting plan.
“Travis has really struggled since he left the military and his mental health can be hard sometimes,” Whitney told Seattle CBS affiliate KIRO before the girls’ bodies were found.
“I think this is an effect of that, and I don’t personally think that he’s dangerous.”
In a declaration filed in September, Whitney wrote that her ex-husband’s instability was affecting their daughters, according to the Seattle Times.
“Since our separation, it has become increasingly clear that Travis has been struggling to maintain stability in his life,” Whitney wrote, according to KIRO.
She said Decker was prone to “outbursts” and would come into her home yelling for the girls.
US President Trump (left) and his Brazilian counterpart, Lula, don’t see eye to eyeImage: E. Blondet/W. Oliver/picture alliance
US President Donald Trump plans to impose a 50% import tariff on products from Brazil as of August. The threat sparked outrage in the South American nation, partly because of fears of economic fallout, but also for another reason: Trump linked his move to the ongoing trial of Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s president from 2019 to 2023, on charges of forming a criminal organization to stage a coup.
On January 8, 2023, about a week after President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva took office, Bolsonaro supporters stormed Congress, the seat of government, and the Supreme Court in the capital, Brasília, vandalizing both buildings. To this day, Bolsonaro refuses to acknowledge Lula’s election win.
“Brazil is doing a terrible thing on their treatment of former President Jair Bolsonaro,” Trump wrote Monday on his Truth Social platform. “I have watched, as has the World, as they have done nothing but come after him, day after day, night after night, month after month, year after year! He is not guilty of anything, except having fought for THE PEOPLE.” Trump wrote that that he would be “watching the WITCH HUNT of Jair Bolsonaro.” He added: “LEAVE BOLSONARO ALONE!”
Delighted by Trump’s statement, Bolsonaro wrote on X: “Thank you for being there and for setting an example of faith and resilience.” The auhoritarian former president has called his trial “political persecution.”
‘Quite an affront’
Since starting his second term in January, Trump has imposed or threatened extremely high tariffs on imports from many countries. His argument has been that years of high trade deficits have threatened US national security.
The president has used tariffs as a political tool in other cases — for example, he threatened tariffs on Mexico to force the country to clamp down on US-bound illegal immigration and drug trafficking, and he used the levies to pressure the European Union into relaxing regulations that affect US companies. Yet this time things are different: Trump’s tariffs are mainly about a domestic Brazilian issue, irking many in Brazil.
“It is unacceptable and quite an affront for one country to try to interfere in the politics of another country in this way,” the Brazilian political scientist and international relations expert Leonardo Paz Neves told DW.
Brazil’s government responds
Lula wrote on X that unilateral tariff increases on imports from Brazil would produce a response on the basis of the principle of economic reciprocity. Lula also said legal proceedings against Bolsonaro were in the hands of a constitutional and independent judiciary. The Brazilian president has called an emergency meeting with his ministers in view of Trump’s tariff plans.
“Brazil is a sovereign country with independent institutions that will not be told what to do by anyone,” Lula wrote.
Not all Bolsonaro backers continue to support the former leader amid Trump’s looming tariffs. Paz Neves, an analyst with the Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV), told DW the US leader’s move could backfire on Trump and Bolsonaro. He says that even some conservative Brazilians have begun criticizing the incoming tariffs and supporting Lula.
Brazil is unlikely to yield to Trump’s pressure and allow the United States to interfere in its national affairs or with the independence of its judiciary. “That’s not possible, even if we wanted to [interfere],” says Paz Neves. “We have a separation of powers, and the Bolsonaro trial is a legal matter.”
Wimbledon 2025: World No.1 Jannik Sinner set up a clash with Carlos Alcaraz in the grand finale after beating 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the second semi-final.
Jannik Sinner advanced to his maiden Wimbledon final. Courtesy: Reuters
Jannik Sinner stormed into his maiden Wimbledon final after beating Novak Djokovic in straight sets in the second semi-final. On Friday, July 11, Sinner needed just an hour and 55 minutes to dispatch Djokovic 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 on Centre Court. The 23-year-old also avenged his straight-sets loss to Djokovic in the 2023 semi-final.
For the first time since 2017, the Wimbledon final will not feature Djokovic. The last time he missed the title clash at the All England Club was when Roger Federer defeated Marin Cilic to win his eighth Wimbledon crown.
Djokovic’s wait for a record-extending 25th Grand Slam title continues. With his fifth consecutive win over the Serb, Sinner also improved his head-to-head record against Djokovic to 6-4 on the ATP Tour.
Sinner also became the fifth man since 1995 to reach the final of all four Grand Slams, joining Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Andy Murray. He is also the second-youngest man in the Open Era to achieve this feat, after Jim Courier.
In the final, Jannik Sinner will face Carlos Alcaraz, who got the better of Taylor Fritz in the first semi-final of the day. The clash will also be a rematch of the French Open final, where Alcaraz prevailed in a thrilling five-set battle.
Sinner dictates terms
Sinner wasted no time in gaining the early advantage, securing a 2-1 lead with a break of serve and then extending it to 3-1. Djokovic responded with a strong service game, holding Sinner to love in the sixth game to close the gap to 2-3.
However, Sinner didn’t allow Djokovic to build any momentum. At 5-3, 40-15, Sinner earned two set points. Djokovic saved both, but Sinner converted the third to take the set and have the last laugh.
Sinner carried his momentum into the second set, breaking Djokovic’s serve for the third time in the match to take a 2-0 lead before extending it to 3-0.
At 5-2, 40-30, Sinner earned a set point, but Djokovic saved it with an ace. Djokovic had to battle through nearly eight and a half minutes and five deuces to eventually hold serve. However, it only delayed the inevitable, as Sinner comfortably closed out the set in his next service game.
Djokovic fights, but Sinner triumphs
Before the start of the third set, Djokovic received treatment from his physio, raising speculation about a possible mid-match retirement – just as he had done after the opening set of his semi-final against Alexander Zverev in the Australian Open earlier this year.
However, post-treatment, Djokovic appeared rejuvenated. He earned his first service break of the match to take a 2-0 lead, followed by a solid hold to go 3-0 up.
But Sinner wasn’t ready to back down. He earned his fourth break of the match and levelled the score at 3-3, shifting the pressure right back onto Djokovic.
Chancellor Merz has said Germany is ready to buy US-made Patriot systems for Ukraine. At the summit in Rome where he spoke, allies pledged over €10 billion for rebuilding as Zelenskyy warned of more Russian attacks.
Merz’s message to US President Donald Trump was to stay with Washington’s European alliesImage: U.S. Army/ABACAPRESS/picture alliance
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome on Thursday that Germany is prepared to purchase US-made Patriot surface-to-air missile defense systems for Kyiv.
His pledge came as Russia continued its daily aerial bombardment of Ukraine, involving hundreds of drones and missiles.
What did the Merz say about Patriots?
“We are also prepared to purchase additional Patriot systems from the US to make them available to Ukraine,” Merz said at the conference, where air defense was discussed with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Kyiv’s allies.
The Patriot is one of the world’s most advanced air-defense systems and is capable of intercepting aircraft as well as ballistic and cruise missiles.
To date, the US has only approved the delivery of three Patriot missile batteries to Kyiv — and that was under US President Donald Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden.
Merz said he asked Trump last week to deliver more of the Patriot systems.
“The Americans need some of them themselves, but they also have a lot of them … It has not yet been finalized whether a delivery will be made,” Merz added.
Patriot systems come in fully mobile batteries that include a command center, a radar station to detect incoming threats, and launchers. The system covers an area of around 68 kilometers (42 miles), according to the German military.
Its radar can track up to 50 targets and engage five of them at once. Depending on the version in use, the interceptor missiles can reach an altitude of more than 24 kilometers and hit targets up to 160 kilometers away.
Messages to the Kremlin — and Trump
Merz also pledged broader and steadfast support for Ukraine at the conference.
“I have two messages, one goes to Moscow, to President [Vladimir] Putin,” Merz said. “The message is quite simple: We will not give up,” he emphasized, to applause from those gathered.
The conference is being held for the fourth year in a row after first being convened in 2022 following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Merz said his second message was to Washington, to US President Donald Trump. “Stay with us and stay with the Europeans,” Merz said. “We are on the same page,” the German leader stressed.
Trump has signaled frustration with Putin as the US president tries to close a deal to end the war, even as Russian aerial bombardments on Ukrainian cities continue unabated.
What else happened at the conference?
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said participants at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Rome have pledged over €10 billion ($11.7 billion) to help with Ukraine’s economic recovery.
“I think we should be proud of the result we have achieved together today — nations, international organizations, financial institutions, local authorities, the business sector, and civil society,” Meloni said in her opening speech.
The European Commission detailed €2.3 billion in support to Ukraine to help it rebuild.
AN urgent recall has been issued for nearly 850,000 stainless steel water bottles sold at Walmart after horrifying injuries left two people permanently blind.
The screw-top lids on the bottles can suddenly and forcefully shoot off, striking users in the face, federal safety officials warn.
The dangerous bottles were sold under Walmart’s Ozark Trail brand and have been available in stores across the US since 2017.
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, pressure can build inside the 64-ounce bottles when food or drinks are left inside, causing the lid to eject unexpectedly.
Three people have been hit in the face by the caps, and two of them lost their vision permanently.
The recall affects the Ozark Trail 64-ounce stainless steel bottles with a silver body, black lid, and the brand logo printed on the side.
The bottle is sold exclusively through Walmart stores across the US and on the retailer’s website for around $15.
They were manufactured in China and imported by Walmart.
The affected bottles are marked with model number 83-662 on the packaging.
CPSC says consumers should stop using the bottles right away due to the serious risk of injury.
Customers can return them to any Walmart store for a full refund.
Photos of the product and details of the recall were posted on the CPSC website.
According to the July 10 notice, the agency says pressure builds when the bottles are used to store perishable contents over time.
In some cases, opening the lid causes a sudden release of built-up pressure.
This leads to the screwcap flying off “with force,” CPSC warned.
So far, no deaths have been reported in connection to the bottles.
However, the two blindness cases are considered severe and irreversible.
Walmart didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment by The U.S. Sun.
Earlier in June, an electric blanket sold at Walmart was pulled from shelves after reports of it overheating and catching fire.
The MaxKare Electric Blanket, made by China-based Shenzhen Yumo Commerce and Trade Corporation, was sold between June 2021 and November 2024.
The Columbia University graduate and Palestinian activist was held for months after being arrested by immigration agents. The US government had sought to deport him over his role in campus protests over the war in Gaza.
Khalil said he was holding the government accountable on behalf of ‘everyone they try to silence through fear, exile, or detention’Image: Angelina Katsanis/REUTERS
Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University student who played a prominent role in pro-Palestinian campus protests, filed a $20 million (over €17 million) claim Thursday against the Trump administration, arguing he was wrongly imprisoned.
Khalil, a legal US resident, was arrested in March after President Donald Trump vowed to deport foreign students involved in the pro-Palestinian protest movement at US college campuses this year.
He was held in an immigration detention center in Louisiana for three months before his release in June, which came just hours after a judge ordered him to be granted bail.
“I hope this would serve as a deterrent for the administration,” Khalil told the Reuters news agency. “Trump made it clear he only understands the language of money.”
What does Khalil’s claim say?
The claim alleges Khalil was the victim of “malicious prosecution and abuse of process, false arrest, false imprisonment and negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress,” according to the Center for Constitutional Rights, which is supporting the Columbia graduate.
The center states the Trump administration illegally arrested, detained and planned to deport Khalil “in a manner calculated to terrorize him and his family.”
It adds that his mistreatment by US authorities is causing “severe emotional distress, economic hardship, damage to his reputation, and significant impairment of his First Amendment and Fifth Amendment rights.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security called Khalil’s claim “absurd” and accused him of “hateful behavior and rhetoric” that threatened Jewish students in the US.
Why was Khalil arrested?
Khalil was one of the leaders of student-led protests against Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip.
The White House had said Khalil was a national security threat who had engaged in “antisemitic activities” with his criticism of Israel.
The Trump administration has said Khalil’s deportation is justified because of “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences” if he remains in the US.
A US federal judge has blocked Trump’s move to end birthright citizenship for some babies. The New Hampshire ruling makes the case a class action, covering all families at risk nationwide.
Image: Allison Bailey/NurPhoto/picture alliance
A federal judge in New Hampshire has ruled to block US President Donald Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship for some babies born in the United States.
US District Judge Joseph LaPlante said he will certify a class action lawsuit that includes all children who are set to be affected by Trump’s order.
What did the judge say?
LaPlante made the ruling after immigrant rights advocates asked him to expand their lawsuit to cover all children who could lose their citizenship under Trump’s policy.
The judge agreed to certify the case as a class action lawsuit — meaning it includes every baby whose citizenship status might be threatened.
The class is slightly narrower than that sought by the plaintiffs, who originally included parents as plaintiffs.
LaPlante also said he would issue a preliminary injunction — a legal order that stops the policy from taking effect for now.
What’s behind the latest case?
Trump’s executive order, issued in January, says that children born to parents living in the US illegally or temporarily should not automatically get citizenship under the 14th Amendment, which has guaranteed for more than 100 years that anyone born on US soil is a citizen.
The Trump administration argues a clause in the amendment, “subject to the jurisdiction thereof [the United States]” means babies born to people here illegally should not be covered.
Several federal judges around the country have already tried to block Trump’s order, but the conservative majority US Supreme Court recently ruled that lower court judges should not automatically issue injunctions that can be applied nationwide.
Instead, courts now need to limit their orders to just the people directly affected.
For this reason, groups suing Trump asked Judge LaPlante to make their case a class action.
By doing so, they include all families in the same situation — which makes the judge’s order much broader than it would be for just a few families.
SATELLITE images taken before and after the Texas floods have captured the total destruction left by the deadly waters that claimed at least 120 lives.
The devastation was centered in Kerr County, where summer camps and remote homes lay dangerously close to the Guadalupe River.
Satellite images of Kerr County, Texas, have captured the devastating effects of the floodsCredit: AFP
Before rains came crashing down in pitch black hours of July 4, the river in Central Texas, outside San Antonio, glimmered in the middle of lush, tree-lined properties.
Aerial images showed Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp for girls, nestled comfortably by the waters with cabins and tennis courts peppered among greenery.
But recent satellite images have now shown the devastating effects of the floods, which wrecked buildings and washed brown sediment all over the property.
Previously verdant grounds have now been left dull gray by the rushing waters after the river rose 40 feet and tore through surrounding areas.
Piles of abandoned trunks and other belongings can be seen sprinkled throughout the campgrounds after rescue crews attempted to organize the rubble while searching for survivors.
Ninety-five people have been found dead in Kerr County alone after the holiday tragedy, and at least 27 of the victims were counselors and little girls attending the camp.
One of the hardest-hit cabins was the Bubble Inn, which hosted the youngest campers, aged eight to nine, and lay closest to the river.
Both counselors and all 14 girls in the cabin have been found dead or missing following the floods. The camp’s director, Dick Eastland, died trying to save them in a valiant final act.
At least 150 people are still missing in Kerr County, and hope is dimming for those who haven’t been found, as it’s been days since a live victim was pulled from the rubble, officials said.
A dozen more are still missing throughout the state, and legislators across the US are sending over crews to help with the grim search.
But despite the horrific finds, local leaders have vowed not to give up until every person lost to the floodwaters is found.
CAMPERS’ FINAL MOMENTS
Employees working at Camp Mystic have given heartwrenching accounts of the dark night when the waters rushed through the property.
Staff said they rushed from cabin to cabin, pulling girls out of the windows and shivering in the freezing rain as the river rose beneath their feet.
One employee said the waters “made like a swirl right around those cabins like a toilet bowl,” according to the Washington Post.
Callie McAlary, a 16-year-old camper, remembered the terrifying moment she realized that it wasn’t a normal thunderstorm.
“One minute you see lightning strike next to your cabin, and next to you, you hear water’s coming up,” she told Fox News.
Callie said that she watched in horror as girls darted to cabins on higher ground when buildings filled with water.
“It was really bad thunder,” she said.
“We heard one of the campers run in and say, ‘Hey, our cabin is flooding.’
“I knew some girls slept on trunks that night, some girls had to share beds, some girls slept on floors because they couldn’t go back to their cabin because it was so flooded in three cabins.”
EFFORTS CONTINUE
President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania are planning on visiting Kerr County on Friday to assess the damage.
The tragedy has sparked an outpouring of support and questions as to why people weren’t evacuated from the area before the rain came.
Some critics claim that Trump’s cost-cutting policies have hindered rescue efforts, but White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt called the rumors a “depraved lie.”
Texas Legislature has scheduled a special session for later this month to discuss flood warning systems, emergency communications, and relief funding for flood victims, CNN reported.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency Task Force set up a command center in Center Point, Texas, on Thursday and continues to search for victims.
Some South Koreans have criticised the court for being too lenient, accusing celebrities of “having it easy”
South Korean singer Taeil, formerly from the K-pop band NCT, has been sentenced to three years and six months in prison for rape.
Taeil, 31, and two accomplices, named in South Korean reports only as Lee and Hong, admitted in June to taking turns assaulting their victim – a Chinese tourist.
A district judge in Seoul described the crime as “extremely grave”, but handed them just half the seven-year sentence requested by prosecutors, noting they were first time offenders.
The court also ordered the three men to complete 40 hours of a treatment programme designed for perpetrators of sexual violence.
The court heard they had met their victim at a bar in the Itaewon district in Seoul.
She became “heavily intoxicated” after drinking with them, the court heard. They then got into a taxi to Lee’s house, where the assault happened.
South Korean law describes this specific kind of rape as “aggravated” because it was a group attack, and a “quasi rape”, as the victim was unconscious.
Taeil, whose real name is Moon Tae-il, left NCT in August last year when allegations first emerged, although the exact details of the crime were not publicly known at the time.
Prince William saw right through Meghan Markle’s alleged plan to become rich and famous by marrying his younger brother, Prince Harry, a royal biographer claimed.
After Queen Elizabeth II’s cousin and closest confidante, Lady Elizabeth Anson, claimed the late monarch was apprehensive about the Duchess of Sussex’s intentions, royal journalist and commentator Phil Dampier alleged the Prince of Wales was skeptical about Markle entering the royal family.
“I think, unfortunately, that confirms what I’ve been saying or thought for the last few years that, sadly, Meghan never really had any intention of staying in the royal family,” Dampier told the Sun, referencing Anson’s comments.
Prince William saw right through Meghan Markle’s alleged plan to become rich and famous by marrying his younger brother, Prince Harry, a royal biographer claimed. Getty Images
“She saw as a steppingstone getting married to Harry to new fame and fortune. And I think that’s what initially Prince William was concerned about,” he alleged.
Dampier claimed that the siblings “fell out” because of William’s feelings about Markle.
“And now we are where we are. But to have this confirmed by somebody so close to the Queen is really dynamite,” he said.
However, a source fired back at the author’s claims, telling Page Six, “The opinions of Mr. Dampier are just that, opinions. They are completely without merit and not grounded in fact.
“There is no way Mr. Dampier, nor anyone at the Sun newspaper, could possibly know what the Duchess’ intentions were or are, about anything.”
Page Six has reached out to Kensington Palace and reps for the Sussexes but did not immediately hear back.
Harry, 40, has had a strained relationship and William, 43, and their dad, King Charles III, since the Duke of Sussex quit the royal family in 2020 and moved to North America.
Things got worse between the relatives when Harry and the “Suits” alum, also 43, accused the royal family of racism and released a Netflix series about their issues.
Then, in January 2023, the Invictus Games founder dropped his bombshell memoir, “Spare,” in which he alleged that William physically attacked him over Markle.
In May, Harry said he was willing to “reconcile” with his family.
“There have been so many disagreements, differences, between me and some of my family,” he told BBC News on May 3.
“This current situation that has been ongoing for five years with regard to human life and safety is the sticking point. It is the only thing that’s left,” the dad of two said, referring to him losing his appeal against the UK government’s decision to strip him of his publicly funded security after he left the royal family.
The dad of two acknowledged that “some members” of his family would “never forgive” him for “lots of things.”
One of Taylor Swift’s longtime collaborators, Ed Sheeran, is opening up about how the pop icon influenced his journey into NFL fandom.
The revelation came after Ed Sheeran got personal on Kylie Kelce’s blockbuster podcast.
Travis Kelce brought home some merch from his Montana vacation with Taylor Swift
Travis Kelce loves to exit through the gift shop.
The Kansas City Chiefs player gave a subtle nod to girlfriend Taylor Swift on the latest episode of his “New Heights” podcast, wearing a shirt that he seemingly picked up on the couple’s recent vacation.
Travis Kelce made a subtle nod to the private residential club and ski resort in Big Sky where he and Taylor had previously stayed, sporting the logo on his shirt.
Eagle-eyed fans noticed that the logo on his white tee matched that of Yellowstone Club, a private residential club and ski resort in Big Sky, Montana, where Swift and Kelce stayed earlier this year.
How Taylor Swift influenced Ed Sheeran’s unlikely NFL fandom — years before her Travis Kelce romance
Look what she made him do.
Ed Sheeran revealed the subtle role Taylor Swift played in his love of the NFL — years before her romance with Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce — on Kylie Kelce’s latest podcast episode.
The “Shape of You” singer told “Not Gonna Lie” listeners Thursday that about “mov[ing] to Nashville for Taylor Swift’s ‘Red’ tour in 2013.”
He recalled, “I got a place there. I went to Walmart to buy bits to move in and I just bought some pajamas. And then when I got home, I was wearing the pajamas. And when someone was around, they were like, ‘Oh, you’re a [Tennessee] Titans fan?’ I was like, ‘Guess I am.’”
Sheeran noted that he has followed the team ever since.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and China Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended separate meetings with their ASEAN counterparts in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday (Jul 10).
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (left) and China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi (right). (Photos: CNA/Fadza Ishak, AFP)
Top diplomats of the United States and China took veiled swipes at each other in separate meetings with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Thursday (Jul 10) as they pledged support for the grouping amid geopolitical and trade uncertainty.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio raised the issue of overlapping territorial claims in the South China Sea, a source of significant friction between China and several ASEAN nations, alongside allegations of unfair trade practices by Beijing.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the other hand spoke about a world in chaos, and the need for trade disputes to be resolved through dialogue, in what appears to be a critique of America’s unilateral imposition of tariffs.
The meetings come at a time of growing pressure as ASEAN – which has 10 member states – proves its relevance amid global uncertainty and a range of regional challenges.
Rubio, on his first visit to Asia, said the region remains a “focal point” of US foreign policy under the Trump administration.
“The US is a committed partner to ASEAN,” he said in opening remarks at the ASEAN post-ministerial conference with the US.
“When I hear in the news that perhaps the US or the world might be distracted by events in other parts of the planet, I would say distraction is impossible, because it is our view – our strong view and the reality – that this century and the next – the story of the next 50 years will largely be written here in this region, in this part of the world,” Rubio said.
Thursday’s dialogues occurred a day after US President Donald Trump’s 90-day tariff pause concluded. Malaysia faces a 25 per cent tariff on exports to the US, Laos and Myanmar 40 per cent, Cambodia and Thailand 36 per cent, and Indonesia 32 per cent.
While Rubio did not address the issue of tariffs in his remarks to ASEAN counterparts, comments he made on the sidelines of the meet suggested that Southeast Asian countries may get “better” rates than others.
The US’ trade relationship with ASEAN supports 1.1 million jobs across Southeast Asia, Rubio said.
“So we fully understand the importance of the region, both to our prosperity and security and to each of your countries as well, and that’s why we made clear that we intend to remain deeply engaged in this partnership, and want to continue to work with you on building on all of this,” he said.
US affiliates of majority-ASEAN owned firms also make significant contributions to the US economy, supporting close to 71,000 jobs and over US$300 million in research and development, and about US$2 billion worth of US exports, he added.
Following the meet, Rubio later told reporters: “I would say that when all is said and done, many of the countries in Southeast Asia are going to have tariff rates that are actually better than countries in other parts of the world.
“But these talks continue. There’ll be talks next week with Japan. There’s ongoing talks with virtually every country represented here.”
US officials had said ahead of Rubio’s trip that Washington was “prioritising” its commitment to East and Southeast Asia, and the US’ top diplomat told reporters that America had “no intention of abandoning” the region.
“We’ve spent decades building these relationships,” he said.
“Not only we’re not going to walk away from them, we seek to expand them and build upon them with a part of the world that is essential.”
Rubio added he might also meet with Chinese counterpart Wang.
In his remarks to his ASEAN counterparts, Rubio made reference to US’ dominance in advanced artificial intelligence (AI) technology, as well as efforts to ensure freedom of navigation in waters where there are overlapping sovereignty claims, without mentioning geopolitical rival China.
Freedom of navigation and overflight are essential to global trade, maritime security and peace, he said.
Without directly mentioning the South China Sea – of which China claims about 90 per cent with its nine-dash line – he said “claims of territorial sovereignty over vast areas of ocean space that are clearly within the maritime jurisdiction” of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam are “unlawful”.
They also “undermine regional peace and stability, especially when these claims involve reckless harassment of foreign vessels and dangerous intercepts of aircraft in international airspace”, he said.
On the digital front, Rubio said: “We’re proud that the US continues to be the partner of choice on digital cybersecurity and emerging technologies, including AI and cloud computing, support pro-growth AI policy, while ensuring AI and cutting edge technologies are not co-opted into tools or fraud and censorship or mass surveillance.”
The US has sought to curb exports of state-of-the-art chips to China in recent years, concerned that they could be used to advance Beijing’s military systems and undermine American dominance in AI.
Rubio said there was a need to tackle attempts to bypass such curbs.
“We also need to address the issue of trans-shipment, especially efforts to use third countries as pass-throughs to the United States, and efforts to use third countries to access sensitive US technology such as AI servers and chips,” he said.
“This influences perceptions of fairness and reciprocity and bilateral trade relationships.”
WANG YI ON RESOLVING TRADE DISPUTES
China’s Wang, meanwhile, spoke about promoting an “inclusive” global economy at the ASEAN post-ministerial conference with China on Thursday morning.
At a time of global turbulence and transformation, there was a need to draw lessons from history, Wang said.
“We must actively promote a world order that is equal and well-governed, and economic globalisation that is inclusive and beneficial for all, steering the international system toward greater fairness and justice,” he said in his remarks.
China also believes economic and trade differences should be resolved through equal dialogue and mutual benefit, safeguarding countries’ dignity and not be at the expense of the interests of third parties, Wang said, as reported by China Daily.
China has in recent days denounced parties that are considering striking tariff reduction deals with the US that cut Beijing out of their supply chains.
On the South China Sea, he noted the third reading of the Code of Conduct has been finalised, “effectively managing differences and safeguarding overall maritime stability”.
Wang, who’s China’s top diplomat as director of the Central Committee Foreign Affairs Commission Office in China’s Communist Party, said the South China Sea is the common home of regional countries, rather than a “gladiatorial arena” for major powers, reported China Daily.
He added that China is willing to expand cooperation with ASEAN countries in areas such as marine environmental protection, navigation safety, maritime law enforcement and key marine infrastructure.
It is willing to fully implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, and advance consultations on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, Wang said.
“The world is in chaos today, and the peace and stability of our region are precious and should be firmly protected. We must never allow geopolitical conflicts and group confrontations to be introduced into Asia,” said Wang, adding that China has always regarded ASEAN as a top priority in its neighbourhood diplomacy.
Wang said 2025 marks a fruitful year for ASEAN-China cooperation. Negotiations on the China-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement Version 3.0 have completed and the pact is expected to be signed later this year, he said.
He held up the ASEAN-China-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit held in May as a model of cross-regional collaboration.
