Top World News
Chevron to boost Venezuela operations as Trump touts 'historic' deals for oil
Oil giant Chevron said Wednesday it will greatly expand its operations in Venezuela, days after President Trump announced plans for joint U.S. control of 65 million barrels of oil in the South American country.
Barclays faces complaint over backing for power plant near world’s largest mangrove forest
Bangladeshi complainants allege Rampal power station’s pollution and climate risks threaten the Sunderbans, a world heritage siteBarclays Bank is facing a formal complaint over its financial links to a coal-fired power station near the Sundarbans, the world’s largest mangrove forest and home to millions of people in Bangladesh and India.Three complainants from the region have submitted a case to the UK government’s Office for Responsible Business Conduct, alleging that the British bank breached international guidelines by underwriting companies involved in the emission-heavy Maitree super thermal power project, also known as the Rampal power plant. Continue reading...
Russian security official threatens Germany with attacks, calls European countries terror sponsors
Russian Security Council official Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday threatened to attack Germany's military production facilities that support Ukraine and said other sites in Berlin could be attacked as well.
New constitution in Guinea-Bissau will undermine democracy, opponents say
Referendum result means fewer seats in parliament and new rules on candidates, ahead of December electionsGuinea-Bissau voters have approved a new constitution, which critics say will undermine democracy, that significantly expands presidential powers ahead of elections due in December.According to provisional results, 70% of voters approved sweeping changes in the tiny west African state’s first constitutional amendment since revisions that ended the one-party socialist state more than three decades ago. Continue reading...
US extends ban on flights to Haiti's capital as gang violence surges
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has extended a ban on U.S. flights to Haiti’s capital until March as gang violence persists
Xi visits Egypt as China seeks deeper influence across the Mideast
China’s President Xi Jinping visits Egypt this week for the first time in a decade
Explosion near German train station injures several people and draws police response
An explosion near a German train station followed by the discovery of a suspicious object caused police to temporarily close the transport hub in the southern city of Augsburg
Almost half of world’s farmers poisoned by pesticides every year, experts find
Study reveals that pesticide poisoning kills 11,000 people each year, with India accounting for nearly 60% of fatalitiesAlmost half of the world’s farmers are poisoned by pesticides every single year, a study has found.Using publicly available data from 2006-2023, the study, which was commissioned by Pesticide Action Network, found there to be an estimated 402-433m cases of unintentional acute pesticide poisoning of farmers and farm workers every year. Continue reading...
UK must end all trade with Israel, says co-founder of BDS movement
Exclusive: sanctions against ministers and settler groups are ‘smoke and mirrors cop-out’ says Omar BarghoutiBritain’s legal and ethical obligation to stop a genocide in Gaza requires it to take bigger steps than halting trade with illegal Israeli settlements or imposing further sanctions, Omar Barghouti, the co-founder of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement has said.He described sanctions against individual settler groups or extremist ministers as a “smoke and mirrors cop-out and distraction” from the UK’s legal obligation under international law to end all support for Israel, including arms exports, trade deals and academic relations that “may directly or indirectly enable Israel’s illegal occupation” of Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Continue reading...
Japan halves speed limit to 30km/h on all narrow city streets
Speed limit dropped from 60km/h for around 70% of general roads in the hope of making narrow streets of crowded cities saferDrivers on residential roads in Japan have been forced to take their foot off the accelerator, after the speed limit was slashed from 60km/h (37mph) to 30km/h in an attempt to reduce deaths and injuries among pedestrians on narrow urban streets.The new limit, which went into effect on Tuesday, applies to residential roads with no centre line or maximum speed signs, media reports said. Continue reading...
Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong pleads guilty in second national security case
Wong, 29, is accused of urging foreign powers to impose sanctions, blockades and other hostile measures against China Joshua Wong, one of Hong Kong’s most prominent pro-democracy activists, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to conspiring to seek foreign sanctions against Hong Kong and China, a national security charge that carries a maximum life sentence.Prosecutors have accused Wong, 29, of working with the exiled Hong Kong activist Nathan Law to urge foreign powers to impose sanctions, blockades or other hostile measures against China. Continue reading...
USS Abraham Lincoln arrives at Thai port after gruelling 270 days at sea
Ship has been plagued by reports of deteriorating living conditions and poor mental health because of lengthy deploymentThe USS Abraham Lincoln, a US aircraft carrier at the centre of a row over conditions on board after months at sea as part of Donald Trump’s war against Iran, has arrived off a Thai port.Reports of deteriorating living conditions and poor mental health on the vessel, including attempted suicides, have made headlines around the world, provoking criticism of the president’s actions in the Middle East. Continue reading...
