London Boris Johnson deliberately lied to MPs about lockdown-breaking parties during the Covid pandemic that would have seen him face a 90-day suspension had he not quit as a lawmaker, a parliament committee ruled Thursday.

The Privileges Committee, which probes breaches of House of Commons rules, concluded that Johnson was guilty of repeated contempts (of parliament) and seeking to undermine the parliamentary process.

The contempt was all the more serious because it was committed by the prime minister, the most senior member of the government, they stated in a damning 106-page report.

There is no precedent for a prime minister having been found to have deliberately misled the House.

He misled the House on an issue of the greatest importance to the House and to the public, and did so repeatedly.

The seven-member committee, which has a majority of MPs from Johnsons own Conservative party, has powers to recommend sanctions on rule-breakers that have to be voted on by MPs.

But Johnson, 58, avoided having to face his peers and the humiliation of potentially having to run for re-election in his constituency by resigning as an MP just days before the report was released.

Unrepentant

In his resignation statement last Friday, Johnson who quit as prime minister last July due to Partygate and a string of other scandals claimed he was the victim of a stitch-up by his political opponents in a kangaroo court.

He was unrepentant again on Thursday, calling the report deranged and the 14-month inquiry into his statements to parliament a charade. 

He insisted his attendance at the Downing Street parties in question was lawful, and required by his job.

This is a dreadful day for MPs and for democracy, Johnson said in an angry 1,700-word statement. 

This decision means that no MP is free from vendetta, or expulsion on trumped-up charges by a tiny minority who want to see him or her gone from the Commons.

I do not have the slightest contempt for Parliament, or for the important work that should be done by the Privileges Committee.

But for the Privileges Committee to use its prerogatives in this anti-democratic way, to bring about what is intended to be the final knife-thrust in a protracted political assassination - that is beneath contempt.

It is for the people of this country to decide who sits in Parliament, not Harriet Harman, the veteran opposition Labour MP who chaired the inquiry.

Serious contempt

Partygate saw Johnson and dozens of government officials fined by police for breaking the social distancing laws the government set to curtail the spread of Cov...

Singapore Singapore will progressively deploy more patrol robots across the city-state, police said Thursday, after more than five years of small-scale trials.

Robots were deployed at Changi Airports Terminal 4 starting in April to augment frontline police officers in conducting premises patrol, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said.

More deployments are expected across the city of 5.6 million people, whose small population and low birth rate mean it has to make use of technology to overcome a lack of manpower.

The SPF plans to progressively deploy more patrol robots to augment polices operations across Singapore, the SPF said in a statement, without giving a timeline.

The robots are equipped with cameras, sensors, speakers, a display panel, blinkers and a siren.

An extendable mast with a 360-degree camera gives an on-the-ground view to officers in a situation room, and a two-way channel allows them to talk directly with the public.

The patrol robot is the latest addition to SPFs technological arsenal, capable of autonomous patrol and providing the police with an enhanced situational picture to enable better decision and sense-making, the police said.

Using its blinkers, siren and speakers, the robot can enforce a cordon or warn bystanders during an incident prior to the arrival of human police, according to the statement.

The post Singapore to put more police robots on the streets appeared first on Iraqi News.

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) announced on Wednesday that it possesses, for the first time, M6 attack drones.

Iraqs Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) have unveiled an advanced attack drone on the 9th anniversary of the establishment of the force, which is part of the countrys army, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).

The M6 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was unveiled on Wednesday, a day after Iraqis marked the anniversary of the PMUs establishment in 2014, which was aimed at helping the army fight ISIS terrorist groups, IRNA added.

The acquisition of advanced drones by the PMF is a qualitative addition to its armament in Iraq, which in turn increases its deterrent capabilities, making it a clear threat to the military armaments hostile to Iraq as well as to the US military forces present in the country.

The post PMF announces possession of M6 attack drones appeared first on Iraqi News.

Kalamata Greece on Thursday pursued a grim search for survivors a day after a fishing boat overloaded with migrants capsized and sank in the Ionian Sea, with the number of victims feared to reach into the hundreds. 

As relatives in the migrants home countries frantically sought details of their loved ones, the coastguard said 78 bodies had been recovered so far.