On the scourge of scams and transnational crimes, Wang said China has deepened security collaboration with Myanmar, Laos, Thailand and other partners to combat the issue.
Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visits to Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia earlier this year have elevated bilateral ties and deepened people-to-people connections, Wang noted.
MEETINGS ALSO HELD WITH RUSSIA AND OTHER COUNTRIES
Both the US and China will take part in the 15th East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and the ASEAN Regional Forum Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on Friday.
The meetings – from Jul 8 to 11 – take place under the theme of “Inclusivity and Sustainability”.
Rubio said the US has proposed an East Asia Summit leaders’ statement on combating scam centres, and remains committed to strengthen efforts to combat the problem.
On the conflict in Gaza, he said the US remains committed to achieving a durable ceasefire and believes “we are close to that now”.
“It seems at least the majority of the terms of such an agreement are in place, and that proximity talks should soon begin on implementation,” he said, thanking Egypt and Qatar in particular for their facilitation.
The US remains committed to an enduring peace throughout the Middle East, “changing the architecture of a region to one that’s more stable”, he said.
ASEAN also held post-ministerial conferences with Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Japan, Russia, and the Republic of Korea on Thursday.
FILE – Justin Bieber attends The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute benefit gala on Sept. 13, 2021, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
Justin Bieber is teasing his long-awaited seventh studio album – apparently called Swag – with a series of billboards and social media posts Thursday.
Billboards depicting Bieber were found by fans in Reykjavik, Iceland and Los Angeles with the word Swag. The singer also shared images of billboards on his official Instagram account that appeared to depict a tracklist that includes song names like All I Can Take, Walking Away, Dadz Love and Forgiveness.
No details on when the album would drop were included. The Hollywood Reporter, which was first to report the album was nearing release, said it would arrive on streaming services Friday (Jul 11).
Bieber, the two-time Grammy Award winning singer and Canadian pop idol who revolutionised teen pop and social media fame, is best known for his silky R&B pop lyric tenor, demonstrated on the diamond-selling Baby, Sorry, and Stay with the Kid Laroi. At the beginning of his career, and as a tween, Bieber began working with Usher and the influential music manager Scooter Braun.
FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows shipping containers at the Port of Montreal in Montreal, Quebec, Canada April 14, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio/File Photo
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday (Jul 10) the United States would impose a 35 per cent tariff on imports from Canada next month and planned to impose blanket tariffs of 15 per cent or 20 per cent on most other trade partners.
In a letter released on his social media platform, Trump told Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney the new rate would go into effect on Aug 1 and would go up if Canada retaliated.
Trump has broadened his trade war in recent days, setting new tariffs on a number of countries, including allies Japan and South Korea, along with a 50 per cent tariff on copper.
In an interview with NBC News published on Thursday, Trump said other trading partners that had not yet received such letters would likely face blanket tariffs.
“Not everybody has to get a letter. You know that. We’re just setting our tariffs,” Trump said in the interview.
A shocking incident has emerged from Gurugram as Tennis player Radhika Yadav has reportedly been shot by her father in Sector 57 of Sector 56 police station area. The incident occurred at 2:00 pm on July 10, Thursday. According to a report of Dainik Jagran, Yadav’s father fired three bullets to kill her as the reason was over a fight about making a reel.
Radhika Yadav | | (Image Credits: X)
A shocking incident has emerged from Gurugram as Tennis player Radhika Yadav has reportedly been shot by her father in Sector 57 of Sector 56 police station area. The incident occurred at 2:00 pm on July 10, Thursday. According to a report of Dainik Jagran, Yadav’s father fired three bullets to kill her as the reason was over a fight about making a reel.
The report went on to claim that the Sector 56 police station is currently investigating the matter as the cops immediately reached their house after the incident transpired. The people of neighbourhood informed the police about the matter, prompting them to conduct investigation.
The father is reportedly being questioned as the report claimed that he committed the crime with a licensed pistol. A host of media reports stated that the 25-year-old athlete was rushed to a private hospital in serious condition but the doctors could not revive her.
Gurugram, Haryana: National-level tennis player Radhika Yadav was shot dead by her father, Deepak Yadav, using his licensed revolver at their Sector 57 residence. He fired three shots. Radhika was rushed to a hospital but succumbed to her injuries. Gurugram Police arrested the… pic.twitter.com/dLSpL4GQHs
Station House Officer Rajendar Kumar, belonging to Sector 56 police station said, as quoted by The Hindustan Times:
We received a call from the hospital regarding a woman admitted with gunshot wounds. By the time we arrived, she had passed away. Statements from family members confirmed that the father was responsible.”
Who Was Radhika Yadav?
The youngster was born on March 23, 2000, she had climbed the International Tennis Federation (ITF) women’s doubles rankings, reaching a career-best of 113 as of November 4, 2024.
She also held the fifth position in the Haryana women’s doubles rankings. Known for her agility, tactical intelligence, and relentless work ethic, Radhika had competed in multiple national and international tournaments. She was considered one of India’s emerging talents in doubles, alongside players like Poorvi Bhatt and Thaniya Sarai Gogulamanda.
The nation’s largest teachers union faced ridicule this week for misspelling “fascism” in a resolution opposing President Trump.
The National Education Association (NEA), which represents more than 3 million teachers nationwide, approved the mangled proposal – aimed at defending “the survival of civilization itself” – on Sunday at the group’s annual convention.
“NEA pledges to defend democracy against Trump’s embrace of fascism by using the term facism [sic] in NEA materials to correctly characterize Donald Trump’s program and actions,” read the adopted agenda item, obtained by conservative education expert Corey A. DeAngelis, who shared it on X.
“The members and material resources of NEA must be committed to the defense of the democratic and educational conditions required by our hopes for a just society and the survival of civilization itself by stating the truth,” the wordy new business item continued.
The teachers union’s anti-Trump agenda item incorrectly spelled the word “fascism.” Shutterstock
The document noted that calling out Trump’s “facism” [sic] in NEA materials “cannot be accomplished with current staff and resources” because it would cost an additional $3,500 to do so.
DeAngelis, and several people on social media, mocked the NEA over the spelling error.
“Yes, the union that claims to represent educators couldn’t even spell ‘fascism’ correctly in its official resolution attacking the president,” he wrote in a Fox News opinion piece. “The irony is almost too rich to parody.”
Tina Descovich, the CEO and co-founder of conservative group Moms for Liberty, argued that the agenda item was emblematic of the dismal state of the American education system.
“If the largest teachers union can’t define fascism properly we can all understand clearly why we are failing to teach children in schools,” Descovich wrote on X. “Number one priority is not to teach reading and math but a political agenda.”
“It’s infuriating.”
Republican Washington State Rep. Jim Walsh described the resolution as a “hysterical slander” of Trump and said it’s apparent why some families opt to steer their children away from public schools.
“A political lobbying organization that claims to represent public school teachers misspells the key word in its hysterical slander of the current POTUS,” Walsh wrote on X. “It’s not spelled ‘facism,’ morons.”
“And you’re not using the word correctly, anyway,” the state rep continued.”No wonder many families are homeschooling.”
Chilling video captured the moment a high-ranking Ukrainian spy was ruthlessly gunned down in a brazen, broad daylight ambush on the streets of Kyiv and left for dead.
Col. Ivan Voronych, a senior security officer in Ukraine’s Security Service, was crossing the street in the Holosiivskyi district Thursday when an armed attacker ran up and blasted him with bullets at close range before fleeing, according to disturbing surveillance footage obtained by Ukrainian media and reports.
The assailant, who reportedly used a silenced pistol, was seen sprinting across a parking lot outside Voronych’s apartment building moments before unleashing five fatal rounds.
CCTV footage of a Security Service of Ukraine officer walking down his apartment stairs moments before being shot. Ukrainska Pravda via REUTERS
“With five shots at close range while leaving the apartment today at 8 a.m., the enemy killer did his dirty work,” Roman Chervinsky, a former Ukrainian intelligence officer, told The Telegraph.
He emphasized that Voronych had been “fighting the enemy since 2014.”
An Israeli airstrike hit Palestinians near a medical centre in Gaza on Thursday, killing 10 children and six adults, local health authorities said, as ceasefire talks dragged on with no immediate deal expected.
Verified video footage from the strike in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip showed the bodies of women and children lying in pools of blood amid dust and screaming. One clip showed several motionless children lying on a donkey cart.
“She didn’t do anything, she was innocent, I swear. Her dream was for the war to end and that they announce it today, to go back to school,” said Samah al-Nouri, sitting by the body of her daughter who was killed in the blast.
“She was only getting treatment in a medical facility. Why did they kill them?” she said, with other bodies laid out around her at a nearby hospital.
Israel’s military said it had struck a militant who took part in the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war. It said it was aware of reports regarding a number of injured bystanders and that the incident was under review.
U.S.-based Project HOPE said the strike had hit right outside its Altayara health clinic. “Horrified and heartbroken cannot properly communicate how we feel anymore,” the aid group said in a statement.
The Deir al-Balah missile strike came as Israeli and Hamas negotiators hold talks with mediators in Qatar over a proposed 60-day ceasefire and hostage release deal aimed at building agreement on a lasting truce.
A senior Israeli official said on Wednesday that an agreement was not likely to be secured for another one or two weeks, however, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday he was hopeful of a deal.
“I think we’re closer, and I think perhaps we’re closer than we’ve been in quite a while,” Rubio told reporters at the ASEAN summit in Malaysia.
Several rounds of indirect talks between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas have failed to produce a breakthrough since the Israeli military resumed its campaign in March following a previous ceasefire.
Repeated attacks by Israeli forces in recent weeks have killed hundreds of Gazans, many of them civilians, and injured thousands, according to local health authorities, putting an enormous strain on the enclave’s few remaining hospitals.
Dwindling fuel supplies risk further disruption in the semi-functioning hospitals, including to incubators at the neonatal unit of al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City, doctors there said.
“We are forced to place four, five or sometimes three premature babies in one incubator,” said Dr Mohammed Abu Selmia, the hospital director, adding that premature babies were now in a critical condition.
A Palestinian woman comforts a child as casualties are brought into Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital following an Israeli strike, in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip. REUTERS/Ramadan Abed Purchase Licensing Rights
An Israeli military official said that fuel destined for hospitals and other humanitarian facilities was let into the enclave on Wednesday and on Thursday.
However, U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that far more fuel was needed to keep essential life-saving and life-sustaining services operating.
TALKS
U.S. President Donald Trump met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this week to discuss the situation in Gaza amid reports that Israel and Hamas were nearing agreement on a U.S.-brokered ceasefire proposal after 21 months of war.
Netanyahu said that if the two sides reach agreements on the U.S. 60-day truce plan, Israel will begin negotiations on a permanent ceasefire.
In a statement from Washington, he reiterated Israel’s terms for ending the war, including Hamas disarming and no longer ruling Gaza. Hamas has rejected calls to lay down its weapons.
“If this can be achieved through negotiations – that’s good. If it’s not achieved through 60-day negotiations then we will achieve it by other means, by use of force,” Netanyahu said.
A Palestinian official said the talks in Qatar were in crisis and that issues under dispute, including whether Israel would continue to occupy parts of Gaza after a ceasefire, had yet to be resolved.
The two sides previously agreed a ceasefire in January but it did not lead to a deal on ending the war and Israel resumed its military assault two months later, stopping all aid supplies into Gaza for 11 weeks and telling civilians to leave the north of the tiny territory.
Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has now killed more than 57,000 people, according to Palestinian health authorities. It has destroyed swathes of the territory and driven most Gazans from their homes.
The Trump administration will restrict immigrants in the country illegally from enrolling in Head Start, a federally funded preschool program, the Department of Health and Human Services announced Thursday. The move is part of a broad effort to limit access to federal benefits for immigrants who lack legal status.
People in the country illegally are largely ineligible for federal public benefits such as food stamps, student loans and financial aid for higher education. But for decades they have been able to access some community-level programs such as Head Start and community health centers.
HHS said it will reclassify those programs as federal public benefits, excluding immigrants in the country illegally from accessing them. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the changes were part of a larger effort to protect American citizens’ interests.
“For too long, the government has diverted hardworking Americans’ tax dollars to incentivize illegal immigration,” Kennedy said in a statement. “Today’s action changes that — it restores integrity to federal social programs, enforces the rule of law, and protects vital resources for the American people.”
A spokesperson for the Administration for Children and Families, which administers Head Start, said that eligibility will be determined based on the child’s immigration status.
Requiring proof of immigration status would likely create fear and confusion among families seeking to enroll their children, said Yasmina Vinci, executive director of the National Head Start Association.
“This decision undermines the fundamental commitment that the country has made to children and disregards decades of evidence that Head Start is essential to our collective future,” Vinci said.
The changes are part of a multi-agency announcement rescinding an interpretation of federal law dating to former President Bill Clinton’s administration, which had allowed immigrants in the country illegally to access some programs. The Education Department, the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Labor announced similar changes affecting a range of workforce development and adult education programs.
The changes will affect community health centers that immigrants rely on for a wide range of services, said Shelby Gonzales, vice president of immigration policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
“People depend on those services to get cancer treatment, to get ongoing maintenance for a variety of different health needs,” she said.
Students in the country illegally will no longer be eligible to participate in postsecondary career and technical education programs or adult education programs, the Education Department announced. The department also issued a notice to grant recipients to ensure programs receiving federal money do not provide services to immigrants without legal status.
Education advocates said the decision would harm young people who have grown up in this country. EdTrust Vice President Augustus Mays said the intention appears to be creating fear among immigrant communities.
Army soldiers and rescuers evacuate patients and medical staff from a flooded hospital following landslides and flash flooding amid monsoon season in Imphal, India, June 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Donald Sairem, File)
Each year from June to September, a series of heavy rains known as monsoons sweep through the Indian subcontinent, providing relief from heat, irrigating the country’s farms and replenishing its rivers.
However, as global heat increases, the rain is becoming more erratic and intense, creating the conditions for deadly floods. Nearly 1,300 people died in India throughout 2024 due to heavy rain and floods. Hundreds of rain-related deaths have already occurred this year in the South Asian region, which includes India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Maldives and Nepal.
Climate experts say the high temperatures and heavy rain are also contributing to the melting of glaciers in the mountainous Himalayan region, causing catastrophic flooding and landslides.
Monsoon season becomes more dangerous
The South Asian region has traditionally had two monsoon seasons. One typically lasts from June to September, with rains moving southwest to northeast. The other, from roughly October to December, moves in the opposite direction.
But with more planet-warming gases in the air, the rain now only loosely follows this pattern. This is because the warmer air can hold more moisture from the Indian Ocean, and that rain then tends to get dumped all at once. It means the monsoon is punctuated with intense flooding and dry spells, rather than sustained rain throughout.
“We are witnessing a clear climatic shift in monsoon patterns across South Asia,” said Roxy Mathew Koll, a climate scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology in Pune and author of several United Nations climate reports.
Traditionally, people in India and neighboring countries excitedly awaited the monsoon rains, which would finally mean the end of summer heat. But attitudes are changing as disasters increase during the rainy seasons.
“The frequency and intensity of extreme rainfall events are increasing, often overwhelming drainage infrastructure in urban areas and triggering flash floods,” Koll said.
Higher temperatures and longer periods of drought are also making farming harder in South Asia, climate experts said.
“More than 60% of the people in South Asia are dependent on agriculture, and almost all of them are dependent on monsoon rainfall,” said Finu Shrestha, a climate scientist at Kathmandu, Nepal-based International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development.
Mountain regions are seeing more glacial lakes overflowing
A 2023 report by Shrestha’s organization found that glaciers are melting at unprecedented rates across the Hindu Kush and Himalayan mountain ranges. The study found that at least 200 of the more than 2,000 glacial lakes in the region are at risk of overflowing, which can cause catastrophic damage downstream. Heavy monsoon rains can exacerbate the problem.
“A lot of the mountain areas tend to have more warming than the global average, resulting in more glaciers melting,” said Miriam Jackson, glaciologist at the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative.
An October 2023 glacial lake overflow in the Indian state of Sikkim triggered flooding that killed 55 people and damaged bridges, buildings and a hydropower dam that was under construction.
Heavy rainfall and increasing heat are leading to snow and ice avalanches, rockfalls and other events that can trigger the lakes to breach or overflow, Shrestha said.
“Even small glacial lakes are now breaching and causing damage,” she said.
Early warning systems and long-term planning can help
Installing early warning systems and building in less risky areas can help reduce damage from heavy rains, climate experts say.
“If you know a flood is coming, then people can get to higher ground and there could be a sort of standard early warning system along a river that sends out a siren,” Jackson said, adding that social media and messaging applications can help people spread warnings to those downstream.
Koll, the Pune-based scientist, said that rapid urbanization, shrinking floodplains and loss of natural drainage also exacerbate damage from heavy rains. Koll said that most government response currently comes after disasters, and there is a lack of long-term planning.
“In the future monsoon, extreme rains are projected to intensify further, in addition to sporadic water shortages. Hence, we need proactive, long-term strategies that combine science, policy, and community engagement,” he said.
UK far-right activist Tommy Robinson claims that “76 per cent of Pakistanis in Bradford marry their first cousins.”
He claimed British Pakistanis account for “33 per cent of birth defects” in UK. (Representative Image/Pexels)
A video posted online featuring UK far-right activist Tommy Robinson has gained widespread attention. In it, he is claiming that cousin marriages within the British Pakistani community are responsible for a large share of birth defects in the UK. The video, filled with strong remarks and controversial statistics, has triggered intense backlash and debate across social media.
In the video shared on X (formerly Twitter), Robinson claims that “76 per cent of Pakistanis in Bradford marry their first cousins.” He further says that British Pakistanis, who make up around 3% of the UK’s population, account for “33 per cent of birth defects.” He blames the practice on Islamic history as he claimed that it puts pressure on the country’s healthcare system.
“They are being born and retarded. It’s costing us a fortune. It’s costing the economy a fortune. It’s billions and billions because Muhammad married his cousin. Well, don’t care for what Muhammad did in the seventh century because he was a barbarian wall. It’s no longer right. It’s never been right, and it has to stop in Great Britain,” he added.
Tommy Robinson tells it like it is:
“Pakistanis make up 3% of the UK population. They are responsible for 33% of birth defects. They are being born retarded.
It’s costing the economy billions and billions because Mohammed married his cousin.”
While many supported him, there was also widespread backlash, with several users calling out the language used and questioning the accuracy of the statistics.
One user wrote, “This is a mix of distorted stats and open racism. Yes, cousin marriage can raise risks, but reducing an entire group to slurs like ‘retarded’ is vile. If it’s about health, focus on awareness, not hate.”
Another comment pointed out, “Stats stated are misrepresented.”
Grok Fact-Check
When one user asked to verify Robinson’s claims, Grok, an AI chatbot by xAI, said the 76 per cent figure for cousin marriages in Bradford is “exaggerated.” It cited the Born in Bradford study, which found that around 60 per cent of marriages were between cousins from 2007 to 2010, which dropped to 46 per cent by 2016–2019.
But the AI citing UK NHS (National Health Service) and academic research confirmed that British Pakistanis, who roughly 3 per cent of the population, account for 30–33 per cent of genetic birth defects, which is linked to cousin marriages.
The anti-poverty charity Oxfam warns that growing inequality in Africa is hindering democracy. The four richest Africans have more wealth than half of the continent’s population.
Aliko Dangote, a Nigerian businessman, is the richest person in AfricaImage: Adam Abu-bashal/Anadolu Agency/picture alliance
The four most affluent Africans hold $57.4 billion (€48.9 billion) and are richer than approximately 50% of the continent’s 750 million inhabitants, according to a report released on Thursday by the anti-poverty organization Oxfam.
According to the report, Africa had no billionaires in 2000. Today, the continent has 23 billionaires whose combined wealth has soared by 56% in just the past five years, reaching a staggering $112.6 billion.
Furthermore, the top 5% of Africans possess nearly $4 trillion in wealth, which is over twice the total wealth of the rest of the continent combined.
The report also states that nearly half of the world’s 50 most unequal countries are in Africa.
In January, Oxfam reported that billionare wealth was growing faster than ever worlwide.
Policies are biased against the poor
Oxfam contended that government policies are biased against the poor and allow the continent’s super-rich to accumulate even more wealth.
“Most African countries are not fully leveraging progressive taxation to effectively tax the super-rich and address inequality,” the organization’s report said.
According to Oxfam, Africa’s tax systems are nearly three times less effective at redistributing income from the richest one percent than the global average.
Imposing an additional 1% tax on the wealth and 10% on the income of the richest 1% in Africa could raise $66 billion annually. This amount is more than enough to close the funding gaps for free, quality education and universal access to electricity, the report said.
The continent also loses an estimated $88.6 billion annually through illicit financial flows.
The US State Department has said it is going to issue single-entry three-month visas for Nigerians in non-immigrant and non-diplomatic categories, rolling back five-year multiple-entry visas.
Donald Trump curbed immigration from Nigeria during his first term (FILE photo: 2022, Lagos, Nigeria)Image: Temilade Adelaja/REUTERS
The US State Department has announced new visa rules for Nigerians wishing to travel to the US in the non-immigrant and non-diplomat categories.
The US embassy in Nigeria posted to its website on July 8 that the US would issue single-entry visas with a three-month validity period.
That rolls back the previous five-year multiple-entry visas that Nigerians enjoyed when it came to traveling to the US.
US President Donald Trump has signed a directive banning the citizens of 12 countries, seven in Africa, from entering the US.
A State Department memo from June indicated the US was considering a travel ban on 36 other countries, including Nigeria. That proposed, expanded, ban has not yet been officially announced.
“We wish to underscore that as is standard globally, visa reciprocity is a continuous process and is subject to review and change at any time, such as increasing or decreasing permitted entries and duration of validity,” the statement said.
A Nigerian foreign ministry official told local media that Nigeria had no similar policy toward US citizens, according to Reuters news agency.
Nigeria received nearly one-fifth of the non-immigrant visas issued by the US government in 2024 in Africa, according to the State Department.
But a source familiar with Hamas’ thinking said four days of talks in Doha did not produce any breakthroughs
HAMAS has said it will release 10 hostages amid ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire deal for war-torn Gaza.
The Islamist terror group’s statement came after four days of indirect talks brokered by Qatar in a bid to bring peace for the distraught Gazans.
Israeli soldiers take up positions during a ground operation in the southern Gaza StripCredit: AP
Both have spoken positively about the prospects, but there are reportedly a number of crucial sticking points
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long argued that Hamas must be completely disarmed and expelled from Gaza.
In turn, Hamas wants guarantees that the war would not resume after any ceasefire – as happened earlier this year.
It comes just days after President Donald Trump signalled his belief that an agreement for a 60-day truce would be struck before the end of the week.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff said part of the deal would be the return of 10 living hostages held by militants since Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel, which sparked the war.
Of 251 hostages seized during the assault on Israeli border communities near Gaza, 49 are still held in the territory, including 27, the Israeli military says are dead.
In its statement, Hamas said while key hurdles remained in the peace talks, they were ready to be flexible.
A statement read: “The movement [Hamas] displayed the required flexibility and agreed to release 10 prisoners [hostages].
“Despite the difficulty of negotiations over these issues until now due to the intransigence of the occupation, we continue to work seriously and with a positive spirit with the mediators to overcome the hurdles and end the suffering of our people and ensure their aspirations to freedom, safety and a dignified life.”
Israel earlier appeared to fall in behind Trump’s optimism for an end to the conflict.
As part of the proposed truce, Israel and Hamas would hold fire for 60 days, during which time some hostages would be freed and more aid would enter Gaza.
Hamas official Taher al-Nono said they were engaged in a “difficult round” of negotiations.
But a source familiar with Hamas’ thinking said four days of talks in Doha did not produce any breakthroughs on three main sticking points.
These are the free flow of aid into Gaza, withdrawal lines for Israeli forces and guarantees that negotiations would pave the way to a permanent ceasefire
Trump met Netanyahu on Tuesday for the second time in two days to discuss the situation in Gaza.
The Israeli boss said he believed an agreement was on the horizon.
“I think we’re getting closer to a deal,” he told FOX Business Network’s Mornings with Maria programme.
“There’s a good chance that we’ll have it.”
Israeli army chief Eyal Zamir said in a televised address that military action had prepared the ground for a deal that would bring home the Israeli hostages.
“We have achieved many significant results, we have caused great damage to the governance and military capabilities of Hamas.
“Thanks to the operational power that we have demonstrated, the conditions have been created to advance a deal to release the hostages.”
Foreign Minister Gideon Saar also said he thought a temporary deal was “achievable” and could even herald talks for a more lasting peace, while President Isaac Herzog talked of “a historic opportunity” for change.
The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) has dismissed claims of a new nomination-based Golden Visa program in the UAE, which allegedly allowed Indian nationals to gain permanent residency for approximately Rs 23 lakh.
UAE Golden Visa for Rs 23 Lakh? Officials Say No Such Scheme Exists (AI Generated Image)
The Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security (ICP) has denied reports claiming that a new nomination-based Golden Visa programme was launched by the UAE government. The response comes after a report claimed that a new golden visa programme provided Indians an opportunity to become permanent residents of the UAE for just Rs 23 lakh. Earlier, a PTI report claimed that under the “new nomination-based visa policy,” Indians can now enjoy the UAE’s Golden Visa for life by paying a fee of AED 1,00,000 (INR around 23.30 lakh).
However, the ICP has clarified that the categories, eligibility criteria, and regulations for the UAE Golden Visa are clearly outlined based on official laws, ministerial decisions, and legislative frameworks, a Gulf News report said. Those interested in applying can access accurate and up-to-date information through the Authority’s official website or smart app.
The ICP authorities further pointed out that all Golden Visa applications are handled exclusively through official government channels within the UAE.
“All Golden Visa applications are handled exclusively through official government channels within the UAE, and that no internal or external consultancy entity is recognised as an authorised party in the application process,” the statement said.
The Authority has strongly urged the public to rely solely on official sources to verify the accuracy of visa procedures. Individuals are advised to visit the official website or contact the 24/7 call centre at 600522222 for accurate information before taking any action.
On July 7, VFS ETM Services, in partnership with Rayad Group, announced the launch of UAE Golden Visa advisory services in India, targeting business owners, professionals, and creatives.
“This opportunity allows eligible individuals including business owners, professionals, scientists entrepreneurs, creatives and influencers to apply for a 10-year UAE residency under a government nomination category, with no requirement to invest in real estate or establish a company. Visa holders can sponsor their spouse, children (including adult children), parents, and household staff to live in the UAE,” the media release read.
Notably, the press release does not mention the amount Rs 23 lakh as quoted by several media reports.
The Golden Visa Programme was launched in 2019, and so far, as per the official website, there has been no change in the rules and regulations mentioned there.
Furthermore, consultants in Dubai said there were no talks about a new Visa scheme in the country. Ever since the report of a “special visa” programme surfaced, Iqbal Marconi, former chief executive of ECH Group (recognised by Khaleej Times as the region’s principal golden visa facilitator), told news outlet Economic Times that they have been receiving numerous enquiries from India on the Golden Visa.
Former Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak at Kuala Lumpur High Court for his case on Oct 30, 2024. (File Photo: CNA/Fadza Ishak)
Malaysia’s Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) on Wednesday (Jul 9) confirmed for the first time the existence of a royal order that jailed ex-premier Najib Razak says would allow him to serve his prison sentence for corruption at home, local media reported.
Najib, who was prime minister between 2009 and 2018, was found guilty in 2020 of graft and money laundering linked to a multibillion-dollar scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).
In 2022, he was ordered to spend 12 years in prison for the crime, a sentence halved last year by a pardons board chaired by then-King Al-Sultan Abdullah.
Najib, who has consistently denied wrongdoing, contends that the pardons board decision was accompanied by an “addendum order” from the former monarch granting him house arrest, a document that he says authorities ignored.
