List of All Articles with Tag 'world'

The world risks losing its battle to end hunger by the end of the decade, despite signs that

Democrats unsuccessfully sought an immediate US House inquiry into whether Republican lawmakers leveling accusations of corruption against presidential

Taiwanese pop superstar Jay Chou’s mother is about to become very rich from her son’s image. On Thursday,

Watch live as Volodymyr Zelensky holds a news conference at the Nato summit on Wednesday, 12 July. The Ukrainian president met with world leaders in Lithuania as G7 countries announced an international framework that paves the way for long-term security assurances for Ukraine to boost its defences against Russia. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace was accused of “scolding” Ukrainians after he said he told them that Britain was "not Amazon" in response to requests for weapons. "I told them that last year, when I drove 11 hours to be given a list” of demands for more assistance. Mr Wallace also revealed that he advised Ukraine that the international community wanted to see “gratitude” for its support in the war with Russia. Rishi Sunak has appeared to try to distance himself from the comments, saying the Ukrainian President Zelensky had repeatedly expressed his gratitude. Wednesday's summit came as Russia launched a drone strike on Kyiv and an old man was killed in Russian shelling in southern Ukraine. An 81-year-old man was killed and his 82-year-old wife wounded in shelling of the southern city of Kherson, region governor Oleksandr Prokudin confirmed. Read More The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

A pair of top Democrats on the House Oversight Committee are asking Chairman James Comer to look into whether the accused foreign agent who claims to be a “whistleblower” against President Joe Biden and his son was acting to further Chinese interests when he accused the Bidens of crimes. In a letter to Mr Comer, Ranking Member Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Representative Daniel Goldman of New York expressed “concern” that the Oversight Committee “has been manipulated” by alleged arms dealer Gal Luft, who they described as “an apparent con man who, while a fugitive from justice, attempted to fortify his defense by laundering unfounded and potentially false allegations through Congres”. The alleged GOP whistleblower, an Israeli-American think tank founder, was indicted last November on charges that he allegedly trafficked arms, acted as a foreign agent for China and violated US sanctions on Iran. Mr Luft, who was arrested in February by Cypriot authorities, jumped bail while awaiting extradition to the US and has been on the run ever since. While he claims he is being persecuted by the federal government because he provided derogatory information about the Biden family to the FBI in a 2019 interview, US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said in a statement that he “engaged in multiple, serious criminal schemes”. “He subverted foreign agent registration laws in the United States to seek to promote Chinese policies by acting through a former high-ranking U.S. Government official; he acted as a broker in deals for dangerous weapons and Iranian oil; and he told multiple lies about his crimes to law enforcement,” Mr Williams said. Mr Raskin and Mr Goldman noted that the false statement charges against Mr Luft “eviscerate” his credibility, even as Mr Comer has continued to call him “a very credible witness” despite the fact that Mr Luft remains a fugitive from justice. They also pointed out that Mr Luft is alleged to have lied to FBI agents during the same March 2019 interview at which he claims to have provided information to the bureau about Hunter Biden, and suggested that Mr Luft’s claims against the president and his son may be part of a Chinese-backed effort to undermine US interests and Mr Biden’s presidency. “It appears as if Mr. Luft sought ‘whistleblower’ status from you in an effort to defend himself from criminal prosecution while a fugitive from justice. Worse yet, this latest episode also raises concerns that Mr. Luft may be manipulating your investigation not only for his own self-interest but perhaps also in furtherance of the CCP’s efforts to undermine U.S. security interests and the President of the United States,” they said. “These recent revelations naturally raise broader concerns about the credibility and motivations of other purported whistleblowers that Congressional Republicans have relied on to support unfounded and baseless allegations. Sadly, the Luft episode severely undermines the credibility of the critical function of whistleblowers in this body”. The Democratic representatives called on Mr Comer to stop withholding documents relating to Mr Luft from members of the minority on the committee, and asked him to initiate an investigation into whether his panel has been manipulated by Mr Luft in service of a foreign power. “In order to protect the Congress’s institutional credibility and to reassure the American people that the CCP is not using Republicans’ investigations as a vehicle to undermine the United States government, we urge you to immediately initiate an investigation into whether the Committee may have been unwittingly duped by Mr. Luft in furtherance of the CCP’s interests, as well as any potentially false statements made by Mr. Luft to Members of Congress or congressional staff,” they said. Read More He claimed to have dirt on the Bidens. Now the DoJ say he’s a Chinese spy. Who is Gal Luft? GOP cries foul over spy charges for Biden ‘whistleblower’ ‘Whistleblower’ who accused Bidens of corruption is charged with arms trafficking and violating Iran sanctions DC promises a 'very, very robust' police presence to maintain public safety over July 4 holiday GOP had evidence disproving Biden bribery claims in 2019, top Democrat says Finland's new finance minister apologizes for racist comments in 2008 blog post

The owners of Premier League newcomer Sheffield United have told would-be purchasers they want £170 million ($221 million)

The Swiss franc jumped to the highest level against the dollar in over eight years after a softer-than-expected

The cost of a plane ticket plunged in the early days of the summer travel season, continuing a