This could be the worst maritime tragedy in Greece in recent years, Stella Nanou of the UNHCR refugee agency told state broadcaster ERT.

Its really horrific, UNHCR staffer Erasmia Roumana told AFP at the port of Kalamata, adding that the survivors were in a very bad psychological situation.

Many are under shock, they are so overwhelmed, she said. Many of them worry about the people they travelled with, families or friends. They want to call their families and tell them that they arrived.

A coastguard spokeswoman told AFP that two patrol boats, a helicopter and six other ships in the area were searching the waters west of the Peloponnese peninsula, one of the deepest parts of the Mediterranean.

Greece has declared three days of mourning over the tragedy and a senior prosecutor has been assigned to investigate.

I need my mother

One young man started to cry and said, I need my mother This voice is inside my ears. And will always be inside, Red Cross nurse Ekaterini Tsata told AFP.

Around 30 people were hospitalised with pneumonia, dehydration and exhaustion but are not in immediate danger, officials said.

So far 104 people have been rescued but there are fears that hundreds more are missing, based on testimony from the survivors and the fact that no women and children were among them so far.

A survivor told hospital doctors in Kalamata that he had seen a hundred children in the boats hold, ERT said.

The fishing boat was 25-30 metres long. Its deck was full of people, and we assume the interior was just as full, coastguard spokesman Nikolaos Alexiou told ERT.

Government spokesman Ilias Siakantaris on Wednesday said there were unconfirmed reports that up to 750 people were on the boat.

We do not know what was in the hold but we know that several smugglers lock people up to maintain control, he told ERT.

No life jackets

The coastguard said a surveillance plane with Europes Frontex agency had spotted the boat on Tuesday afternoon, but the passengers had refused any help.

The boats engine gave up shortly before 2300 GMT on Tuesday and the vessel later capsized, Siakantaris said, sinking in around 10 to 15 minutes.

The coastguard added that none on board were wearing life jackets.

Alexiou, the coastguard spokesman, suggested that the boat...

Nablus Israeli forces shot dead a Palestinian fighter in the occupied West Bank Thursday, Palestinian officials said, as the army said it came under fire during a operation to demolish an apartment.

The Palestinian health ministry said in a statement that Khalil Yahya Anis, 20, was killed by live occupation (Israeli) bullets in the head in Nablus.

An official at Nablus Al Najah hospital told AFP that two others were injured in the overnight clashes which erupted when Israeli forces entered the city in the northern West Bank to demolish the home of an alleged attacker.

An AFP journalist saw a group of young men surveying the damage to the apartment after dawn on Thursday. Twisted metal and piles of rubble littered the floor and a gaping hole was left in a wall.

A local Palestinian security official, who spoke on condition on anonymity, confirmed that Anis was a fighter, though he did not say with which group he was affiliated.

Another security source in Nablus told AFP that Anis was a resident of the citys Al-Ain refugee camp and belonged to Palestinian president Mahmud Abbass Fatah movement.

His body was carried from the hospital, shrouded in a Palestinian flag, as his funeral began, an AFP correspondent said.

The Israeli army said that suspects fired at the soldiers during the raid.

The soldiers responded with riot dispersal means and live fire, hits were identified, it added.

Palestinian presidency spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh said on Thursday Israel was dragging the region into escalation and a spiral of violence.

Witnesses told AFP that the army had demolished the flat of Osama Taweel, a prominent member of the Lions Den militant group. 

Taweel was arrested by Israel in February after allegedly shooting dead Israeli soldier Ido Baurch at a West Bank settlement in November.

Israel regularly demolishes the homes of Palestinians who carry out attacks against Israelis.

It argues it is a deterrent though critics say it amounts to collective punishment.

Since the start of the year, at least 159 Palestinians, 21 Israelis, a Ukrainian and an Italian have been killed in violence linked to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to an AFP tally compiled from official sources.

The figures include combatants as well as civilians and, on the Israeli side, three members of the Arab minority.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since 1967.

The post Israeli army kills Palestinian in West Bank raid appeared first on Iraqi News.

Jakarta TikToks chief executive said Thursday the company would pour billions of dollars into Southeast Asia in the coming years, as a report showed its nascent venture into online shopping is paying off.

