Author: Admin

FRANKFURT — Germany’s Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt announced Saturday that the country is raising its security status from an “abstract threat level” to a “high threat level,” citing an increase in intelligence reports pointing to potential dangers.

Speaking in an interview with the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag, Dobrindt warned that the threat of attacks must now be considered a constant reality. “This means that the risk of attacks must be reckoned with at all times in Germany,” he was quoted as saying.

The minister made clear that the danger is not vague or distant. “Plans for attacks against our country are clearly discernible,” he added, pointing to threats directed at German infrastructure, individuals, and institutions.

Germany’s Interior Ministry had not responded to requests for additional information at the time of publication.

The announcement comes after a string of violent incidents in Germany in recent years. Last month, a Saudi doctor was sentenced to life in prison for a deadly attack in the eastern city of Magdeburg, where he drove a rented BMW into crowds at a historic market just days before Christmas in 2024, killing six people and injuring hundreds more.

In a separate case, a German court last year convicted a Syrian citizen for carrying out an Islamic State-inspired stabbing attack at a festival in the western city of Solingen in 2024. Three people were killed and 10 others were injured in that attack.

A devastating fire tore through the city of Drammen in southern Norway on Friday, destroying more than 100 homes and prompting a mass evacuation of the surrounding area, according to local police and the country’s national public broadcaster.

Authorities say the fire ignited in a townhouse at approximately 3:30 p.m. Friday before rapidly spreading throughout the neighborhood and into adjacent forest areas. Crews were still battling the blaze into Saturday morning in an effort to bring it fully under control.

Norway’s public broadcaster, NRK, reported that hundreds of displaced residents sought shelter at a designated evacuation center set up in response to the emergency.

Police confirmed that no residents have been reported missing. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.

Drammen is located approximately 34 kilometers — about 21 miles — southwest of the Norwegian capital, Oslo.

MOSCOW — Multiple waves of Ukrainian drone strikes left seven workers dead and dozens injured across Russia on Saturday, while a separate attack set an oil depot ablaze near the country’s capital, according to regional governors.

Governor Evgeniy Pervyshov reported that Ukrainian drones struck a warehouse belonging to Wildberries — Russia’s largest online retailer — in the city of Kotovsk, located in the Tambov region approximately 475 kilometers (295 miles) southeast of Moscow. Seven people working the overnight shift were killed at the scene, and 25 others were hurt in the attack.

Pervyshov noted on Telegram that 28 incoming drones had been intercepted before reaching their target. “If they had achieved their goal, the number of civilian casualties could have been much higher,” he stated.

A second Wildberries warehouse was also struck — this one in Elektrostal, a city to the east of Moscow. Governor Andrei Vorobyov of the Moscow region confirmed that 24 people sustained injuries in that attack.

Wildberries co-founder and CEO Tatyana Kim called it a “terrible night” for both Russia and the company, extending her condolences to the families of those who lost their lives.

In the city of Noginsk, also within the Moscow region, falling drone debris triggered a fire at a local oil depot. Governor Vorobyov said two individuals were injured there, and a maternity hospital located nearby was evacuated as a precaution. He did not provide details on the extent of the damage to the oil facility.

LITOCHORO, Greece — Crowned with snow for much of the year and rising 2,918 meters (9,573 feet) from a base nearly at sea level, Mount Olympus has stirred human imagination for thousands of years. In ancient Greek belief, this towering, mist-draped peak was where Zeus, ruler of the gods, held his throne. Now, modern Greeks are hoping to see their country’s highest mountain earn a place on UNESCO’s prestigious World Heritage List.

The nomination for Mount Olympus — put forward as a mixed cultural and natural site — is scheduled to be considered when the World Heritage Committee holds its annual meeting in Busan, South Korea, running through July 29.

“Olympus is our life. It is the place we grew up in,” said Evagelos Geroliolios, mayor of Dion-Olympus, whose offices are based in Litochoro, the mountain’s principal town. “It is the place we see every day, but at the same time, it is also a place which carries with it myth, history, biodiversity, extraordinary beauty and a very great cultural weight.”

Few places hold as prominent a role in ancient Greek mythology as Mount Olympus. Legend holds that Zeus established his court atop the mountain after a 10-year conflict with his father, Cronus, that ended the rule of the Titans.

Interest in the mountain could get an additional lift this week with the theatrical release of Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey,” a new cinematic adaptation of Homer’s epic poem. In the film, the mountain serves as the residence of Zeus and the Olympian gods who shape the wanderings of Odysseus.

Archaeological digs on one of the mountain’s lower peaks have revealed an open-air sanctuary, with the earliest artifacts tracing back to the Hellenistic period, spanning from 323 B.C. to 30 B.C. Greece’s original UNESCO nomination suggests this sanctuary may be the very one referenced by the ancient philosopher and historian Plutarch, who wrote in the 2nd century about processions to an Olympus peak for animal sacrifices offered to Zeus.

The mountain’s religious significance did not fade with the rise of Christianity. A chapel on the peak known as Prophet Elias, standing at 2,803 meters, is thought to be the highest-elevation chapel in the Christian Orthodox world. The mountain’s Enipeas Gorge contains the ruins of a monastery established in 1542, and about a 20-minute walk away lies the Holy Cave of St. Dionysios — a chapel set within a natural cave from which a small spring flows, believed to carry holy water.

Beyond its mythological and religious heritage, the mountain’s slopes — which stretch nearly to the shoreline — shelter a rich variety of plant and animal life, including species found nowhere else. It is this rare combination of cultural history, ancient myth, natural scenery, and biodiversity that residents hope will earn Olympus its designation as a World Heritage site.

“It is a place we love. It is a place that many people from all over the world visit to see, to live, to experience. We want to protect it,” Geroliolios said. He added that inclusion on UNESCO’s list would be “something very big that goes beyond not just local boundaries, but national boundaries. It is something that concerns the entire world. It is very important.”

Greece first set the process in motion back in 2014, when it added Mount Olympus to its Tentative List — the required first step before any formal UNESCO nomination can be submitted. Countries typically use the Tentative List to identify sites they plan to formally nominate within the following five to ten years.

The full nomination process involves a preliminary review, followed by submission of a comprehensive nomination file. That file is then evaluated over 14 months by advisory bodies, including the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Their findings are then brought before the World Heritage Committee, where delegates from 21 countries cast votes on each nominated site.

Success is not guaranteed for Greece’s bid. A draft version of the Busan meeting’s agenda indicates the committee is likely to refer the nomination back to Greece and request more detailed information before moving forward.

Even so, those who live near the mountain remain hopeful that its extraordinary combination of cultural and natural assets will ultimately secure it a spot on the list — and with it, stronger protections for the mountain itself.

Mayor Geroliolios acknowledged that a World Heritage designation would come with added responsibility, saying it “places some greater obligations on our part to protect this environment.”

Environmental concerns are also top of mind for mountain guide Babis Marinidis, who serves as president of the Alpine Club of Litochoro. He noted that a UNESCO designation would likely draw even more visitors to the area, raising a pressing question: “How many people can this mountain, this ecosystem, bear?”

Marinidis pointed out that although much of Olympus has been a designated national park for decades and regulations exist, many visitors openly disregard them — routinely ignoring signs prohibiting swimming or camping. The steady increase in foot traffic has prompted local officials to explore entrance fees and visitor registration systems. “I used to be against that,” Marinidis said. “But now with so many people, I believe some limit must be imposed.”

The mountain draws hikers and climbers from around the globe, drawn by its mythological legacy and dramatic terrain. Reaching the summit does not require advanced technical climbing skills, but the mountain demands serious respect. Unpredictable weather and dangerous terrain have taken many lives over the years. Most recently, a 64-year-old Greek hiker died on July 11 after collapsing on a trail. In May, rescue teams recovered the body of a 25-year-old Spanish man several days after he went missing while attempting to summit in snowy conditions.

“You need to be careful,” said 32-year-old hiker Triantafyllos Giannospyros, who was visiting the mountain for the first time. Safety should always be a priority, he said, but added: “With care and with good organization, it isn’t something you should be afraid of.”

Stavroula Vourou, who operates a hotel in Litochoro — the town from which many hikers begin their ascent — offered a similar perspective. “Everyone sets off to go up and conquer a mountain that needs respect,” she said. “You respect this mountain, it respects you too.”

NEW DELHI — Authorities in India moved a well-known activist to a hospital in New Delhi on Saturday after his condition worsened following 20 days without food, as part of an ongoing protest tied to the country’s rapidly growing Cockroach Janta Party education reform movement.