Malaysia’s Court of Appeal in January allowed Najib’s bid to apply for a judicial review that would compel the government to confirm the existence of the addendum order, and to execute it if it exists.
The former king’s palace has said the document does exist, but Malaysian authorities including its law and home ministries have previously said they had no record or any knowledge of it.
However, a lawyer acting on behalf of the attorney-general said he did not dispute the existence of the addendum document, when questioned on the matter by a federal court judge on Wednesday, the New Straits Times daily reported.
Senior Federal Counsel Shamsul Bolhassan was reported as saying that the AGC was instead challenging the procedure through which the order was being submitted as evidence in Najib’s judicial review bid.
Tom Brady and Sofia Vergara are enjoying the single life — with each other!
The retired NFL star and the bombshell “Modern Family” actress have been spending time together in Ibiza, Spain, and a source described the situation to Page Six as a “summer romance.”
It all started about a week ago on the Luminara superyacht — launched by the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection — with A-list guests including Martha Stewart, Naomi Campbell, Kendall Jenner, Kate Hudson, Colman Domingo and the flirtatious duo, among others.
The two-night luxury voyage set sail from Rome, Italy, and included drone shows and performances by Ellie Goulding, Sting and Janelle Monae.
A source described Sofia Vergara and Tom Brady’s relationship as a “summer romance.” Sofia Vergara/Instagram
Guests also included Patrick Schwarzenegger, Tessa Thompson, singer Anitta and Brady’s past supermodel fling, Irina Shayk, we’re told.
Brady and Vergara, however, were apparently googly-eyed over each other at one of the gala dinners aboard the yacht. The two were photographed sitting next to each other, and a source familiar with the situation told us their cozy-looking seating arrangement wasn’t happenstance.
“He asked to switch seats to sit next to her at dinner,” a source told Page Six.
We’re told Brady, 47, and Vergara, who turns 53 on Thursday, continued hanging out in Ibiza after the yacht trip.
South Korea’s former president has been rearrested over last year’s failed martial law bid that plunged the country into political turmoil.
Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached in April over the order, which saw military rule introduced for six-hours in December.
A senior judge at Seoul’s Central District Court issued an arrest warrant for Yoon on Wednesday, citing fears he could destroy evidence.
Yoon, who was the first sitting South Korean president to be arrested, faces trial on charges of leading an insurrection over his attempt to impose martial law.
During Wednesday’s seven-hour hearing, a special counsel team argued for the arrest warrant on five key charges, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.
The charges include Yoon’s alleged violation of the rights of cabinet members by not inviting some of them to a meeting before he declared martial law.
Yoon initially attended the hearing alongside his lawyers to deny the charges, before being taken to Seoul Detention Center to await a decision on an arrest warrant.
He was first arrested in January following a lengthy stand-off, with investigators scaling barricades and cutting through barbed wire to take him into custody from his residence in central Seoul.
Yoon was released two months later after a court overturned his arrest on technical grounds, but still faces trial.
If found guilty, he could face life in prison or the death penalty.
Prosecutors have reportedly found evidence that Yoon ordered military drones to be flown over North Korea to provoke a reaction that would justify his martial law declaration, according to reports.
Other senior officials also face charges including insurrection and abuse of authority over the martial law declaration.
Insurrection is one of a small number of criminal charges from which South Korean presidents do not have immunity, but now Yoon is no longer president he is open to other criminal charges.
A woman looks at a residential building in Kyiv damaged in a Russian drone attack
Ukraine’s capital Kyiv is again under a massive overnight Russian drone attack, local officials say, with at least two people reported killed and 13 injured, and fires burning across the city.
Authorities in Kyiv say drone wreckage hit the roof of a residential building in the central Shevchenkivskyi district.
Footage on social media, as yet unverified by the BBC, shows blasts in the night sky, as air defence units begin repelling the attack. Ukraine’s military has also warned of a threat of a ballistic missile attack.
Ukraine reported the biggest ever Russian aerial attack on Tuesday night, after 728 drones and 13 cruise or ballistic missiles struck cities around the country in multiple waves.
In the early hours of Thursday morning, Kyiv’s military administration reported Russian drone strikes in six city districts.
“Residential buildings, vehicles, warehouses, office and non-residential buildings are burning,” administration head Tymur Tkachenko said in a post on Telegram.
“Unfortunately, we have two dead,” he later said. “These people were killed by the Russians. This is a terrible loss”.
In Kyiv’s Podilsky district, a primary healthcare centre was “almost completely destroyed”, Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said.
City residents have been urged to shelter until the air raid siren is lifted, and also close the windows when they return to their homes because there is a “lot of smoke” in Kyiv.
Overnight, Ukraine’s air force reported a threat of Russian drone attacks in a number of regions. It was not immediately clear whether there were any casualties outside Kyiv.
Russia’s military has not commented on the reported latest attack.
In other developments:
Ukraine’s emergency service DSNS said late on Wednesday that three people had been killed in a Russian air strike in the town of Kostiantynivka – close to the front line in eastern Ukraine
The US resumed sending some weapons to Ukraine, Reuters reported late on Wednesday, days after it halted shipments of some critical air defence arms
It comes after US President Donald Trump expressed growing frustration at the Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“We get a lot of bullshit thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday. “He’s very nice to us all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow was “pretty calm about this. Trump’s way of talking is generally quite harsh, the phrases he uses”.
The two leaders have been in regular contact but this has so far failed to translate into tangible steps towards a ceasefire in Ukraine – something Trump once said he would be able to achieve in a day.
A California woman has received hundreds of huge Amazon packages she didn’t order after a cheap Chinese seller listed her San Jose home as its return address.
The woman — identified only as Kay — has been receiving the parcels for over a year now, and they’ve been arriving at such speed, she’s had no choice but to stack them up in her driveway to maintain some semblance of order.
The boxes are piled chest high in her yard, and have become so numerous she can no longer park her car there.
“It’s just been another form of hell,” Kay told ABC 7.
The culprit is a China-based Amazon seller called Liusandedian, which peddles faux leather car seat covers that apparently fit few of the models they’re designed for — so customers by the hundreds have been sending the junk products back.
The San Jose woman, identified only as Kay, has been unable to park her car in her own driveway due to the piles of packages. ABC 7 Eyewitness News
But the unwanted seat covers haven’t been going back to wherever Liusandedian is in China — they’ve been going to Kay’s California driveway.
It started as just one package that Kay thought was a wrong delivery, but more boxes kept arriving over the following weeks. Weeks turned into months — which became over a year — with more and more parcels showing up at her steps until Kay’s stoop was buried in boxes.
“What you see now is a fraction, because I have refused delivery on more packages than you see here,” she said.
The package pandemonium has become such a problem that sometimes when she comes home, she can’t get her 88-year-old mother to the front door without first parting the sea of boxes blocking the entryway.
And Amazon offered her next to no help for months — with at least six different complaint tickets being filed to no avail, she said.
“Every time I was absolutely assured this will stop,” she told ABC 7. “‘You won’t get any more of these packages, you’ll hear from us in 24, 48 hours.”
The business once tried offering her a $100 gift card for her trouble — but she also claims they told her it was her job to get rid of the packages and suggested she donate them or ship them back to the sender.
“Why is it my responsibility to get rid of this, when your seller is not following your rules, Amazon?” she said, referring to a Liusandedian’s apparent violation of Amazon’s policies.
International sellers are required to either list a US address for returns, give buyers a pre-paid shipping label, or issue refunds without requiring anything be mailed back. If they fail to do so within two days of a return request, Amazon is allowed to refund the buyer and bill the seller.
Liusandedian — which, outside of its Amazon listings, is a ghost online — appears to have skirted around those rules by including a bogus address that turned out to be Kay’s address.
Six members of the Secret Service have been suspended for failures related to last year’s assassination attempt against President Trump at a rally in Butler, Pa.
The suspensions for the six agents ranged from 10 to 42 days, and they won’t be paid while on leave, Secret Service Deputy Director Matt Quinn told CBS News on Wednesday.
The agents will not be fired, but upon return to work, they will be placed in roles with diminished operational responsibility.
“We aren’t going to fire our way out of this,” Quinn told the outlet. “We’re going to focus on the root cause and fix the deficiencies that put us in that situation.”
The suspensions were revealed nearly a year after the shooting. AP
Trump was struck in the ear by one of the bullets fired by would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks on July 13, 2024, during a campaign event at the Butler Farm Show grounds, leaving the then presumptive Republican nominee for president bloodied.
Firefighter Corey Comperatore was killed shielding his family from Crooks’ bullets, and two others were left with severe injuries before the 20-year-old gunman — positioned on an unguarded roof with a clear line of sight toward Trump — was taken out by a Secret Service sniper.
A scathing Senate report on the assassination attempt released in September determined that “multiple foreseeable and preventable planning and operational failures by [Secret Service] contributed” to Crooks’ ability to carry out the deadly shooting.
“These included unclear roles and responsibilities, insufficient coordination with state and local law enforcement, the lack of effective communications, and inoperable [Counter-Unmanned Aircraft] systems, among many others,” the damning report read.
Spanish authorities ordered more than 18,000 residents of the northeastern Tarragona province to remain indoors on Tuesday and several dozen were evacuated as a wildfire raged out of control, consuming almost 3,000 hectares (7,413 acres) of vegetation.
Large parts of Spain are on high alert for wildfires after the country experienced its hottest June on record. Two people died in a wildfire on July 1 in the region of Catalonia where Tarragona is located.
People watch as a helicopter flies to help extinguish an ongoing wildfire in Xerta, which is one of the confined villages in the Tarrragona province in Catalonia, Spain, July 8, 2025. REUTERS/Nacho Doce Purchase Licensing Rights
The latest fire broke out early on Monday in a remote area near the village of Pauls, where strong winds and rugged terrain have hampered firefighting efforts, authorities said. An emergency military unit was deployed early on Tuesday alongside more than 300 firefighters working in the area.
“Since midnight, firefighters have been battling the blaze with gusts of wind reaching up to 90 kilometres per hour (56 miles per hour),” Catalonia’s regional firefighting service said, adding that the strong Mistral wind was expected to ease by the afternoon.
Overnight, fire engines raced the winding roads of the Pauls Mountains, surrounded by flames, as crews assessed and tried to contain the blaze.
A view of the U.S. Supreme Court, in Washington, U.S. June 29, 2024. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday cleared the way for Donald Trump’s administration to pursue mass government job cuts and the sweeping downsizing of numerous agencies, a decision that could lead to tens of thousands of layoffs while dramatically reshaping the federal bureaucracy.
Tuesday’s ruling stemmed from an executive order Trump issued in February ordering agencies to prepare for mass layoffs. At Trump’s direction, the administration has come up with plans to reduce staff at the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Health and Human Services, State, Treasury, Veterans Affairs and more than a dozen other agencies.
In a brief unsigned order, the court said the Trump administration was “likely to succeed” in its argument that his directives were legally within his power.
The decision is the latest win for Trump’s broader efforts to consolidate power in the executive branch. The Supreme Court has sided with Trump in several cases on an emergency basis since he returned to office in January, including clearing the way for implementation of some of his hardline immigration policies.
The Supreme Court’s decision on Tuesday lifted San Francisco-based U.S. District Judge Susan Illston’s order in May that temporarily blocked large-scale federal layoffs while the case proceeded.
Illston had ruled that Trump exceeded his authority in ordering the government downsizing without consulting Congress, which created and funded the agencies in question.
“As history demonstrates, the president may broadly restructure federal agencies only when authorized by Congress,” Illston wrote.
While Tuesday’s decision cleared one major legal obstacle for the White House, the court noted that it was not assessing the legality of any specific layoff plans at federal agencies.
Those layoff proposals, some of which were submitted earlier this year, could still face legal challenges on a variety of grounds, including union opposition, statutory restrictions and civil service protections.
The White House said in a statement that the decision is a “definitive victory for the president and his administration” that reinforced Trump’s authority to implement “efficiency across the federal government.”
However, two White House sources familiar with the matter, who asked to remain unidentified, said the ruling did not permit agencies to execute layoffs immediately. One of the sources said additional delays or legal hurdles “could alter the scope and timing of the cuts.”
A group of unions, nonprofits and local governments that sued to block the administration’s mass layoffs said the ruling “dealt a serious blow to our democracy and puts services that the American people rely on in grave jeopardy” and vowed to continue fighting as the case proceeds.
The plaintiffs had warned in court filings that Trump’s plans, if allowed to proceed, would result in hundreds of thousands of layoffs.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll in April found that Americans narrowly favored Trump’s campaign to downsize the federal government, with about 56% saying they supported the effort and 40% opposed. Their views broke down along party lines, with 89% of Republicans but just 26% of Democrats supportive.
Some agencies whose downsizing plans had been put on hold said they would resume advancing those efforts.
“We will continue to move forward with our historic reorganization plan,” the State Department, which has proposed laying off nearly 2,000 employees, said on X. DOGE CUTS
Upon taking office in January, Trump launched a massive campaign to cut the 2.3-million strong federal civilian workforce, led by billionaire Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency.
Musk and his mostly young lieutenants immediately moved into key government agencies, fired workers, gained access to government computer systems and virtually shuttered two agencies – the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Trump and Musk said the bloated federal bureaucracy needed to be downsized. Federal workers’ unions and most Democrats say the cuts so far, and the plans for further mass layoffs, have been carried out haphazardly, leading to chaos inside many agencies and threatening important public services such as the processing of Social Security claims.
By late April, about 100 days into the effort, the government overhaul had resulted in the firing, resignations and early retirements of 260,000 civil servants, according to a Reuters tally.
A SENTENCING date for Sean “Diddy” Combs has been set after the music mogul was convicted of two prostitution-related charges at his high-profile trial.
Combs, who was acquitted of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges, will be sentenced on October 3.
Combs attends Day 1 of 2023 Invest Fest at Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta in August 2023Credit: Getty
Combs faces a maximum 20-year prison sentence – 10 years for each count of transportation to engage in prostitution.
However, federal prosecutors have said they would seek a 5 to 3-year sentence.
The time Combs has already served in jail, which will be over a year by the time he’s sentenced, would be credited to the ultimate sentence the judge imposes.
Tuesday’s pre-sentencing hearing lasted seconds after Combs’ defense team initially sought to expedite his sentencing to September 22 in their initial letter to Judge Arun Subramanian.
However, minutes before the hearing was scheduled to start Marc Agnifilo filed a second letter to the judge saying the defense and prosecution had agreed to a October 3 date – the initial date set by Judge Subramanian.
As the 2 pm pre-sentencing hearing commenced, a courtroom deputy acknowledged Agnifilo’s letter and said the judge would rule on the motion in writing before adjourning the court.
It’s unclear why the defense abandoned its efforts to expedite Combs’ sentencing.
Combs will remain housed in the notorious Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn while he awaits sentencing.
SHOCKING VERDICT
A jury acquitted Combs of the most serious charges he faced – racketeering conspiracy and two counts of sex trafficking in regards to Cassandra “Cassie” Ventura and “Jane,” a pseudonym used for one of Combs’ ex-girlfriends.
The music executive fell to his knees in prayer after the jury foreperson read the stunning verdict to the courtroom on July 2.
Combs’ defense team delivered a post-verdict victory speech to reporters outside the US District Courthouse, calling the outcome a “great victory for the jury system.”
Agnifilo said the 12-person jury “got the situation right – or certainly, right enough.”
“We are not nearly done fighting. We’re not going to stop until he walks out of prison a free man to his family,” he added.
Teny Geragos, another of Combs attorneys, defended the mogul saying, “Sean Combs has not sexually assaulted anybody. I’ve been saying that for months. The media got it wrong.”
CLOSING ARGUMENTS
In their blistering closing arguments, prosecutors described Combs as the “leader of a criminal enterprise” who used his expansive “wealth, power, violence, and fear to get what he wanted.”
“He thought that his fame, wealth and power put him above the law,” Assistant US Attorney Christy Slavik said, adding, “It was his kingdom. Everyone was there to serve him.”
The core evidence of the prosecution’s case was the disturbing and graphic nature of the drug-fueled “freak-offs” that at times Combs allegedly coerced his ex-girlfriends to participate in with male escorts.
Slavik described to jurors how Combs forced his former lovers Ventura and “Jane” into participating in the punishing sex marathons and with the help of an inner circle of “loyal lieutenants” covered up the alleged crimes.
Ventura and Jane were sometimes required to perform the lewd acts, which were also called “hotel nights and wild king nights,” while they were hurting from urinary tract infections (UTIs), according to prosecutors.
On the other hand, Combs’ defense team slammed the prosecution’s case as an attack on “your bedroom” and one’s sex life.
Agnifilo summarized the seven-week trial as a “tale of two trials,” arguing one side is the one told by the evidence of the case, by witnesses, videos, and text messages, and the other was a “badly, badly, exaggerated” story told by prosecutors.
The defense attorney argued the sexual encounters involving Combs, Ventura, “Jane,” and male escorts were consensual, and called the “freak-offs,” which were sometimes video recorded, “homemade porn.”
Terrifying footage shows billowing black smoke filling the air
THIS is the humiliating moment a hulking six-tonne Putin drone “guided by AI” crash landed on a Russian house during a test mission.
The Altius unmanned plane with a giant 94ft wingspan hit and destroyed a home on the outskirts of Kazan, southwest Russia after suffering a “navigation failure”.
A long-range Altius reconnaissance and strike droneCredit: East2WestThe device suffered from a ‘navigation’ failureCredit: East2West
The reconnaissance drone – with a range of 6,200 mile range – was on a test flight for possible use in Ukraine.
But it all went wrong when the AI system navigating the plane reportedly stopped working and the drone landed on a Russian civilian home instead.
Miraculously, no-one was hurt.
Terrifying footage shows the device travelling overhead before panning to the burning home.
Giant flames are pictured engulfing the scorched residence as locals watch with horror.
Billowing black smoke fills the air as charred debris and rubble covers the ground and surrounding trees.
Residents escaped injury as the long-range UAV smashed into their house, and then scrambled to put out the fire before the emergency services arrived.
Developers blamed “unidentified electronic warfare equipment” for the navigation failure which occurred just under a mile away from Kazan Gorbunov Aircraft Plant.
The drone can hold a precision-guided bomb or missile payload.
An eyewitness said: “At first, we didn’t even think it was a plane.
This type of monster drone has been in service with the Russian military since 2021 but there is no record of it so far being deployed in the war in Ukraine.
The failed drone attack comes as Russia increases its blitz on Ukraine, hammering the country with 1,000 drones and missiles every day.
Yesterday, was the second massive assault in the four days since Trump’s call with Putin, and represents a brazen defiance of the President’s peace agenda.
Moscow’s firepower capacity is constantly increasing and his forces have regularly broken the record for the largest daily volley of weapons in recent weeks.
On June 1, a 479-strong wave of drones and missiles became Russia’s largest unmanned aerial assault of the war.
June 9 saw that broken with 499, then again on June 29 with 537.
And finally, just last Friday, Putin terrorised Kyiv with a firestorm of 550 drones and missiles – just as he and Trump finished a phone call.
Iran’s nuclear program was severely affected following American and Israeli strikes, but there’s no certainty on the location of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, according to France’s intelligence chief.
A satellite photo of Fordo nuclear facility after US strikesImage: Planet Labs PBC/AP/picture alliance
Iran’s nuclear program was delayed by several months following American and Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities last month, according to France’s intelligence chief.
Speaking to France’s LCI broadcaster in his first remarks since the bombing raid, Nicolas Lerner, the head of DGSE intelligence service, said Tuesday that various stages of Iran’s nuclear program had been damaged.
“Our assessment today is that each of these stages has been very seriously affected, very seriously damaged,” he said. “The nuclear program, as we knew it, has been extremely delayed, probably many months,” he added.
Lerner also told the channel that a small part of Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile had been destroyed but the rest remained in the hands of authorities.
What else do we know about Iran’s uranium stockpile?
Iran had accumulated a stockpile of highly enriched uranium that, if processed further, could fuel around 10 bombs, according to an assessment by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) earlier this year.
“Today we have indications (on where it is), but we cannot say with certainty as long as the IAEA does not restart its work. It’s very important. We won’t have the capacity to trace it (the stocks),” Lerner said.
Other intelligence assessments have also suggested that Iran retains a hidden stockpile of enriched uranium and that it could rebuild its nuclear program.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian last week ordered the country to suspend its cooperation with the IAEA, limiting international inspectors from keeping tabs on the whereabouts of the country’s enriched uranium stockpile.
The US president accused Vladimir Putin of distracting Washington with “bulls**t” in talks over Ukraine. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had urged officials to intensify contact with the US.
US President Donald Trump said that more defensive weapons would be sent to UkraineImage: Kevin Lamarque/REUTERS
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday issued a sharp rebuke of Russian President Vladimir Putin after saying Washington would send Ukraine more weapons to help defend itself amid Russia’s continued invasion.
Moscow has ramped up attacks on Ukraine with almost daily drone and missile strikes across the country, all while the Trump administration had been pushing to bring an end to the war.
What exactly did Trump say?
Trump accused Putin of being disingenuous in his dealings with Washington, using an expletive that reflected his growing frustration.
“We get a lot of bulls**t thrown at us by Putin,” Trump said at the White House on Tuesday. “He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”
“Putin is not treating human beings right. He’s killing too many people,” Trump continued, as he explained his decision.
On Monday, the US president said more weapons would be sent because the Ukrainians “have to be able to defend themselves.”
“They’re getting hit very hard now,” he added. “We’re going to have to send more weapons, defensive weapons, primarily,” Trump said.
The US has been the largest contributor of military support for Ukraine and there had been concerns over the status of continued aid when Trump began his second term in office.
Trump has made a number of concessions to Moscow, and rolled back the vast amount of aid provided by his predecessor, Joe Biden.
Zelenskyy orders push for more US air defense supplies
On the back of Trump’s announcement about more weapons, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had ordered an expansion of contacts with the US to secure “critical deliveries” of military aid, especially air defense systems.
“Today, I instructed the minister of defence and the commander in chief to intensify all contacts with the American side,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly address on Tuesday.
The Ukrainian president said Kyiv now had the political backing it needed and must act fast to protect its people and frontline positions. He called the deliveries vital for saving lives and defending cities and villages.
Why is Trump sending more weapons to Ukraine?
Trump appears to have grown increasingly frustrated with Russian President Vladimir Putin and last week said there had been “no progress” to bring an end to Moscow’s continued invasion.
Following a call on Thursday with the Russian leader, Trump said he was “very disappointed with the conversation” and added “I don’t think he’s looking to stop [the war] and that’s too bad.”
It was the sixth publicly disclosed conversation between Trump and Putin since his return to the White House.
On Tuesday, the Kremlin said that sending arms to Ukraine prolonged the fighting.
“It is obvious of course that these actions probably do not align with attempts to promote a peaceful resolution,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying in a briefing.
Peskov said that it would take time to determine the amounts and types of weapons the US would be supplying.
40 years since a national campaign to minimise cash transactions was launched, how advanced is Singapore in that journey? CNA tries to use only cash for one week and go cash-free for another.
Is cash becoming less of an option in Singapore? Most businesses still accept a range of payment methods, including cash, said the Monetary Authority of Singapore. (Illustration: CNA/Rafa Estrada)
My experiment to use only cash for a week in June got off to a false start.
I had gone to Five Oars Coffee Roasters for a meeting, and though the shop only accepted contactless card payments, my drink was paid for by the organiser. I also paid cash for dinner and dessert that evening without a hitch.
All good, I thought, until I belatedly realised that I had taken a Grab to and from the meeting, and the rides were paid for using a credit card I had added to my ride-hailing accounts.
That’s how ingrained cashless payments have become in my life. I knew then that the cashless-only experiment would be much easier, but first, I had to dig into my stash of notes from Chinese New Year and get through a cash-only week.
Cashless options have become more mainstream in Singapore, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the trend.
Some shops and food outlets have even gone fully cashless, but the country’s electronic payments journey started decades ago.
Back in 1985 – the year after the General Interbank Recurring Order (GIRO) was introduced – the government launched a national campaign to minimise cash transactions.
At the time, it was estimated that the government would save S$24.5 million in labour costs if cash transactions were minimised.
The campaign sought to encourage Singaporeans to receive their salaries via direct credit, pay their bills through GIRO and use the new Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale (EFTPOS).
The implementation of the EFTPOS scheme, which allowed customers to pay for their purchases and bills with an ATM card instead of cash, was said to be the most challenging part of the campaign.
It was implemented by a company called Network for Electronic Transfers Singapore, better known as NETS.
The company remains a household name, and has adapted to offer contactless card, in-app and QR code payments that are often used today.
NO PAYLAH, NO PAYNOW, CASH ONLY
All these options, however, were off the table for my experiment. Over seven days, I used cash for every transaction possible – at cafes and shops, and even on public transport.
I planned to book a plane ticket that week, but delayed it in part because of my cash-only week.
The experiment made me feel a bit socially anxious. I knew that if a shop did not accept cash, I could just switch over to a cashless option, but for shops that did take cash, I envisioned myself counting coins or fiddling with my wallet and causing inconvenience while other customers breezed by with their contactless payments.
In the end, I failed to use cash just once, apart from on MRT rides, which have no cash option available.
On my first Grab ride during the experiment, I left home thinking I had S$12 (US$9) cash for an S$11.90 ride, and thought I would simply forfeit the 10 cents if the driver did not have any change on hand.
Instead, I discovered that I had a S$5 instead of a S$2 note. The driver, Mr P Ananthan, noticed that my ride was tagged “cash”, and wisely asked if I had small change. He then asked if I would prefer to use PayNow when I said I had S$15 in cash.
He told me that he only gets around one or two passengers a day who request to pay by cash, and among those who do, there are often young people in their 20s and 30s.
“They use cash to keep track of their spending,” said the 63-year-old.
When he first started driving for Grab seven years ago, more passengers used cash, he said. “Even foreigners are starting to pay by card now.”
Mr Ananthan said he does not mind cash or cashless, as long as the passengers pay.
But he added that some try to pay for their rides with S$50 or S$100 notes and expect him to have change. He sometimes stops by a petrol kiosk and asks the passengers to buy something to break the note into smaller denominations.
“The problem is (that) they won’t say. When they come in, they should ask me if I have change for S$50,” he said, adding that some passengers have told him that he ought to have change for them.
Change ended up being the most troublesome part of my experiment, and something that would likely have been less of a problem when cash was more widely used.
I also had to pay higher fares on buses when paying cash – S$1.90 versus S$1.19 for a short ride.
“Cash fares for buses have been higher than card fares since the 1990s, to reflect the higher cost of cash collection,” a Public Transport Council spokesperson said.
There were also some inconveniences, such as having to place my order at the counter instead of through a QR code at my table when eating out, and spending more time in a queue at Don Don Donki because the self-check out counters do not accept cash.
Only two cashiers manned counters at Don Don Donki, and the queue moved slowly enough that I started to wonder why other people in the queue were not able to use cashless options.
Some of them were tourists and were showing the cashier their passports, likely with questions about tax refunds.
The upside of having more free counters than cashiers, however, was that while I fumbled with my notes and coins, the cashier who served me did not have to wait for me to be done.
She simply moved to the neighbouring counter and called for the next customer.
ARE CASHLESS-ONLY SHOPS MORE COMMON?
At some Starbucks and Pastamania branches, cash is no longer accepted as a payment method. SushiExpress and sports brand Decathlon have gone fully cashless.
Under section 13(4) of the Currency Act, merchants can choose not to accept any or all notes and coins as long as they provide customers with a written notice.
“Vendors have the discretion to decide how they wish to receive payments, as the payment of goods and services is an agreement between a willing buyer and a willing seller,” the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said on its website.