The popular video-sharing apps e-commerce affiliate has gained a substantial market share in the region just a year after its launch.

Were going to invest billions of dollars in Indonesia and Southeast Asia over the next few years, Shou Zi Chew told a forum in Indonesian capital Jakarta.

From a humble team of about 100 people, we now have nearly 8,000 employees in Southeast Asia.

Chew said 125 million Indonesians comprised the majority of the apps 325 million Southeast Asian users every month and more than two million sell their wares on TikTok Shop in Indonesia, the regions biggest economy and most populous nation.

Users sell a range of tech, fashion, homemade products and other goods on the platform.

Chews comments came as Singapore-based consultancy Momentum Works released a report Thursday detailing how TikTok Shop capitalised on legions of users to expand its business in 2022 after testing the waters in Indonesia a year earlier.

While it lagged older rivals Shopee and Lazada, TikTok Shop posted the fastest growth rate, expanding its gross merchandise value (GMV) the total value of goods sold, including cancelled, returned and refunded orders sevenfold to $4.4 billion last year from just $600,000 in 2021.

You can think of it as TikTok already having a captive audience coming onboard for entertainment trying different means to convert them and their attention into purchase and GMV, Weihan Chen, head of insights at Momentum Works, told AFP.

From Indonesia, TikTok Shop aggressively expanded into five additional Southeast Asian markets, many of which boasted large populations of TikTok users and invested to improve its e-commerce capabilities, Chen added.

TikTok is owned by Chinese technology giant ByteDance.

Game changer

Overall, the GMV of the regions nine top e-commerce platforms was valued at almost $100 billion in 2022, up 14 percent on-year, led by Singapore-based Shopee and Lazada, a subsidiary of Chinas Alibaba Group.

Shopee, a unit of Singapores Sea Ltd, accounted for $47.9 billion of that, a 13 percent increase, the report said.

Lazada was at a distant second with $20.1 billion, down from $21 billion in 2021.

Indonesia remains Southeast Asias largest e-commerce market, accounting for 52 percent of the regions total GMV.

The return of offline shopping after Covid-19 restrictions were lifted led to a moderation in e-commerce sales, but it is expected to continue growing, the report said.

It noted that the region may benefit from Chine...

United Nations The worlds first international treaty on the high seas, set to be adopted by the United Nations on Monday, contains landmark tools for the conservation and management of international waters.

International waters outside the jurisdiction of any single state cover more than 60 percent of the worlds oceans.

Ocean ecosystems create half the oxygen humans breathe and limit global warming by absorbing much of the carbon dioxide emitted by human activities.

Once adopted, the UN treaty will go into force 120 days after 60 countries have ratified it.

Here are the key points of the text approved in March. The final

Ocean under threat

The treaty begins by recognizing the need to address, in a coherent and cooperative manner, biodiversity loss and degradation of ecosystems of the ocean.

These impacts include the warming of ocean waters along with their loss of oxygen, acidification, mounting plastics and other pollutants, as well as overfishing.

The text specifies that it will apply to waters beyond countries exclusive economic zones, which extend to a maximum of 200 nautical miles from the coasts.

It also covers what is known as the Area, shorthand for seabed and subsoil beyond the limits of national jurisdiction. The Area comprises just over half of the planets seabed.

The Conference of the Parties (COP) will have to navigate the authority of other regional and global organizations.

Chief among these are regional fisheries bodies and the International Seabed Authority, which oversees permits for deep-sea mining exploration in some areas and may soon make the controversial move of allowing companies to mine beyond current test runs.

Marine protected areas

Currently, almost all protected marine areas (MPAs) are within national territorial waters.

The treaty, however, allows for these reserves to be created in the open ocean.

Most decisions would be taken by a consensus of the COP, but an MPA can be voted into existence with a three-quarters majority, to prevent deadlock caused by a single country.

One crucial shortcoming: the text does not say how these conservation measures will be monitored and enforced over remote swathes of the ocean a task that will fall to the COP.

Some experts say satellites could be used to spot infractions.

Individual countries are already responsible for certain activities on the high seas that they have jurisdiction over, such as those of ships flying their flags.