Security forces increased their presence at Jantar Mantar, a designated protest area in New Delhi surrounded by police barricades, where activist Sonam Wangchuk had been camped alongside students and Cockroach Party supporters. The group is calling for the resignation of the education minister following allegations that exam questions were leaked ahead of testing.

Wangchuk, a 59-year-old engineer and education reform advocate, has become a central figure for the movement. The Cockroach Janta Party itself emerged in May after the Chief Justice of India’s Supreme Court, Surya Kant, compared certain unemployed young people to “cockroaches” during an unrelated court hearing. Rather than take offense, supporters adopted the term as a symbol of toughness, transforming it into a satirical political campaign that attracted more than 21 million Instagram followers within just a few days.

Among the movement’s key demands are the resignation of education minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the alleged exam leaks, a complete overhaul of the national examination system, and financial compensation for the families of students who died by suicide in connection with the leaked exams or test results.

Delhi Police confirmed that Wangchuk was taken to the hospital due to his deteriorating health, stating the transfer followed both medical guidance and a court order. Officers noted that a brief disturbance broke out when some protesters attempted to prevent the move.

The Cockroach Party pushed back on that account, posting on social media that the government had “forcefully abducted” Wangchuk “without his or his family’s consent.”

In response to the growing tension, authorities deployed additional police officers and paramilitary personnel and placed barricades around the Jantar Mantar protest site. Police described the increased security as a precautionary measure and asked demonstrators to work cooperatively with officials.

The abortion debate playing out in the United States is having life-or-death consequences for women living thousands of miles away — particularly across the African continent.

For many years, American anti-abortion organizations have pushed for tighter restrictions on abortion both at home and internationally. This year, the Trump administration gave new energy to the movement that seeks to export conservative “family values” abroad, announcing broad new limits on US funding for any organizations involved in abortion-related work overseas. Those restrictions could affect as much as $30 billion in aid.

These new policies are layered on top of years of groundwork already laid by US anti-abortion groups in Africa, a region where healthcare systems are heavily reliant on money from foreign donors.

A financial analysis conducted by the Institute for Journalism and Social Change found that 17 American anti-abortion nonprofit organizations spent a combined total of more than $9.3 million across Africa during 2023 and 2024. That figure comes on top of more than $16 million those same groups directed to the continent between 2019 and 2022 — and researchers say even that earlier number is likely an undercount.

The influx of US support has given confidence to those who harass people working in reproductive healthcare. Medical professionals, nurses, and activists in multiple African countries have been detained by authorities, targeted with threats on social media, and hit with lawsuits.

Africa is already considered the most dangerous region in the world for women of reproductive age, recording the highest rates of maternal deaths and unsafe abortions anywhere on the globe. While the Trump administration and anti-abortion organizations argue they are working to save lives, healthcare workers and advocates on the ground say the real outcome is more women dying.

When the Associated Press asked the US State Department to comment on the Trump administration’s new rules governing American foreign aid, the department responded: “The American people expect their tax dollars to support programs that save lives … and reflect American values, not fund abortion-related activities, left-wing social agendas, or wasteful overseas bureaucracies.”

The department added: “U.S. assistance continues to support a wide range of maternal and child health services as part of the America First Global Health Strategy.”

Tracking the full amount of money that American anti-abortion charitable groups send to Africa is no easy task. Publicly available tax filings from the 17 organizations examined by the Institute for Journalism and Social Change show that the money flowing to Africa jumped 50% between 2019 and 2022, surpassing $16 million. Funding continued to climb after that, with those organizations spending nearly $9.4 million across Africa in 2023 and 2024, according to previously unreported data the institute analyzed.

Even so, the institute’s Claire Provost cautioned that what’s visible is “just the tip of the iceberg.” Unlike most other tax-exempt nonprofits, US-based churches and certain religious organizations are not required to file annual financial disclosures that detail their income, contributions, and spending.

Marie Stopes International reported in 2024 that staff at its reproductive health clinics in several African countries described facing online attacks and legal pressure from US-based anti-abortion organizations and locally operating groups receiving US funding. In Congo, the organization said health workers had been held for days for providing services that are legally allowed, before being released without any charges filed.

“The extent of the opposition has made abortion providers fearful of coming into work,” the report stated.

In Ethiopia, the group reported that the local head of the US-based Family Watch International had “targeted and trolled members of our senior leadership team on social media” and posted YouTube videos spreading false information about abortion.

In Kenya, the names and home addresses of staff at reproductive rights organizations have been posted publicly online, with accusations of murder leveled against them. The owner of a private abortion clinic in Nairobi said staff have been harassed by police and held in detention, with officials allegedly demanding bribes and threatening criminal charges for those who refuse to pay. The clinic owner spoke without being identified out of concern for personal safety.

Kenya’s Health Ministry, Justice Ministry, and the government spokesperson’s office all failed to respond to repeated requests for comment from the Associated Press, including detailed questions sent by email.

An international agreement signed by African nations roughly two decades ago declared access to safe abortion a human right. The agreement, known as the Maputo Protocol, requires countries that signed it to legalize abortion in cases involving rape, incest, fetal abnormalities, or threats to a woman’s health. However, enforcement has been inconsistent, leaving many women to seek out dangerous, illegal procedures. Each year, more than 6 million unsafe abortions are recorded in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the African Institute for Development Policy.

Last year, anti-abortion Christian organizations from the United States, Europe, and Africa joined senior Kenyan officials at a conference held in Nairobi focused on “Promoting and Protecting Family Values in Challenging Times.”

Charles Kanjama, vice chairman of the African Christian Professionals Forum, which organized the conference, described the abortion debate as “a culture war.”

The anti-abortion movement appears to be gaining ground. In May, a Kenyan appeals court reversed a ruling that had affirmed abortion access as a fundamental right — a legal challenge led by Kanjama, who described the court’s decision as having “restored constitutional balance.”

In June, representatives from 20 African countries gathered at a conference in Ghana and finalized a draft charter calling for the rejection of sexual and reproductive health rights. That charter is set to be voted on by the African Union next year. Sharon Slater, co-founder of the US-based anti-abortion group Family Watch International, was among those raising money for the charter’s passage at the European Parliament in Brussels earlier this year.

KISUMU, Kenya — For decades, American anti-abortion organizations have pushed both at home and overseas to limit access to abortion services. Their greatest domestic victory came with the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Now, the Trump administration is giving fresh energy to the movement that seeks to export what it calls “family values” to countries around the world.

At the annual March for Life rally in Washington, Vice President JD Vance announced broad new limits on U.S. funding for nongovernmental organizations, foreign governments, and United Nations agencies that support abortion access, gender-affirming care, and diversity programs abroad.

“We’re going to start blocking every international NGO that performs or promotes abortion abroad from receiving a dollar of U.S. money,” Vance told the crowd in January.

These expanded restrictions build on the work already being done by conservative American nonprofits in Africa — a region where healthcare systems rely heavily on foreign aid. Africa also has the world’s highest estimated share of unsafe abortions and the highest maternal death rates, including the greatest number of pregnancy-related deaths per 100,000 abortions.

This report is part of an ongoing series examining maternal mortality in sub-Saharan Africa, which has the world’s fastest-growing population and accounts for 70% of all pregnancy-related deaths globally. Roughly 180,000 women die from pregnancy-related causes across the continent every year.

The new policy represents a dramatic expansion of a previous U.S. rule that cut off assistance to overseas organizations offering abortion-related services. Experts say at least $30 billion in U.S. aid could be affected, with far-reaching effects on health policy worldwide.

“We’re seeing opportunity here to have a consistently pro-life ethic,” said Nicole Hunt of Focus on the Family, a Colorado-based conservative Christian evangelical organization. “We’ve been influencing health policies for a long time with our foreign aid. This is just a new direction,” she told the Associated Press.

At the center of the controversy is an international agreement signed by African nations two decades ago that declared safe abortion a human right. Called the Maputo Protocol, it requires signatory countries to allow abortion in cases of rape, incest, fetal malformation, or risk to a woman’s health. However, enforcement has been inconsistent, pushing many women toward dangerous, illegal procedures. Sub-Saharan Africa sees more than 6 million unsafe abortions annually, according to the African Institute for Development Policy.

Energized by President Donald Trump’s policies, U.S. anti-abortion organizations are now working to eliminate even this limited access to safe abortion procedures.

In Nairobi, Nardos Hagos of the International Planned Parenthood Federation said she is gravely concerned about what lies ahead.

“We’ve now moved into a new era where we are the ones who are in opposition because the most powerful and influential supporters of reproductive health — the U.S. and a lot of Europe — are now more aligned with anti-rights groups,” she said. “We’re gonna see more women dying from unsafe abortions.”

