By Emma Farge and Olivia Le Poidevin GENEVA, July 23 (Reuters) – United Nations Human Rights chief Volker Turk, an outspoken critic of Russia’s war in Ukraine and Israel’s conduct in Gaza, faces opposition from both countries to a second four-year term ahead of a potentially contentious vote on Frid
HAVANA (AP) — Hundreds of boxes of humanitarian aid from the U.S. are being distributed in two towns near the Cuban capital, the Catholic Church organization in charge of the distribution said Thursday. The aid arrived this week and its distribution began on Wednesday. It is shrouded in controversy
July 23 (Reuters) – Indian activist Sonam Wangchuk has ended his hunger strike after 26 days, he said on Friday. He said in a post on X that he had ended his fast after “a long negotiation on various conditions and in view of possible violence in the country”. Wangchuk, 59, had been on a hunger stri
Iran Warns It Will Invade Kuwait if US Launches Kurdish-Backed Ground Offensive By The Media Line Staff Iran will respond to a US ground operation backed by Kurdish forces by invading Kuwait, a source inside Iran told The Media Line. The report follows a warning by Ahmad Bakhshayesh Ardestani, a mem
Haim Yavin, Israel’s Enduring Voice of Public Television, Dies at 93 Known to Israelis as “Mr. Television,” Yavin was a foundational figure in Israeli broadcasting—someone who did not simply report the country’s history but helped establish the medium through which much of that history was experienc
MADRID, July 23 (Reuters) – Spain’s lower house rejected the government’s proposed 2027 spending framework on Thursday, dealing a fresh blow to its efforts to approve a state budget before the end of the legislature next year. • The proposal was rejected by a vote of 166-176 with five abstentions. •
By Krishna N. Das and Ruma Paul NEW DELHI/DHAKA, July 23 (Reuters) – Bangladesh President Mohammed Shahabuddin, a former ally of ousted premier Sheikh Hasina, will resign on Friday halfway through his term, his spokesperson told Reuters on Thursday, days after Hasina said she was returning home from
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Diplomats from around the world are gathering at United Nations headquarters in New York on Friday to decide whether to permanently remove the embattled chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. British barrister Karim Khan has been accused of sexual miscond
Beijing (AP) — Teams searching the rubble of last week’s landslide in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing found three additional bodies in recent days, bringing the death toll to 11 with 50 people still missing, Chinese authorities said Thursday. The search continues but there have been no re
By Maggie Michael and Parisa Hafezi July 23 (Reuters) – Iran flew Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commanders, military advisers and missile- and drone-related equipment into Yemen this month, according to four sources, in a move that suggests Tehran is seeking to strengthen the ability of i
By Foo Yun Chee BRUSSELS, July 23 (Reuters) – EU countries endorsed a proposal on Thursday to reintroduce a temporary measure allowing Google, Meta and other online platforms to detect and remove online child sexual abuse materials without breaching privacy rules. The move by the bloc of 27 EU count
LONDON, July 23 (Reuters) – Britain said on Thursday its armed forces were ready to protect the country from any attack after Iran’s Revolutionary Guards issued a warning over allowing U.S. bombers to fly from UK bases. “Our Armed Forces are ready to keep the United Kingdom safe from any kind of att
BERLIN, July 23 (Reuters) – German Chancellor Friedrich Merz could announce a cabinet reshuffle on Friday, triggered by the abrupt exit of party heavyweight Jens Spahn in a row over a surrogacy baby, three people told Reuters on Thursday. Health Minister Nina Warken is likely to take over as head o
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s fired defense minister said Thursday he has rejected President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s efforts to persuade him to rejoin the government in a different role where he could continue fighting Russia’s more than 4-year-old invasion. Mykhailo Fedorov, who was dismissed last w
QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — Suspected militants ambushed a vehicle carrying a district judge in restive southwestern Pakistan on Thursday, killing him and his security guard before fleeing the scene, police said, as Pakistan’s powerful army chief vowed to “dismantle terrorist infrastructure wherever it