Much of Southern Europe is sweltering under an extreme heatwave pushing temperatures well past 40C – with Italy reporting the death of a street sign painter who collapsed working in the heat. The 44-year-old worker collapsed while on the job in the northern town of Lodi on Tuesday. He was rushed to hospital but doctors were unable to revive him, according to local media. It comes as nations across Southern Europe issued warnings to both residents and tourists, as millions of holidaymakers head off for their holidays on the Mediterranean. Temperatures could spike as high as 45C to 48C in parts of Sicily and Sardinia in Italy and Cordoba and Seville before the week is out. Temperatures are also starting to tick up in Greece, where a heat wave was forecast to reach up to 44C in some parts of the country in the coming days. The heatwave was named "Cerberus" after the three-headed monster dog in Greek mythology which guards the gates of the underworld. Ruben del Campo, of Aemet, the Spanish state meteorological agency, said: “In some points of the south the temperatures will reach 44C on Wednesday. More than 100 weather stations registered temperatures of at least 35C as early as 6am on Wednesday. “In general, in Andalusia, temperatures will be above 40C. The heat will be suffocating in Cordoba and Granada and areas of the Costa del Sol”. He added: “At night temperatures will not fall below 25C in Granada, Almeria, Seville and Las Palmas in the Canary Islands.” Mr Del Campo added that from Thursday temperatures would fall in the Balearic Islands and east of the country but not in the south and west of Spain. Cristina Linares, co-director of climate, health, and urban environment at the Carlos III Institute of Health in Madrid, proposed using libraries, health centres, churches and public transport as air-conditioned places which can be used by the elderly, pregnant women and those with breathing problems as temperatures soar. In Italy, 10 cities were put on high heat alert for older people and other vulnerable populations from Bolzano in the north extending southward to Bologna, Florence and Rome. Ms Linares also warned tourists to avoid heavy drinking in the heat. “People who are not used to living in hot countries should also be warned against heavy drinking of alcohol during heat waves,” she told The Independent. But some appeared happy to disregard that advice. Jack, 13, a British schoolboy who lives in Barcelona, started selling drinks on the beach with friends. “Most people seem to want cold water and beer but I am not allowed to sell beer. We have done well. I made €7,” he said. Many homes in Spain battened down the hatches against the heat, with all windows and shutters closed during the day. In Cádiz, in southern Spain, police used air-conditioning units which were seized in raids on drug factories and installed them in public schools, which are used in summer for children’s camps. If tourists struggle with the scorching heat during the day, trying to get to sleep at night with tropical temperatures over 25C in many parts of Spain will not be easy. Spain’s state-run RTVE television ran a report advising people on the tricks to sleep properly during a heat wave. “Sleep near a window, wear little in the way of clothes, drink as much as you can and if you still cannot sleep put on the air conditioning,” the reporter told viewers. In Greece, authorities banned access to nature reserves and forests to reduce the risk of wildfires, while municipalities were opening air-conditioned areas in public buildings for people to shelter from the heat. The country's agriculture ministry also issued restrictions on the transportation and working hours of animals such as horses and donkeys offering rides in tourist areas during the heat wave. Working animals will not be allowed to work between noon and 5pm on days where temperatures are between 35C to 39C in the shade, while they will not be allowed to work at any time of the day when temperatures exceed that range. Extreme heatwaves contributed to more than 60,000 deaths in Europe in 2022, according to a report issued earlier this week. The study, conducted by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) and published in the journal Nature Medicine, estimated that 61,672 deaths were caused by extreme heat in Europe between 30 May and 4 September 2022. The highest temperature in European history was recorded in Syracuse, in Sicily in August 2021 at 48.8C. Read More G7 countries sign joint declaration in support of Ukraine at Nato summit Spain sweats out sultry nights as heat wave bakes southern Europe ‘You belong in Nato’ Rishi Sunak tells Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky Argentina turns its attention to youth divisions in search of a Messi-like player in women's soccer Red Hot Chili Peppers and Ms. Lauryn Hill will headline Global Citizen Festival to fight inequality With player stylists and Gucci collabs, MLB eyes a fresh look with younger fans

PresidentJoe Biden is set to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today as world leaders gather for day two of a key Nato summit. The bilateral meeting, which will take place at 3.45pm local time (8.45am ET) in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius, comes after Jake Sullivan warned that Ukraine’s entry into Nato membership would lead to “war with Russia”. “Every Nato ally, including the United States, needs to look squarely at the fact that admission to Ukraine into NATO at this juncture means war with Russia. That is an inescapable fact,” he told CNN on Wednesday morning. On Tuesday, Mr Zelensky slammed Nato leaders for not extending membership to Ukraine, calling the inaction “absurd” while Nato leaders – including Turkey – said they would happily welcome Sweden into the membership. Last week, Mr Biden said he thinks Ukraine is “not ready” for membership. Following the meeting between the US and Ukrainian presidents, Mr Biden will deliver a speech to Nato leaders highlighting how the US and its allies are supporting Ukraine in the war. Preparation for this “big speech” was given as the reason behind Mr Biden’s decision to shun a dinner with Nato leaders on Tuesday night. Read More Biden will meet Zelensky at Nato summit in Lithuania as war with Russia rages on Palace insists King Charles didn’t mind when President Biden ‘broke protocol’ and patted him on back Awkward moment as King Charles appears to snap at Biden’s chat with Windsor Castle guard

Traders betting the Bank of Canada will raise its benchmark interest rate on Wednesday are already scanning the

European natural gas fell to the lowest level in a month on expectations that seasonal maintenance will ease