Tracking the total amount of money U.S. anti-abortion charitable groups send to Africa is difficult. Publicly available tax filings from 17 such organizations show that money directed to Africa jumped 50% between 2019 and 2022, reaching more than $16 million, according to an analysis by the Institute for Journalism and Social Change. The organizations then spent nearly $9.4 million in Africa during 2023 and 2024, according to previously unreported data examined by the institute.

That figure is “just the tip of the iceberg,” said the institute’s Claire Provost. “What we’re seeing here is just a fraction of what the real investment on the continent is,” she said, noting that unlike many tax-exempt nonprofits, U.S.-based churches and certain religious organizations are not required to file annual financial disclosures detailing their revenue and spending.

Provost said it is not possible to see “even limited information” about how much money The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, among others, channels to Africa. The Salt Lake City-based church — widely known as the Mormon church — is “increasingly active on the continent, including opposing sexual and reproductive rights issues,” Provost said. With more than 1 million followers across Africa, the church has hosted “Strengthening Families” conferences on the continent over the past eight years.

Sean E.R. Donnelly, the church’s communications manager for Africa, said in an interview with the AP that about a quarter of the $1.5 billion the church spent overseas last year went to Africa, funding development projects “with the goal of helping people, especially families,” including work in healthcare, education, and emergency relief.

When asked about women’s reproductive rights and abortion, Donnelly said the church was “not really active” in those areas, though he acknowledged the topics may come up among African partners during church-sponsored events.

“We have the deputy prime minister, we have the ministries of gender, we have all the ministers who are relevant to family, and we’re helping them … as they craft policy and strategy to make sure that we protect the family,” Donnelly said of the conferences.

Asked specifically about the church’s stance on abortion, he provided a written statement saying the church generally opposes elective abortion in most cases but allows exceptions for rape, incest, or danger to a woman’s health when counseling its members. He also stated via email that the church carries out no activities related to abortion or reproductive rights.

One church-sponsored conference last year was held in Sierra Leone at a time when the country was close to decriminalizing abortion. Local rights groups say pressure from religious lobbies stalled that effort. Activists have raised concerns about the influence of local religious organizations whose strategies resemble those of some conservative American Christian groups. In response to AP questions about the conference and any influence on abortion-related issues, Donnelly said, “This is not how the church operates in Africa or globally.”

Determining how U.S. money is used once it arrives in Africa is complicated by weak financial disclosure requirements in many African countries. Focus on the Family spent $370,000 in Africa between 2019 and 2023, according to the Institute for Journalism and Social Change, which notes that figure likely understates the group’s actual reach and influence. Focus on the Family’s Hunt said the group’s mission is “to change hearts and minds on abortion” worldwide but declined to share specifics about its work in Africa.

Hannah Ruguru made a personal vow to help women access safe abortions after her own sister died following an illegal procedure. But her work at a reproductive health clinic in Kisumu, in rural western Kenya, has become increasingly dangerous.

She has been screamed at by protesters and faced so much online harassment on Facebook that she deleted her account. “Sometimes you can get scared,” Ruguru said. But “at the end of the day, I’m helping women.”

Marie Stopes International, which operates the clinic where Ruguru works, reported in 2024 that staff in several African countries described online harassment and legal attacks from U.S.-based groups and U.S.-funded local organizations. In Congo, the report said, health workers were detained for days for providing legally permitted services before being released without charges.

“The extent of the opposition has made abortion providers fearful of coming into work,” the report stated.

In Ethiopia, the group said the head of the local office of U.S.-based Family Watch International has “targeted and trolled members of our senior leadership team on social media” and posted YouTube videos spreading anti-abortion misinformation. In Kenya, the names and home addresses of staff at reproductive rights organizations have been posted online, with accusations of murder.

The owner of a private abortion clinic in Nairobi said staff have been harassed and detained by police, with officials demanding bribes and threatening criminal charges if they are not paid. The owner spoke on condition of anonymity due to fear of retaliation.

Musoba Kitui, regional director of Ipas Africa Alliance, which advocates for reproductive rights and safe abortion care, said the shifts in U.S. foreign aid policy combined with “this advancing American interest in ideology in Africa is really concerning.” “We think the consequences are going to be dire,” Kitui said, particularly for women and marginalized communities including LGBTQ+ individuals.

Last year, anti-abortion Christian groups from the U.S., Europe, and Africa, along with senior Kenyan officials, gathered in Nairobi for a conference titled “Promoting and Protecting Family Values in Challenging Times.” A Poland-based anti-abortion organization called Ordo Iuris distributed a guide in four languages — including Swahili — with advice on lobbying international bodies such as the United Nations, the European Union, and the African Union.

Travis Weber, vice president of the Family Research Council, a Washington-based evangelical group involved in anti-abortion advocacy, said he attended the Nairobi conference to “defend the family as God designed it.”

Charles Kanjama, vice chairman of the African Christian Professionals Forum, which organized the conference, said that in the past, international aid frequently supported reproductive rights — but the landscape has shifted. “We are hoping that … we can start attracting money from people who think like us,” said Kanjama, considered one of Africa’s most prominent anti-abortion figures. “It’s a culture war, really.”

The anti-abortion movement does appear to be gaining ground. In June, representatives from 20 African countries finalized a draft charter at a conference in Ghana calling for the rejection of sexual and reproductive health rights. That charter is set to be voted on by the African Union next year. Family Watch International’s co-founder, Sharon Slater, was among those raising money for the charter’s passage at the European Parliament in Brussels this year.

In Kenya — one of Africa’s wealthier nations — an average of seven women die every day from complications related to unsafe abortions, according to the African Population and Health Research Center. Kenya’s 2010 constitution allows abortion when a woman’s life or health is at risk, and subsequent court rulings have extended that to cases of rape, incest, or serious threat to a woman’s mental health.

However, a significant legal gray area remains. Kenya’s penal code, which dates back to the colonial era, still criminalizes abortion providers and women who seek the procedure, with penalties of up to 14 years in prison. Most public hospitals do not perform abortions, leaving women to choose between expensive private clinic services or dangerous illegal methods, according to healthcare officials.

In May, a Kenyan appeals court overturned a ruling that had affirmed abortion access as a fundamental right — a case led by Kanjama, who called the decision a restoration of “constitutional balance.”

The Kenyan Health Ministry, Justice Ministry, and the government spokesperson’s office did not respond to repeated requests for comment from the AP.

The U.S. State Department, responding to AP questions about the Trump administration’s new overseas aid rules, said: “The American people expect their tax dollars to support programs that save lives … and reflect American values, not fund abortion-related activities, left-wing social agendas, or wasteful overseas bureaucracies.” The department added: “U.S. assistance continues to support a wide range of maternal and child health services as part of the America First Global Health Strategy.”

In Kenya, doctors are required to treat women who arrive at hospitals suffering from complications following illegal abortions, including severe bleeding, infections, and loss of their uteruses — and these are the cases that most often reach public hospitals.

“By the time the women come, we are often dealing with a life-threatening situation,” said Dominic Omollo, the reproductive health coordinator in Bondo, western Kenya.

Even as U.S., international, and Africa-based anti-abortion groups say their goal is to protect life, healthcare providers and activists on the ground say the practical outcome is more unsafe abortions and more women dying.

In Karabok, a rural Kenyan village, two trees mark the burial site of Mary Olouch, just steps from where the 25-year-old bled to death after an illegal abortion. “She did not open up to anyone,” said Loice Ochieng, a community health volunteer responsible for family planning in the village.

Olouch already had a young child when she discovered she was pregnant again. She kept it from her husband. When he returned home one evening to find her bleeding, he rushed her to the hospital — but she did not survive.

Olouch did not qualify for an abortion at a public hospital and could not afford a private clinic on her modest income from selling fish. Abortion carries deep stigma in rural communities, and husbands often forbid their wives from using contraception, Ochieng said.

Following Olouch’s death, women in Karabok began speaking more openly about abortion — a subject that had previously been nearly unspeakable in the community. Now, Ochieng said, if women “have a problem, they come to me, they ask. Because they have seen that this thing can cause death.”

Emergency crews in China worked frantically Saturday to locate survivors after a devastating landslide in the southwestern city of Chongqing claimed at least eight lives and left 34 people still missing.

The disaster struck Pengshui County on Friday morning, when enormous quantities of rock and soil cascaded down a hillside, burying more than ten residential buildings, according to state broadcaster CCTV. Ten survivors were pulled from the debris and transported to the hospital, while authorities relocated more than 1,100 residents from the area.

Photographs and video from the scene revealed the sheer scale of the destruction — one of the boulders appeared to be larger than a multi-story building, with wreckage spread across the rugged, steep landscape. One structure had its upper portion completely crushed, and a vehicle was visible half-buried near another building.

