Author: Gulf News Week

NEW YORK (news agencies) — Jurors are set to start deliberating Monday in Sean “Diddy” Combs ’ sex trafficking case, weighing charges that could put the hip-hop mogul in prison for life.After receiving legal instructions from federal Judge Arun Subramanian, the jury of eight men and four women will head behind closed doors to deliberate. They’ll sift through seven weeks of sometimes graphic and emotional testimony about the rap, fashion and reality TV impresario ‘s propensity for violence and his sexual predilections, including drug-fueled sex marathons dubbed “ freak-offs ” or “hotel nights.”Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to federal…

KYIV, Ukraine (news agencies) — German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul made an unannounced visit to Kyiv on Monday, in a show of continuing support for Ukraine’s fight to repel Russia’s invasion as U.S.-led international peace efforts fail to make progress.Wadephul was due to meet with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha.Wadephul said in a statement that Germany will help Ukraine “continue to defend itself successfully — with modern air defense and other weapons, with humanitarian and economic aid.”Germany has been Ukraine’s second-largest military backer after the United States, whose continuing support is in doubt. However, Berlin…

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (news agencies) — In the time before widespread vaccination, death often came early.Devastating infectious diseases ran rampant in America, killing millions of children and leaving others with lifelong health problems. These illnesses were the main reason why nearly one in five children in 1900 never made it to their fifth birthday.Over the next century, vaccines virtually wiped out long-feared scourges like polio and measles and drastically reduced the toll of many others. Today, however, some preventable, contagious diseases are making a comeback as vaccine hesitancy pushes immunization rates down. And well-established vaccines are facing suspicion even from…

WASHINGTON (news agencies) — Ticks can be active in any season and it’s important to check for and remove the bloodsuckers as quickly as possible — especially after you’ve been outside hiking, gardening or enjoying nature. “Humans are outside more in summer so we hear about more tick infections,” said Sam Telford, an infectious diseases expert at Tufts University. But he urges caution year-round because “every season is tick season.”While tick populations vary a lot regionally, some Northeastern states including Maine, Massachusetts and Rhode Island are seeing “above average” numbers of American dog ticks this year, said Telford. And New…

LeBron James is exercising his $52.6 million option with the Los Angeles Lakers for 2025-26, further confirming that he will become the first player in NBA history to play a 23rd season, a person with knowledge of the decision said Sunday.The person spoke to media on condition of anonymity because neither James nor the team announced the decision publicly.ESPN and The Athletic were among those to first report the decision.James, who recently returned to on-court workouts after taking several weeks to recover after spraining a knee ligament in the Lakers’ final game of this past season’s playoffs, told the news…

D. Wayne Lukas, the Hall of Famer who became one of the most accomplished trainers in the history of horse racing and a face of the sport for decades, has died. He was 89.His family said Sunday that Lukas died Saturday night at his Louisville, Kentucky, home. Lukas had been hospitalized with a severe MRSA blood infection that caused significant damage to his heart and digestive system and worsened pre-existing chronic conditions.“Wayne devoted his life not only to horses but to the industry — developing generations of horsemen and horsewomen and growing the game by inviting unsuspecting fans into the…

WASHINGTON (news agencies) — The changes made to President Donald Trump’s big tax bill in the Senate would pile trillions onto the nation’s debt load while resulting in even steeper losses in health care coverage, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said in a new analysis, adding to the challenges for Republicans as they try to muscle the bill to passage. The CBO estimates the Senate bill would increase the deficit by nearly $3.3 trillion from 2025 to 2034, a nearly $1 trillion increase over the House-passed bill, which CBO has projected would add $2.4 to the debt over a decade.The…

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (news agencies) — It’s been a week since the United States pressed Israel and Iran into a truce, ending a bloody, 12-day conflict that had set the Middle East and globe on edge.The fragile peace, brokered by the U.S. the day after it dropped 30,000-pound “bunker-busting” bombs on three of Iran’s key nuclear sites, is holding. But much remains unsettled.How badly Iran’s nuclear program was set back remains murky. The prospects of renewed U.S.-Iran peace talks are up in the air. And whether U.S. President Donald Trump can leverage the moment to get Israeli Prime Minister…

TORONTO (news agencies) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said late Sunday trade talks with U.S. have resumed after Canada rescinded its plan to tax U.S. technology firms. U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he was suspending trade talks with Canada over its plans to continue with its tax on technology firms, which he called “a direct and blatant attack on our country.” The Canadian government said “in anticipation” of a trade deal “Canada would rescind” the Digital Serves Tax. The tax was set to go into effect Monday.Carney and Trump spoke on the phone Sunday, and Carney’s office…

US president denies multiple reports and accounts that say US strikes did not destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities.United States President Donald Trump has reiterated a vow not to allow Iran to get nuclear weapons following the end of Iran and Israel’s recent 12-day conflict, in which the US militarily intervened, and has stuck closely to his narrative as questions remain about the impact of US strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites. On the Fox News programme Sunday Morning Futures with Maria Bartiromo, Trump repeated his claim that Iran was “weeks away” from making the weapons before Israel attacked on June 13. Nine…