Sharing the bounty?

On the high seas, countries and entities under their jurisdiction will be allowed to collect animal, plant, or microbial matter whose genetic material might prove useful, even commercially.

Scientists, fo...

Sydney Australia blocked Russia from building a new embassy in the shadow of Parliament House Thursday after intelligence officials warned it posed a spying risk and security threat.

Russia holds the lease for a parcel of land some 400 metres (0.25 miles) from Australias parliamentary precinct in Canberra and has been laying the foundations for a new embassy building.

But, after failing to block the development in the courts, the Australian government passed new laws on Thursday that were specifically drafted to halt construction. 

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the laws were rapidly pulled together following a meeting of Australias National Security Committee.

The government has received very clear security advice as to the risk posed by a new Russian presence so close to Parliament House, he told reporters. 

We are acting quickly to ensure the lease site does not become a formal diplomatic presence.

A Russian diplomat told AFP that the embassy is seeking legal advice in the wake of the announcement.

The new laws, passed with bipartisan support, do not stop Russia from having a diplomatic footprint in Australia only from building so close to parliament. 

The legislation also acknowledges that Russia may be eligible for financial compensation.

Capable, aggressive and unconstrained

Counterintelligence expert and former FBI agent Dennis Desmond said it was reasonable to suspect Russia would use the proposed embassy site as a base to spy on Australian politicians.

The decision to place an embassy in a location obviously has very specific intent behind it, he told AFP. 

Theres a variety of techniques and tactics they will use.

Desmond said this could include signals intelligence and tailing Australian officials.

Former UK diplomat Alex Bristow, from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said it was likely the government had received an emphatic warning from intelligence agencies.

Given the proximity, it could be a form of electronic surveillance operating out of the embassy, he said. 

Russia has some of the largest, most capable, most aggressive, and least constrained intelligence services in the world, he said.

And theyre given leeway that we would never give a Western intelligence service.

Albanese said he expected some blowback from Russia.

We dont expect Russia is in a position to talk about international law, given their rejection of it so consistently and so brazenly with their invasion of Ukraine, he said.

Agreement terminated

Russia acquired the lease to the scruffy paddock in 2008 through an agreement with the National Capital Authority, a federal government agency...

Tokyo Chinas ruling Communist Party dominates the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and uses it to further its interests, a former executive has alleged in claims that prompted Canada to suspend participation in the institution.

Bob Pickard, a former communications chief at the bank, made the explosive allegations after resigning this week, and told AFP he left China hastily over concerns for his safety.

Speaking from Tokyo, he said the bank serves Chinas interest and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) wields undue influence over every aspect of its operations.

Its a resource to the geopolitical goals of the PRC (Peoples Republic of China) in practice, I believe it serves Chinas interest, he told AFP.

The bank directed lending primarily to countries targeted by Chinas massive and controversial Belt and Road Initiative, he said.

These are not disconnected ventures, the Belt and Road initiative and the AIIB these are similar kinds of countries that China has been trying to cultivate politically.

In a statement issued after his tweets, AIIB called Pickards allegations baseless and disappointing.

We are proud of our multilateral mission and have a diverse international team representing 65 different nationalities and members, it added.

The AIIB, a project pushed by Chinese President Xi Jinping, was launched in 2016 to counter Western dominance of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

It has 106 global members, including Australia, Canada, France and Germany.

But the United States is not a member, having chosen to stay out from the start on concerns over transparency and governance.

International institution

Pickard said he joined the bank with my eyes open, but that its international membership had convinced him it would be multilateral.

Instead, after joining in March 2022, he was warned not to mess with any of the party people because theyre powerful.

He declined to say who had issued him the warning, but said he raised concerns about the role of party members and their influence a month ago, in writing.

The response was: Dont go there basically.

He alleged foreign executives on the board were there for window-dressing.

Inside the bank, theres a parallel system, its adjacent to the public-decision making structure, he said.

Canada announces review

The 58-year-old Canadian submitted his resignation earlier this week, and then quickly left China, waiting until he was out of the country to announce his decision and allegations on Twitter.

Canada and China have been at loggerheads s...