Officials said the landslide involved approximately 18,000 cubic meters of rocks and debris. The single largest boulder measured around 3,000 cubic meters, according to Wang Chuanjun, the head of Planning and Natural Resources in Pengshui County, who spoke at a news conference Friday.

CCTV reported that heavy rain continued to pound Pengshui from Friday night into Saturday morning, with one weather station recording 19.2 centimeters — nearly 8 inches — of rainfall. The ongoing wet conditions made the rescue mission significantly more difficult. As the rain began to let up somewhat, search teams were able to enter the site and assess the collapsed buildings and nearby riverbank areas.

Rescue workers are currently operating around the perimeter of the massive boulders, but crews will eventually need to search beneath them — a dangerous task given the risk of the unstable rocks shifting or sliding. CCTV reported that once the surrounding search is finished, workers plan to drill into the boulders and pack the holes with explosives to break them apart.

China’s National Development and Reform Commission announced Saturday that it has allocated 30 million yuan — approximately $4.4 million — in relief funding to help rebuild infrastructure and restore public services in the disaster zone.

The landslide took place near a stretch of the Wujiang River, which winds through karst mountain terrain dotted with small communities and terraced hillsides. Pengshui County sits in the southeastern portion of Chongqing, along the borders of Hubei and Guizhou provinces.

Colombian state-owned energy giant Ecopetrol announced Friday that a cyberattack resulted in the theft of data connected to approximately 3,300 user accounts. The company also acknowledged it cannot “guarantee” the breach will not have a “material adverse” financial impact.

Despite the alarming disclosure, Ecopetrol said that as of Friday, no critical disruptions to its operations or production capacity had been detected, and no direct financial damage had been confirmed. Additionally, the hacker has not yet publicly released any of the stolen information.

Ecopetrol ranks among Latin America’s largest energy producers and is Colombia’s biggest company overall, responsible for more than 60% of the nation’s hydrocarbon output.

While the identity of the attacker remains unknown, the hacker has reached out to the company with extortion demands and has threatened to make the compromised data public if those demands are not met.

The breach impacted cloud-based file storage systems across 15 subsidiaries, including Ecopetrol itself. The company added that it successfully blocked a separate ransomware attack attempt during the incident.

Ecopetrol said it is still evaluating the full scope of the breach, which may involve confidential, proprietary, or personal data. The company cautioned that the incident could ultimately affect its business operations, reputation, financial results, or overall financial standing.

LONDON (AP) — Veteran Labour Party politician and former Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is poised to take the reins as Britain’s next prime minister on Monday, formally assuming power from Keir Starmer, who stepped down as Labour leader last month.

Burnham ran unopposed in the Labour leadership race, becoming the only candidate to gather sufficient backing from fellow party lawmakers to succeed Starmer. Since Labour currently controls a majority in Parliament, whoever leads the party also holds the office of prime minister.

Of the 401 Labour lawmakers eligible to vote, 349 threw their support behind Burnham. He was officially declared the new Labour leader at a special party conference held Friday. However, he does not formally take office until Monday, when he travels to Buckingham Palace for a meeting with King Charles III — the ceremonial step that completes the transition. Until that meeting takes place, Starmer continues to serve as caretaker prime minister.

Here’s a closer look at how and why Britain is welcoming a new prime minister just two years after Starmer’s party swept to a landslide election victory:

Under Britain’s parliamentary system of government, a ruling party has the ability to swap out its leader in the middle of a term. When that happens, the new party leader steps into the role of prime minister without any need for a nationwide general election. This can occur when a prime minister voluntarily resigns as party leader or is pushed out through a formal leadership challenge.

The next scheduled general election does not need to occur until 2029 — five years after the last one, which was held in 2024.

Starmer announced on June 22 that he was stepping down as Labour leader after less than two years in power. His time in office was plagued by a string of political stumbles, most notably his decision to appoint someone with close ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as Britain’s ambassador to the United States.

Labour’s significant losses in a round of local elections held in May put enormous pressure on Starmer, with many of his own lawmakers calling for him to quit. The tipping point came when Burnham — widely seen as a favored figure within the party — won a special election for a parliamentary seat. That victory gave Burnham the platform he needed, and Starmer ultimately yielded to the growing calls to resign.

Starmer’s departure automatically set off a Labour leadership contest. Party rules state that a lawmaker can enter a leadership race if at least one-fifth of Labour’s House of Commons members back their candidacy. Burnham easily cleared that bar, and with no other candidates stepping forward, the outcome was never in doubt.

It is worth noting that this kind of leadership transition is far from unusual in British politics. In fact, four of the six prime ministers Britain has had over the past decade came to power through internal party contests rather than direct public votes.

During the 2010s, both Theresa May and Boris Johnson rose to the position of prime minister after winning Conservative Party leadership races that were triggered by their predecessors’ mid-term resignations. When Johnson himself announced he was stepping down in 2022, the Conservative Party held another leadership contest, and party members chose Liz Truss as his replacement. Truss lasted just 49 days before she too resigned, and was succeeded by Rishi Sunak through the same internal process.

With Burnham’s ascension, Britain will have its seventh prime minister in a decade — a turbulent stretch in which a rapid parade of leaders each struggled, to varying degrees, to navigate the complicated and divisive fallout from Britain’s decision to leave the European Union.

After so many leadership changes in recent years, the ceremonial transfer of power has become a familiar sequence for many British citizens.

On Monday, Starmer will deliver a farewell address to the public before heading to Buckingham Palace, where he will hold a brief audience with the king and formally submit his resignation.

Once Starmer departs, Burnham will arrive at the palace, where King Charles will formally invite him to establish a new government. The private ceremony is historically referred to as the “Kissing of Hands” — though in practice, no hands are actually kissed, and the exchange is more likely to involve a handshake.

After leaving the palace, Burnham will officially hold the title of the 59th person ever to serve as British prime minister. He will then travel by car to his official residence at 10 Downing Street, where he is expected to deliver his first public remarks as the country’s new leader.

The entire process is typically aired live on television and is expected to be completed within a matter of hours.

Iran launched a new wave of attacks against U.S. allies in the Gulf region on Saturday, coming after a seventh straight night of American military strikes on Iranian military targets, including logistics infrastructure. The renewed fighting comes one week after a fragile ceasefire between the two countries fell apart.

Both nations also took aim at maritime traffic in the region. The United States said it was enforcing a naval blockade of Iran, while Iran claimed it was stopping vessels that had violated its navigation rules in the Strait of Hormuz — the critical waterway through which one-fifth of the world’s oil flows.

Global oil prices jumped more than 4% on Friday, reaching their highest point in over a month. The spike is adding political pressure on President Donald Trump as his Republican Party works to maintain control of Congress in November elections.

Washington and Tehran have been pushing the boundaries of military escalation since their ceasefire broke down last week, raising fears of a full return to open warfare.

The U.S. military’s Central Command announced it had completed its latest round of strikes, hitting surveillance sites, military logistics infrastructure, underground weapons storage facilities, and maritime capabilities. “U.S. forces employed fighter aircraft, aerial drones, and warships in addition to other assets,” Central Command said in a statement. “More than 50,000 American service members are operating across the Middle East and remain vigilant, lethal, and ready.”

Iranian media reported Saturday that several missiles struck power facilities and desalination pumps in the southern Iranian city of Jask, according to a local official. That official said drinking water had been cut off in surrounding villages as a result of the attack.

The U.S. military said its forces redirected four commercial ships, disabled one vessel, and boarded another as part of its naval blockade enforcement. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards countered that four ships violating its shipping rules were stopped from passing through the strait using a combined missile and drone operation.

Iranian media, citing the Revolutionary Guards, also reported that two oil tankers exploded and caught fire after passing through a mined area south of the strait. The U.S. military rejected that report as false.

Separately, armed men seized another vessel off the coast of Yemen, raising new concerns about security at the mouth of the Red Sea — another major chokepoint for global oil shipments.

Iran’s state television quoted the Revolutionary Guards as warning that until U.S. “aggression” ends, it will not be possible to export chemical fertilizers or even a “single drop of oil and gas” from the region. Mohsen Rezaei, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, also warned on Friday against any U.S. escalation or attempts to seize Iranian territory.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed concern over the escalating conflict, particularly regarding what his spokesperson described as “attacks on civilian infrastructure in Iran and across the region.”

Iranian media reported early Saturday that strikes hit coastal Hormozgan Province on the Iranian side of the Strait of Hormuz. State television said three people were killed and eight wounded, and that two bridges and a road tunnel were damaged. Explosions or strikes were also reported in the cities of Sirik, Ahvaz, Yazd, Jask, and Khorramabad during Friday night and early Saturday.

