Month: August 2020

Read MoreThe massive blast was so powerful that it left a smoking crater stretching more than 700 feet and registered as a 3.3 magnitude earthquake.The massive blast was so powerful that it left a smoking crater stretching more than 700 feet and registered as a 3.3 magnitude earthquake.

Read More Letter to home secretary points out growing evidence of genocide against Uighur people in China A cross-party group of MPs and peers, including a former chair of the Conservative party, have written to the home secretary demanding that Uighur people fleeing China and seeking asylum in the UK are automatically granted refugee status.…

Read More (CLEVELAND) — President Donald Trump billed his trip to Ohio Thursday as a chance to promote economic recovery, but he quickly pivoted to a deeply personal attack on Joe Biden, even questioning without foundation the former vice president’s faith in God. Even for a president known for his blunt criticism, Trump’s remarks stood…

Read MoreScientists predicted that the ice caps wouldn’t completely melt until 2022.Scientists predicted that the ice caps wouldn’t completely melt until 2022.

Read MoreCalls for ‘revolution’ as anger grows following disaster compounds country’s economic woesCalls for ‘revolution’ as anger grows following disaster compounds country’s economic woes

Read More Russian and Iranian citizens are receiving text messages hyping a $10 million bounty the US State Department has offered for information on anyone interfering in US elections on behalf of foreign governments. Desperate much? Reports of unsolicited messages talking up the cyber-bounties began pouring out of Russian cities on Thursday as residents who…

Read More The Israel Defense Forces have announced they had targeted multiple “underground terror infrastructure” installations in the Gaza Strip, in retaliation for several “explosive balloons” launched into Israel earlier in the day. “Terrorists in Gaza launched explosive balloons into Israel throughout the day. In response, our aircraft just struck Hamas underground terror infrastructure in…

Read More Friday: Coalition tweaks wage subsidy only three weeks after cutting it. Plus, residents of Lebanon’s capital appeal for help in aftermath of blast Good morning, this is Richard Parkin bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Friday 7 August. Continue reading…Friday: Coalition tweaks wage subsidy only three weeks after cutting it. Plus,…

Read More (KANSAS CITY, Mo.) — The Kansas City Republican whose children urged people not to vote for him because of what they say are his racist, homophobic and anti-Semitic views narrowly won his primary for a Missouri House seat, just as he did two years ago before losing the general election. Steve West defeated…

Read More Africa’s confirmed coronavirus cases have surpassed 1 million, but global health experts say the true toll is likely several times higher, reflecting the gaping lack of testing for the continent’s 1.3 billion people. While experts say infection tolls in richer nations can be significant undercounts, large numbers of undetected cases are a greater…

Read More The 34-year-old armed assailant who kidnapped six people inside a La Havre bank in France’s Normandy and demanded freedom for Palestinians has surrendered to police and is now in custody after an hours-long standoff with police. The as-yet unidentified man held six people at gunpoint in the bank on Thursday evening and demanded…

Read MoreMohammed bin Salman has been accused of sending a hit-squad to kill a former Saudi official.Mohammed bin Salman has been accused of sending a hit-squad to kill a former Saudi official.

Read MoreThe visiting French president says funding is available but reforms must take place before it is sent.The visiting French president says funding is available but reforms must take place before it is sent.

Read More The United States on Thursday began delivering aid to Lebanon in the aftermath of a massive deadly explosion, amid longstanding concerns about how officials can ensure that supplies get to those in need, and not to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah. The first C-17 transport aircraft with 11 pallets of food, water and medical supplies…

Read More (NEW YORK) — The Trump administration on Thursday rescinded its warnings to Americans against all international travel because of the coronavirus pandemic, saying conditions no longer warrant a blanket worldwide alert. The State Department lifted its level-four health advisory for the entire world in order to return to country-specific warnings. That move came…

Read More (WASHINGTON) — A Democratic senator said Thursday he is launching an investigation into changes at the U.S. Postal Service that are causing delays in mail deliveries across the country just as big volume increases are expected for mail-in election voting. A plan imposed by Louis DeJoy, a Republican fundraiser who took over the…

Read More Angry crowds in Beirut have urged Emmanuel Macron to help bring political change to Lebanon as the French president toured the city’s blasted port and the shattered surrounding neighbourhoods. Macron was surrounded by hundreds of people as he toured the wrecked Gemmayze neighbourhood near the port, many of whom called for radical political change. ‘We…

Read More The Lebanese people are growing angrier with their leaders after this week’s explosion in Beirut, with questions being raised about official negligence as a possible cause in the deadly blast. The Lebanese people are growing angrier with their leaders after this week’s explosion in Beirut, with questions being raised about official negligence as…

Read More The Trump administration’s special envoy for Iran, political appointee Brian Hook, is stepping down from his post, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo confirmed Wednesday. Hook has been the point person for the State Department’s “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran, a key foreign policy initiative that saw the U.S. withdraw from the 2015 Iran…

Read More Hook’s departure comes as the U.S. pushes to extend expiring arms embargo on Iran. Hook’s departure comes as the U.S. pushes to extend expiring arms embargo on Iran.

