Author: Gulf News Week
LIVEEurovision final under way in Vienna as contest celebrates 70th yearA total of 25 countries will battle it out to win the Eurovision Song Contest, as Austria hosts the event for the third time.
A man has driven his car into pedestrians in the northern Italian city of Modena, injuring eight people, four seriously, officials say. They include a woman who reportedly had both her legs crushed.Passers-by gave chase and managed to detain the man, in his 30s, and hand him over to police.Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni described the incident as “extremely serious”. City Mayor Massimo Mezzeti added that it would be “even more serious” if it turned out to be a premeditated attack.”We saw the car approaching, it was heading for the curb,” an eyewitness said. “It suddenly accelerated – it was going…
A humpback whale rescued after beaching itself in Germany has been found dead near a Danish island.The whale was first spotted stuck on a sandbank on 23 March, off the island of Poel on Germany’s Baltic coast.It swam free in early May after a water-filled barge carried it into the North Sea.The operation was privately funded by two German entrepreneurs and spurred intense public debate, with critics suggesting it would only cause the animal distress.Authorities were not immediately able to confirm it was the same whale. In a statement the Danish Environmental Protection Agency said conditions on Saturday made it…
I couldn’t resist. This week it was revealed a chicken sandwich is packing as much salt as five McDonald’s cheeseburgers – putting it top of a naughty list of more than 500 sandwiches analysed. The sarnie, sold by bakery chain Gail’s, contains 6.88g of salt.That’s more than the UK’s recommended daily limit of 6g, or the World Health Organization’s 5g cap. So, it’s clearly not the healthiest choice.I nipped out before the lunchtime rush and my first impression was “it’s massive” followed swiftly by “how much?” – £8.90 is one pricey sandwich.Peeling back the wrapping I’m holding a 1,000 calorie…
LIVEAndy Burnham vows to ‘save Labour’ as Wes Streeting says he will stand for Labour leaderThe former health secretary’s speech comes as Labour starts a candidate selection process for the Makerfield by-election, following Andy Burnham being cleared to stand.
Gunmen have kidnapped more than 50 children from three schools in the same town in north-eastern Nigeria, teachers and residents have said.Most of those missing are aged between two and five years old.Eyewitnesses who saw the attacks on Friday morning in Mussa, Borno state, say the suspects used the children as human shields while fleeing on motorbikes, preventing security forces from opening fire.No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, and government officials have yet to respond to the BBC’s requests for comment.Some reports suggest the attacks bore the hallmark of Boko Haram – the Islamist group vying for control…
On Wednesday, as Sir Keir Starmer stood in the House of Lords and watched the King read out the government’s plan for the coming year, the prime minister’s three biggest rivals within Labour were preparing their next moves.Andy Burnham spent much of the day attempting to persuade MP Josh Simons, once a staunch ally of Sir Keir, to sacrifice his parliamentary career to help save Labour.Wes Streeting was in Parliament with his closest advisers mulling whether he should quit the cabinet job as health secretary that he had coveted for years.And that afternoon Angela Rayner slipped into a London hotel…
A rescue diver has died while searching for the bodies of four Italians who died in a scuba diving accident in the Maldives. Staff Sergeant Mohamed Mahdhee was taken to hospital in critical condition after diving as part of the search and rescue operation, and later succumbed to his injuries, a government spokesman told the BBC on Saturday.The accident saw five Italians die while attempting to explore caves at a depth of around 50m (164ft). So far, just one of their bodies is thought to have been recovered, in a cave at a depth of around 60m (197ft). You can…
Tens of thousands of protesters have descended on London for two rival marches – the Unite the Kingdom rally, organised by far-right figure Tommy Robinson, and a pro-Palestinian demonstration.More than 4,000 police officers have been deployed to the capital, and they are managing a so-called “sterile zone” between the two marches. Officers are also using drones, police horses and dogs, and have armoured vehicles on standby.The Metropolitan Police has called it one of the most significant policing operations in years.In addition to the protests, tens of thousands of football fans are heading to Wembley Stadium for the FA Cup Final…
The Eurovision Song Contest reaches its grand final on Saturday night, with Finland, Greece and Australia among the favourites to win.The show is taking place in Vienna, which seems to have prompted half of the contestants to throw an operatic riff into their song, whether it needs it or not.Elsewhere, you can expect death-defying dance moves, sexually suggestive rock anthems and the longest sustained note in Eurovision history.Here’s a guide to (some of) the highlights. You can watch the show live on BBC One and BBC iPlayer from 20:00 BST on Saturday.Getty ImagesEight months ago, Greek singer Akylas was down…