GAROWE, Somalia, July 23 (Reuters) – A merchant ship hijacked in Yemeni waters in the Gulf of Aden last week is now being held by Somali pirates, two residents of Somalia’s semi-autonomous Puntland region told Reuters on Thursday. • The ship, the MT Asana, is a Tanzanian-flagged fuel and chemical ta
By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON, July 23 (Reuters) – The Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives backed a resolution on Thursday directing President Donald Trump to halt U.S. military action against Iran unless he obtains Congress’ approval, but the Senate voted hours later to block a separate,
By Max Hunder and Dan Peleschuk KYIV, July 23 (Reuters) – Ousted Ukrainian defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov said on Thursday he would accept no other government position besides his former job, escalating a political crisis that has gripped Ukraine at a pivotal point in the war with Russia. Fedorov
GENEVA, July 23 (Reuters) – The United States will give over $200 million in aid to the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, its diplomatic mission said in a statement on Thursday. “Today’s contributions support organizati
By Tora Agarwala NEW DELHI, July 23 (Reuters) – They were just six words posted on X in a moment of frustration: “What if all cockroaches come together?” Now, its 30-year-old author, Abhijeet Dipke, is the face of what is arguably India’s biggest street protest against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s
By Steven Scheer and Ali Sawafta JERUSALEM/RAMALLAH, July 23 (Reuters) – Two Israeli banks will halt working with their Palestinian counterparts in the coming months citing risks of associating with possible terrorism financing and money laundering, Israeli officials said, fuelling concerns of a Pal
LONDON (AP) — London’s mayor and police chief on Thursday used a drop in recorded street crime to reassure tourists the city is safe and counter an online narrative depicting Britain’s capital as a lawless dystopia. The city’s Metropolitan Police force said “neighborhood crime,” a category that incl
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — A cycling-enthusiast governor rode into an unexpected political storm in Turkey when he found himself sacked after photos of him in snug cycling shorts went viral. He has since also become the center of a campaign pressing for his return to office amid an outpouring of affectio
By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON, July 23 (Reuters) – The Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives backed legislation on Thursday directing President Donald Trump to halt U.S. military action against Iran, the latest symbolic rebuke of the Republican president from Congress. The vote was 214-208
BEIJING, July 23 (Reuters) – The death toll from a landslide in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing last week has risen to 11, with 50 people still missing and 10 injured, Chinese state media reported on Thursday. Following torrential rain on the morning of July 17, part of a mountainside col
By Haseeb Alwazir and Nidal al-Mughrabi GAZA/CAIRO, July 23 (Reuters) – In the sprawling tent camps of southern Gaza, a disposable cigarette lighter has become an unlikely luxury item, as essential to daily survival as food, water and fuel. For displaced mother-of-four Nisreen Abu Saada, lighting a
By Olivia Le Poidevin GENEVA, July 23 (Reuters) – More than two-thirds of Gazans could face acute hunger by the year-end as humanitarian agencies cut aid flows due to funding shortages, a global hunger monitor said on Wednesday. The latest assessment by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classificat
By Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON, July 23 (Reuters) – Two earthquakes that rocked Venezuela on June 24 caused $19.6 billion in direct physical damage, but the cost of rebuilding could be twice that much or more, the World Bank said in an early assessment released on Thursday. The 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude qu
MADRID, July 23 (Reuters) – Spanish former Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said on Thursday that €1.3 million ($1.5 million) of jewellery seized by police as part of an investigation was a personal gift he received years ago and was never intended for financial gain. Zapatero, who was pr
MUMBAI, July 23 (Reuters) – Thousands of supporters of India’s youth-led “cockroach” movement have been protesting since June, demanding the education minister resign over exam paper leaks, in the biggest challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his third term. Activists say the leaks showed wid