Read MoreTuesday’s blast killed at least 137 people and injured about 5,000 othersTuesday’s blast killed at least 137 people and injured about 5,000 others

Read More Aug 06 (IPS) – In a video message delivered to a Peace Memorial Ceremony in Japan on Thursday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres has paid tribute to the victims of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, which devastated the city in 1945. Read the full story, “75 Years after the Bomb, Hiroshima Still Chooses ‘Reconciliation…

Read More CARACAS, Aug 06 (IPS) – Andrés Cañizález is a Venezuelan journalist and Ph.D. in Political ScienceEvery era brings its own buzzwords or catchphrases along with it. The term du jour is ‘pandemic’, namely ‘coronavirus’ and ‘COVID-19′; but alongside these words, speculation and forecasts over the post-pandemic world are flourishing. There is a proliferation…

Read More Comedians Desus Nice and The Kid Mero have been ending their recent episodes with a call to arrest the police who killed Breonna Taylor. It was an organic but intentional decision, they said during a TIME 100 Talks discussion with Ashley C. Ford. “We have this platform. We have to use our voice,”…

Read More Days after the puzzling announcement that he’s been fighting Covid-19 without leaving his post, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko told a Ukrainian journalist that someone had intentionally infected him with the virus. The extraordinary claim appeared in the 2.5-hour-long interview Lukashenko gave to the popular Ukrainian journalist Dmitry Gordon. We’re leaning towards [the version] that…

Read More Letter to Matt Hancock comes as Preston faces fresh coronavirus lockdown Coronavirus – latest updates See all our coronavirus coverage Nine Conservative MPs in Greater Manchester have written to Matt Hancock criticising the government’s “crude and ineffective strategy” to regional lockdowns and requesting a more hyper-local approach. Their letter to the health secretary…

Read More The US is putting Iran on regime-change notice, appointing Iran-Contra convict Elliott Abrams as Special Representative for Iran in addition to his duties as Special Representative for Venezuela, a State Department release shows. Abrams, who oversaw a series of failed coups in Venezuela both in the past year and during the botched 2002…

Read More Lauv released his debut album, How I’m Feeling, on March 6. Just a few weeks later, the world began to shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Lauv is a singer-songwriter whose intimate, downtempo pop has made him a go-to artist on streaming platforms and as a featured voice for artists like Troye…

Read More (NEW YORK) — The New York prosecutor who has been fighting, unsuccessfully so far, to get President Donald Trump’s tax returns had better luck last year getting a bank to turn over his financial records. The office of Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance sent a subpoena last year to Deutsche Bank as…

Read MoreNew York’s attorney general announces a lawsuit aimed at dissolving the powerful gun lobbying group.New York’s attorney general announces a lawsuit aimed at dissolving the powerful gun lobbying group.

Read More Twitter has declared war on certain state-affiliated media entities, announcing accounts belonging to senior staff will be labeled and their tweets will not be amplified or recommended. The UK’s BBC and the US’ NPR are exempt. The microblogging platform announced it will label accounts belonging to key government officials in countries on the…

Read More Spain orders town of 32,000 back into confinement; Poland records highest daily case number so far Coronavirus – latest updates See all our coronavirus coverage Germany has recorded its highest rate of infections in three months, France cannot keep up with demand for tests and Finland warned of an “extremely delicate” situation as…

Read MoreBeirut resident May Melki says her rendition of Auld Lang Syne is a homage, not a farewell.Beirut resident May Melki says her rendition of Auld Lang Syne is a homage, not a farewell.

Read More Letitia James says her office uncovered ‘years of self-dealing’ Another 1.18m Americans file for unemployment Deutsche Bank gave Trump records to New York prosecutors – report Join us today at 5pm ET for an online event with Eric Holder to discuss voter suppression in the 2020 election. Register now Sign up to our…

Read More If you want to receive twice-daily briefings like this by email, sign up to the Front Page newsletter here. For two-minute audio updates, try The Briefing – on podcasts, smart speakers and WhatsApp. France holidays face quarantine risk as Covid surges France has recorded its highest daily number of new Covid-19 cases since…