On Friday, Iranian state media reported that at least five bridges in southern Iran were struck in U.S. attacks. Seven people were reported killed in strikes on bridges in the southern port of Bandar Khamir, where a train station was also hit. An airport was reported struck further east in Iranshahr, a province that borders Pakistan.

President Trump has threatened broad air strikes on Iranian infrastructure and has not ruled out a ground assault on Iran’s coast or islands. U.S. officials have said the attacks on southern Iran are partly designed to keep military options open for Trump.

Such actions risk prompting Iran to strike the vital infrastructure of vulnerable Gulf nations, or encouraging its allies in Yemen to further disrupt global energy supplies by targeting Red Sea shipping.

Iran announced it had launched attacks on Gulf countries hosting U.S. airbases, including Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, and Jordan, as well as targeting a U.S. vessel in the northern Indian Ocean. Saudi Arabia’s civil defense issued early warnings — the first in several months — in at least two locations, though no damage had yet been reported. Earlier in the conflict, Iran had struck some of the kingdom’s energy facilities.

Kuwaiti authorities confirmed that one of the country’s power generation and water desalination stations was hit in an Iranian attack, causing damage, a fire, and the disruption of a large number of electricity generation units. The Kuwaiti army later confirmed it was actively responding to Iranian drone attacks.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they struck a U.S. drone depot in Bahrain and destroyed Bahrain’s main artificial intelligence center using ballistic missiles and drones. Iran’s state news agency also reported that the Iranian navy fired a shore-to-sea cruise missile at what it described as a hostile U.S. vessel in the northern Indian Ocean, with Iran’s army claiming the launch caused “fear and panic” and forced the vessel to move out of range.

SYDNEY — Australian police are reporting another shark attack, this time off the coast of Tasmania, where a 31-year-old male diver was bitten Saturday morning in what authorities believe was an encounter with a broadnose sevengill shark.

The incident took place at approximately 9:10 a.m. local time (2310 GMT) in the Adventure Bay area of Bruny Island, roughly 50 metres — about 164 feet — from shore. The shark involved is estimated to have been around 2 metres, or approximately 6.6 feet, in length.

Police Inspector Darren Latham described how the situation unfolded in an official statement: “The man was able to return to shore and was assisted by fellow divers.”

The diver suffered non-life-threatening wounds to his forearm and was airlifted to a hospital, arriving in stable condition. Authorities noted no additional sightings of the shark following the attack.

Bruny Island is a remote part of the island state of Tasmania, located about a one-hour flight from the mainland city of Melbourne, which sits roughly 445 kilometres — or 275 miles — away. Approximately 40 percent of the island consists of wilderness or protected lands.

The Tasmania attack is one of several shark incidents that have rattled Australia in recent months. Last month, a 35-year-old woman was left critically injured after a shark attack in Sydney, Australia’s largest city, prompting officials to launch a safety review at popular beaches across the country.

Also in June, a man lost his life after being attacked by a shark while fishing off the coast of Western Australia, marking the most recent fatal encounter.

May brought two more deadly incidents. A 39-year-old man died following a shark attack while fishing on Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef. Just one week before that, a 38-year-old was fatally attacked near an island off Perth in Western Australia.

The trend is not new. In January, dozens of beaches along Australia’s east coast were shut down after four shark attacks occurred within a span of just two days.

Although shark encounters are still considered statistically uncommon, data from the Australian Shark Incident Database — analyzed by Reuters — shows the numbers have been climbing. Australia has averaged close to 29 shark incidents per year over the past decade, a notable increase compared to roughly 16 incidents per year during the 2000s.

The U.S. military confirmed late Thursday that it had wrapped up another round of strikes against Iran, carried out under orders from President Donald Trump — the seventh night in a row that American forces have launched attacks.

According to a statement from U.S. Central Command, the assault involved a combination of fighter jets, aerial drones, and warships, along with additional military assets.

The targets struck included, in the military’s words, “surveillance sites, military logistics infrastructure, underground weapons storage, and maritime capabilities.”

Iran responded by launching its own strikes against U.S. allies in the Gulf on Friday, as both sides continued to go after infrastructure. Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz also came under further attack.

Iranian state media reported that at least five bridges in the country’s southern region were destroyed in U.S. strikes on Friday. Seven people were reported dead following attacks on bridges in the southern port city of Bandar Khamir, where the train station was also hit. An airport in Iranshahr — a city in a province along the border with Pakistan — was also reported struck.

On the other side, authorities in Kuwait, a U.S. ally, said that one of the country’s facilities for generating power and desalinating water was damaged in an Iranian attack.

Trump, meanwhile, repeated his threats this week to target Iranian energy infrastructure and warned that bridges could be hit as soon as next week. Those threats have drawn scrutiny from legal experts, who noted earlier this year that striking civilian-essential sites could constitute war crimes under the 1949 Geneva Conventions, which prohibit attacks on infrastructure that civilians depend on.

Trump drew widespread international criticism in April after threatening to destroy Iran’s entire civilization, though a ceasefire with Tehran was eventually reached at that time.

The current conflict traces back to February 28, when the U.S. and Israel jointly attacked Iran. Iran responded with strikes on Israel and on Gulf states that host American military bases. Since then, U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed thousands of people and forced millions from their homes.

The war has also driven up oil prices and sent shockwaves through global financial markets.

New Delhi authorities have hospitalized social activist Sonam Wangchuk after his health took a turn for the worse on the 21st day of an ongoing hunger strike aimed at forcing India’s federal education minister out of office.

Wangchuk, who is 59 years old, began refusing food on June 28 in a show of solidarity with India’s youth Cockroach Janta Party, known as CJP. The group is calling for Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to step down following the leak of exam papers in May — a scandal that impacted millions of students across the country.

Delhi police confirmed that Wangchuk was transferred to a medical facility “for essential medical care” under court orders after his condition worsened on Saturday.

Earlier in the week, the Delhi High Court directed officials to closely monitor Wangchuk’s health and step in if necessary. The court’s action came in response to a petition requesting that authorities force-feed the activist as his condition continued to decline.

Members of the CJP announced plans to march to India’s parliament on July 20, coinciding with the start of the monsoon legislative session, to push for Pradhan’s removal and call for changes to the country’s exam system.

Throughout the protest, Wangchuk has been a central figure, lying on a mattress on a stage while supporters and visitors gathered around him at the demonstration site.

The federal government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi previously accused Wangchuk of stirring unrest through what it described as inflammatory remarks made during violent demonstrations in the Himalayan territory of Ladakh, where Wangchuk is from. He spent roughly six months behind bars before being released in March of this year. Wangchuk has rejected those accusations, arguing that the violent protests reflected deep public frustration with the central government.

On the third day of his fast, Wangchuk spoke with Reuters and said he intended to continue fasting for six weeks — unless his life ended before then.

“But hopefully, we don’t have to go that far,” he said at the time. “A sensitive government in a democracy listens to the pains of the people, and I hope they will take action.”

SAO PAULO — A Brazilian Supreme Court justice issued a ruling Friday placing a 30-day ban on visits to former President Jair Bolsonaro, who is currently confined to house arrest, permitting only medical staff and legal counsel to see him.

Justice Alexandre de Moraes determined that a social media post made by Senator Flavio Bolsonaro — the former president’s son and a candidate in October’s presidential race — had broken the terms of his father’s house arrest conditions.

The younger Bolsonaro shared a letter over the weekend, written by his father, in which the elder Bolsonaro urged supporters to move past any internal disagreements. In the letter, Jair Bolsonaro wrote that it was time “to set aside any differences, and have everyone commit to supporting” his son’s bid for the presidency.

Jair Bolsonaro was sentenced last year to more than 27 years behind bars after being convicted of plotting to overthrow the government following his loss to Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in the 2022 presidential election. Under the terms of his humanitarian house arrest, which was granted this year due to health concerns, he is prohibited from using social media or a telephone, either directly or through other people acting on his behalf.

A legal representative for the former president had not responded to requests for comment at the time of the ruling.

Earlier in the week, Justice Moraes had already moved to block Senator Bolsonaro from visiting his father for a period of 90 days, also stemming from the letter incident. The senator described that earlier decision as an “attempt to interfere in the elections.”

Friday’s ruling went further, additionally prohibiting the former president from receiving any visits “with a political-electoral finality” through the conclusion of the elections, and barring him from issuing “political-electoral remarks” — including statements made through third parties on his behalf.

Syria’s Interior Ministry announced Tuesday that its security forces had intercepted an alleged weapons smuggling operation aimed at moving advanced armaments through Syrian territory to Hezbollah — and in doing so, publicly branded the Lebanese group a “terrorist militia,” a characterization analysts say marks a striking change in the new government’s official stance.