The regulator added that merchants usually consider the value of the transaction, cost of acceptance, convenience to customers and medium of customer interaction. It would not make sense for an online business to accept cash, for example.
Decathlon said it decided to go fully cashless in June 2020 to provide customers with a faster, more convenient check-out process. It offers 15 payment options including credit and debit cards, GrabPay and EZ-Link cards.
Singapore CEO Stephan Veyret said there have been significant benefits to business since Decathlon went cashless.
“We’ve seen a notable improvement in operational efficiency and security, and this has allowed our teammates to focus their energy on what they do best: Interacting with customers and providing expert advice to support their sports journey,” he said.
But Mr Veyret acknowledged that there may be “rare instances” where people such as seniors, students or tourists are only able to make cash payments.
“Our team mates are trained to assist these customers directly to manage all payment methods including cash, if absolutely necessary,” he said.
Starbucks said that 39 of its stores in Singapore are fully cashless, while its other locations accept both cash and cashless payment.
The coffee chain has around 140 Singapore outlets listed on its website.
A spokesperson said the decision to transition some outlets to cashless-only was made in 2020, guided by “customer profiles and store-specific considerations”.
Starbucks said it is committed to meeting the needs of its customers and will evaluate further changes on a store-by-store basis.
“In particular, stores frequented by tourists or those with a higher likelihood of cash usage will continue to offer cash payment options,” the spokesperson said.
MAS said its vision of creating an e-payments society is centred around making payments between individuals “simple, swift, seamless and safe”.
A majority of Singaporeans may eventually use e-payments for daily transactions due to the convenience of it, the central bank’s spokerperson said.
“At the same time, a balanced approach recognises that some members of the community may still prefer or require cash options. MAS seeks to be inclusive to ensure that no one is left behind as we advance our e-payment capabilities.”
According to MAS data, e-payments doubled from S$627 billion in 2018 to S$1.25 trillion in 2023, and ATM withdrawals dropped by 10 per cent over the same period. More than 90 per cent of Singaporeans between the ages of 20 and 75 have also registered for PayNow.
“While e-payments adoption has grown over the years, most merchants in Singapore still accept cash. MAS’ aim is not to force a cashless society, but to enable individuals and businesses to enjoy the convenience and efficiency of e-payments.”
The spokesperson said MAS and the Singapore Payments Council engage small businesses and merchants to understand their needs and concerns regarding e-payments.
“EVOLUTIONARY RATHER THAN DISRUPTIVE”
An increasing number of shops and restaurants are going cashless, and it is likely that more and more businesses will go in the same direction, said Ms Lim May-Ann, director of multilateral relations, data policy and partnerships technology consultancy firm Access Partnership.
But anecdotally, she said there still seems to be a large number of businesses that accept cash.
“From a risk management perspective, more options rather than fewer will always mean greater business resilience and continuity in the event of an emergency and outage,” she said.
MAS said Singapore’s e-payments infrastructure is generally robust, but businesses must plan and prepare for contingencies.
“They can benefit from having alternative payment options, including cash, and not be over-reliant on a single e-payment provider for time-sensitive transactions,” the spokesperson said.
Singapore Computer Society (SCS) said cash is still accepted in most places. The spokesperson said MAS has made it clear that financial inclusion remains a key priority.
“Singapore’s approach is evolutionary rather than disruptive – giving consumers and businesses time to adapt at their own pace,” said the infocomm and digital media society, which has published articles on cashless trends.
On a visit to Parkway Parade, I checked out more than 50 shops – including food and beverage, tech appliance and clothing stores – and the vast majority accepted both cash and cashless payment.
At a nearby hawker centre, all 42 stalls that were open accepted at least cash and QR code payments.
Most heartland shops in the area allowed cash and cashless options, though some had minimum spending requirements for cashless payments.
One drycleaning shop had a sign that said it would only accept cash, and the elderly woman manning the store said her customers have no issues with paying cash.
Ms Lim of Access Partnership said older people who run businesses may not see the need to upskill in this area, while other businesses may not want to pay for the digital infrastructure needed to accept cashless payments.
“All my customers know that my stall only takes cash, especially the regulars, they always bring cash, even the children,” said wanton noodle and laksa hawker Ms Ng Siew Lian, who is nearly 70 years old.
“It’s good for them to handle cash, if not they might not know our first president,” she said with a laugh in Mandarin.
President Donald Trump said on Tuesday (Jul 8) that he would not extend an Aug 1 deadline for higher US tariffs to take effect on dozens of economies, a day after he appeared to signal flexibility on the date.
While Trump imposed a sweeping 10 per cent tariff on goods from almost all trading partners in April, higher rates customised to dozens of economies were unveiled, then halted until Jul 9.
President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, Jul 8, 2025, in Washington. (Photo: AP/Evan Vucci)
But the president this week again delayed their reimposition, pushing it back to Aug 1.
Trump insisted that there would be no further delay in the tariffs. “There will be no change,” he posted on Truth Social.
He added that levies would start being paid on Aug 1, in line with letters now being sent out to trading partners.
“No extensions will be granted,” Trump said.
On Monday night, Trump had told reporters at a dinner that the Aug 1 deadline was “firm, but not 100 per cent firm.”
Pressed on whether the letters were his final offer, Trump replied: “I would say final – but if they call with a different offer, and I like it, then we’ll do it.”
In a push for further trade deals, Trump sent letters to more than a dozen partners on Monday, including key US allies Japan and South Korea.
Products from both countries would be hit with 25 per cent duties, Trump wrote in near-identical letters to leaders in Tokyo and Seoul.
Indonesia, Bangladesh, Thailand, South Africa and Malaysia were among other countries facing duties ranging from 25 per cent to 40 per cent.
In his messages to foreign leaders, Trump warned of further escalation if there was retaliation against his levies.
Most countries receiving the letters so far saw US tariffs at similar or unchanged rates from those threatened in April, although some like Laos and Cambodia saw notably lower levels.
The Trump administration is under pressure to show results after promising a flurry of deals following the US president’s tariff threats.
So far Washington has only struck two pacts, with Britain and Vietnam, besides an agreement to dial back staggeringly high tit-for-tat levies with China.
In threatening tariff hikes on various economies, Trump cited in his letters a lack of reciprocity in trading ties.
He also warned that goods transshipped to avoid higher duties would be subjected to steeper levels.
But he added that if countries were willing to adjust their trade policies, Washington “will, perhaps, consider an adjustment to this letter”.
He said in the letters that tariffs could be modified “upward or downward, depending on our relationship with your Country”.
Kelly Clarkson cancelled her Las Vegas residency minutes before showtime on July 4 over vocal issues – but she also faces “hidden battles,” sources tell Page Six.
The singer and TV host axed the opening night of her “Studio Sessions” residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace just 90 minutes before showtime last Friday, devastating fans.
Clarkson, 43, said she could not risk causing “serious damage” to her voice, as one Vegas insider told us, “She belts out every single note. She’s an incredibly powerful singer, but it takes its toll on her vocal cords and she’s come incredibly close to needing surgery before.
“She cannot risk damaging her cords further – she’s on thin ice.”
Back in March, Clarkson, 43, missed 10 episodes of her NBC talk show, with her spot being filled by guest hosts – and was absent again the following month when Andy Cohen stepped in to host. Both times she cited personal matters as her reason for taking off.
Clarkson has been open about the toll her turbulent divorce from Brandon Blackstock, father of their kids, daughter River Rose, 10, and son Remy, 8, took on her.
The star said she was “devastated” to cancel her opening night, citing vocal strain. Instagram/@kellyclarkson
A second insider in the know added, “Kelly’s personal life is so insanely complicated…Kelly is fighting some serious hidden battles that very few people are privy to …it’s a source of emotional and therefore physical distress for her.”
Clarkson has been candid about just how much the 2020 split after seven years of marriage and the ensuing legal battle took out of her, telling Apple Music in 2023, “Just to be brutally honest, I did not handle [the divorce] well.”
Page Six has reached out to Clarkson’s rep for comment.
After canceling the first weekend, Clarkson is expected to kick off the residency this Friday.
In an emotional note, she said she wanted to create the “most intimate and extraordinary experience” for her “incredible fans.”
However, she noted, “The prep and rehearsals have taken a toll on my voice.
The “Stronger” singer added, “I am beyond grateful that you always show up for me and I am devastated to have to postpone.”
Clarkson reassured her fans that the career-spanning show is “incredible” and concluded, “I can’t wait to be back next weekend and show y’all what we’ve been working on.”
French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife, Brigitte Macron, have had yet another awkward public encounter less than two months after their infamous shoving scuffle made headlines.
The French president, 47, and his first lady, 72, arrived in the UK Tuesday for a three-day state visit.
Cameras were rolling as they deplaned a jet at Royal Air Force Northolt in London, capturing Brigitte leaving her husband hanging as he held out his hand to help her walk down the plane’s steps.
Brigitte Macron appeared to snub her husband, French President Emmanuel Macron, during a state visit to the UK Tuesday. Geoff Pugh/WPA Pool/ShutterstockThe first lady of France avoided taking her husband’s arm as she stepped down from the jet. via REUTERS
Emmanuel’s suit-clad arm was extended for several moments, but the first lady appeared more focused on holding onto the railing. She did, however, appear to eventually acknowledge her spouse’s kind gesture, exchanging a few short words with him once she stepped down and offering him a nice smile.
Prince William was present for the arrival, and was seen shaking Emmanuel’s hand shortly after. The British royal was accompanied by his wife, Kate Middleton, for the greeting.
Reps for the French president could not immediately be reached for comment.
The Macrons’ marriage has been under a microscope due to the shocking altercation they had in May. (Their relationship has also been heavily scrutinized due to their age difference, and because Emmanuel was just a teen when they first met.)
Earlier this year, Brigitte was caught on camera putting both of her hands on her husband’s face and pushing him back, just moments after they landed in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi, for a state visit.
Emmanuel brushed off the incident, however, claiming they were just “squabbling and, rather, joking” with one another, adding, “Everyone needs to calm down.”
PARENTS who dropped off their little girls at the beloved Christian Camp Mystic in central Texas received a heartwrenching note just three days later, one devastated parent has revealed.
The nearly century-old summer camp was right in the path of the swelling Guadalupe River when deadly rains dumped on the region in the early hours of July 4.
Both counselors and every girl in the Bubble Inn cabin have been found dead or are missingCredit: Collect
So far in the days following the tragedy, 108 bodies have been pulled from the soggy wasteland, and dozens of people are still missing.
State legislators across the US are sending crews to help with the grim search, and local leaders have vowed not to stop the mission until every person is accounted for.
Some of the most tragic disappearances among the lost are young campers who were staying at the institution in Hunt, outside San Antonio.
Longtime camp owners Dick and Tweety Eastland welcomed about 750 girls just the same as the 98 years prior in the days leading up to the tragedy.
Christy Colby Heno, a chaperone who went to the camp for 12 years, remembers feeling the excitement in the air when she dropped off her own daughters on June 30.
She said that she caught to catch up with the Eastlands as she ate turkey wraps, fruit salad, and tater tots alongside all of the buzzing girls.
“It was just like every other camp drop-off,” she told the Wall Street Journal.
But just days later, Heno was horrified to receive an eerie note from the camp after the storms passed through.
“If your daughter is not accounted for you have been notified,” read part of the letter.
“If you have not been personally contacted then your daughter is accounted for.
“Please continue to pray.”
CAMP DEVASTATION
Heartwrenching pictures show the sheer devastation brought on by the rushing floods.
Cabins that were once filled with giggling campers have now been left in shambles, with bunk beds askew on the ground and belongings abandoned by girls.
Nearly every surface at the camp is covered in layers of dirt and grime after the Guadalupe River swelled a whopping 30 feet and rushed water through the property.
The Bubble Inn cabin sat just 500 feet from the river, and every young girl and counselor inside has been found dead or is still missing.
The night of the storms, camp director Dick died trying to rush in and save the little girls.
Two of the victims staying in the cabin, 13 and 11-year-old sisters Blair and Brooke Harber, were found 15 miles downstream “with their hands locked together.”
Some 16 people have been killed at the annual festival
A MAN has been gored by a 1,260lb beast at the notorious Pamplona bull run festival as eight others were injured in the stampede.
The injuries are the latest to hit the northern Spanish region, with almost 300 incidents recorded each year from the death-defying event.
Revellers make their way through Plaza Consistorial as they runCredit: Getty
After little more than two minutes, six men were rushed to hospital when two bulls became detached from the rest of the group.
One man, who was gored under his armpit, remains under observation.
“At this time, he is under observation but is in stable condition,” a medic confirmed.
Up to 4,000 runners take part in each bull run, which takes place over almost 850 metres and can last up to four minutes.
Some 300 injuries are recorded at the run every yearCredit: EPA
One of the bulls, Zalagarda, is this year’s heaviest beast and weighs a staggering 610kg – or 96 stone.
The run was the first of nine and followed a bustling opening ceremony in the northern Spanish town.
The Chupinazo festivities see thousands of revellers – dressed in traditional red and white garms – come together and drink sangria to mark the start of the San Fermin event.
DEADLY SPORT
Some 16 people have been killed at the annual festival, which was made famous by the 1926 Ernest Hemingway novel ‘The Sun Also Rises’.
Several foreigners, from Australians to Americans through to Brits and Irish, are normally among the injured.
The most recent death at the Pamplona event was in 2009 when 27-year-old Daniel Jimeno, from Madrid, was gored in the neck by a bull called Capuchino.
Elsewhere, a man was gored to death during a bull-running festival in El Casar, Spain.
His death was described by the local council as “an unfortunate accident” while animal rights campaigners condemned the event, calling it a waste of the town’s resources and “traumatic” for children.
The 20-year-old was gored in a bullring at the countryside festival and sustained injuries to his lung.
The unnamed victim later died on Monday at La Paz University Hospital in Madrid.
That same year, another man, 51, died in a bull run event held in nearby Mesones when he slipped on a fence while trying to escape from the bulls.
The Animal Defence Association of El Casar hit out against the events.
A spokesman said: “Beyond the legal issues, these incidents generate expenses and consequences that affect all citizens, even those who oppose these events.
“The pain for this new victim is deep and part of our fight consists of preventing tragedies like this from continuing to occur.”
The association added: “Is this the best way to invest our resources and enjoy our leisure time?
“This kind of event not only puts people and animals at risk but also exposes children to traumatic situations that can shape their perception of the world.
“The well-being of people and respect for animals must be priorities in modern society and it is our responsibility to rethink whether these events reflect the values we want to promote.”
The campaigners are pressing for “safer, more educational entertainment that encourages the healthy enjoyment of free time, without risk to the physical or moral integrity of our community.”
President Donald Trump meets with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Blue Room of the White House, Jul 7, 2025, in Washington. (Photo: AP/Alex Brandon)
Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu met for the second time in 24 hours Tuesday (Jul 8) as the US president intensified the pressure on the Israeli prime minister to reach a deal to end the “tragedy” of the war in Gaza.
Netanyahu’s return to the White House for fresh talks came after Qatari mediators warned it would take time to seal an elusive ceasefire between Israel and Hamas at talks in Doha.
“It’s a tragedy, and he wants to get it solved, and I want to get it solved, and I think the other side wants to,” Trump told reporters as he announced that Netanyahu was coming back.
Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff said he hoped for an agreement within days.
“We are hopeful that by end of this week we will have an agreement that will bring us into a 60-day ceasefire,” Witkoff said.
The deal would include the return of 10 live hostages held by Palestinian militant groups since Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel, and nine dead hostages, Witkoff added.
The Israeli leader, who had dinner with Trump on Monday evening, arrived back at the White House for talks that were being held without any media access.
Asked earlier as he met US House speaker Mike Johnson if a ceasefire announcement was imminent, Netanyahu replied: “We’re certainly working on it.”
“NEED TIME”
Trump has kept up strong US support for Israel, especially over the recent Iran-Israel war, but has also been stepping up the pressure to end what he calls the “hell” in Gaza.
Qatar, however, said Tuesday more time was needed for negotiations for a breakthrough between Israel and Hamas, as indirect negotiations extended into a third day in Doha.
“I don’t think that I can give any timeline at the moment, but I can say right now that we will need time for this,” Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al-Ansari said.
Qatar, a mediator along with the United States and Egypt, said the meetings in Doha were focused on a framework for the talks, while a Palestinian official close to the negotiations said no breakthrough had been achieved so far.
Hostilities, meanwhile, continued on the ground.
Gaza’s civil defence reported 29 killed in Israeli strikes on Tuesday, including three children.
Five Israeli soldiers were killed in combat in northern Gaza – one of the deadliest days this year for Israeli forces in the Palestinian territory.
Netanyahu described the soldiers’ deaths as a “difficult morning”.
They were reportedly killed by improvised explosive devices near Beit Hanun in northern Gaza.
And Lebanon said three people were killed Tuesday in a strike near Tripoli that the Israeli military said targeted a Hamas militant, the first in the area since a November ceasefire with Hezbollah.
“TORN TO SHREDS”
Trump has been trying to seize on the momentum from the recent ceasefire between Iran and Israel, which was precipitated by US airstrikes on Tehran’s nuclear program.
France’s foreign intelligence chief said Tuesday that the program has been “very, very delayed” by US and Israeli strikes, wading into a contentious debate over just how hard it was hit.
Israel and Hamas began the latest round of negotiations on Sunday, with representatives seated in separate rooms within the same building.
Thailand’s suspended Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra arrives at Government House as she takes the oath of office as Minister of Culture in Bangkok, Thailand, on Jul 3, 2025. (File photo: AP/Sakchai Lalit)
Thailand’s Cabinet on Tuesday (Jul 8) dropped a Bill to legalise casino gambling, a flagship project of the faltering ruling party, which last week saw its prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra suspended from office.
The so-called “entertainment complex” Bill was a key plank for the Pheu Thai party, aiming to legalise casinos and boost the nation’s spluttering economy by making it a regional gambling hub.
Most forms of betting are illegal in Thailand and Pheu Thai argued the Bill would end a thriving underground gambling industry by admitting it into the mainstream.
However, the party has only a razor-thin parliamentary majority after being abandoned by coalition partners over a scandal which saw the premier suspended.
The Cabinet has withdrawn the Bill because it “needs more studies that require further understanding and social context”, government spokesperson Jirayu Huangsab said in a statement.
Julapun Amornvivat, deputy finance minister, said they “accept it’s not the appropriate time”.
“It’s a shame, the delay is a lost opportunity for the country,” he told media.
Upton County sheriff deputies and a Texas A&M Forest Service worker do search and recovery work on the banks of the Guadalupe River in Ingram, Texas, Tuesday, Jul 8, 2025, after the Fourth of July flood. (Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP)
Hundreds of rescuers on Tuesday (Jul 8) continued their search for people swept away by catastrophic floods in Texas that killed more than 100 people, officials said, amid threats of more heavy rain.
As of Tuesday morning, authorities in the worst-hit Kerr County had recovered the bodies of 87 victims, Sheriff Larry Leitha told reporters.
The deceased include at least 27 girls and counsellors who were staying at a youth summer camp on the Guadalupe River over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
“At present, five Camp Mystic campers and one counsellor still remain unaccounted for,” Leitha added.
At least 108 flood-related deaths were reported across central Texas, according to local officials.
More than 160 people are still listed as missing in Texas, the state’s governor said Tuesday.
“Just in the Kerr county area alone, there are 161 people who are known to be missing,” Governor Greg Abbott told reporters.
He added that the figure was based on people reported as unaccounted for by friends, relatives and neighbours.
During a Cabinet meeting, President Donald Trump said he would travel to Texas with First Lady Melania Trump on Friday, and credited his strong ties with the state’s Republican governor as having helped the rescue effort.
“We brought in a lot of helicopters from all over … They were real pros, and they were responsible for pulling out a lot of people. And we got them there fast, and Texas had some good ones too, but the response has been incredible,” Trump said.
Trump, who previously said that disaster relief should be handled at the state level, earlier this week signed a major disaster declaration, activating fresh federal funds and freeing up resources.
“EXTREMELY TREACHEROUS”
Ben Baker with the Texas Game Wardens said search and rescue efforts involving helicopters, drones and dogs were extremely difficult because of the water and mud.
“When we’re trying to make these recoveries, these large piles can be very obstructive, and to get in deep into these piles, it’s very hazardous,” Baker said.
“It’s extremely treacherous, time-consuming. It’s dirty work, the water is still there.”
He added that special attention was being paid to the first responders’ mental state, particularly given that the bodies of children were being recovered.
In the town of Hunt, the epicenter of the disaster, an AFP team saw recovery workers combing through piles of debris with helicopters flying overhead, as hopes dimmed for finding any survivors.
Javier Torres, 24, was digging through mud as he searched for the body of his grandmother, after having located the remains of his grandfather.
He also discovered the bodies of two children, apparently washed up by the river.
Officials warned that with more heavy rain forecast, recovery efforts would be rendered even more difficult.
“We’ve had some reports of maybe some additional water coming in, obviously, that’s going to impact the search and recovery efforts,” said Baker.
He said the weather may impact aerial patrol patterns, but “it won’t deter them”.
US President Donald Trump walks after disembarking Marine One as he arrives at the White House in Washington, DC, US on Jul 6, 2025. (Photo: Reuters/Ken Cedeno)
US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday (Jul 8) the US would “pretty soon” charge a 10 per cent tariff on imports from BRICS countries, drawing another complaint from Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who just hosted the bloc’s annual summit.
Trump, who raised the tariff threat on Sunday, said in a Tuesday Cabinet meeting at the White House that the duty was on the way: “Anybody that’s in BRICS is getting a 10 per cent charge pretty soon … If they’re a member of BRICS, they’re going to have to pay a 10 per cent tariff … and they won’t be a member long.”
The BRICS group expanded last year beyond Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to include members such as Iran and Indonesia. Leaders at the summit in Rio de Janeiro voiced indirect criticism of US military and trade policies.
Asked about Trump’s tariff threat, Lula told journalists at the BRICS summit on Monday that the world does not want an emperor.
After a state visit from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lula on Tuesday expressed further disagreement.
“We will not accept any complaints about the BRICS summit. We do not agree with the US president insinuating he’s going to put tariffs on BRICS countries,” he told journalists in Brasilia.
Trump gave no specific date for the BRICS tariff to kick in. On Monday, a source familiar with the matter said the Trump administration would charge the tariff only if countries adopted anti-American policies, differentiating actions from statements like the one adopted by the BRICS leaders on Sunday.
Trump claimed without evidence on Tuesday that the group was set up to hurt the United States and the US dollar’s role as the world’s reserve currency. He said he would not allow that to happen.
Hailey Bieber’s raved about Béis on social media. Getty Images for DAOU Vineyards; Nordstrom
Hailey Bieber may now be a billionaire, but you needn’t be to bag her favorite luggage.
Shay Mitchell’s Béis brand is deeply discounted during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale — including the Expandable Carry-On Roller Bieber raved about in 2023.
“It’s the best suitcase in the world,” she gushed on Instagram at the time, showing off both her carry-on and a matching larger Check-In Roller.
Béis 22-Inch Expandable Carry-On Roller
“The only one I travel with,” the Rhode founder continued, saying the brand has the “smoothest wheels and is “functional and oh so chic.”
Nordstrom’s glossy lavender version offers 360-degree swivel, a telescoping handle and even a retractable strap that lets you attach another bag to the roller.
If the only traveling you’re doing this summer is commuting to the office and back, there’s also a great deal on the Commuter Duffle Bag, which comes equipped with multiple zip pockets and a padded laptop sleeve.
Béis The Commuter Duffle Bag
The Commuter Backpack is on sale, too, and — like most Béis designs — features a slew of strategically placed inner and outer pockets.
“The best news is that our bags are designed for the maximalist … compression-strap, unzip and pocket your way to fitting it all,” Mitchell told us in 2023, admitting she brings a checked bag on every trip. (“I plead the fifth,” she replied, when asked long she could last with just a carry-on.)
Béis The Commuter Backpack
Nordstrom’s deals are currently only open to Ambassador cardholders, but they’ll be available for Icon and Influencer cardholders on July 10 and 11, respectively, before opening to everyone on July 12.
Malaria drugs for children do exist, but there are no treatments specifically for babies
The first malaria treatment suitable for babies and very young children has been approved for use.
It’s expected to be rolled out in African countries within weeks.
Until now there have been no approved malaria drugs specifically for babies.
Instead they have been treated with versions formulated for older children which presents a risk of overdose.
Half a million deaths in 2023
In 2023 – the year for which the most recent figures are available – malaria was linked to around 597,000 deaths.
Almost all of the deaths were in Africa, and around three quarters of them were children under five years old.
Malaria treatments for children do exist but until now, there was none specifically for the very youngest babies and small children, who weigh less than 4.5kg or around 10lb.
Instead they have been treated with drugs designed for older children.
But that presents risks, as doses for these older children may not be safe for babies, whose liver functions are still developing and whose bodies process medicines differently.
Experts say this has led to what is described as a “treatment gap”.
Now a new medicine, developed by the drug company Novartis, has been approved by the Swiss authorities and is likely to be rolled out in regions and countries with the highest rates of malaria within weeks.
Novartis is planning to introduce it on a largely not-for-profit basis.
The smallest and most vulnerable
The company’s chief executive, Vas Narasimhan, says this is an important moment.
“For more than three decades, we have stayed the course in the fight against malaria, working relentlessly to deliver scientific breakthroughs where they are needed most.
“Together with our partners, we are proud to have gone further to develop the first clinically proven malaria treatment for newborns and young babies, ensuring even the smallest and most vulnerable can finally receive the care they deserve.”
The drug, known as Coartem Baby or Riamet Baby in some countries, was developed by Novartis in collaboration with the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), a Swiss-based not-for-profit organisation initially backed by the British, Swiss and Dutch Governments, as well as the World Bank and the Rockefeller Foundation.
Eight African nations also took part in the assessment and trials of the drug and they are expected to be among the first to access it.
Martin Fitchet, CEO of MMV, says this is another important step on the road towards ending the huge toll taken by malaria.
“Malaria is one of the world’s deadliest diseases, particularly among children. But with the right resources and focus, it can be eliminated.
“The approval of Coartem Baby provides a necessary medicine with an optimised dose to treat an otherwise neglected group of patients and offers a valuable addition to the antimalarial toolbox.”
Dr Marvelle Brown, associate professor at the University of Hertfordshire’s School of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, says this should be seen as a major breakthrough in saving the lives of babies and young children.
1 of 5 | Foreign tourists are trickling back to China after the country loosened its visa policy to unprecedented levels. Citizens from 74 countries can now enter China for up to 30 days without a visa, a big jump from previous regulations. (AP video shot by: Borg Wong and Liu Zheng)
Foreign tourists are trickling back to China after the country loosened its visa policy to unprecedented levels. Citizens from 74 countries can now enter China for up to 30 days without a visa, a big jump from previous regulations.
The government has been steadily expanding visa-free entry in a bid to boost tourism, the economy and its soft power. More than 20 million foreign visitors entered without a visa in 2024 — almost one-third of the total and more than double from the previous year, according to the National Immigration Administration.
“This really helps people to travel because it is such a hassle to apply for a visa and go through the process,” Georgi Shavadze, a Georgian living in Austria, said on a recent visit to the Temple of Heaven in Beijing.
While most tourist sites are still packed with far more domestic tourists than foreigners, travel companies and tour guides are now bracing for a bigger influx in anticipation of summer holiday goers coming to China.
“I’m practically overwhelmed with tours and struggling to keep up” says Gao Jun, a veteran English-speaking tour guide with over 20 years of experience. To meet growing demand, he launched a new business to train anyone interested in becoming an English-speaking tour guide. “I just can’t handle them all on my own” he said.
