Visitors return to Syria's Palmyra after years of war and destructions
France 24

Visitors return to Syria's Palmyra after years of war and destructions

After years of war and destruction, Syrians are trying to reclaim their heritage – not least in the ancient city of Palmyra, where night-time tours are now being organised. As FRANCE 24’s Dana Alboz reports, it is a way of reclaiming the country’s history, but also of reviving a site that fell into the hands of the Islamic State group in 2015, where the group committed one of its worst atrocities.

US justice department defends prosecution of James Comey over ‘8647’ seashell post
The Guardian

US justice department defends prosecution of James Comey over ‘8647’ seashell post

Justice department claims there’s ‘no dispute’ over whether ex-FBI head’s post could be read as a threat against TrumpThe US Department of Justice has defended its prosecution of former FBI director James Comey, claiming in new court documents there is “no serious dispute” that his social media post last year featuring a photo of seashells arranged to read “8647” could be interpreted as a threat a...

Andy Burnham calls on wider society to help end homelessness by Christmas

Andy Burnham calls on wider society to help end homelessness by Christmas

The Guardian

PM says public money alone won’t solve problem but ‘we did it in the pandemic, we can do it again’UK politics live – latest updatesAndy Burnham has said government money alone may not be enough to get rough sleepers off the streets by Christmas, as he issued a “rallying call” for councils, charities and communities to help solve the problem.Speaking on a visit to the north-east of England, he said...

Ecuador intel chief and 5 Americans killed in Kenya tourist helicopter crash

Ecuador intel chief and 5 Americans killed in Kenya tourist helicopter crash

SCMP

Ecuador’s intelligence chief and five US citizens died when a helicopter carrying tourists crashed in central Kenya on Wednesday, killing all seven people on board, officials said. The accident happened at 9.13am local time, in Samburu county, north of the capital, Nairobi, according to the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA), after the aircraft departed from the Loisaba wildlife reserve. Images...

7 killed in Kenya tourist helicopter crash

7 killed in Kenya tourist helicopter crash

SCMP

A helicopter carrying six tourists and a pilot crashed on Wednesday in Kenya’s Samburu county, north of the capital, Nairobi, killing all those on board, authorities said. The accident happened at 9.13am local time, according to the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA), after the aircraft departed from the Loisaba wildlife reserve. “There were seven people on board the helicopter, one pilot and s...

Ukrainian diver arrested in Croatia over Nord Stream pipeline bombings

Ukrainian diver arrested in Croatia over Nord Stream pipeline bombings

The Guardian

Berlin to seek suspect’s extradition for 2022 explosions that damaged gas pipelines to Russia A Ukrainian man has been arrested in Croatia as part of an investigation into the 2022 bombing of the Nord Stream gas pipelines between Germany and Russia.Undersea explosions in September 2022, just months after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, damaged three of the four pipelines built to carry R...

SEC unveils new crypto rules hailed as a win for the digital asset industry

Euronews

The US Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed a sweeping new framework for crypto assets, offering firms two clear paths to raise money without full securities registration. Industry groups have broadly welcomed the plan, calling its terms considerably more generous than anticipated.

Bangladesh’s energy crisis opens door for India to mend ties

Bangladesh’s energy crisis opens door for India to mend ties

SCMP

Bangladesh’s request for additional diesel from India has turned a growing power crisis into a potential opening for the two neighbours to repair ties strained in part by the continuous self-exile of ex-prime minister Sheikh Hasina in New Delhi and Dhaka’s repeated requests for her extradition. India confirmed on Friday that it was examining Dhaka’s request for extra fuel as Bangladesh ordered sho...

Money and ‘a lot of noise’: how the US’ critical-minerals industry is vying with China’s

Money and ‘a lot of noise’: how the US’ critical-minerals industry is vying with China’s

SCMP

Patriot Critical Minerals of the US plans to dig into a long-abandoned mining site in the sparsely populated state of Nevada to extract tungsten, an important raw material with industrial uses ranging from aerospace gear to common cutting tools. The company, with only that single asset, is applying to the US departments of defence and energy for funding – now more readily available as President Do...

Calls for urgent law change as UK’s largest water reuse system cannot be switched on

Calls for urgent law change as UK’s largest water reuse system cannot be switched on

The Guardian

Recycling system in Cambridgeshire that could save thousands of litres a day is deemed not in line with rulesThe largest water reuse system in the UK, which could save thousands of litres of water a day for people living in one of the driest regions of the country, is not allowed to be switched on because of drinking water regulations.As water supplies in England reach critical levels, the Guardia...

China’s J-36 fighter jet designers report danger of military AI hallucinations

China’s J-36 fighter jet designers report danger of military AI hallucinations

SCMP

Large language models are expert in intelligence work, able to quickly mine key data and analyse weapons performance – tasks that once took analysts huge amounts of time and effort. But engineers at China’s AVIC Chengdu Aircraft Research and Design Institute, developer of the People’s Liberation Army’s backbone J-20 and next generation J-36 stealth fighters, have urged caution. In a paper publishe...

Firefighters sound alarm as US faces critical staffing shortage: ‘We don’t have enough people’

Firefighters sound alarm as US faces critical staffing shortage: ‘We don’t have enough people’

The Guardian

Firefighters describe being pushed to limit by a brutal wildfire season, with key leadership roles going unfilledThe US has faced a critical shortage of firefighters at the US Forest Service (USFS) this summer as thousands of fires erupted across the country.Despite officials’ claims that the firefighting workforce was stronger than ever, the agency has failed to keep pace with escalating conditio...

Florida governor suspends former close ally over child sexual abuse charges

Florida governor suspends former close ally over child sexual abuse charges

The Guardian

Michael Caruso, once praised by Ron DeSantis, removed from Palm Beach county civic official roles after arrestFlorida’s Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, has suspended a former close ally and senior civic official who was arrested on felony child sexual abuse charges.Michael Caruso, who was removed as clerk of court and comptroller for Palm Beach county on Tuesday, was a vocal supporter of a law ...

Man who died with woman and girl off Sussex coast was Palestinian refugee

Man who died with woman and girl off Sussex coast was Palestinian refugee

The Guardian

Palestinian embassy named man as Hossam al-Khawas but was unable to confirm names of other family membersA father who died alongside a woman and a teenage girl off the Sussex coast on Tuesday was a Palestinian refugee, the Palestinian embassy has said.The embassy in London named him as Hossam al-Khawas from the Rashidieh camp in Lebanon. The embassy said it was unable to confirm the names of the o...

UAE halts all trade and financial dealings with Iran

Euronews

Abu Dhabi announced the suspension after Iran fired two ballistic missiles toward the country on Tuesday. The move severs ties with what had been a major trading partner for sanctioned Iran, as crude flow through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen to less than a quarter of pre-war levels.

China blocks firms from aiding EU’s JD.com probe as regulatory clash deepens

China blocks firms from aiding EU’s JD.com probe as regulatory clash deepens

SCMP

Beijing has banned Chinese entities from assisting with a European Union investigation into e-commerce giant JD.com under the bloc’s foreign subsidies regulation. A statement from China’s Ministry of Justice on Wednesday condemned the probe as “undue extraterritorial jurisdiction measures”, ordering that “no organisation or individual may execute or assist in the execution”. In May, the European C...