According to the ministry, specialized security units stopped a suspicious vehicle near the Syrian-Iraqi border and found a cache of long-range missiles, guided anti-tank missiles, and drones hidden inside. Preliminary findings suggest the shipment was intended to pass through Syria on its way to Lebanon for Hezbollah, and officials say the investigation is continuing to identify those responsible and dismantle the network behind it.

A Syrian Interior Ministry source told The Media Line that the seizure was “an exceptional and highly significant operation,” and said Damascus would share all evidence with Iraqi authorities as part of a coordinated effort to pursue everyone connected to the alleged smuggling ring.

“The investigation treats this as a cross-border network rather than an isolated incident,” the source said, adding that coordination with Baghdad would focus on tracing the shipment’s route and identifying all parties involved.

New details obtained by The Media Line from Mazen Alloush, director of public relations at Syria’s General Authority for Land and Sea Border Crossings, revealed that the weapons were concealed inside an oil tanker that was officially registered as carrying black fuel oil. Iraqi customs officials had sealed the tanker after processing it as a routine fuel delivery and attached instructions prohibiting inspectors from opening it until it reached its final destination.

The tanker had left Iraq roughly nine days earlier after completing all required customs procedures, joining convoys moving Iraqi fuel to Syria’s Baniyas refinery through the al-Tanf border crossing under an existing oil transport agreement between the two nations.

Alloush explained that the weapons were carefully wrapped in insulating materials and submerged beneath the black fuel oil, making them nearly impossible for police dogs to detect. He said the limited availability of specialized scanning equipment for liquid tankers allowed the vehicle to pass through multiple checkpoints before being discovered on the Syrian side of the border.

“This was a sophisticated concealment operation designed to evade customs inspections,” Alloush said.

The al-Tanf crossing has long been considered one of the most sensitive points along the Syria-Iraq border, having served for years as a corridor exploited by smuggling networks during Syria’s civil war. Syrian authorities say border security has been substantially tightened since the country’s new administration came to power.

The Interior Ministry pledged that Syrian territory would not be used as a transit route for weapons trafficking or any activity threatening Syria or neighboring countries, calling border protection and national sovereignty a top priority.

Hezbollah pushed back against the allegations, dismissing them as “fabricated claims with no basis in fact” designed to damage the group’s reputation.

Iraq responded by announcing the formation of a high-level investigative committee made up of security and technical officials. In a statement, Iraq’s Security Media Cell said the committee would work with Syrian authorities to determine the full circumstances of the case and hold any negligent parties accountable “to safeguard the security and stability of the shared border and prevent any attempts to undermine national security.”

The development comes as Baghdad and Damascus work to strengthen security cooperation along their approximately 600-kilometer (370-mile) shared border — a stretch long exploited by smuggling networks during years of conflict and weakened government control.

For many observers, the most significant element of this episode goes beyond the weapons seizure itself. Daoud al-Sayed, a Syrian researcher specializing in political science and international relations, said the Interior Ministry’s decision to publicly call Hezbollah a “terrorist militia” represents a major departure from the language used under former President Bashar Assad, when the Lebanese group was considered one of Damascus’s closest military partners.

Last month, President Trump said he spoke with al-Sharaa at the G-7 conference, and that the two leaders discussed the possibility of Syria playing an active role in countering Hezbollah.

“The new Syrian administration has consistently emphasized that relations with Lebanon should be conducted through state institutions rather than armed groups,” al-Sayed told The Media Line. “The ministry’s statement reflects that policy.”

He argued that the alleged smuggling operation pushed Damascus to publicly define its position toward Hezbollah more explicitly than at any point since the new government took office. “If this rhetoric is followed by additional security and political measures,” he said, “it could signal a broader restructuring of Syria’s policy toward non-state armed groups and a new framework governing relations with Lebanon and border security.”

Hezbollah had openly entered the Syrian conflict in 2013, deploying thousands of fighters in support of Assad’s government across multiple fronts. Since the fall of that government and the rise of Syria’s new administration, officials have repeatedly stated that all weapons inside the country must fall exclusively under state authority.

Analysts say the Interior Ministry’s decision to officially label Hezbollah a “terrorist militia” signals a notable shift in Syria’s public posture, suggesting Damascus may be redefining its security and political relationship with the group. The weapons seizure is also part of a broader campaign by Syria’s new leadership to crack down on arms and narcotics trafficking networks that took root along the country’s borders during years of conflict.

Whether the joint Syrian-Iraqi investigation will ultimately expose a wider regional network remains to be seen. But the inquiry is expected to determine not only who organized the alleged shipment, but whether additional actors were involved in moving weapons across one of the region’s most sensitive borders — and for Syria’s new leadership, the outcome could serve as an early test of its commitment to reassert state authority and keep Syrian territory free from regional weapons trafficking.

US Central Command conducted a new round of military operations overnight into Friday, hitting military and transportation infrastructure in Iran’s Hormozgan province as Tehran simultaneously expanded its attacks against neighboring countries that host American military installations.

The American military used fighter jets, drones, and warships to strike a range of targets, including military logistics facilities, air defense positions, coastal surveillance sites, and infrastructure connected to access routes leading into the port of Bandar Abbas. The operation also took out six bridges and a railway station in what appeared to be a coordinated effort to cut off supply lines into the strategically important southern port city.

According to Iranian state media, the strikes resulted in at least eight deaths and left 20 others injured in Hormozgan province.

While those US operations were underway, Iran launched attacks targeting Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan — four countries that all host American military facilities.

Qatar’s Defense Ministry announced Friday morning that it was responding to a second aerial attack within the same day. Earlier, Qatar’s Interior Ministry had reported that a child was injured by falling shrapnel from a previous wave of strikes. Iran had not attacked Qatar in the days leading up to Friday, and Tehran has not claimed responsibility for Friday morning’s strikes on the country.

Bahrain sounded warning sirens for a second time Friday morning, according to its Interior Ministry. Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported that Iranian forces had targeted US military assets inside Bahrain, and state broadcaster IRIB released video it claimed showed drones being launched in Bahrain’s direction. CNN reported that it had reached out to US Central Command for a response.

Kuwaiti officials issued early Friday morning warnings to residents, alerting them that missile and drone threats could produce sounds from air defense interception systems. Iranian state media reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, known as the IRGC, claimed to have targeted US military equipment in Kuwait.

Jordan’s military said it intercepted three Iranian missiles on Friday, with no reported casualties or property damage. The IRGC separately claimed it had struck US fighter jets and aerial refueling aircraft in Jordan — a claim that CNN said it had not been able to independently confirm.

Iranian state media later reported that the IRGC had also targeted a US radar installation in Oman.

Armenia and Azerbaijan are moving forward on economic cooperation, including the revival of Azerbaijani oil product shipments to Armenia, even as a disagreement over Armenia’s constitution continues to block the signing of a full peace agreement between the two countries.

Despite the lack of a formal treaty, trade and diplomatic contacts between the two nations have grown, with observers describing the current situation as a kind of “real peace” in practice. Still, negotiations on a binding accord remain at a standstill.

At the heart of the dispute is language in the preamble of Armenia’s constitution. That section references a Soviet-era declaration that called for the unification of Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Azerbaijan views this wording as an indirect claim on its sovereign territory and has insisted the language must be removed before any peace treaty can be finalized.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said he intends to put a new constitution before voters through a national referendum, which would strip out the contested language. However, the timeline for that vote is unclear, as his political party currently lacks the parliamentary majority needed to push the referendum forward without complications.

Even with the treaty stalled, relations between the two countries have continued to improve. Direct communication has increased, and economic ties have been restored, most notably through the resumption of Azerbaijani oil deliveries to Armenia following years of conflict between the two nations.

The roots of the dispute stretch back decades to the long-standing conflict over the mountainous territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. That conflict came to a decisive end in 2023 when Azerbaijan launched a swift military offensive that dismantled the ethnic Armenian breakaway region there, causing more than 100,000 residents to flee their homes.

While the growing trade relationship and expanding diplomatic engagement point toward eventual normalization, the constitutional question remains the central obstacle standing between Armenia and Azerbaijan and a comprehensive, formal peace agreement.

Israel’s parliament voted in the early hours of Thursday morning to dissolve itself, opening the door to new national elections scheduled for October 27. The vote came after lawmakers pushed through a series of significant bills on some of the country’s most contentious domestic issues before bringing the current legislative session to a close.

With parliament now disbanded, the existing government will continue to function in a limited caretaker capacity, handling only routine matters until a new administration takes shape following the elections.

Political parties are now turning their focus to the campaign ahead, working to finalize candidate lists, forge alliances, and launch efforts across the country to secure seats in the 120-member parliament.