After lifting tough COVID-19 restrictions, China reopened its borders to tourists in early 2023, but only 13.8 million people visited in that year, less than half the 31.9 million in 2019, the last year before the pandemic.
30 days for many in Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Mideast
In December 2023, China announced visa-free entry for citizens of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia. Almost all of Europe has been added since then. Travelers from five Latin American countries and Uzbekistan became eligible last month, followed by four in the Middle East. The total will grow to 75 on July 16 with the addition of Azerbaijan.
About two-thirds of the countries have been granted visa-free entry on a one-year trial basis.
For Norwegian traveler Øystein Sporsheim, this means his family would no longer need to make two round-trip visits to the Chinese embassy in Oslo to apply for a tourist visa, a time-consuming and costly process with two children in tow. “They don’t very often open, so it was much harder” he said.
“The new visa policies are 100% beneficial to us,” said Jenny Zhao, a managing director of WildChina, which specializes in boutique and luxury routes for international travelers. She said business is up 50% compared with before the pandemic.
While the U.S. remains their largest source market, accounting for around 30% of their current business, European travelers now make up 15–20% of their clients, a sharp increase from less than 5% before 2019, according to Zhao. “We’re quite optimistic” Zhao said, “we hope these benefits will continue.”
Trip.com Group, a Shanghai-based online travel agency, said the visa-free policy has significantly boosted tourism. Air, hotel and other bookings on their website for travel to China doubled in the first three months of this year compared with the same period last year, with 75% of the visitors from visa-free regions.
No major African country is eligible for visa-free entry, despite the continent’s relatively close ties with China.
Amid tensions between China and US over tariffs, Beijing lashed out at Washington accusing it of backing Tibetan separatism after Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised the Dalai Lama on his 90th birthday.
The Dalai Lama attends a prayer meet held for his long life at the Dalai Lama temple in Dharamshala. (REUTERS)
China has unleashed a fresh wave of criticism against the United States, this time not just over tariffs but also over the Dalai Lama, signaling growing tensions on both economic and ideological fronts.
According to a Reuters report, Beijing is fuming over remarks made by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio during the 90th birthday celebrations of the Dalai Lama. Marco Rubio had praised the Tibetan spiritual leader for inspiring “unity, peace, and compassion” and reiterated support for the Tibetan people’s right to preserve their cultural and religious identity, including the freedom to choose their own spiritual leaders.
That didn’t sit well with China.
“The Dalai Lama is a political exile engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the cloak of religion,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Tuesday. “He has no right to represent the Tibetan people or decide the region’s future. The United States is in no position to point fingers at China on Tibet-related matters.”
Beijing warned Washington to recognise the “extreme sensitivity” of Tibet and accused the US of encouraging separatism. This diplomatic war of words comes as China also battles another front – US President Donald Trump’s renewed tariff threats.
TENSIONS RISE OVER TARIFFS TOO
On Monday, China also reacted sharply to Donald Trump’s warning of a 10% tariff on BRICS nations over what he labelled as ‘anti-American policies’.
China’s foreign ministry dismissed the threat, asserting that “tariffs help no one” and emphasized BRICS’s role as a platform for cooperation, not confrontation. “BRICS promotes openness, inclusiveness and win-win cooperation,” Mao said.
Trump, in a post on Truth Social, declared that no BRICS country would be exempt from the new tariffs if they aligned against US interests. He also announced that formal tariff letters would be sent to nations around the world starting July 7.
DALAI LAMA’S REINCARNATION
Beyond the rhetoric, the more sensitive issue for Beijing appears to be the growing international support for the Dalai Lama’s stance on his reincarnation – an issue China insists is under its jurisdiction.
In his birthday week message, the Dalai Lama made it clear that only the Gaden Phodrang Trust, the non-profit he established, will have the authority to decide his successor. This directly counters Beijing’s claim that it holds the right to approve the Dalai Lama’s reincarnation – a holdover, it says, from imperial Chinese tradition.
The reincarnation issue is not just symbolic. It has serious geopolitical implications. The Panchen Lama, the second-highest figure in Tibetan Buddhism, traditionally plays a role in identifying the next Dalai Lama. Beijing’s 1995 abduction of Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the boy recognised by the Dalai Lama as the 11th Panchen Lama, and its appointment of its own candidate, Gyaltsen Norbu, remains one of the deepest fault lines in the Tibet-China dispute.
Senator Rubio reignited this controversy in May by demanding the immediate release of Gedhun, who has not been seen in public since he was six.
US RESTORES AID FOR TIBETAN COMMUNITIES IN SOUTH ASIA
Adding to China’s frustration, the US recently restored $6.8 million in aid for Tibetan communities in South Asia – funding that was cut under Trump’s ‘America First’ policy. The move was confirmed by the State Department to Reuters and welcomed by Penpa Tsering, leader of the Tibetan government-in-exile in India.
American political history is littered with the wrecks of challengers who thought they could break the two-party system, says an academic.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk attends the Saudi-US Investment Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 13, 2025. (Photo: Reuters/Hamad I Mohammed)
To paraphrase a very old joke, how do you make a small fortune in America? Start with a large fortune and fund a third political party. American political history is littered with the wrecks of challengers who thought they could break the two-party system and failed.
This makes Elon Musk’s launch of his own new political party as an act of defiance following his falling out with US President Donald Trump even more intriguing.
What do we mean by a two-party system though? Since the 1860s, the Democrats and Republicans have dominated the US political landscape, holding the presidency, Congress and the vast majority of elected positions. Attempts at third parties have usually floundered at the ballot box.
Some have lasted only for a few electoral cycles, including the Progressive Party in the 1910s and the Citizens Party of the 1980s, while others like the Libertarian Party and Green Party have lasted decades and, in some cases, managed some electoral success at the local level.
But this is where an important distinction has to be made between third parties and third-party candidates. Because the US system is so personality-driven rather than party focused compared to Europe, quite often third parties have been built around a single person.
A good example is the previously mentioned Progressive Party. It was founded in 1912 by former president Theodore Roosevelt after he split from the Republicans. Without him it quickly faded away.
The Reform Party was created by billionaire Ross Perot in 1995 after he managed to get 18.9 per cent of the vote in the 1992 presidential election. While it continued without him for some years, it was a shell of its former self.
Other parties like the Socialist, Libertarian and Green parties have sprung from more organic movements and thus have been more successful at a local or state level.
When you look at recent polling though, it seems strange that the two parties continue to dominate. Public dissatisfaction with politics as usual seems at an all-time high.
In a recent Pew Research poll when asked whether “I often wish there were more political parties to choose from” describes their views, 37 per cent of respondents answered: “Very well” and 31 per cent answered: “Somewhat well”.
In another poll, 25 per cent of respondents said that neither of the two main parties represented their interests.
So if there is an appetite for some sort of change, why have so few challengers succeeded? The two main parties seem entrenched to the point where it resembles a cartel.
ODDS STACKED AGAINST THIRD-PARTY INSURGENCY
The first and arguably most important reason is the electoral system. First past the post does not guarantee a two-party system (look at Britain, for instance).
But political scientist Maurice Duverger argued that it does mean that the two main parties have a significant advantage. There are prizes for coming first and second, nothing for third place.
Equally, many of the big prizes in American politics such as the presidency and state governorships are indivisible and cannot be shared. So it has become received wisdom that voting for anyone other than Democrats or Republicans is a wasted vote.
In these cases, people either vote for what they perceive to be the lesser of two evils or stay at home, rather than voting for a candidate with no chance or that they may not support.
The other multi-billion-dollar elephant in the room is money. The sheer cost of running for elections in recent years means that any third party is unlikely to be able to raise the funds to be truly competitive. At the last election, the Democrats and Republicans spent hundreds of millions of dollars (which isn’t even counting all of the super-PAC money spent on their behalf).
Whenever billionaires like Perot have attempted to self-fund a party, they have left themselves open to the accusation that it’s a vanity project or lacks true mass appeal.
This photo shows Akuseki Island of the Tokara Islands, southern Japan, on Jul 4, 2025. (Photo: Kyodo News via AP/Kota Endo)
Dozens of residents have evacuated remote islands in southern Japan that have been shaken by nearly 1,600 quakes in recent weeks, the local mayor said Monday (Jul 7).
There has been no major physical damage on hardest-hit Akuseki island, even after a 5.1-magnitude quake that struck overnight, said Genichiro Kubo, who is based on another island.
But the almost non-stop jolts since Jun 21 have caused severe stress to area residents, many of whom have been deprived of sleep.
Of the 89 residents of Akuseki, 44 had evacuated to the regional hub of Kagoshima by Sunday, while 15 others also left another island nearby, Kubo told a news conference.
The municipality, which comprises seven inhabited and five uninhabited islands, is roughly 11 hours away on a ferry from Kagoshima.
Since Jun 21, the area has experienced as of early Monday what seismologists refer to as a swarm of 1,582 quakes.
Experts have said they believe an underwater volcano and flows of magma might be the cause. They say they cannot predict how long the tremors will continue.
“We cannot foresee what might happen in the future. We cannot see when this will end,” mayor Kubo told reporters.
A similar period of intense seismic activity in the area occurred in September 2023, when 346 earthquakes were recorded, according to the Japan Meteorological Agency.
Japan is one of the world’s most seismically active countries, sitting on top of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific “Ring of Fire”.
Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki erupts, as seen from Nangahale village in Sikka, East Nusa Tenggara on Jul 7, 2025. (Photo: AFP/Arnold Welianto)
A volcano in eastern Indonesia erupted, spewing a colossal ash tower 18km into the sky on Monday (Jul 7), authorities said, just weeks after it caused dozens of flight cancellations to and from the popular resort island of Bali.
Mount Lewotobi Laki-laki, a 1,584m-high twin-peaked volcano on the tourist island of Flores, erupted at 11.05am local time, the volcanology agency said in a statement.
“An eruption of Lewotobi Laki-laki Volcano occurred … with the observed ash column height reaching approximately 18,000m above the summit,” the agency said.
The agency said the explosion came with loud thuds. It warned of the possibility of hazardous lahar floods – a type of mud or debris flow of volcanic materials – if heavy rain occurs, particularly for communities near rivers.
There were no immediate reports of damages or casualties.
Last month, dozens of flights to and from Bali were cancelled after the volcano erupted. Volcanic ash rained down on several communities around the volcano and forced the evacuation of at least one village.
The column of hot clouds that rose into the sky was the volcano’s highest since the major eruption in November 2024 that killed nine people and injured dozens, said Muhammad Wafid, the Geology Agency chief. It also erupted in March.
“An eruption of that size certainly carries a higher potential for danger, including its impact on aviation,” Wafid told The Associated Press from Switzerland where he was attending a seminar. “We shall reevaluate to enlarge its danger zone that must be cleared of villagers and tourist activities.”
The eruption prompted airlines, including Jetstar, Virgin Australia and AirAsia Indonesia, to cancel some flights on Monday.
Jetstar said in an advisory on its website that the ash was the cause. “We continue to monitor the situation closely,” it added.
Declining birth rates are a global trend, but there is often an ideological dimension to pronatalism, says this Aberystwyth University international politics lecturer.
People walking in the old Russian town of Dmitrov, about 75 km north from Moscow, Russia, Mar 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)
ABERYSTWYTH, United Kingdom: In some parts of Russia, schoolgirls who become pregnant are being paid more than 100,000 roubles (about US$1,270) for giving birth and raising their babies.
This new measure, introduced in the past few months across 10 regions, is part of Russia’s new demographic strategy, widening the policy adopted in March which only applied to adult women. It is designed to address the dramatic decline in the country’s birthrate.
In 2023, the number of births in Russia per woman was 1.41 – substantially below 2.05, which is the level required to maintain a population at its current size.
Paying teenage girls to have babies while they are still in school is controversial in Russia. According to a recent survey by the Russian Public Opinion Research Centre, 43 per cent of Russians approve of the policy, while 40 per cent are opposed to it. But it indicates the high priority that the state places on increasing the number of children being born.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin regards a large population as one of the markers of a flourishing great power, along with control over a vast (and growing) territory and a powerful military. Paradoxically, though, his efforts to increase the physical size of Russia by attacking Ukraine and illegally annexing its territory have also been disastrous in terms of shrinking Russia’s population.
The number of Russian soldiers killed in the war has reached 250,000 by some estimates, while the war sparked an exodus of hundreds of thousands of some of the most highly educated Russians. Many of them are young men fleeing military service who could have been fathers to the next generation of Russian citizens.
But while Russia’s demographic situation is extreme, declining birth rates are now a global trend. It is estimated that by 2050 more than three-quarters of the world’s countries will have such low fertility rates that they will not be able to sustain their populations.
IT’S NOT ONLY RUSSIA
Putin is not the only world leader to introduce policies designed to encourage women to have more babies. Viktor Orban’s government in Hungary is offering a range of incentives, such as generous tax breaks and subsidised mortgages, to those who have three or more children.
Poland makes a monthly payment of 500 złoty (about US$140) per child to families with two or more children. But there’s some evidence this has not prompted higher-income Polish women to have more children, as they might have to sacrifice higher earnings and career advancement to have another child.
In the United States, Donald Trump is proposing to pay women US$5,000 to have a baby, tied to a wider MAGA movement push, supported by Elon Musk and others, to encourage women to have larger families.
Border controls are creeping back across Europe, known as a free-travel zone. But are they solving anything?
Poland is the latest EU member to install border checksImage: Lisi Niesner/REUTERS
When Poland introduced border checks with Germany and Lithuania this week, it wasn’t the first time that a Schengen country took such a step. These measures are typically justified as necessary to curb irregular migration, combat human smuggling, or address national security concerns. But for many analysts, it may be one of the clearest signs yet that the European Union’s borderless travel area, seen as a symbol of integration and common identity, is under increasing strain.
According to Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, the controls are temporary and aimed at stopping human trafficking and irregular migration. Yet the move comes just weeks after Germany itself ramped up checks along all its land borders, including with Poland, under the new conservative government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz. For many observers here in Brussels, the tit-for-tat measures reflect a deeper shift away from European solidarity and toward national self-interest.
What is Schengen?
Created in the 1990s, the Schengen Area allows passport-free travel across 29 European countries, covering most of the EU plus several non-members like Norway and Switzerland. It facilitates the free movement of over 450 million people and underpins Europe’s single market by eliminating internal border checks for goods, services, and labor. For businesses, commuters, and travelers alike, Schengen is one of the EU’s most practical achievements.
In an interview with DW, Birte Nienaber, Associate Professor at the University of Luxembourg, underlined that Europe is seeing a slow erosion of border-free moment in Europe, one frontier at a time.
Domino effect already under way
Davide Colombi, a migration researcher at the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) based in Brussels, agrees that the recent Polish-German dispute fits a broader European pattern.
France has maintained border checks since the 2015 terrorist attacks. Austria first introduced controls on its borders with Slovenia and Hungary in September 2015, at the height of the refugee crisis, and has renewed them every six months since, citing migration pressures and internal security.
Slovenia introduced checks with Croatia less than a year after the latter joined Schengen, citing increased migration and concerns over organized crime. And Germany, which had long resisted tightening its internal borders, began expanding them last autumn, a move the European Commission has so far not formally challenged. Under EU law, such checks are only allowed in exceptional circumstances and must be temporary.
“These border controls are purely political symbolism, without a real effect of curbing migration,” says Professor Nienaber. She emphasizes that with the rise of far-right forces in Europe, populist narratives are gaining grounds across all parties. Centrist leaders face pressure to show “toughness” on migration — and border controls are a visible measure popular with the public.
Border symbolism over substance
But how effective are they really? Official statistics cast doubt on the pertinence of border checks inside the Schengen area. German police say that in the first month of enhanced border operations this spring, just 160 asylum seekers were turned away. Polish media reports that Germany returned around 1,000 migrants to Poland between May and mid-June, a figure not significantly different from previous years.
“Smugglers or those trying to enter irregularly know exactly how to avoid official checkpoints,” said migration expert Nienaber. “The controls don’t stop them. They only create the illusion of control.”
Researcher Colombi agreed that such policies are more about optics than outcomes. He underlined that EU member states have so far failed to prove the necessity for the controls in, for instance, curbing migration, or preventing terrorist attacks.
The economic cost
Meanwhile, border communities, especially in regions like Luxembourg, Austria, and Poland, are already feeling the negative effects: longer wait times, disrupted supply chains, and growing economic stress on cross-border local businesses. A detailed European Parliament study estimated that reinstating internal border checks leads to substantial time losses: 10–20 minutes for cars and 30–60 minutes for heavy vehicles, and costs the transport sector around €320 million — and that’s only accounting for delays, not the broader economic fallout.
The economic cost is therefore not trivial. Schengen affects the free movement of goods, services, capital and people: the four pillars of the EU single market. Prices could rise, supply chains could slow, and cross-border jobs and businesses could be lost.
A Bulgarian logistics association recently estimated border delays previously cost the sector €300 million ($352 million) annually. Since Romania and Bulgaria joined Schengen this year, cross-border traffic has significantly increased and become more efficient. In the first three months of 2025 alone, traffic between the two countries rose by 25%, with over 160,000 vehicles crossing compared to 128,000 in the same period the year before, according to Romania’s Road Administration Agency.
The average wait times at crossings have dropped from over 10 hours to less than two. For regional hauliers and border towns that rely on smooth trade flows, this has meant faster deliveries and a revived economic outlook. A return to hard borders, experts warn, could undo that progress, hitting not just supply chains, but also the livelihoods of thousands who depend on seamless daily crossings.
Schengen legal limits — quietly bypassed?
EU law allows internal border checks in exceptional cases: they must be limited to six months with clearly justified renewals. Yet several member states have simply continued extending them. France’s controls have been in place almost continuously for nearly a decade. Austria, Denmark, Sweden and now Germany have also operated under long-term exceptions.
“We can see that these border checks are becoming permanent in some member states. That was never the intent of the Schengen agreement,” says researcher Colombi.
He explains that the European Commission has faced criticism for not enforcing limits more robustly, for instance through infringement procedures. This could risks opening the floodgates for others, creating a domino effect.
Authorities in Punjab province swooped in on lion and tiger breeding farms, after a lion jumped over a wall and escaped from a house in Lahore.
The lion escaped from a house in Lahore, the largest city in Punjab provinceImage: Punjab Wildlife and Parks Depart/REUTERS
Pakistani authorities confiscated eighteen lions kept illegally as pets in the densely populated Punjab region during a targeted operation, provincial officials said Monday.
Authorities launched a crackdown after a lion escaped from a house in Lahore, the capital of Punjab province, and attacked a woman and two children. The incident, which took place last week, was captured on video.
None of the people suffered life-threatening injuries, according to provincial officials. The lion, which was kept without a license in a house in Lahore, was confiscated.
The lion was sent to a local safari park, according to Mubeen Elahi, director general of the provincial Wildlife and Parks Department.
Police said the owner was arrested.
Keeping big pets considered a status symbol
Keeping a lion at home without following the legal requirements for ownership of big cats is an offense punishable by up to seven years in jail, Elahi told the Reuters news agency.
As well as confiscating the 18 animals, the department raided 38 lion and tiger breeding farms and arrested eight people for violating the rules, he said.
Turkey says 12 soldiers have died after exposure to methane gas during a cave search operation in northern Iraq. It did not explain the presence of the gas in the cave.
The Turkish military maintains a presence in northern IraqImage: Vñzkan Bilgin/AA/picture alliance
Turkey said on Monday that a dozen soldiers had died of methane gas poisoning after being exposed to the substance while searching a cave in northern Iraq for a soldier shot dead by Kurdish fighters three years ago.
The Defense Ministry gave an initial death toll of eight, but later raised it.
“Four others of our heroic comrades in arms, affected by methane gas, have died … bringing the total number of victims to 12,” the ministry said on X.
Methane is a colorless, odorless, flammable gas that can cause asphyxiation in sufficient concentration.
What else did Turkey say?
“During a search operation in a cave … previously known to have been used as a hospital… 19 of our personnel were exposed to methane gas,” the ministry said on Sunday.
It said other soldiers also exposed to the gas in the cave had been taken to the hospital for treatment.
The ministry said the incident took place in the “Claw-Lock Operation region” — a reference to an operation launched against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, in northern Iraq in April 2022 to clear militants holed up in caves along the border.
It said the soldier whose body was being looked for had been killed by “terrorist gunfire.”
Recovery teams have been searching the area for the past three years.
PEARL Jam’s legendary drummer, Matt Cameron, has announced he’s quit the band after 27 years, leaving fans devastated.
The highly-regarded sticksman, 62, was also an integral part of fellow 90s grunge legends Soundgarden, who were fronted by the late Chris Cornell.
Announcing his departure on Instagram today, Matt wrote, “After 27 fantastic years, I have taken my final steps down the drum riser for the mighty Pearl Jam.
“Much love and respect to Jeff, Ed, Mike and Stone for inviting me into the band in 1998 and for giving me the opportunity of a lifetime, filled with friendships, artistry, challenges and laughter.
“I am forever grateful to the crew, staff and fans the world over. It’s been an incredible journey. More to follow. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart.”
The remaining members of Pearl Jam – Eddie Vedder, Stone Gossard, Jeff Ament and Mike McCready – have shared their appreciation for Matt.
A band statement read, “From being one of our first musical heroes in the bands Skinyard and the mighty Soundgarden, to playing on our first demos in 1990, Matt Cameron has been a singular and true powerhouse of a musician and drummer.
“He has propelled the last 27 years of Pearl Jam live shows and studio recordings. It was a deeply important chapter for our group and we wish him well always. He will be deeply missed and is forever our friend in art and music.
“We love you Matt.”
Devastated fans were just as effusive in their praise, with one writing, “Matt, thank you for all your dedication and love. We love you and will miss you so much.”
Another said, “Thank you for everything and for all these years.
You are amazing.”
A third posted, “No way man !!! Buy thanks for everything Matt Cameron.”
Others speculated that Josh Freese, who was recently fired from Foo Fighters, could be the man to replace him.
Pearl Jam released their 12th album Dark Matter last year and Matt’s propulsive beats on the record received widespread acclaim.
Twice inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of two iconic grunge bands, Matt was ranked 52 on Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Drummers of All Time list in 2016.
He played on all six of Soundgarden’s studio albums, the latest of which was 2012’s comeback record King Animal.
Five years after its release, frontman Cornell was found dead in his hotel room shortly after the band’s gig in Detroit.
With Pearl Jam, Matt played on seven studio LPs, the first of which was Binaural in 2000.
Kylie Jenner and Timothée Chalamet were seen innocently holding hands while traipsing through the South of France Saturday.
The couple looked loved up as they went for a stroll at Shellona Beach in Saint-Tropez while surrounded by friends and a team of security guards.
The Khy founder, 27, looked elegant in a vintage black-and-white striped mini dress by Jean Paul Gaultier and skinny black sunglasses.
She also carried a black clutch purse under one arm and completed the look with delicate gold jewelry and black sandals.
Meanwhile, Chalamet, 29, sported a green-and-white Nigeria soccer jersey. He attempted to keep his face hidden by wearing a blue Nike cap layered under a green bandana tied at his chin.
Photographers caught the “Dune” star and his girlfriend smiling flirtatiously at each other as they walked hand-in-hand.
The lovebirds were also joined by Kylie’s sister Kendall Jenner, who sported a little black dress, a gray scarf and casual black flip-flops.
Kylie and Kendall have been vacationing in Europe for weeks now, touching down in Venice, Italy, for Jeff Bezos’ $50 million wedding to Lauren Sánchez in late June.
Jenner kept close to the “Dune” actor. ELIOT PRESS / BEST IMAGE / BACKGRID
The sisters were joined by their mom, Kris Jenner, as well as older siblings Kim Kardashian and Khloé Kardashian for the days-long wedding festivities.
Chalamet notably did not attend the nuptials as Kylie’s plus one.
After the Amazon billionaire and Sánchez said “I do,” Kylie and Kendall retreated to a stunning Tuscan villa with the makeup mogul’s two kids: Stormi, 7, and Aire, 3.
Kylie flaunted her curves in a leopard-print bikini while relaxing with some wine and cherries.
From there, Kylie, Kendall and their entourage of besties — including Stassie Karanikolaou and Victoria Villarroel — were seen partying at ultra-exclusive Loulou’s beach club in St. Tropez.
The gaggle of gals took a dip in the clear blue Mediterranean Sea. At one point during their getaway, Kendall was also seen ripping a shot of her 818 Tequila while balancing a $75,000 limited-edition Hermès Kelly Doll bag on her head.
It’s no surprise Chalamet eventually ended up tagging along on Kylie’s girls’ trip as they have recently taken their relationship to the next level.
Last week, Page Six confirmed that Kylie officially followed Chalamet’s Instagram account after two years of dating.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed Monday that he’s nominated President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize — presenting the commander in chief with the letter he sent to the committee responsible for bestowing the honor.
“I want to present to you, Mr. President, the letter I sent to the Nobel Prize committee,” Netanyahu told Trump at the White House.
“It’s the nomination of you for the peace prize, which is well-deserved. And you should get it.”
Netanyahu then reached across the table separating the US and Israeli delegations to hand the letter to Trump.
President Trump meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the White House on July 7, 2025. Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images
“This I didn’t know,” a surprised Trump said as he inspected the nomination. “Well, thank you very much.
“Coming from you, in particular, this is very meaningful. Thank you very much.”
Trump’s efforts to secure an Israel-Iran cease-fire, essentially ending the 12-day war between the two nations, had previously earned him nomination for the prize from Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.).
In a letter to the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Carter recommended Trump for the prestigious prize “in recognition of his extraordinary and historic role in brokering an end to the armed conflict between Israel and Iran and preventing the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism from obtaining the most lethal weapon on the planet.”
Trump hosted Netanyahu at the White House for high-level meetings ahead of a private dinner between the two world leaders.
The Trump administration and Netanyahu’s team were expected to discuss the future of Gaza and the possibility of the Jewish state normalizing relations with Arab nations — but details of any potential progress made on both fronts were scant.
“I think our teams together make an extraordinary combination to meet challenges and seize opportunities,” Netanyahu said ahead of dinner with Trump.
“But the president has already realized a great opportunity to forge the Abraham Accords. He’s forging peace as we speak, and one country and one region after the other.”
Netanyahu met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio at Blair House, the president’s guest house, for an extended meeting, but a readout was not released.
Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff also met with the Israeli prime minister, but similarly, no details were made available about what was discussed.
Trump has pushed for Netanyahu to secure a cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas that would also result in the release of hostages being held by the terror group in Gaza.
The prime minister, however, has insisted that Israel will not enter into any agreement that allows Hamas’ continued existence in Gaza — a massive sticking point in ending the war.
Netanyahu recently said his delegation meeting with mediators in Qatar has been instructed to reach a deal under those terms.
The Israeli prime minister also maintains that the Israeli military should occupy Gaza indefinitely, with the role of governors transferred to local officials without any known ties to Hamas or the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank.
Meanwhile, Israel’s military launched airstrikes early Monday targeting ports and facilities held by Yemen’s Houthis, with the group responding with missile fire targeting Israel.
Reports of a security incident in Gaza resulting in Israeli Defense Force casualties broke during Netanyahu’s White House visit, but Trump indicated that he doesn’t expect it to hamper progress on a cease-fire deal.
“I don’t think so,” Trump said when asked if the reported ambush of IDF soldiers in Gaza would impact negotiations. “They want it. They want to meet and they want to have that cease-fire. So, I don’t think so.”
Witkoff described the incident as “terribly unfortunate” but, directly addressing Netanyahu, argued, “We have an opportunity to finally get a peace deal, Mr. Prime Minister, as we discussed, and I’m hopeful for it very quickly.”
On potentially relocating Palestinians from Gaza to rebuild the strip, as Trump suggested earlier this year, Netanyahu said Israel is working with the Trump administration to find countries “that will seek to realize what they always say: that they want to give the Palestinians a better future.”