Frankfurt The European Central Bank is expected to again hike interest rates on Thursday and signal that the fight against inflation is not over yet, analysts said, even as the eurozone falls into recession.

With inflation slowing but still three times above the ECBs two-percent target, there is little doubt the Frankfurt institution will raise borrowing costs for an eighth consecutive time.

A 0.25-percentage-point hike looks like a done deal, Capital Economics economist Jack Allen-Reynolds said.

More interesting to investors will be any clues from president Christine Lagarde at her afternoon press conference in Frankfurt about how much higher rates will go or if a pause might be on the horizon.

The Federal Reserve, which began lifting rates earlier than the ECB, on Wednesday opted to stand pat after 10 straight increases. 

But the US central bank also indicated that further rate rises could be needed this year.

The ECB embarked on an unprecedented campaign of monetary tightening after Russias war in Ukraine sent food and energy prices soaring, raising its interest rates by 3.75 percentage points since last July.

Another 25-basis-point hike on Thursday would take the ECBs closely watched deposit rate to 3.50 percent.

No evidence yet

Eurozone inflation eased to 6.1 percent in May year on year, from a peak of 10.6 percent in October, mainly thanks to rapidly declining energy prices.

But closely watched core, or underlying, inflation which strips out volatile food and energy prices decelerated only slightly to 5.3 percent, from 5.6 percent in April. 

There is no clear evidence that underlying inflation has peaked, Lagarde warned earlier this month, stressing that the ECB still had ground to cover on rates.

Like all central banks, the ECB has to walk a fine line in raising interest rates sufficiently to dampen demand and contain inflation, without provoking a sharp economic slowdown in the process.

Higher borrowing costs have already led to a plunge in demand for credit from households and companies, recent data showed, suggesting the ECBs moves are having an impact.

But the eurozone economy has proved less resilient than initially thought.

Revised data last week showed that the economy in the 20-nation currency union shrank by 0.1 percent for two straight quarters at the end of 2022 and the start of 2023, meeting the technical definition of a recession.

While still mild, the surprise winter recession has cast doubt on more optimistic predictions for 2023.

Heated summer debate

The ECB will unveil its latest economic forecasts on Thursday, likely to show a downward revision for growth.

Little change is expected in the inflation outlook, which is only seen ret...

London Mobile phone giant Vodafone has agreed to merge British operations with Three UK, owned by Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison, to create Britains biggest operator with 27 million customers and accelerate rollout of faster 5G connectivity, the pair said Wednesday.

Expansion of 5G across the UK has been hampered by Britains ban on Chinese giant Huawei, a major supplier of equipment for mobile telephone networks.

Vodafone and CK Hutchison said in a joint statement they were targeting a value of 16.5 billion ($21 billion) for the new group, above a current valuation of 15 billion.

The (target) figure is what we feel would represent success a few years after the merger is completed, said a Vodafone spokesman.

The companies hope to complete a deal by the end of next year but face regulatory hurdles.

Vodafone chief executive Margherita Della Valle, who recently cut 11,000 jobs at the group, said the long-awaited merger is great for customers, great for the country and great for competition. 

Its transformative as it will create a best-in-class indeed best in Europe 5G network, offering customers a superior experience, she added.

The tie-up, explored by Della Valles predecessor Nick Read, will lead to network investment of 11 billion over ten years, the statement said.

Canning Fok, group co-managing director of CK Hutchison, said the merger will have the scale needed to deliver a best-in-class 5G network for the UK, transforming mobile services for customers. 

This will unlock significant value for CK Hutchison and its shareholders, realise material synergies, reduce net financial indebtedness and further strengthen its financial profile, he added.

The transaction will see Vodafone take 51 percent of the combined group and CK Hutchison the rest.

Competition concerns

The deal is obviously subject to approvals from shareholders and regulators and Vodafones statement gives a clear indication that it is the latter they are more concerned about, noted Dan Ridsdale, analyst at Edison Group. 

The merger, if approved, will vault the new group above the countrys two largest mobile operators BT EE and Virgin Media O2 in terms of customer numbers.

The release reads like an overt pitch to convince a broader set of interest groups leading with the benefits for customers, country and competition, before looking at deal synergies, added Ridsdale.