In the final hours before dissolving, the Knesset passed a temporary law extending mandatory military service from 30 months to 32 months. The measure is designed to help the Israel Defense Forces keep pace with operational demands and ongoing security challenges.

At the same time, parliament approved separate measures that could expand military service exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Jewish men. One of those bills elevates Torah study to the status of a Basic Law in Israel, while another halts the arrest of haredi men who have avoided the draft.

Lawmakers also approved a measure permitting gender-segregated academic programs at the graduate level.

Rounding out the final legislative push, the Knesset passed changes to the country’s communications regulatory structure and approved a bill that would divide the duties currently held by the attorney general into separate roles.

Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, passed a wide-ranging broadcast media reform law on Thursday, approving the Communications (Broadcasting) Law, 5786-2026, by a vote of 53 to 48 in its second and third readings.

The new legislation replaces the existing regulatory framework with a system that gives the government a larger role in overseeing the broadcasting industry. Under the changes, longstanding rules requiring minimum journalistic standards, investment in original Israeli productions, and limits on cross-ownership have been removed. The government will also gain more control over how television audiences are measured and how state advertising dollars are distributed.

A centerpiece of the reform is the establishment of the Broadcast Communications Authority, a new independent statutory regulator designed to consolidate and ultimately replace Israel’s current broadcast oversight bodies. The authority will operate on an annual budget of 25 million shekels, funded through deductions from the budget of Israel’s public broadcasting corporation.

The law also creates a nine-member Broadcast Communications Regulatory Council, which will be responsible for setting policy for the new authority. Council members will be chosen through a nomination process overseen by a committee chaired by the director general of the Communications Ministry.

Shortly before passage, lawmakers approved a last-minute amendment that benefits Channel 14, a pro-government broadcaster. The amendment exempts Channel 14 from a new rule that would have required television broadcasters to provide certain programming to distribution platforms at no cost. That exemption is estimated to be worth approximately 40 million shekels — roughly $13.8 million — per year.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took part in the parliamentary debate over the legislation but stepped aside and did not vote when the final tally was taken. Netanyahu is currently on trial in cases connected to his past dealings with media outlets.

NEW YORK — The top federal prosecutor overseeing the Brooklyn district says he has no grounds to challenge the Justice Department’s move to abandon its criminal case against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, though he stopped short of saying whether he personally agreed with the decision.

U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. addressed the matter in a letter sent Friday to the federal judge handling the case. In it, he acknowledged that he was “not the decisionmaker” when it came to dropping the charges, and said he had no reason to believe that the justification offered by his supervisor — top Justice Department official Trent McCotter — did not reflect the “real grounds” for dismissal.

The letter came in response to a direct request from U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis, who had asked Nocella to state whether he agreed or disagreed with McCotter’s reasoning for scrapping the Adani case, and whether any other factors supported the dismissal.

The case against Adani had involved allegations of fraud and bribery. Nocella’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the matter.

KAMPALA — Twenty schoolchildren were killed Thursday night when a bus transporting them home from a field trip crashed in eastern Uganda, according to authorities.

In response to the tragedy, the Ugandan government announced Friday that all school excursions are now on hold indefinitely, as the disaster sparked widespread grief and a wave of online calls for stronger safety measures.

According to police, early investigations indicate the driver lost control of the vehicle, which then veered off the road and flipped after striking a large rock. The information was shared in a police post on X.

The bus belonged to King David Junior School, located in the capital city of Kampala. It was making its way back from an educational trip to Sipi Falls when it crashed at Chekwatit village in the Kapchorwa district, police said.

In addition to the 20 children killed, one adult also died in the crash. Three other adults and a number of children sustained injuries, officials confirmed.

Fatal road accidents occur frequently in Uganda. Experts commonly point to poorly maintained vehicles and inadequate street lighting as contributing factors.

The country experienced another devastating crash last October, when 46 people died on one of Uganda’s main highways connecting the capital to the northern city of Gulu.

A government communications agency announced Friday that Education Minister Chrysostom Muyingo had placed “a hold on all school trips and excursions, effective immediately and until further notice.”

KYIV — For the second straight day, thousands of demonstrators filled the streets outside Ukraine’s presidential office, demanding the ouster of the country’s top military commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi. The protests erupted following President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s surprise government shake-up that pushed out widely respected defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov.

Fedorov, a 35-year-old known for his technological expertise, had been widely credited with contributing to some of Ukraine’s recent battlefield successes against Russia. His removal in the unexpected reshuffle sparked immediate public fury and calls for a more forward-thinking military strategy.

Among those who showed up to protest was Andriy, a 27-year-old combat medic who lost part of his lower limb in the war and whose brother was killed in combat. He arrived carrying a handmade cardboard sign reading: “Can not stand. Will not stay silent.”

“Syrskyi had conflicts not only with the defence minister, but also with brigade and corps commanders. If he stays, we will simply be ineffective,” Andriy said. “We could simply lose this war, we could lose.”

Zelenskiy offered minimal explanation for the shake-up, saying he was forced to act because the divide between Syrskyi and Fedorov had grown so deep that the two men refused to sit at the same table.

On Friday, Zelenskiy named Ukraine’s former top law enforcement official, Ihor Klymenko, to head the national security and defence council, replacing current chairman Rustem Umerov. Klymenko had previously been floated as a possible replacement for Fedorov himself. The president said Klymenko would be responsible for coordinating “all components of the security and defence sector,” including defence production.

It remained unclear whether Umerov — who also serves as Ukraine’s lead negotiator in U.S.-backed peace discussions with Russia — would be offered another role in the government.

Late Thursday, as public anger intensified, Zelenskiy moved to ease tensions by appointing Yevhenii Khmara, a senior security official overseeing Ukraine’s long-range strikes on Russian territory, as acting defence minister.

Crowds outside the presidential building chanted “Syrskyi away” and “Bring Fedorov back,” with many calling on leadership to heed the voices of soldiers actively fighting on the front lines.

The tension between Fedorov and Syrskyi came into full public view Thursday when the former defence minister accused the 60-year-old general of deliberately undermining his efforts. Syrskyi earned recognition for his role in defending Kyiv during the early stages of the war and has held the top military post since early 2024. However, he has drawn sustained criticism for an inflexible leadership style that some soldiers say leads to unnecessary casualties, along with resistance to modernizing battlefield tactics.

Another demonstrator, Nina, whose husband is currently serving in the military, attended the protest for a second day, bringing along her one-year-old child, Oleksandr-Carlos. Her primary demand is Syrskyi’s removal.

“The problem isn’t so much that Fedorov resigned as it is that Syrskyi remains in office,” she said, adding that the system under the commander prioritizes showing results over protecting soldiers’ lives.

“Sure, he deserves some credit, I don’t deny that but at what cost? That’s the question. Syrskyi is, after all, the old system,” Nina said.

The demonstrations drew comparisons to protests held at the same location last year, when crowds pushed back against Zelenskiy’s efforts to reduce the authority of Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies — a move he eventually reversed.

On Friday, Zelenskiy held virtual consultations with military commanders and met in person with Brigadier General Andriy Biletsky, who leads Ukraine’s Third Army Corps, to review the battlefield situation and defense planning.

In a move intended to reassure the public that reforms championed by Fedorov would continue, Zelenskiy named Serhii Beskrestnov, a former adviser to the defence ministry, as a presidential adviser on defence technology.

The political turmoil comes as Ukrainian forces have begun regaining some momentum against Russian troops through long-range strikes targeting Russian industry and supply lines. Still, Ukraine continues to struggle with military recruitment shortfalls as Russian forces push forward, and with obtaining sufficient air defense systems to protect its cities from missile attacks.

Many Ukrainians believe the path to victory runs through technological advancement and shedding outdated Soviet-era military practices — something they argue cannot happen under Syrskyi’s leadership.

Leonid, a 63-year-old veteran who described himself as a product of the Soviet military system, put it plainly: “They are destroying our army. Maybe at some point he was necessary, but that is it.”

The World Cup brought sold-out venues and millions of celebrating fans to Mexico, but the monthlong soccer spectacle did little to energize a struggling economy already burdened by sluggish investment and anxiety over the upcoming review of the North American trade agreement, known as the USMCA.

The tournament, which concludes Sunday after more than a month of competition spread across Canada, the United States, and Mexico, saw Mexico host 13 of the 104 total matches. Despite high hopes from government officials who had set ambitious tourism targets, the event fell short of those goals — and Mexico’s gross domestic product actually shrank during the first quarter of the year.

“The World Cup will not structurally change the trajectory of the Mexican economy,” said Humberto Calzada, chief economist at Rankia.