“You know, if people want to stay, they can stay. But if they want to leave, they should be able to leave. It shouldn’t be, you know, a prison,” Netanyahu said of Gaza.
“I think we’re getting close to finding several countries [that will take in Palestinians], and I think this will give, again, the freedom to choose,” he added.
Asked about last month’s US airstrikes targeting Iran’s nuclear facilities, Trump indicated that the Islamic regime “took a big drubbing” and maintained that the three uranium enrichment sites hit by warplanes and cruise missiles were “obliterated.”
The president likened the strike to when the US dropped atomic bombs on Japan to end World War II.
“I was talking to Bibi about it — that was the very beginning of the end, and it ended very quickly after that,” he said of how his decision to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities quickly ended the Israel-Iran conflict.
“I don’t want to say what it reminded me of,” Trump continued, “But if you go back a long time ago, it reminded people of a certain other event.”
“Harry Truman’s picture is now in the lobby, in a nice location in the lobby, where it should have been – but that stopped, a lot of fighting. And this stopped a lot of fighting.
A Border Patrol official declared on Monday that agents will be sticking around Los Angeles until their “mission is accomplished” as Mayor Karen Bass lashed out at federal law enforcement conducting an apparent immigration sweep at a local park.
Heavily armed officer with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection and the military units deployed by President Trump arrived at MacArthur Park in force, with the agents seen carrying rifles and traveling across the grounds on foot, horseback and in armored vehicles.
Bass, who was due to meet with California Gov. Gavin Newsom in the morning, showed up in the middle of the operation to yell at the agents to get out of the park, slamming the demonstration as a “political stunt.”
LA Mayor Karen Bass confronted border officers operating a sweep across MacArthur Park on Monday. AP
“They need to leave and they need to leave right now!” Bass yelled after getting off the phone with someone coordinating the officers.
“What I saw in the park today looked like a city under siege,” she told reporters following the confrontation. “It’s outrageous and un-American to have armed vehicles in our American parks.”
Bass was only at the park momentarily after speaking with CBP Assistant Chief Patrol Agent David Kim, who handed her a direct line to “the head of customs,” she added, noting that the agents left moments later.
One Border Patrol official promised that federal agencies aren’t backing down — and had a few choice words for Bass herself.
“The federal government is not leaving LA. … The federal government does not work for Karen Bass. We’re going to be here until that mission is accomplished,” Border Patrol El Centro Sector Chief Gregory Bovino told FOX Los Angeles.
“Better get used to us now because this is going to be normal very soon,” he added.
Bass and members of the LA City Council said the sweep disrupted a children’s summer camp, with the children corralled into a nearby basement while waiting for the agents to leave.
The raid also pushed out members of the St. John’s Community Health Center who were conducting their daily check ups with homeless individuals at the park, officials added.
The mayor also went onto X to vent about the operation at MacArthur, posting time-lapse video of the agents marching across an empty soccer field inside the park.
“Minutes before, there were more than 20 kids playing — then, the MILITARY comes through,” she said of the raid.
“The SECOND I heard about this, I went to the park to speak to the person in charge to tell them it needed to end NOW. Absolutely outrageous,” Bass added.
It remains unclear if anyone was arrested during the sweep, as activists had gone around the park to warn people to leave before the officers marched through, the Los Angeles Times reported.
“I think the goal is to spread fear,” Bass said of Monday’s raid at the park, as she vowed to uphold the city’s status as a sanctuary for immigrants.
HAMAS terrorists raped and mutilated women during the October 7 attack, harrowing witness testimony has revealed.
A shocking new investigative report has revealed a pattern of widespread sexual atrocities conducted by the terror group on the horror day.
A memorial site for victims killed during the Nova music festivalCredit: EPA
Among the 1,200 innocent people slaughtered, some young women were stripped and tied to trees and poles and shot through their genitals and in the head, The Times reports.
Hamas raped and gang raped in at least six difference locations, according to the new testimony compiled in The Dinah Report.
The first-hand experience comes from 15 of the returned hostages, one survivor of attempted rape at the Nova music festival, and 17 who saw or heard the attacks.
The survivors describe scenes of “unspeakable violence” and “systematic depravity” in the new report compiled by Israeli legal and gender-based violence experts.
Some women, who were raped and mutilated, were then left for dead.
Others were targeted while lifeless.
Sharon Zagagi-Pinhas, former chief military prosecutor of the Israeli army and one of the report’s lead authors, said: “Many of the witnesses spoke of the victims being shot and them still trying to rape a dead body.”
The report accuses Hamas of deploying sexual violence as a tactical weapon of war, with similar methods to those used by ISIS and Boko Haram.
“Clear patterns emerged,” it reads, “including victims found partially or fully naked with their hands tied… evidence of gang rapes followed by execution, and genital mutilation.”
The report details scenes at multiple attack sites — including the Nova music festival, Route 232, Nahal Oz military base, and the kibbutzim of Re’im, Nir Oz, and Kfar Aza.
Hamas conducted premeditated, coordinated acts of brutality, the report says.
It also draws on forensic evidence from thousands of images and hours of video.
The conclusive report comes after some have denied that Hamas would carry out sexual violence given they are Muslim.
Zagagi-Pinhas said: “sexual violence need not mean rape — also forced nudity, forcing some of the hostages to strip and shower while being watched or trying to force them into marriage.
“Women found dead, naked and mutilated — with gunshots in their genitalia — and tied to trees. The fact that the same things happened in three to six locations can’t be coincidence but proof this was premeditated.”
The sick attack was the catalyst that plunged four nations – Israel, Palestine, Lebanon and Iran – into war, killing tens of thousands and marking a historic shift in the Middle East.
On October 7, 2023, some 1,175 civilians, soldiers and foreign nationals inside Israel were savagely murdered in a hideous early-morning assault.
Hamas terrorists stormed into Israel from Gaza, firing thousands of rockets, flying over in paragliders and bulldozing through in trucks in over 100 different places across the border.
An IDF report found that 6,000 fighters from Gaza managed to get into Israel that day – including 3,800 from the Hamas terror group’s elite Nukhba forces.
Horrifying reports that followed October 7 revealed children were killed, women were raped and around 250 had been kidnapped and taken back to Gaza.
The boat eventually sank, taking most of the drugs down with it, but cops still managed to recover 25kg of cocaine
THIS is the dramatic moment drug smugglers set their own yacht alight to destroy their gargantuan cocaine haul.
Moments before, the two men had been chased by a police boat just off the coast of holiday hotspot Tenerife.
Drug smugglers set their own yacht alight
Unbelievable footage shows the tense boat chase, with multiple cop yachts surrounding the drug vessel.
Once the smugglers realised there was no escape it seems, they deliberately set the boat on fire.
The panicked smugglers are seen trying to start a blaze – and are eventually successful.
The pair risk their lives on the choppy sea as the boat quickly becomes engulfed in flames.
The blaze not only put themselves in danger but surrounding cops too, as the vessel could have exploded at any time.
Cops were captured in the footage desperately trying to put the fire out with strong hosepipes.
The drug smugglers, one of French nationality and the other Dutch, jumped into the sea.
One of them was said to be very seriously injured.
The sailing boat was intercepted by the police about 50 miles from the Canary Islands.
The boat eventually sank, taking most of the drugs down with it, but the crew of the police patrol boat “Sacre” managed to recover 25kg of cocaine.
The operation was part of the plan to intensify the investigation, surveillance and control of the cocaine smuggling in the Canary Islands.
A tip-off was received about a boat close to the holiday island, and was said to contain a significant amount of narcotic substance on board.
The plan was to transfer the haul to another boat, a semi-rigid type, which would be take the drugs to the Spanish coast.
A police spokesman said: “The maritime operation was highly risky for Custom’s patrol officers due to the rough seas and the fire intentionally set by the vessel’s crew to destroy the cocaine and the sailboat.
“The swift action of Customs Surveillance Service officers allowed them to initially extinguish the fire and complete the boarding of the vessel.
“They also recovered part of the cargo before the fire reignited, ultimately destroying most of the haul of cocaine and the vessel transporting it, a sloop named Lona.”
The two crew members of the sailboat have been arrested.
The man who was seriously injured in the fire was transported, presumably to hospital, via chopper by Maritime Rescue.
Prada, Crocs and Birkenstock are in the news in India over legal rows and cultural backlash — from counterfeits and copyright battles to criticism over using Kolhapuri chappals designs.
Prada, Crocs, and Birkenstock are making headlines in India.
Three global footwear giants – Prada, Crocs, and Birkenstock – have found themselves making headlines in India, though not for the reasons they might have intended. From legal crackdowns on counterfeits to cultural backlash over design appropriation, these brands have found themselves at the centre of courtrooms, cultural conversations, and crackdowns.
BIRKENSTOCK CRACKS DOWN ON COUNTERFEITS
German footwear brand Birkenstock has launched a major legal offensive in India to tackle the sale and manufacture of counterfeit products. According to a report in Reuters, court-appointed lawyers recently inspected several small-scale factories in and around Agra and New Delhi, seizing products allegedly mimicking the brand’s popular sandals.
The raids stem from a lawsuit Birkenstock filed in May at the Delhi High Court, naming four footwear traders, four factories, and two unnamed individuals. The company claimed that fake versions of its products were being produced and distributed both locally and abroad.
On May 26, Justice Saurabh Banerjee issued a confidential order – made public only last week – appointing 10 local lawyers as commissioners to visit the suspected sites. The judge allowed the seizure of suspected counterfeit goods and noted that the samples shown in court appeared to be “cheap knock-offs” that could easily mislead customers.
“There is all likelihood of the public getting deceived… The differences, hardly if any, are not something which can be discernable to the naked eyes,” the order read.
Birkenstock, once popular among hippies and medical professionals, has surged back into pop culture – especially after Margot Robbie wore a pair of pink Birkenstocks in the final scene of the 2023 blockbuster Barbie. In India, the brand’s women’s footwear is priced between $46 (Rs 3950) and $233 (Rs 20,010), making it a premium choice in a mostly non-luxury market.
The case is scheduled for its next hearing on October 6. Reuters reported that Birkenstock and its legal team declined to comment, citing the ongoing proceedings.
CROCS REVIVES 9-YEAR-OLD LEGAL BATTLE
Meanwhile, Crocs Inc. is making a return to the courtroom as well. On July 2, a court revived a nine-year-old lawsuit that the US-based company filed against several Indian shoemakers – including Bata India, Relaxo, and Liberty – over alleged design infringement.
Crocs accused these companies of copying the distinctive shape of its rubber clogs, which have developed a cult following globally since the brand’s launch in 2002. While the suit was dismissed in 2019 on technical grounds, a recent appeal saw the Delhi High Court ruling that “the dismissal… cannot sustain in law”, allowing Crocs to proceed with its challenge.
Crocs had originally asked the court to stop its rivals from manufacturing and selling what it called “obvious imitations” of its design. Liberty, one of the defendants, has argued that Crocs itself is not the originator of the clog style, claiming the design existed long before.
The revival of the case highlights the increasingly contested nature of intellectual property in India’s $33.86 billion (Rs. 2.83 lakh crore) footwear market, where 97% of sales come from the non-luxury segment.
PRADA-KOLHAPURI CONTROVERSY
While Birkenstock and Crocs are navigating courts, Italian luxury house Prada is battling criticism on cultural grounds.
The brand triggered a storm last week after showcasing open-toe leather sandals at its Milan fashion show that bore a striking resemblance to Kolhapuri chappals – traditional Indian footwear with centuries-old heritage. Critics on social media and lawmakers accused Prada of failing to acknowledge the Indian origins of the design.
The price of the rare earth metals the world buys from China
When you stand on the edge of Bayan Obo, all you see is an expanse of scarred grey earth carved into the grasslands of Inner Mongolia in northern China.
Dark dust clouds rise from deep craters where the earth’s crust has been sliced away over decades in a search of modern treasure.
You may not have heard of this town – but life as we know it could grind to a halt without Bayan Obo.
The town gets its name from the district it sits in, which is home to half of the world’s supply of a group of metals known as rare earths. They are key components in nearly everything that we switch on: smartphones, bluetooth speakers, computers, TV screens, even electric vehicles.
And one country, above all others, has leapt ahead in mining them and refining them: China.
This dominance gives Beijing huge leverage – both economically, and politically, such as when it negotiates with US President Donald Trump over tariffs. But China has paid a steep price for it.
To find out more, we travelled to the country’s two main rare earth mining hubs – Bayan Obo in the north and Ganzhou in the province of Jiangxi in the south.
We found man-made lakes full of radioactive sludge and heard claims of polluted water and contaminated soil, which, in the past, have been linked to clusters of cancer and birth defects. These journeys were challenging.
Beijing appears sensitive to criticism of its environmental record. We were pulled over by police, questioned by them and stuck in a three-hour standoff with an unidentified mining boss who refused to let us leave unless we deleted our footage.
Our calls for an interview or a statement have gone unanswered, but the government has published new regulations to try to strengthen its supervision of the industry.
Authorities have been making an effort to clean up these mining sites, scientists told the BBC. Still, China’s mining operations in the north just keep growing.
Machines are constantly on the hunt for rare earths called neodymium and dysprosium that go into making powerful magnets for a variety of modern technology, from electric vehicles to computer hard drives.
To find these rare earths, the machines strip away the topsoil layer-by-layer, kicking up harmful dust, some of which contains high levels of heavy metals and radioactive material.
Satellite images from the last few decades show how the Bayan Obo mine has spread.
The mine sits in the vast, aridness of Inner Mongolia, a nine-hour drive from the capital, Beijing.
Further south, in the mining hub of Ganzhou, small, circular concrete ponds full of toxic waste sit on top of steep, eroded hilltops – many of the pools are uncovered and open to the elements.
These are “leaching ponds”, where miners inject tonnes of ammonium sulfate, ammonium chloride, and other chemicals into the earth to separate the rare earth metals from the surrounding soil.
There were once more than a thousand mining sites, some of them illegal, dotted throughout this one county. Companies got what they needed from one mine, and then moved to another.
Then in 2012, the Chinese government stepped in to regulate, dramatically reducing the number of mining licences they issued.
But significant damage had been done to the area already. Research going back decades has linked the rare earth mines to deforestation, soil erosion and chemical leaks into rivers and farmland.
Local farmer Huang Xiaocong, whose land is surrounded by four rare earth sites, believes landslides are still being triggered by improper mining practices.
Russia’s Investigative Committee says former Russian transport minister Roman Starovoit has been found dead, apparently with a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
He was dismissed earlier on Monday by President Vladimir Putin.
No reason for Starovoit’s dismissal was given and deputy transport minister Andrei Nikitin was announced as his replacement shortly after.
The Investigative Committee said it was working to establish the circumstances of the incident.
Starovoit was appointed minister of transport in May 2024.
Before that, Starovoit had served as governor of the Kursk region for almost six years, until May 2024.
The region was partly seized by Ukrainian troops in August 2024 in a surprise offensive. Moscow only recently managed to drive out the Ukrainian forces, although in late June Kyiv said it was still holding a small area of territory inside Russia.
Starovoit’s successor, Aleksey Smirnov, was only in post for a short while. He was arrested in April and was later accused of embezzling funds that had been allocated for the building of fortifications on the border with Ukraine.
According to Russian outlet Kommersant, Starovoit was about to be brought in as a defendant in the same case.
It is unclear when, exactly, Starovoit died.
The head of the State Duma Defence Committee, Andrei Kartapolov, told Russian outlet RTVI that his death occurred “quite a while ago”.
The outbreak comes as anti-vaccine sentiments in the US and elsewhere have grown in recent years
The number of reported measles cases in the US has reached a 33-year high, with nearly 1,300 confirmed infections across the country as of Friday.
The data, released by John Hopkins University, marks a new milestone in an ongoing outbreak of the highly contagious, vaccine-preventable disease that was once thought to be eliminated in the US.
Measles cases have been reported in 38 states and the District of Columbia this year. At least three people have died from the illness, and 155 others were in hospital.
A vast majority of the measles cases – 92% – were in people who were either unvaccinated or whose vaccination status was unknown, according to the Centres for Disease Control (CDC).
The worst hit state is Texas, CDC data shows, where more than 700 cases have been reported. Other states with dozens of cases include Kansas and New Mexico.
Health officials say that measles spread is occurring mostly in neighbourhoods where vaccination rates are lower, such as Mennonite communities in Texas that opt out of modern medicine.
The outbreak comes as anti-vaccine sentiment in the US and elsewhere has grown in recent years.
Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr had previously spread misinformation about childhood vaccinations and had minimised the outbreak. He later endorsed the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine as illness spread, saying in a post on X that it is “the most effective way to prevent the spread of measles”.
Measles cases in the US were at their highest in recent memory in 1990, with nearly 28,000 reported infections, according to CDC data.
The illness was later declared eliminated around the year 2000, when cases sharply declined to less than 90 thanks to high vaccination rates and rapid outbreak response.
Cases started ticking up slightly in 2014 and again in 2019, when 1,274 confirmed infections were reported. But cases in 2025 have just surpassed that figure, with 1,277 infections now reported across the US.
Public health experts have said that the US will lose measles elimination status if there is continued spread of measles at the current rate for more than 12 months.
As a result of the current outbreak, more people are now getting the measles vaccine in the US. Between 1 January and 16 March, Texas gave at least 173, 000 measles doses compared to 158,000 in the same time period last year, state health department data shows.
The MMR vaccine is the most effective way to fight off the dangerous virus, which can lead to pneumonia, brain swelling and death. The jabs are 97% effective and also immunise against mumps and rubella.
As US student visa season begins, applications are open for Indian students. But a revived Trump-era rule proposing fixed-term visas could alter stay durations, sparking debate over its impact on academic journeys.
US Student Visa Applications Open Amid Fresh Talks On Fixed-Term Visa Limits | Canva AI
As student visa season kicks off, the United States has once again opened its doors to aspiring international students, including thousands from India. But while the State Department is welcoming applications, a parallel discussion in Washington may soon reshape how long those students can stay.
Speaking to ANI last week, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Mignon Houston confirmed that student visa applications are now open and encouraged students to begin the process. She struck a supportive tone, but also emphasised the importance of aligning visa usage with the original purpose of study.
“We want students to understand that we want to see a use of that visa that is in line with their application. Students come to the United States to study — not to obstruct classrooms or vandalise campuses,” said Houston. She also added that national security remains a key factor in all visa-related decisions, not only to protect American citizens but also international students themselves.
But just as students begin to plan their journeys, a policy from the past is making a quiet return.
According to a Bloomberg report, the Trump administration is revisiting a 2020-era proposal that sought to replace the current “duration of status” policy with fixed-term student visas. That draft rule is now under final review by the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.
Under the current policy, students on F-1 and exchange visitors on J-1 visas can stay in the U.S. for as long as their program lasts, with no need to reapply midway. The flexibility has long been credited with making the U.S. a top choice for international education.
The earlier Trump-era proposal, however, pushed for fixed visa durations — typically two or four years — based on the student’s country of origin or field of study. The plan was widely criticised by universities and education advocates who feared that added bureaucracy could interrupt students’ academic paths. Eventually, the proposal was shelved in 2021 by the Biden administration.
Now, a draft bearing the same title is back on the table and while details remain under wraps, the potential for similar limits has stirred concern.
Karan Gupta, an education consultant and career counsellor, believes the renewed discussion reflects a desire to tighten immigration oversight, but notes it doesn’t necessarily have to be a setback.
“A fixed-term visa brings clarity. It defines the student’s timeline and can encourage better planning,” Gupta said. “While the “duration of status” model has its flexibility, it also leaves room for ambiguity and potential overstays. A fixed-term approach, if implemented with provisions for legitimate extensions, can promote responsible planning without disadvantaging international students.”
He added that Indian students remain highly interested in studying in the U.S., drawn by its academic reputation and post-study job opportunities. “As long as the process is transparent, it shouldn’t be a dealbreaker. In fact, clearer timelines might help families make stronger financial and logistical plans,” he said.
Mark Rutte warned Russia is rearming at a speed ‘which is unparalleled in recent history’
Russian T-90 tanks take part in the Victory Day military parade, marking the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic WarCredit: EPA
A CHILLING forecast of how World War Three will start has been revealed by Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte.
The alliance chief has warned of Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin launching simultaneous invasions – putting the planet under threat of nuclear Armageddon.
China would start by seeking to grab Taiwan – while ensuring the Kremlin dictator simultaneously attacks Nato territory.
Stressing the urgent need to re-arm and boost military budgets, Rutte chillingly told the New York Times: “Let’s not be naive about this: If Xi Jinping would attack Taiwan, he would first make sure that he makes a call to his very junior partner in all of this, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, residing in Moscow, and telling him, ‘Hey, I’m going to do this, and I need you to to keep them busy in Europe by attacking Nato territory’.
“That is most likely the way this will progress.”
Rutte explained that in order to “deter” the two powerful nations, there are two things that must be done.
He said: “One is that Nato, collectively, being so strong that the Russians will never do this.
“And second, working together with the Indo-Pacific – something President [Donald] Trump is very much promoting.
“Because we have this close interconnectedness, working together on defence industry, innovation between Nato and the Indo-Pacific.”
Russia could rebuild its military to a worrying capacity as early as 2027, according to a report by a top security think tank.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies said Putin may deploy his army onto a “war footing” and try to test Nato by evoking Article 5.
This may see the Kremlin decide to leave Ukraine alone as it continues to recover from Russia’s three-and-a-half year onslaught.
Instead, Putin could commit to an attack on Nato states in the Baltics.
Fears are already looming that the Russian dictator is eyeing the Baltic republics Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, formerly part of the USSR.
Acknowledging how Putin is rearming at a speed “which is unparalleled in recent history,” Rutte has insisted that Western countries increase defence spending.
He said: “We have an enormous geopolitical challenge on our hands.
“They are now producing three times as much ammunition in three months as the whole of Nato is doing in a year.
“This is unsustainable, but the Russians are working together with the North Koreans, with the Chinese and Iranians, the mullahs, in fighting this unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine.
“So here, the Indo-Pacific and your Atlantic are getting more and more interconnected. We know that China has its eye on Taiwan.”
Russia today hit back at ex-Netherlands premier Rutte, claiming he had “gorged on too many of the magic mushrooms beloved by the Dutch”, while warning he should look forward to a future in a hellish Siberian labour camp.
Senior Putin puppet and security official Dmitry Medvedev lashed out on X: “He sees collusion between China & Russia over Taiwan, and then a Russian attack on Europe.
“But he’s right about one thing: he should learn Russian. It might come in handy in a Siberian camp.”
The warnings came as Russia continued its onslaught on Ukraine – days after Putin informed US President Donald Trump by telephone that he had no intention of halting his war of invasion.
Mad Vlad pummelled Ukraine with four S-300 missiles and 157 drones, with 127 of the UAVs shot down or suppressed by electronic warfare.
Explosions hit Kyiv and the surrounding region, with multiple people wounded and residential buildings damaged.
Staff have a fascinating theory about why the foam extinguishers went off
Spirit Airline passenger planes were buried in metres of foam a maintenance hangar in DetroitCredit: Air Live
A FLEET of passenger planes got an unplanned clean after dodgy fire extinguishers drenched them in foam.
At least four Spirit Airline jets were doused with the bubbles in farcical scenes at the company’s maintenance hangar in Detroit – and techies think they know why.
Footage shot from another plane passing overhead shows a giant puddle of foam oozing from the yellow hangar onto the tarmac.
Two planes are completely surrounded by the bright white substance.
Photos from inside the hangar show the multi-million-pound planes buried in meters of foam to halfway up the fuselage.
Subs are slipping down their sides – after foam evidently filled the air.
The huge foam discharge is an automatic fire extinguisher feature.
When a blaze is detected, the dispensers are programmed to spurt huge volumes of foam both inside and outside the hangar.
But in the incident on July 4, there was no fire.
Technicians believe that a powerful lightening bolt which struck in the area was to blame.
Happily, neither were there any injuries associated with the foam spill.
The mess was promptly cleared according to protocol to avoid any further bubble-based chaos.
The mishap led to a delay in some maintenance work, but passengers and company stakeholders were reassured that there would be no major disruption to flight services.
Spirit Airlines explained what happened: “On July 4, the fire suppression system at our Detroit (DTW) maintenance facility was inadvertently activated, which we believe was caused by lightning nearby.
“There was no fire, and no injuries were reported. Two aircraft parked inside the facility and one aircraft parked outside the facility were removed from service for inspection by our maintenance team.
“We have engaged a contractor to assist with cleanup efforts, and we thank first responders for their quick response and assistance.
Frustrated police chiefs from multiple districts have issued stern warnings as they struggle against troubled teens
AT least nine people have died and 93 are injured after violence broke out across the country during Fourth of July celebrations.
Children and teens make up many of the victims and are some of the perpetrators, in the deadly gun and knife violence.
The various skirmishes saw angry police chiefs issue stern warnings and curfews saying they are “tired” of having to parent troubled juveniles and deal with dead kids.
Various mass casualty events linked to Independence Day festivities broke out from Friday night and spilled into the rest of the weekend.
This again sees the Fourth of July marked as one of the deadliest days of the year for the US, with the following incidents being just a fraction of the deaths and injuries that occurred this weekend.
Charlottesville children shot
Violence broke out just after 11 pm in Charlottesville, Virginia, when shots rang out on Orangedale Avenue.
Five people were shot including three children aged 9, 11 and 17, in what cops say was a gang-related shootout as the sound of fireworks was exchanged by gunshots.
The other two victims were 18 years old and 52 years old – none of those shot were the intended targets, police told WCAV.
Charlottesville Police Chief Michael Kochis called footage of the incident disturbing as it captured terrified children crying and screaming.
“You shot a 9-year-old kid. Think about that for a second,” he told those responsible as authorities continue their investigation to track down the shooters.
10 injured in Albany
Albany, New York, saw a spate of shootings and a house fire sparked by a teenager firing a flare gun on Friday night and the early hours of Saturday morning.
In total, 10 people were injured with four people shot in Madison Avenue just before 10 pm as the Empire State Plaza fireworks came to an end.
A 17-year-old boy was shot in the head and is still in a critical condition while the three others are expected to survive their injuries.
Police Chief Brendan Cox said there was a skirmish between a group of teenagers with one firing a flare gun and another firing a handgun.
Another shooting took place after 1 am on Saturday when a group of teenagers fired a handgun at people gathered at a home there – five people were shot.
The victims were made up of two 16-year-old girls, a 15-year-old girl, a 14-year-old boy, and a 41-year-old woman – all were taken to hospital and their conditions are not life-threatening.
I am tired of youth who feel violence is their only answer to conflict.
Meanwhile, a 17-year-old was shot in the foot in a third incident around 5:30 pm as officials warn of an “uptick in violence” especially among teenagers.
“Obviously there is a clear uptick in violence, specifically gun violence, both with handguns and flare guns with our teen population,” Chief Cox said.
“We continue to have teens walking around our streets and just indiscriminately firing rounds at people.”
“We cannot have that. That has to stop. And we need help to do that.”
Double shooting in North Carolina
A double shooting took place in North Carolina on Friday night and Saturday, injuring three in total – one critically.
Just after 10:15 pm after a July 4 celebration at the Truist Stadium in Winston-Salem, gun fire broke out in the parking lot injuring a juvenile.
A 16-year-old has been arrested in connection to the shooting.
Meanwhile, two people were shot at Center City Park in downtown Greensboro during festivities, causing families to run for cover.
One of the victims is in critical condition.
Winston-Salem Police Chief William H. Penn, Jr echoed the sentiments of his counterparts in other regions of the county, slamming parents and the behavior of “undisciplined and unattended juveniles”.
