Author: Gulf News Week
Israel has launched an intensive wave of strikes across swathes of southern and eastern Lebanon, after vowing to step up its military action against Hezbollah.The Israeli military said it hit more than 100 Hezbollah infrastructure sites and fighters during what was one of the heaviest nights of bombardment since a US-brokered ceasefire began in mid-April.Strikes in the Bekaa Valley village of Mashghara killed 11 people, including two children, Lebanon’s health ministry said. The military said it hit sites where “terrorist activity” was identified.It came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday he had given the instruction to “press…
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has started a legal challenge against a report commissioned by parliament that has paved the way for MPs to once again consider impeachment proceedings against him.In 2022, an independent panel said Ramaphosa might have committed serious misconduct relating to the theft of large sums of cash hidden in a sofa at his private farm. The president denied any wrongdoing.Earlier this month a Constitutional Court ruling said parliament had acted unconstitutionally when four years ago it voted against establishing an impeachment inquiry following the report. At that time Ramaphosa’s African National Congress (ANC) party had a…
Watch: Paris ‘punishingly hot’ as Western Europe hit by heatwaveHugh Schofield reports from Paris as a heat dome settled over Western Europe bringing temperatures above the average for May.12 mins agoEurope
Oil giant BP has removed its chairman Albert Manifold with immediate effect over concerns including “bullying” and “overbearing” behaviour by him, the BBC understands.The company said in a statement that his dismissal was a result of “serious concerns” related to “important governance standards, oversight and conduct”.Manifold’s departure comes less than a year since he joined the company.BP declined to comment on whether bullying behaviour was part of the reason for his immediate dismissal. The BBC has attempted to contact Manifold for comment.Senior independent director Amanda Blanc said the board had been “surprised and disappointed to learn of governance oversight and…
Internet access has started to be restored in Iran after being cut off almost three months ago, the country’s first vice-president has said.”The first step toward free and regulated access to cyberspace has been taken,” Mohammad Reza Aref wrote on X on Tuesday.Internet monitoring groups Netblocks and Kentik reported “partial” restoration around 13:00 GMT, though the latter warned most networks were still down.The Iranian government cut internet access following the launch of US and Israeli attacks on 28 February. Officials suggested the aim was to prevent surveillance, espionage and cyber-attacks. It is one of the longest-running national internet shutdowns ever…
A settler society rewarded for its violence has stopped pretending to mourn it.In the latest revelations about Israel’s brutal torture of Palestinian prisoners, which include rape and sexual violence, the world got yet another glimpse of the horrific reality of Palestinian life under unending Israeli settler colonial occupation. Any person with an ounce of basic human decency feels horrified, enraged and appalled at the accounts that have been revealed. The majority of people around the world cannot even fathom seeing, let alone committing, the sickening and gruesome acts of torture that are recounted in the testimonies of Palestinian victims.The harsh…
Moscow has stepped up its threats to Ukraine, warning of “consistent, systematic strikes on Kyiv targeting its military industrial complex”. It has also warned foreign citizens and diplomatic staff to leave the city “as soon as possible”. It sounds ominous, but does it signal something new? By ramping up its rhetoric, is Russia also about to intensify its war?In one sense, such threats are nothing new. It assesses “the overall level of security threats posed by Russia to Kyiv and other cities remains the same as previous months and years”.What is new is the language used by the Kremlin to…
Watch: Dozens of light drones crash into Sydney harbourAlmost 90 drones fell from the sky over Sydney’s Darling Harbour during a popular winter light show. 6 hrs agoAustralia
The military governor of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ituri province, the epicentre of the current Ebola outbreak, has likened the struggle to contain the spread of the virus to a “war” for which they are lacking resources to fight.”People in affected areas are not receiving enough food,” Johnny Luboya Nkashama told French broadcaster RFI, adding that “other diseases” and “overcrowding” are also issues.He called for a “swift response”, including strengthening the capacity of staff to prevent Ituri “from descending into catastrophe”.Officials say there are more than 900 suspected cases of Ebola, and 223 suspected deaths, since the outbreak was…
Chinese authorities have executed a man for murdering his associate, billionaire gaming tycoon Lin Qi.In 2020, a disgruntled Xu Yao poisoned Lin for sidelining him shortly after he helped him land a Netflix deal, local media reported.Lin’s Yoozoo Games holds the film adaptation rights for the Chinese science fiction trilogy which Netflix made into the series 3 Body Problem.Xu was convicted in 2024 and his execution, which reportedly happened on 21 May, was confirmed on Tuesday by his company in a statement, adding “justice has ultimately been served”.”As colleagues who fought alongside him, all members of the company are grateful…