Calzada added that the competition offers only a brief, short-term jolt for an economy the government projects will grow between 1.8% and 2.8% this year — a rosier outlook than the 1.1% growth analysts are forecasting.

The financial gains from the tournament were concentrated in only a few areas. Banorte reduced its estimate of the World Cup’s contribution to Mexico’s GDP to between 0.4% and 0.5%, walking back an earlier projection of up to 0.62%. Meanwhile, Banamex put the total economic impact at $2 billion — roughly 0.1% of GDP and less than half of the $5.6 billion Mexico received in remittances during May alone.

Consulting firm Deloitte estimated the event generated around 100,000 temporary jobs, which was 10% below its earlier projection. Financial institution BBVA reported that its household consumption index dropped 0.2% from May to June, with hotel spending falling 10.5% and restaurant spending declining 4.9%, even as entertainment spending surged 16.5%.

The economic benefits were not shared equally among the three host cities — Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey. The Mexican Restaurant Association said that half of its member restaurants performed worse than during a normal week, citing low hotel occupancy and local protests in the capital as contributing factors.

Airline passenger data told a similarly uneven story. Flight traffic ticked upward in June at airports in Guadalajara and Monterrey, but dropped at Mexico City’s primary airport.

Economists say the real engine of Mexico’s economic fortunes lies beyond the soccer pitch: trade stability under the USMCA. With businesses holding off on investment while awaiting the outcome of the trade deal’s review, and the economy having contracted 0.6% in the first quarter, the International Monetary Fund recently cut its growth forecast for Mexico to 1.2%, down from a prior estimate of 1.6%.

WASHINGTON — American companies have entered into roughly $60 billion worth of agreements and partnerships with the Iraqi government, including deals designed to develop new pathways for moving oil out of the Persian Gulf region without relying on the Strait of Hormuz.

The agreements were finalized at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and span multiple sectors beyond energy, including healthcare, communications, and infrastructure development.

How quickly these oil deals can produce workable alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz remains uncertain. The strait currently carries approximately one-fifth of the world’s oil supply. Analysts at Goldman Sachs have noted that constructing pipelines in a single country alone takes at least two and a half years — and the proposed routes would pass through two or more nations.

Iran has made repeated attempts to close the Strait of Hormuz since the U.S.-Iran war began on February 28, sending oil and gas prices swinging dramatically. By Friday afternoon, West Texas crude had climbed nearly 5% to $88 per barrel — up from roughly $67 when the war started. Prices had surged past $110 in early April before pulling back following a temporary truce, only to rise again as fighting resumed.

Thomas Barrack, the U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, said the pipeline agreements would launch a program “that will make the Strait of Hormuz an afterthought.”

The deal signings came a day after Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Falah al-Zaidi met with Chevron executives in Houston, where he urged the energy company to expand and speed up its investments in Iraq.

Speaking on Friday, al-Zaidi said Iraq is looking for long-term investment and genuine partnerships — not simply companies hired to complete individual projects. He also expressed his government’s dedication to working closely with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, calling it “the place where economic decisions are made.”

Chevron signed three separate agreements with Iraq on Friday. Jake Spiering, Chevron’s president of corporate business development, explained that two of the deals are focused on increasing oil production, while the third involves “investing in a pipeline that’s going to create another export route out of Iraq to world markets. This is very important for energy security.”

The U.S. State Department also announced its support Friday for a separate agreement between Iraq and Syria to restore and rebuild the Iraq-Syria crude oil pipeline, calling it a priority infrastructure project. “The United States welcomes the engagement of a U.S.-led international consortium to execute the technical and financial aspects of this project,” the department stated.

According to Iraqi officials, the pipeline would run from Basra in southern Iraq to Haditha in western Iraq, then continue to the port of Ceyhan in Turkey and the Syrian coastal port of Baniyas. The pipeline is expected to have the capacity to move around 2 million barrels of oil per day.

In a report released earlier this week, Goldman Sachs analysts estimated that seven pipelines currently under development across the region could collectively carry roughly 60% of the oil now flowing through the Strait of Hormuz by the end of 2028 — approximately 14 million barrels per day. Before the war with Iran began, about 23 million barrels per day were being shipped through the strait.

Since the U.S. and Israel launched military operations against Iran on February 28, Iraq — which hosts both Iran-backed militias and American military bases — has been caught in the middle of the conflict. Syria, by contrast, has largely managed to avoid direct involvement. Syrian officials have positioned their country, which is still recovering from a 14-year civil war, as a stable alternative transit corridor for energy.

With oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz severely disrupted, some shipments have already been rerouted overland through Iraq into Syria, then shipped to European markets via the Baniyas port. A key border crossing between northern Iraq and Syria that had been closed for more than a decade reopened in April, with officials highlighting it as an additional energy export option.

The overland route, however, is slower and more costly than moving oil through the strait. The pipeline project being developed would allow Iraq to export far greater volumes of oil through Syria and Turkey.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy moved on Friday to patch up a diplomatic dispute with key ally Poland, stemming from his May decision to name a Ukrainian military unit after World War Two fighters who were responsible for killing Polish civilians.

Zelenskiy convened a high-level meeting of senior government officials focused specifically on the state of relations with Poland. At the meeting, he committed to broadening investigations into killings carried out by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, known by its Ukrainian acronym UPA, a pro-independence armed group, and pledged to open intelligence archives related to those events.

Zelenskiy emphasized that strengthening ties with Poland was essential, pointing to the significant assistance Poland has provided to Ukraine since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. Polish President Karol Nawrocki had previously stripped Zelenskiy of Poland’s highest honor in response to the military naming decision.

Following the meeting, Zelenskiy took to social media platform X to share his position. “The priorities are clear: All of us in Europe need good neighbourly, equal, and mutually beneficial relations built on respect,” he wrote. “Poland provided significant support to Ukraine after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, and we are grateful to Poland.”

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk responded warmly to Zelenskiy’s remarks. “We are ready for a serious and friendly dialogue on the issues that unite us and those that divide us today,” Tusk posted on X.

As part of the diplomatic effort, Zelenskiy announced that officials would unseal archives held by Ukraine’s Security Service and its Foreign Intelligence Service. Those files relate to the mass killings of ethnic Polish civilians in the Volhynia region, located in what is now northwestern Ukraine.

According to historians, UPA forces and allied nationalist groups killed between 70,000 and 100,000 Poles in that region between 1943 and 1945, with the aim of clearing the area of Polish inhabitants ahead of establishing future Ukrainian territory. Thousands of Ukrainians also lost their lives in retaliatory killings during the same period.

Zelenskiy additionally pledged to increase efforts to exhume victims’ remains, broaden historical dialogue, and direct more resources toward a Ukrainian history institute.

Despite these gestures, Ukrainian officials have given no sign that the decision to name the army unit after the UPA will be reversed, maintaining that Ukraine has the sovereign right to determine who it honors as national heroes.

The UPA holds a complicated place in Ukrainian historical memory. Many Ukrainians view the group as heroic for having resisted both Nazi German occupation and Soviet forces, and see it as a symbol of Ukraine’s long struggle for independence from Moscow.

The Jamaican government has confirmed that two of its citizens, recently deported by the United States to the African kingdom of Eswatini, have formally turned down offers to return to their home country.

Jamaica’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced late Thursday that officials were still working to make contact with a third Jamaican national who was also sent to Eswatini by U.S. authorities.

According to the Foreign Ministry, Jamaican representatives informed the two men about the consular support available to them and made clear that the government was prepared to arrange their return. “During the discussion, the men were advised of the consular assistance available to them and of the government’s readiness to facilitate their return to Jamaica,” the ministry stated.

The government also told the men that officials “could not determine their immigration status in the United States or secure their return there. Both men maintained that they did not wish to return to Jamaica.”

Communication with the two unidentified men was made possible through the Jamaican Consulate in Miami and a legal adviser who represents them.

Jamaica’s efforts came after the country reached out diplomatically to U.S. officials in Washington and also formally contacted Eswatini’s government through Jamaica’s diplomatic mission located in Pretoria, South Africa.

The U.S. practice of sending deportees to countries other than their home nations — including Eswatini — has drawn sharp criticism from attorneys and human rights advocates.

Eswatini is a small kingdom that shares a border with South Africa. The country’s king holds absolute authority and has faced accusations of suppressing pro-democracy movements within the nation.

A Jamaican man named Orville Etoria, identified as the first Jamaican national sent to Eswatini under this program, was returned to Jamaica last September. His legal team has accused U.S. authorities of unlawfully deporting him to Eswatini in July 2025 and says that he and others were repeatedly denied access to an attorney while detained there. Etoria’s return was made possible with assistance from the International Organization for Migration, known as IOM, which is a United Nations agency.