A lawyer spoke to The U.S. Sun about Diddy’s options once he’s released from prison
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs remains behind bars after his bail was denied this weekCredit: Reuters
SEAN ‘Diddy’ Combs may not have to deal with life in prison after being acquitted on multiple charges, but he could run into financial difficulties when he is released from jail, an expert has claimed.
The controversial music mogul was sitting on a fortune of almost a billion dollars at one point in his career before it imploded.
But his net worth reportedly dwindled to $400 million months before his arrest in 2024.
He has since had to pay a growing mountain of legal fees for his criminal trial, several civil cases, and a $20 million settlement to his ex-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura.
Combs, 55, was acquitted of the most serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking this week after a weeks-long trial in Manhattan, New York.
But he was found guilty of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution and remains behind bars ahead of his sentencing hearing.
Despite each count carrying a maximum sentence of 10 years, he is likely to be a free man in the coming months, according to experts.
But he may struggle to get his career back on track as his business empire has significantly declined due to his legal troubles and the public fallout from the allegations.
Eric Faddis, a former felony prosecutor and founding partner at Varner Faddis Elite Legal, spoke to The U.S. Sun to give his opinion on what is next for Combs.
He said, “One thing that’s clear is that his resources have been depleted. He still appears to have some wealth. But there’s going to be a collectability issue when it comes to these civil cases.
“If they all get judgments, he’s not going to have enough personal assets to make them whole.
“There is no legal mechanism of which I’m aware by which he could try to take back the twenty million or so dollars that he paid to Cassie in a civil judgment. That’s over and done with.
“There are murmurs about … is he going to try to go after other folks who are involved in this trial for defamation, or malicious prosecution, or something like that?
“Anything is possible, but I think he would be better off kind of letting sleeping dogs lie, moving on with his life, and undertaking this herculean effort of dealing with the other civil cases.”
Asked if he believes he could go broke, Faddis claimed, “Oh, 100 per cent. I think there’s a substantial chance that his assets are going to be dwindling if they’re not already dwindling.
“There’s no insurance policy that’s going to kick in and pay out these plaintiffs.
“If these plaintiffs prevail in the civil claims, he himself is going to be financially responsible.
“I’m sure he paid gobs and gobs of money to his criminal attorneys for this two-month trial.
“On top of that, a lot of his endorsements and contractual support is likely gone. And so I think he’s going to run into financial issues real soon.”
There’s no insurance policy that’s going to kick in and pay out these plaintiffs.”
Attorney Eric Faddis told The U.S. Sun
Combs paid off a $18.8 million mortgage on his lavish $48.5 million Star Island mansion in Miami, Florida, before his arrest.
To try and secure bail, his defense team previously proposed a $50 million bond package, which included the property that was raided by the feds.
He also listed his $61.5 million Beverly Hills home for sale, but it remains on the market.
BUSINESS EMPIRE
The star was running multiple businesses before his scandal, including Revolt TV, which he founded, and his fashion brand Sean John, which vanished from Macy’s.
Combs relinquished control of his lucrative spirits brands, Ciroc and DeLeón, and also reportedly lost a Hulu reality series deal.
However, his music catalog remains intact for the time being.
Combs kept his label Bad Boy Records relevant before he was arrested and backed the likes of Machine Gun Kelly’s ‘Mainstream Sellout’ in 2022.
In 2023, he also dropped The Love Album: Off the Grid, his first solo album in nearly two decades.
The same year, singer Janelle Monae also released her celebrated record The Age of Pleasure through Bad Boy.
Asked if he thinks he could build his empire back up, Faddis said, “It’s not unheard of in America for folks who have, you know, been formerly disgraced to kind of make a comeback.
“I think he’s going to try [but] whether America has the stomach for that at this point is an open question.
“I think, legally speaking, it is certainly a victory for Diddy, but I think we [have] to be careful, because there are a lot of sensitive issues at play here, just because the jury found that he was not guilty. That’s not the same as finding that he was innocent.
“What the jury found was that the Government couldn’t meet its burden with respect to those charges. That’s not the same as saying those things didn’t happen.”
Combs was previously forced to apologize to fans after previously denying physically assaulting ex Ventura when CNN published exclusive hotel surveillance video from 2016.
The footage showed Combs appearing to grab, shove, drag, and kick the singer in a hotel hallway.
“My behavior on that video is inexcusable. I take full responsibility for my actions in that video,” he said in a video statement posted on Instagram.
“I was disgusted then when I did it. I’m disgusted now,” he added. “I went and I sought out professional help. I got into going to therapy, going to rehab. I had to ask God for his mercy and grace. I’m so sorry. But I’m committed to be a better man each and every day. I’m not asking for forgiveness. I’m truly sorry.”
New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and his wife Dr. Dana Blumberg threw a starry Fourth of July party in the Hamptons where “Philadelphia Freedom” singer Elton John performed.
Sources said that John played an hour set of his greatest hits and dedicated his 1974 smash “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” to the couple.
We hear that Sir Elton flew in from London just for the private show — and had a special red piano shipped from the West Coast. He performed in an eye-catching canary yellow suit.
(John also played the couple’s wedding in 2022, we’d exclusively reported at the time.)
The patriotic party also featured a jaw-dropping drone show creating images in the sky of a Patriots logo, an American flag, Kraft’s dog, Heisman, an image of John, the Statue of Liberty and a football, we hear.
Said a source of the bash, “This was all about building bridges and bringing people together.”
Elton John played Robert Kraft’s starry Fourth of July party.
Kraft and other attendees wore blue square pins — the symbol created by Kraft’s Foundation to Combat Antisemitism as part of a $25 million awareness-building campaign as a “symbol of standing up to Jewish hate and all hate.”
Guests were welcomed by a 16-foot high American flag made from over a million crystals.
The pins have been worn by stars including Tom Brady, Mike Tyson, Jon Bon Jovi and Dave Matthews.
Guests at the party included Howard and Beth Stern, Jon Bon Jovi, Kenny Chesney, Mike Tyson and his wife Kiki, Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg, Rob Gronkowski and Camille Kostek, Van Jones, Michael Rubin and Camille Fishel and JPMorgan executive Mary Erdoes and John’s husband, David Furnish, among others.
People magazine reported that Jerry Seinfeld and Sylvester Stallone also attended the bash.
In 2023, Dave Matthews — who played the old Foxboro Stadium the year the Patriots won their first of six Super Bowls — played Kraft’s Fourth of July party, we previously reported. Grandmaster Flash DJ’d the previous bash.
Kelly Osbourne got engaged to Sid Wilson at her father Ozzy Osbourne’s Black Sabbath farewell concert.
The TV personality took to Instagram Sunday to share a sweet clip of the proposal, which occurred the night before backstage at Villa Park in Birmingham, England.
While surrounded by their family and friends, the Slipknot member said, “Kelly, you know I love you more than anything in the world.”
“Nothing would make me happier than to spend the rest of my life with you,” Wilson continued. Getty Images for Live Nation
Ozzy, 76, then jokingly interrupted, saying, “F–k off, you’re not marrying my daughter.”
Laughter erupted from the room, including from Kelly, 40, and her mom, Sharon Osbourne, 76, who was sitting next to her husband.
“Nothing would make me happier than to spend the rest of my life with you,” Wilson, 48, continued.
“So in front of your family and all of our friends, Kelly, will you marry me?” the keyboardist added.
Kelly looked around the room in shock, nodding, “Yes.”
Wilson then slipped the ring on her finger before they hugged.
“Oh and this happened yesterday!” she captioned the post on Instagram.
Kelly and Wilson became friends in 1999 when the latter’s band toured on her parents’ music festival, Ozzfest, per People.
The couple took their relationship to the next level in January 2022 and hard-launched their romance the following month.
Justin Bieber received support from fans after he shared sweaty selfies as he detoxed.
“Detoxxxxxxxxxxx,” he captioned the post on Instagram Sunday, alongside a carousel of close-up selfies, showing off the sweat on his forehead and his red face.
Though the pop star didn’t give more context on how or why he was ridding his body of toxins, several Instagram users offered kind words to Bieber.
“The good one for you, partner! We all want to see you well ❤️🥹,” wrote one supporter.
“please stay healthy and happy,” added another.
“Love you dude keep pushin,” wrote a third person.
“You can do this. Keep going,” added a fourth netizen.
“Detoxxxxxxxxxxx,” he captioned the post on Instagram Sunday, alongside a carousel of close-up selfies, showing off the sweat on his forehead and his red face. Instagram/justinbieber
Bieber’s detox comes five months after his rep denied “harmful” allegations of drug use following concerns about his behavior.
The publicist told TMZ at the time that the ongoing rumors about the “Baby” singer’s physical and mental health were “exhausting and pitiful” and showed that “despite the obvious truth, people are committed to keeping negative, salacious, harmful narratives alive.”
The two-time Grammy winner’s spokesperson said Justin, 31, has been in a good place with his wife, Hailey Bieber, after they welcomed their son, Jack Blues, in August 2024.
The “Never Say Never” singer’s rep added that this year has been “very transformative for him as he ended several close friendships and business relationships that no longer served him.”
Despite the publicist’s denial, Justin has been seen smoking joints on multiple occasions, including at Coachella and while on a snowboarding trip with his pals.
Justin has also reportedly been dealing with financial and marital issues.
Last month, a source told “Entertainment Tonight” that the dad of one has been “irritated” by the Rhode founder, 28.
He “feels like Hailey can be superficial about the way their relationship looks in the public eye,” the insider said.
The source also claimed that “Justin’s lack of motivation has been upsetting for [Hailey].”
Rick Woldenberg says he believes in taking action rather than just “hoping for the best”
A 90-day pause on Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs plan is about to expire on Wednesday, which could upend US trading relationships with the rest of the world. But the uncertainty of the last few months has already forced several companies to rethink their supply lines in radical ways.
When an Illinois toymaker heard that Trump was introducing tariffs on Chinese imports, he was so incensed that he decided to sue the US government.
“I’m inclined to stand up when my company is in genuine peril,” says Rick Woldenberg, who is the CEO of educational toy firm Learning Resources.
The majority of his company’s products are made in China, so the tariffs, which US importers have to pay, not Chinese exporters, are now costing him a fortune.
He says his import taxes bill leapt from around $2.5m (£1.5m) a year to more than $100m in April when Trump temporarily increased tariffs on Chinese imports to 145%. That would have “devastated” the company, he says.
“This kind of impact on my business is just a little bit hard to wrap my mind around,” he says.
With US tariffs on Chinese imports now at 30%, that’s still unaffordable for many American companies such as Learning Resources.
So in addition to its continuing legal fight, it is changing its global supply chain, moving production from China to Vietnam and India.
These two countries, like most others around the world, have seen the US hit them with general 10% tariffs, two-thirds lower than those on China. Although these 10% tariffs are due to run out on Wednesday, 9 July, uncertainly remains over what they may be replaced by.
Meanwhile, many Canadian companies, who often trade in both their home country and in the US, are now facing a double hit to their supply chains.
These hits are the 25% tariffs put in place by Trump on many Canadian imports, and the reciprocal ones of the same level that Canada has placed on a host of American exports.
And other businesses around the world are looking at exporting less to the US, because their American import partners are having to put up prices to cover the tariffs they now have to pay, which makes their products more expensive on US shelves.
At Learning Resources, Mr Woldenberg has now moved about 16% of manufacturing to Vietnam and India. “We have gone through the process of vetting the new factories, training them on what we needed, making sure that things could flow easily, and developing relationships.”
Yet he admits that there are uncertainties: “We don’t know if they can handle the capacity of our business. Much less the whole world moving in there at the same time.”
He also points out that switching production to another country is expensive to organise.
In the meantime, his legal case against the US tariffs, called “Learning Resources et al v Donald Trump et al” is continuing its way through the US court system.
In May a judge at the US District Court in Washington DC ruled that the tariffs against it were unlawful. But the US government immediately appealed, and Learning Resources still has to pay the tariffs for the time being.
So the firm is continuing to move production away from China.
Global supply chain expert Les Brand says that it is both expensive and difficult for companies to switch manufacturing to different countries.
“Trying to find new sources for critical components of whatever you are doing – that’s a lot of research,” says Mr Brand, who is CEO of advisory firm Supply Chain Logistics.
“There’s a lot of quality testing to do it right. You have to spend the time, and that really takes away from the business focus.”
He adds: “The knowledge transfer to train a whole new bunch of people on how to make your product takes a lot of time and money. And that effects already razor-thin margins businesses have right now.”
For Canadian fried chicken chain Cluck Clucks, its supply chain has been significantly impacted by Canada’s revenge tariffs on US imports. This is because while its chicken is Canadian, it imports both specialist catering fridges and pressure fryers from the US.
While it can’t live without the fridges, it has decided to stop buying any more of the fryers. Yet with no Canadian company making alternative ones, it is having to limit its menus at its new stores.
This is because it needs these pressure fryers to cook its bone-in chicken pieces. The new stores will instead only be able to sell boneless chicken, as that is cooked differently.
“This was a substantial decision for us, but we believe it’s the right strategic move,” says Raza Hashim, Cluck Clucks CEO.
“It’s important to note that we do plan to retain the necessary kitchen space in new locations to reintroduce these fryers should the tariff uncertainty be completely resolved in the future.”
He also warns that with the US fridges now more expensive for the company to buy, the price it charges for its food may have to go up. “There is a certain amount of costs we cannot absorb as brands, and we may have to pass those on to consumers. And that is not something we want to do.”
Mr Hashim adds that the business is continuing with its US expansion plans, and it has set up local supply chains to source American chicken. It currently has one US outlet, in Houston, Texas.
Carlos Alcaraz’s latest up-and-down Wimbledon performance began with a dropped set. Later Sunday, he was in danger of getting broken to fall further behind in the third. And then, as he so often does, Alcaraz seized the moment, produced some magic and moved closer to a third consecutive title at the All England Club.
Alcaraz stretched his winning streak in the grass-court Grand Slam tournament to 18 matches — and his current unbeaten run across all events to 22 — by coming back to beat No. 14 seed Andrey Rublev 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 at Centre Court to return to the quarterfinals.
In this fortnight’s first matchup between two men ranked in the top 20, No. 2 Alcaraz brought out his best while down 3-2 in the third set. First, he needed to fend off a break chance for Rublev, doing so with a forehand passing winner.
After eventually holding to 3-all, Alcaraz earned his own break opportunity and didn’t let Rublev escape. On an eight-stroke exchange, Alcaraz sprinted from one corner of the court to the other and, with a stomp of his right foot and a bit of a slide, he flicked a cross-court forehand winner.
Oh, did he relish that one. Alcaraz spread his arms wide, pointed to his right ear and basked in the crowd’s loud adulation, the noise bouncing off the underside of the stadium’s closed roof.
Rublev sat in his sideline chair, looked up at his guest box and made a sarcastic “OK” hand signal. Just 10 minutes later, that set belong to Alcaraz, who will face 2022 semifinalist Cam Norrie — the last British player in singles — on Tuesday for a berth in the final four.
“I always said that it’s just about belief in yourself. It doesn’t matter that you are one-set-to-love down,” Alcaraz said. “Tennis is a sport that can change in just one point. One point can change the match completely, turn around everything.”
The 61st-ranked Norrie, who played college tennis at TCU in Fort Worth, Texas, advanced with a 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (7), 6-7 (5), 6-3 win over qualifier Nicolas Jarry, who hit 46 aces. Norrie had a chance to close things out much earlier than he did but failed to convert a match point while ahead 6-5 in the third-set tiebreaker.
The other men’s quarterfinal Tuesday will be No. 5 Taylor Fritz vs. No. 17 Karen Khachanov. Fritz, last year’s U.S. Open runner-up, had a short day because his opponent, Jordan Thompson, quit after about 40 minutes with back and leg injuries that he’d been dealing with throughout the tournament.
Alcaraz is just 22 and already owns five Grand Slam trophies, the latest arriving in June at the French Open. He hasn’t lost a match anywhere since April 20 against Holger Rune in the final at Barcelona.
There have been lapses, of course, including when Alcaraz fell behind by two sets against No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the final at Roland-Garros. Or when the Spaniard lost four points in a row after going up 5-3 in the opening tiebreaker against Rublev.
He hasn’t been as close-to-perfect as others over the past week: Sinner, No. 10 Ben Shelton and No. 22 Flavio Cobolli haven’t dropped a set heading into their fourth-round contests.
So, sure, Alcaraz has ceded five sets already, but all that matters is that he hasn’t lost a match.
A Coast Guard rescue swimmer is already being hailed as an “American hero” after his very first mission — helping to save the lives of 165 Texas flash-flood victims.
“This is what it’s all about, right? Like, this is why we do the job,” said Scott Ruskan, 26, a New Jersey native and former KPMG accountant, to The Post after his work in central Texas.
“This is why we take those risks all time. This is why like Coast Guard men and women, are risking their lives every day,” said Petty Officer Ruskan — who was in charge of triage at Camp Mystic, the Christian girls’ summer camp that saw some of the worst of the flooding.
Raised in Oxford, NJ, Ruskan enlisted in the US Coast Guard in 2021, and after completing basic training, went to Aviation Survival Technician school in Petaluma, Calif., before being stationed in Corpus Christi, Texas.
US Coast Guard Petty Officer Scott Ruskan helped save 165 people from the Texas flash-floods this week. Facebook
He had been on call since November after completing all of his training, familiarizing himself with the Coast Guard’s iconic MH-65 helicopter and enrolling in additional rescue swimming classes as he waited to be called into action.
That fateful call came on the Fourth of July as a massive summer rainstorm led to catastrophic flash flooding in the Lone Star State that has so far claimed at least 80 lives.
Bryan Winchell, a helicopter search and rescue technician with Texas Task Force 1 — a joint partnership between the Texas Army National Guard and the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service — called the Coast Guard looking to get boots on the ground and in the air for an emergency rapid response near central Texas.
“That’s a little bit outside our area of operation normally, but people were in danger, and we’re a good asset to try and help people out, and these guys were asking for help, so that’s kind of what we do,” Ruskan said.
By 7 a.m. Friday, crews loaded into Blackhawk 60 and Coast Guard MH-65 choppers and took to the skies.
It was “literally the best aircrew we could possibly have,” Ruskan said.
Their destination was Camp Mystic, a Christian girls’ summer camp just off the banks of the Guadalupe River, which saw some of the worst of the flooding.
Five campers ages 8 and 9 have been confirmed dead, with a counselor and 11 more girls still missing, officials said.
When the crew arrived, they were racing against sundown to rescue as many stranded flood victims as possible. All roads were impassable, and the currents were too strong for any boats to get in, leaving helicopter evacuation as the only hope for the nearly 200 survivors.
As the crews evaluated the operational logistics, their goal was to move as many people out of harm’s way as possible, but they were bound by the weight limits of the helicopters. During a briefing, they decided to leave Ruskan on the ground to triage the rescue mission.
“I was like, sweet, sounds great, I’ll be more helpful on the ground than I will be in the air right now, so that’s kind of what we went with,” he said.
The rescuers loaded the first four to five survivors into the MH-65, and Ruskan set out to take a closer look at the scene of the camp, which was on higher ground than the flood-ravaged surrounding areas, where trees were snapped like twigs and twisted metal of cars littered the muddy ground.
While on the ground, Ruskan tended to terrified and injured campers, many of them shoeless and still wearing pajamas from their mad dash out of their bunks in the middle of the night.
In between comforting the “cold, wet and miserable” survivors, both kids and adults, Ruskan directed Army Blackhawk 60s and MH-65s to pockets of survivors to begin painstakingly bringing them to safety.
Families sifted through waterlogged debris Sunday and stepped inside empty cabins at Camp Mystic, an all-girls summer camp ripped apart by flash floods that washed homes off their foundations and killed at least 82 people in central Texas.
Rescuers maneuvering through challenging terrain, high waters and snakes including water moccasins continued their desperate search for the missing, including 10 girls and a counselor from the camp. For the first time since the storms began pounding Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott said there were 41 people confirmed to be unaccounted for across the state and more could be missing.
In Kerr County, home to Camp Mystic and other youth camps in the Texas Hill Country, searchers have found the bodies of 68 people, including 28 children, Sheriff Larry Leitha said in the afternoon.
He pledged to keep searching until “everybody is found” from Friday’s flash floods. Ten other deaths were reported in Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green and Williamson counties, according to local officials. The death toll is certain to rise over the next few days, said Col. Freeman Martin of the Texas Department of Public Safety.
The governor warned that additional rounds of heavy rains lasting into Tuesday could produce more life-threatening flooding, especially in places already saturated. As he spoke at a news conference in Austin, emergency alerts lit up mobile phones in Kerr County that warned of “High confidence of river flooding” and a loudspeaker near Camp Mystic urged people to leave. Minutes later, however, authorities on the scene said there was no risk.
Families were allowed to look around the camp beginning Sunday morning. One girl walked out of a building carrying a large bell. A man, who said his daughter was rescued from a cabin on the highest point in the camp, walked a riverbank, looking in clumps of trees and under big rocks.
A woman and a teenage girl, both wearing rubber waders, briefly went inside one of the cabins, which stood next to a pile of soaked mattresses, a storage trunk and clothes. At one point, the pair doubled over, sobbing before they embraced.
Officials inspect an area at Camp Mystic along the banks of the Guadalupe River after a flash flood swept through the area Sunday, July 6, 2025, in Hunt, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
One family left with a blue footlocker. A teenage girl had tears running down her face looking out the open window, gazing at the wreckage as they slowly drove away.
Searching the disaster zone
While the families saw the devastation for the first time, nearby crews operating heavy equipment pulled tree trunks and tangled branches from the water as they searched the river.
With each passing hour, the outlook of finding more survivors became even more bleak. Volunteers and some families of the missing who drove to the disaster zone searched the riverbanks despite being asked not to do so.
Authorities faced growing questions about whether enough warnings were issued in an area long vulnerable to flooding and whether enough preparations were made.
President Donald Trump signed a major disaster declaration Sunday for Kerr County, activating the Federal Emergency Management Agency to Texas.
The president said he would likely visit Friday. “I would have done it today, but we’d just be in their way,” he told reporters before boarding Air Force One back to Washington after spending the weekend at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. “It’s a horrible thing that took place, absolutely horrible.”
The destructive, fast-moving waters rose 26 feet (8 meters) on the river in only 45 minutes before daybreak Friday, washing away homes and vehicles. The danger was not over as flash flood watches remained in effect and more rain fell in central Texas on Sunday.
Searchers used helicopters, boats and drones to look for victims and to rescue people stranded in trees and from camps isolated by washed-out roads. Officials said more than 850 people were rescued in the first 36 hours.
Russia has become the first country in the world to formally recognize Afghanistan’s Taliban government. This improves the radical group’s standing on the world stage, and puts pressure on the West to follow suit.
The flag of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan flying on the Afghan embassy in MoscowImage: Alexander Nemenov/AFP
“This brave decision will be an example for others.” With these words, Amir Khan Muttaqi, foreign minister in Afghanistan’s Taliban government, welcomed the announcement by Russia that it was officially recognizing the Taliban as the legitimate government of Afghanistan.
The Afghan Foreign Ministry wrote on X that this would be the start of “a new phase of positive relations, mutual respect, and constructive engagement.” It also posted a video of the meeting in Kabul between Russia’s ambassador to Afghanistan, Dmitry Zhirnov, and Muttaqi, in which Muttaqi declares: “Now that the process of recognition has started, Russia was ahead of everyone.”
Economic interests
Afghanistan expert Conrad Schetter, the director of the Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (bicc), commented that Russia may have very specific reasons for recognizing the Taliban. It may, he told DW, have considerable interests in establishing economic ties with Afghanistan, not least as a potential hub for trade with Asia. Russia has been under international sanctions since the start of the war in Ukraine.
The Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace drew the same conclusion in a study published in 2024. “Russian officials have again begun speaking about using Afghanistan as a transit hub — for exporting Russian natural gas to India, and other goods to ports in Pakistan,” it said. “However, this requires a gas pipeline to be built through the mountains, and a railroad, which currently ends at Mazar-i-Sharif at the Uzbek border, to be extended.”
Until now, the construction of a railroad from Russia to Pakistan via the countries of Central Asia and Afghanistan has been nothing more than a pipe dream. If it were built, it would give Russia direct access to the Indian Ocean.
According to a study by the consultancy SpecialEurasia published on Friday, Moscow is hoping that its formal recognition of Afghanistan means it will become a major supplier and economic partner for the country “by expanding trade in oil, gas, and wheat, and by collaborating on infrastructure, energy, and agriculture projects.”
Schetter believes that Moscow wants to be the trendsetter in establishing a new way of dealing with Afghanistan, and that this is probably also a major factor in the decision. “They’re now hoping that other countries under authoritarian rule will follow suit,” he says. “With this step, they want to assume a leading role among the autocratic states. This too is probably a significant motivation behind this decision.”
Pressure on the West
While Russia is the first country to recognize the Taliban officially, others, mostly countries under authoritarian rule, have maintained relations with the Taliban for some time. The Chinese embassy in Kabul is still open, for example, and meetings between the two countries have taken place at ministerial level. Iran also maintains diplomatic contacts with the Taliban, and it too has an embassy in Kabul.
Pakistan has a close relationship with Afghanistan, despite political tensions caused by the activities of Sunni extremists along the border between the two countries. The region is seen as a breeding ground for extremist and terrorist activity around the world. The forced mass exodus of ethnic Afghans from Pakistan to Afghanistan shows the extent to which the two countries actually cooperate.
Qatar is acting as an intermediary between the Taliban government and the West, and the 2020 Agreement between the US and Taliban governments that regulated the withdrawal of US troops was signed in Doha.
Schetter comments that if these countries were to follow the Russian example, it would put considerable political pressure on Western states to do the same. “These states would then have to consider their attitude toward the Taliban. And this is precisely what could create a diplomatic dynamic that the Taliban now, because of this latest move by Russia, are more hopeful for.”
Voicing “serious concerns about the rise of unilateral tariff” measures, BRICS members said the tariffs risked hurting the global economy, according to a summit joint statement.
China’s Premier Li Qiang arrives to attend the opening session of the 17th annual BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Jul 6, 2025. (Photo: AP/Eraldo Peres)
BRICS leaders at a summit on Sunday (Jul 6) took aim at US President Donald Trump’s “indiscriminate” import tariffs and recent Israeli-US strikes on Iran.
The 11 emerging nations, including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, represent about half the world’s population and 40 per cent of global economic output.
The bloc is divided about much, but found common cause when it comes to the mercurial US leader and his stop-start tariff wars – even if they avoided naming him directly.
Voicing “serious concerns about the rise of unilateral tariff” measures, BRICS members said the tariffs risked hurting the global economy, according to a summit joint statement.
They also offered symbolic backing to fellow member Iran, condemning a series of military strikes on nuclear and other targets carried out by Israel and the United States.
In April, Trump threatened allies and rivals alike with a slew of punitive duties, before offering a months-long reprieve in the face of a fierce market sell-off.
Trump has now warned he will impose unilateral levies on partners unless they reach “deals” by Aug 1.
In an apparent concession to US allies such as Brazil, India and Saudi Arabia, the summit declaration did not criticise the United States or its president by name at any point.
NO SHOW
Conceived two decades ago as a forum for fast-growing economies, the BRICS have come to be seen as a Chinese-driven counterbalance to US and Western European power.
But as the group has expanded to include Iran, Saudi Arabia and others, it has struggled to reach meaningful consensus on issues from the Gaza war to challenging US global dominance.
BRICS nations, for example, collectively called for a peaceful two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict – despite Tehran’s long-standing position that Israel should be destroyed.
An Iranian diplomatic source said his government’s “reservations” had been conveyed to Brazilian hosts. Still, Iran stopped short of rejecting the statement outright.
In perhaps a further sign of the diplomatic sensitivities, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister skipped Sunday’s discussions entirely, according to a Brazilian government source.
Saudi Arabia is among the world’s leading beneficiaries of high-tech US military exports and is a long-standing US partner.
The political punch of this year’s summit has been depleted by the absence of China’s Xi Jinping, who skipped the meeting for the first time in his 12 years as president.
As Tokyo seeks to avert the US’ threat to impose tariffs of up to 35 per cent on Japanese goods, Prime Minister Ishiba stressed that Japan, as the biggest investor nation in the US economy, should be treated differently from other countries.
Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba responds to questions from the media after a telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump, at the prime minister’s office in Tokyo on May 23, 2025, where he said that he had again pressed Trump on tariffs. (Photo: AFP/STR/JIJI Press)
Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Sunday (Jul 6) that he won’t “easily compromise” in talks with Washington as Tokyo seeks to avert United States President Donald Trump’s threat to impose tariffs of up to 35 per cent on Japanese goods.
“We will not easily compromise. That’s why it is taking time and why it is tough,” Ishiba told a television talk show.
His comments came as Japan rushes to negotiate with the Trump administration before the Wednesday deadline for trade deals.
While Trump imposed a sweeping 10 per cent tariff on imports from most trading partners in April, he unveiled – then paused – higher rates on dozens of economies, including Japan, to allow room for negotiations.
Trump has said he was going to write a letter to Japan, asking it to “pay a 30 per cent, 35 per cent or whatever the number is that we determine,” and called the bilateral trade relation “unfair”.
He has particularly pressed Japan to accept more US automobiles and rice.
Ryosei Akazawa, Tokyo’s trade envoy, held telephone calls with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Thursday and Saturday.
DONALD Trump has signed a disaster declaration in response to the “unimaginable tragedy” in Texas as officials say at least 82 people have died.
Rescuers are still searching for 10 children and one counselor from Camp Mystic, after at least 82 people – including 28 children – were killed in flash floods.
A destroyed motor home sits on the riverbank in Louise Hays Park next to the Guadalupe River
Searchers have found the bodies of 68 people, including 28 children, in Kerr County – home to Camp Mystic, a Christian summer camp – Sheriff Larry Leitha said in the afternoon.
He pledged to keep searching until everybody is found from Friday’s flash floods.
10 other deaths have been reported in Travis, Burnet, Kendall, Tom Green and Williamson counties, officials said.
Rescuers are now scouring the devastated landscape as they search for the missing – including 10 girls and a counsellor from the camp.
A total of 41 people are confirmed missing across the state, according to Governor Greg Abbott, who warned that the number could still rise.
Donald Trump announced he signed a Major Disaster Declaration for Kerr County to help search efforts.
Taking to Truth Social, the US president said the declaration will “ensure that our Brave First Responders immediately have the resources they need”.
“These families are enduring an unimaginable tragedy, with many lives lost, and many still missing,” he added, noting that the administration is working closely with state and local officials.
Heartbreaking photos from the wrecked site show sodden mattresses and teddies strewn across dormitories.
Meanwhile, outside, trucks and heavy machinery were swept away -evidence of the floods’ deadly force.
Teams working tirelessly in harsh conditions to find victims have witnessed the atrocities first-hand, with dozens of bodies discovered.
Officials said more than 850 people had been rescued in the last 36 hours.
Bobby Templeton, superintendent of Ingram Independent School District, said: “We still have people coming here looking for their loved ones. We’ve had a little success, but not much.”
Worst-hit was Kerr County, particularly areas around the Guadeloupe River where waters rose by 26ft in 45 minutes following a freak dump of rainfall.
The danger was not over as rains continued pounding communities outside San Antonio on Saturday and flash flood warnings and watches remained in effect.
About a third of a year’s worth of rain fell in a few short hours, completely overwhelming the waterways and creating an “extraordinary catastrophe”.
Dalton Rice, Kerville city manager, said on Saturday: “We’ve been rescuing people out of these camps by the hundreds. There’s a lot of folks that are shelter in place, so we leave them in place to make sure that we get them food, water.”
Multiple people lost their lives in other counties, bringing the current confirmed death toll to 59 – though this is sadly expected to rise.
The parents of all the missing children have been notified – and many turned to social media to share desperate pleas for information about their girls.
Local reports suggest that up to six girls have been confirmed dead, citing their families.
Janie Hunt, 9, was among the dead, her distraught mother told CNN.
A relative of nine-year-old Renee Smajstrla revealed on Facebook that the girls’s body had been found.
Shawna Salta wrote: “We are thankful she was with her friends and having the time of her life, as evidenced by this picture from yesterday.”
Lila Bonner’s family also released a statement confirming her death.
They wrote: “In the midst of our unimaginable grief, we ask for privacy and are unable to confirm any details at this time.
“We ache with all who loved her and are praying endlessly.”
Lila shared a cabin with her best friend Eloise Peck, 8, who also lost her life.
Her mom, Missy Peck, told Fox4: “Eloise was literally friends with everyone. She loved spaghetti but not more than she loved dogs and animals.
“She passed away with her cabinmate and best friend Lila Bonner who also died.
“Eloise had a family who loved her fiercely for the 8 years she was with us. Especially her Mommy.”
Sarah Marsh, from Mountain Brook, Alabama, has also been confirmed dead.
Stewart Welch, the Mayor of Mountain Brook, wrote on social media: “This is an unimaginable loss for her family, her school and our entire community,”
He added: “Sarah’s passing is a sorrow shared by all of us, and our hearts are with those who knew her and loved her.”
Camp Mystic’s owner and director Dick Eastland is amongst those confirmed to have died.
Govt sources earlier said that no action was taken against either outlet while the IT Ministry hinted at confusion from X’s side.
The government had earlier said that no block order was issued as Reuters and TRT World handles return online in India. (IMAGE: AFP FILE)
The X accounts of UK-based news agency Reuters and Turkish broadcaster TRT World appeared to have been restored in India late Sunday evening, a day after users noticed they were being withheld in the country. Government sources speaking to CNN-News18 earlier in the day had clarified that India did not instruct X (formerly Twitter) to block either handle and said both outlets are free to operate in the country.
The blockade of the X account in India “seems like a technical issue or confusion from the X side”, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology said.
THIS is the shocking moment a three-car pile-up caused a burning SUV to smash into a Domino’s pizza store causing a devastating explosion.
Three people were injured and evacuation orders were issued after the terrifying incident at a strip mall in Herriman, Utah, on Saturday night.
The explosion tore through the building occupied by several businesses after the vehicle hit a gas line, a Unified Fire Authority spokesperson said.
As well as damaging a Domino’s, a Jimmy John’s sandwich shop and a Supercuts barber shop were also impacted.
Crews were called to the scene around 10:15 pm local time to a three-vehicle accident that caused one to smash into the strip mall.
Shocking footage shows the moment the explosion tore the roof off the building, lighting up the night sky and sending debris into the air before plunging everything back into darkness.
Three people were injured in the shocking incident sparked by a three-vehicle accidentCredit: Twitter
Taking to X, locals who captured the incident were left stunned.
“Crazy night! I pray everybody got out but we witnessed this as the car slammed into the Domino’s pizza and the whole damn building blew up!” resident Dave Young wrote.
“I was maybe 100 feet away and it took my breath away as the mushroom cloud exploded! Unreal,” he added.
Alongside the post he shared videos taken seconds after impact showing the extent of the horrifying blaze.
Over 60 firefighters from Unified Fire, South Jordan, West Jordan, West Valley City, Sandy and Draper Fire Departments were dispatched to the scene, a spokesperson told The Salt Lake Tribune.
They continued working through the night into Sunday morning to quash the blaze.
Those who were injured in the incident were taken to nearby hospitals with their conditions currently unknown.
According to ABC News affiliate KTVX-TV, the three injured were the drivers of each of the vehicles with the conditions of their passengers not released.
One vehicle had a 70-year-old driver and a 72-year-old male passenger, per the outlet.
Another reportedly had a teenage learner driver with several passengers and the third had a single 26-year-old male driver.
No members of law enforcement or the fire services were harmed, officials have said.
A spokesperson from Unified Fire shared on X how two heroic witnesses rushed to help those trapped in the burning SUV.
“Two courageous bystanders risked their lives to rescue the driver and passenger from the burning vehicle just moments before it was engulfed in flames,” they wrote on X.
Josh Lee with Riverton City told KTVX-TV that all occupants of the businesses were able to flee the building before the explosion.
Officials evacuated nearby residents after the incident sparked a gas leak which has now been contained.
The cause of the crash is under investigation and all evacuation orders have been lifted.
The U.S. Sun has reached to the Herriman Police Department for an update.
SENDING PRAYERS
Herriman City Mayor Lorin Palmer wrote the following statement on Facebook:
“Our thoughts are with all of those affected by the tragedy on 134th South tonight.
“To those involved in the accident, to those businesses affected by the fire, and to the employees that were on scene…we are thinking of you!
“Thank you to those first responders that handled such a crazy scene with such professionalism!
The joint statement by the group’s finance ministers marks the first time the BRICS countries have agreed on a unified position on the proposed reforms.
Image for representation. Credit: iStock Photo
Rio De Janeiro: Finance ministers from the BRICS group of developing nations called on Saturday for reform of the International Monetary Fund, including a new distribution of voting rights and an end to the tradition of European management at the helm.
The joint statement by the group’s finance ministers marks the first time the BRICS countries have agreed on a unified position on the proposed reforms. They agreed to back the shared proposal at an IMF review meeting coming up in December, which will discuss changes to a quota system that defines contributions and voting rights.
“Quota realignment should reflect members’ relative positions in the global economy, while protecting the quota shares of the poorest members,” the ministers wrote in their statement after meetings in Rio de Janeiro, adding that the new formula should increase quotas for developing countries.
The BRICS ministers called for a new formula weighted by economic output and purchasing power, considering the relative value of currencies, which should better represent low-income countries, said a Brazilian official who followed negotiations.
The ministerial meetings came ahead of a leaders summit in Rio for the bloc that expanded last year beyond Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
That has added diplomatic clout to the group, which aims to speak for developing nations in the Global South, urging reforms of institutions long dominated by traditional Western powers.
“With full respect to a merit-based selection process, regional representation must be enhanced for the IMF management, overcoming the anachronistic post-World War II gentlemen’s agreement that is unfit for the current world order,” the finance ministers wrote.
An installation with the US flag and the message “liberty for all,” which was created by relatives and supporters of Israelis held captive in the Gaza Strip, calls for their release and urges a ceasefire, on the beach in Tel Aviv, on Jul 4 2025. (Photo: AP/Oded Balilty)
Israel will send a delegation to Qatar on Sunday (Jul 6) for talks on a possible Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal, although Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the changes requested by Hamas to a ceasefire proposal were unacceptable.
Palestinian group Hamas said on Friday it had responded to a US-backed Gaza ceasefire proposal in a “positive spirit”, a few days after US President Donald Trump said Israel had agreed “to the necessary conditions to finalise” a 60-day truce.
But in a sign of the potential challenges still facing the two sides, a Palestinian official from a militant group allied with Hamas said concerns remained over humanitarian aid, passage through the Rafah crossing in southern Israel to Egypt and clarity over a timetable for Israeli troop withdrawals.
“The changes that Hamas seeks to make to the Qatari proposal were conveyed to us last night and are not acceptable to Israel,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement late on Saturday.
The prime minister’s office added that the delegation will still fly to Qatar for talks over a possible deal to “continue the efforts to secure the return of our hostages based on the Qatari proposal that Israel agreed to”.
Netanyahu, who is due to meet Trump in Washington on Monday, has repeatedly said Hamas must be disarmed, a position the militant group, which is thought to be holding 20 living hostages, has so far refused to discuss.
The latest bloodshed in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict was triggered on Oct 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
U.S. President Donald Trump comes out of the White House onto a balcony on the day he is expected to sign a sweeping spending and tax legislation, known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 4, 2025. REUTERS/Leah Millis Purchase Licensing Rights
U.S. President Donald Trump drew criticism for using the antisemitic term “Shylock” to describe some bankers during remarks on his signature tax-cut and spending legislation that just passed Congress.
“Think of that: No death tax. No estate tax. No going to the banks and borrowing from, in some cases, a fine banker – and in some cases, Shylocks and bad people,” he said during remarks in Iowa late on Thursday.
Shylock is an unscrupulous Jewish money lender in Shakespeare’s 16th century play “The Merchant of Venice” and the term, shorthand for loan shark, has long been considered offensive.
“The term ‘Shylock’ evokes a centuries-old antisemitic trope about Jews and greed that is extremely offensive and dangerous,” the Anti-Defamation League said in a statement. “President Trump’s use of the term is very troubling and irresponsible.”
U.S. Representative Dan Goldman of New York, a Jewish Democrat, said, “This is blatant and vile antisemitism, and Trump knows exactly what he’s doing.”
Asked about his use of the term on his return to Washington, Trump said he did not know its connotations.
An explosion of a drone is seen in the sky over the city during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 4, 2025. REUTERS/Vladyslav Sodel Purchase Licensing Rights
U.S. President Donald Trump said Ukraine would need Patriot missiles for its defenses, after speaking with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Friday, and voiced frustration over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s failure to end the fighting.
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he had a good call with Zelenskiy, repeating that he was “very unhappy” about his call with Putin a day earlier, given what he called the Russian leader’s refusal to work on a ceasefire.
Asked whether the United States would agree to supply more Patriot missiles to Ukraine, as requested by Zelenskiy, Trump said: “They’re going to need them for defense… They’re going to need something because they’re being hit pretty hard.”
Trump touted the efficacy of the Patriot missiles, calling the weapon “pretty amazing.”
Asked about the prospects for a ceasefire, Trump said, “It’s a very tough situation… I was very unhappy with my call with President Putin. He wants to go all the way, just keep killing people – it’s no good.”
Zelenskiy said he had agreed to work on increasing Kyiv’s capability to “defend the sky” as Russian attacks escalate, adding in a message on Telegram that he discussed joint defense production, as well as joint purchases and investments with the U.S. leader.
Ukraine has been asking Washington to sell it more Patriot missiles and systems that it sees as key to defending its cities from intensifying Russian air strikes.
A decision by Washington to halt some shipments of weapons to Ukraine prompted warnings by Kyiv that the move would weaken its ability to defend against Russia’s airstrikes and battlefield advances. Germany said it is in talks on buying Patriot air defense systems to bridge the gap.
A source briefed on the Trump-Zelenskiy call told Reuters they were optimistic that supplies of Patriot missiles could resume after what they called a “very good” conversation between the presidents.
RUSSIA PUMMELS KYIV
Trump said he also spoke with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz about Ukraine’s request for Patriot missiles but that no decision had been made to supply the advanced missiles.
U.S. news outlet Axios reported, citing unnamed sources, that the call lasted around 40 minutes and that Trump told Zelenskiy he would check what U.S. weapons due to be sent to Ukraine, if any, had been put on hold.
Zelenskiy, in his nightly video address, said he and Trump had agreed to “arrange a meeting between our teams to strengthen air defenses.
“We had a very detailed discussion on joint production. We need it, America needs it.”
The conversation came a day after Trump said he had a disappointing call with Putin.
Russia pummeled Kyiv with the largest drone attack of the war across the capital hours after Trump’s conversation with Putin on Thursday.
Zelenskiy called the attack “deliberately massive and cynical.”
Kyiv in the past received Patriot batteries and ammunition from the U.S. in the form of aid under then-President Joe Biden.
Asked last month whether he was planning to join Israel in attacking Iran, US President Donald Trump said “I may do it. I may not do it. Nobody knows what I’m going to do”.
He let the world believe he had agreed a two-week pause to allow Iran to resume negotiations. And then he bombed anyway.
A pattern is emerging: The most predictable thing about Trump is his unpredictability. He changes his mind. He contradicts himself. He is inconsistent.
“[Trump] has put together a highly centralised policy-making operation, arguably the most centralised, at least in the area of foreign policy, since Richard Nixon,” says Peter Trubowitz, professor of international relations at the London School of Economics.
“And that makes policy decisions more dependent on Trump’s character, his preferences, his temperament.”
Trump has put this to political use; he has made his own unpredictability a key strategic and political asset. He has elevated unpredictability to the status of a doctrine. And now the personality trait he brought to the White House is driving foreign and security policy.
It is changing the shape of the world.
Political scientists call this the Madman Theory, in which a world leader seeks to persuade his adversary that he is temperamentally capable of anything, to extract concessions. Used successfully it can be a form of coercion and Trump believes it is paying dividends, getting the US’s allies where he wants them.
But is it an approach that can work against enemies? And could its flaw be that rather than being a sleight of hand designed to fool adversaries, it is in fact based on well established and clearly documented character traits, with the effect that his behaviour becomes easier to predict?
Attacks, insults and embraces
Trump began his second presidency by embracing Russian President Vladimir Putin and attacking America’s allies. He insulted Canada by saying it should become the 51st state of the US.
He said he was prepared to consider using military force to annex Greenland, an autonomous territory of America’s ally Denmark. And he said the US should retake ownership and control of the Panama Canal.
Article 5 of the Nato charter commits each member to come to the defence of all others. Trump threw America’s commitment to that into doubt. “I think Article 5 is on life support” declared Ben Wallace, Britain’s former defence secretary.
Conservative Attorney General Dominic Grieve said: “For now the trans-Atlantic alliance is over.”
A series of leaked text messages revealed the culture of contempt in Trump’s White House for European allies. “I fully share your loathing of European freeloaders,” US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth told his colleagues, adding “PATHETIC”.
In Munich earlier this year, Trump’s Vice-President JD Vance said the US would no longer be the guarantor of European security.
That appeared to turn the page on 80 years of trans-Atlantic solidarity. “What Trump has done is raise serious doubts and questions about the credibility of America’s international commitments,” says Prof Trubowitz.
“Whatever understanding those countries [in Europe] have with the United States, on security, on economic or other matters, they’re now subject to negotiation at a moment’s notice.
“My sense is that most people in Trump’s orbit think that unpredictability is a good thing, because it allows Donald Trump to leverage America’s clout for maximum gain…
“This is one of his takeaways from negotiating in the world of real estate.”
Trump’s approach paid dividends. Only four months ago, Sir Keir Starmer told the House of Commons that Britain would increase defence and security spending from 2.3% of GDP to 2.5%.
Last month, at a Nato summit, that had increased to 5%, a huge increase, now matched by every other member of the Alliance.
The predictability of unpredictability
Trump is not the first American president to deploy an Unpredictability Doctrine. In 1968, when US President Richard Nixon was trying to end the war in Vietnam, he found the North Vietnamese enemy intractable.
“At one point Nixon said to his National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger, ‘you ought to tell the North Vietnamese negotiators that Nixon’s crazy and you don’t know what he’s going to do, so you better come to an agreement before things get really crazy’,” says Michael Desch, professor of international relations at Notre Dame University. “That’s the madman theory.”
Julie Norman, professor of politics at University College London, agrees that there is now an Unpredictability Doctrine.
“It’s very hard to know what’s coming from day to day,” she argues. “And that has always been Trump’s approach.”
Trump successfully harnessed his reputation for volatility to change the trans-Atlantic defence relationship. And apparently to keep Trump on side, some European leaders have flattered and fawned.
Last month’s Nato summit in The Hague was an exercise in obsequious courtship. Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte had earlier sent President Trump (or “Dear Donald”) a text message, which Trump leaked.
“Congratulations and thank you for your decisive action in Iran, it was truly extraordinary,” he wrote.
On the forthcoming announcement that all Nato members had agreed to increase defence spending to 5% of GDP, he continued: “You will achieve something NO president in decades could get done.”
Anthony Scaramucci, who previously served as Trump’s communications director in his first term, said: “Mr Rutte, he’s trying to embarrass you, sir. He’s literally sitting on Air Force One laughing at you.”
And this may prove to be the weakness at the heart of Trump’s Unpredictability Doctrine: their actions may be based on the idea that Trump craves adulation. Or that he seeks short-term wins, favouring them over long and complicated processes.
If that is the case and their assumption is correct, then it limits Trump’s ability to perform sleights of hand to fool adversaries – rather, he has well established and clearly documented character traits that they have become aware of.
The adversaries impervious to charm and threats
Then there is the question of whether an Unpredictability Doctrine or the Madman Theory can work on adversaries.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, an ally who was given a dressing down by Trump and Vance in the Oval Office, later agreed to grant the US lucrative rights to exploit Ukrainian mineral resources.
Vladimir Putin, on the other hand, apparently remains impervious to Trump’s charms and threats alike. On Thursday, following a telephone call, Trump said he was “disappointed” that Putin was not ready to end the war against Ukraine.
And Iran? Trump promised his base that he would end American involvement in Middle Eastern “forever wars”. His decision to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities was perhaps the most unpredictable policy choice of his second term so far. The question is whether it will have the desired effect.
The former British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, has argued that it will do precisely the opposite: it will make Iran more, not less likely, to seek to acquire nuclear weapons.
Prof Desch agrees. “I think it’s now highly likely that Iran will make the decision to pursue a nuclear weapon,” he says. “So I wouldn’t be surprised if they lie low and do everything they can to complete the full fuel cycle and conduct a [nuclear] test.
“I think the lesson of Saddam Hussein and Muammar Gaddafi is not lost on other dictators facing the US and potential regime change…
“So the Iranians will desperately feel the need for the ultimate deterrent and they’ll look at Saddam and Gaddafi as the negative examples and Kim Jong Un of North Korea as the positive example.”
One of the likely scenarios is the consolidation of the Islamic Republic, according to Mohsen Milani, a professor of politics at the University of South Florida and author of Iran’s Rise and Rivalry with the US in the Middle East.
“In 1980, when Saddam Hussein attacked Iran his aim was the collapse of the Islamic Republic,” he says. “The exact opposite happened.
“That was the Israeli and American calculation too… That if we get rid of the top guys, Iran is going to surrender quickly or the whole system is going to collapse.”
A loss of trust in negotiations?
Looking ahead, unpredictability may not work on foes, but it is unclear whether the recent shifts it has yielded among allies can be sustained.
Whilst possible, this is a process built largely on impulse. And there may be a worry that the US could be seen as an unreliable broker.
“People won’t want to do business with the US if they don’t trust the US in negotiations, if they’re not sure the US will stand by them in defence and security issues,” argues Prof Norman. “So the isolation that many in the MAGA world seek is, I think, going to backfire.”
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz for one has said Europe now needs to become operationally independent of the US.
“The importance of the chancellor’s comment is that it’s a recognition that US strategic priorities are changing,” says Prof Trubowitz. “They’re not going to snap back to the way they were before Trump took office.
“So yes, Europe is going to have to get more operationally independent.”
This would require European nations to develop a much bigger European defence industry, to acquire kit and capabilities that currently only the US has, argues Prof Desch. For example, the Europeans have some sophisticated global intelligence capability, he says, but a lot of it is provided by the US.
“Europe, if it had to go it alone, would also require a significant increase in its independent armaments production capability,” he continues. “Manpower would also be an issue. Western Europe would have to look to Poland to see the level of manpower they would need.”
All of which will take years to build up.
So, have the Europeans really been spooked by Trump’s unpredictability, into making the most dramatic change to the security architecture of the western world since the end of the Cold War?
“It has contributed,” says Prof Trubowitz. “But more fundamentally, Trump has uncorked something… Politics in the United States has changed. Priorities have changed. To the MAGA coalition, China is a bigger problem than Russia. That’s maybe not true for the Europeans.”
And according to Prof Milani, Trump is trying to consolidate American power in the global order.
Bilawal Bhutto said Pakistan would be willing to arrest any “individual of concern” if India is willing to participate in the process and present evidence of the same.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari. File pic/Reuters
Former Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said his country had no objection to extraditing “individuals of concern” to India as a confidence-building measure, as long as India shows willingness to cooperate with its neighbour.
In an interview with Al Jazeera on Friday, Bilawal responded to a question about extraditing Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) chief Hafiz Saeed and Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) chief Masood Azhar as possible concessions and good-faith gestures to India.
“As part of a comprehensive dialogue with Pakistan, where terrorism is one of the issues that we discuss, I am sure Pakistan would not be opposed to any of these things,” he said, while accusing India of not complying with Pakistan to stop cross-border terrorism.
‘If India Cooperates…’
“India is refusing to comply with certain basic elements that require that conviction to take place. It’s important … to present evidence within these courts, for people to come over from India to testify, to put up with whatever the counter-accusations will be,” said Bilawal. “If India is willing to be cooperative in that process, I am sure there will be no hurdle in extraditing any individual of concern.”
Masood Azhar, who has been linked to a string of terror attacks in India- including the 2001 Parliament attack, the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the 2016 Pathankot airbase assault and the 2019 Pulwama suicide bombing- was designated a UN global terrorist in 2019. Meanwhile, Saeed – the mastermind of the 26/11 attack – is currently serving a 33-year sentence for terror financing.
Bilawal also stressed that Pakistan had no knowledge of the location of Azhar and said he would be arrested if New Delhi provides credible evidence that he is on Pakistani soil. The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman also suggested that Azhar may be in Afghanistan.
‘New Abnormal’
Furthermore, Bilawal expressed concern about India’s renewed policy to pursue terrorists, saying it does not serve the interests of either country and termed it a “new abnormal”.
India said any further discussions with Pakistan would only be on terrorism and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), after ties deteriorated sharply following a terror attack by Lashkar-linked terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22.
EIGHTEEN people were injured after a fire alert onboard a Ryanair plane bound for Manchester sent passengers into panic in Majorca.
The alarm went off just after midnight on the runway of Palma Airport and passengers were forced to evacuate.
They clamber out from the fuselageCredit: Solarpix
Passengers were filmed clambering out of the plane onto one of its wings before jumping to the tarmac as firefighters and police rushed to the scene.
Local emergency teams said 18 people needed treatment for injuries, with six being taken to hospital.
Footage uploaded to social media shows terrified passengers leaping from the plane’s wing down onto the tarmac, before sprinting away.
In the clip, an airport worker can be heard saying: “Do you know the plane has emergency exits?
“Now the people are jumping from the wing onto the ground.
“Something’s happening, something’s happening, they’re evacuating the plane. Now the firefighters are coming.”
The video shows other passengers using an emergency exit slide on the other side of the plane, which is the usual procedure.
The mother of one passenger on the flight said her daughter, who had been on a mini-break with her boyfriend, said flight attendants “froze” after the alert.
She said: “People were falling over each other to get off, running all over the place.
“One attendant shouted, ‘Get off’, the other froze and she didn’t know what was going on.
“She looked as shocked as the passengers.”
The shell-shocked mother added: “My daughter called me and said,
‘Mum, I’m trying to get down the slide, I might not survive this and I love you’.”
“It was horrible. I couldn’t sleep all night, even after I knew she was safe. They got no support when she got in the airport.”
It was confirmed this morning the plane was about to leave the airport for Manchester.
Airline staff onboard the plane are said to have alerted the emergency services with a call at 12.35am this morning.
Four ambulances were sent to the scene along with airport-based firefighters and police.
A spokesman for a Majorca’s emergency response crews said this morning: “We received an alert about a fire on a plane on the ground at Palma airport at 00.36am today.
“Four ambulances were sent to the scene which were two basic life support units and two advanced life support unit.
“Eighteen people were injured and received medical assistance of whom six were taken to hospital.
“They were all minor. Three went to the Clinica Rotger and three to the Palmaplanas Hospital.”
A spokesperson for Ryanair said: “This flight from Palma to Manchester discontinued take-off due to a false fire warning light indication.
“Passengers were disembarked using the inflatable slides and returned to the terminal.
“While disembarking, a small number of passengers encountered very minor injuries (ankle sprains, etc.) and crew requested immediate medical assistance.