The statement said the merger will deliver up to 5 billion per year in economic benefit by 2030, create jobs and support digital transformation of the UKs businesses. 

Every school and hospital in the UK will have access to standalone 5G by 2030, it added.

In 2020, London banned Chinese tele...

Berlin Germany on Wednesday called China a partner, competitor and systemic rival in its first national security strategy, accusing Beijing of repeatedly acting against the European giants interests in a bid to reshape the global order.

The document prepared by Chancellor Olaf Scholzs coalition slammed China for putting regional stability and international security under increasing pressure and for disregarding human rights.

China is trying in various ways to remould the existing rules-based international order, is asserting a regionally dominant position with ever more vigour, acting time and again counter to our interests and values, the strategy paper said.

At the same time, it acknowledged that the Asian giant remains a partner without whom many global challenges and crises cannot be resolved.

That is why we must grasp the options and opportunities for cooperation in these fields in particular, the paper said.

Publication of the much-awaited strategy blueprint came just days before Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang was due to visit Berlin.

Asked what message the document sent to Beijing, Scholz told a press conference the point is that China will continue to grow economically and that Chinas integration into world trade and world economic relations should not be impaired.

But at the same time the security issues that arise for us must be taken into account, he said, adding that Germany doesnt want decoupling, we want de-risking.

Most significant threat

Drawn up under the lead of the foreign ministry, the strategy document covers defence pledges such as the NATO two-percent spending vow, supply chain security and cyberattacks.

It cites Russia as for now the most significant threat to peace and security in the Euro-Atlantic area, blasting Moscows invasion of its neighbour Ukraine.

Russias war has deeply shaken Germany, forcing it to rip up long-held pacifist policies to instead drastically re-arm its army. 

The conflict has also prompted Berlin to accelerate plans to reduce its reliance on China, after the coronavirus pandemic acted as a wake-up call on the risks of depending on the Asian giant for health essentials like surgical gowns, masks or medication.

Over the last months, Germany has been busy diversifying its imports or bringing production of key components such as semiconductor chips to its soil.

But Germanys export giants have expressed concerns over the shift away from China, fearful of alienating the huge market.

In a clear warning to German companies, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock underlined that Berlin would not be able to bail out huge industrial groups with deep ties with China should a crisis erupt with Beijing.

Paris The European Commission, which said Wednesday that Google had abused its online ad dominance, has taken the fight to US tech giants on a variety of fronts from tax avoidance, disinformation and hate speech to data privacy and monopolistic practices.

Here is a summary of the tussles between Silicon Valley and Brussels.

Stifling competition

The European Commission on Wednesday accused Google of abusing its dominance of the online ad market and recommended, after a two-year probe, that it sell off part of its business to ensure competition.

Google could face a fine of up to 10 percent of its global revenue if the commission maintains that stance as provided for under the 2022 Digital Markets Act, drafted to rein in the market dominance of Big Tech.

Brussels has already slapped over eight billion euros in fines on Google for abusing its dominant market position. 

In 2018, the company was fined 4.3 billion euros the biggest ever antitrust penalty imposed by the EU for abusing the dominant position of its Android mobile operating system to promote Googles search engine. 

The fine was later reduced to 4.1 billion euros.

The firm has also incurred billion-plus fines for abusing its power in online shopping and for abusive practices in online advertising. 

Apple has also been in the EUs sights, with Brussels investigating its dominance among music streaming apps.

Taxation  

The EU has had less success in getting tech companies to pay more taxes in Europe, where they are accused of funnelling profits into low-tax economies like Ireland and Luxembourg.

In one of the most notorious cases, the European Commission in 2016 found that Ireland granted illegal tax benefits to Apple and ordered the company pay 13 billion euros in back taxes.

The EUs General Court later overturned the ruling, saying there was no evidence the company broke the rules, a decision promptly appealed by the Commission.

The Commission also lost a similar case involving Amazon, which it had ordered to repay 250 million euros in back taxes to Luxembourg.

In October 2021, following extensive lobbying by European countries, the G20 group of nations agreed on a minimum 15-percent corporate tax rate.

Privacy

Brussels has also handed down billions in fines for breaches of its landmark 2018 privacy regulations, which require tech firms to obtain users consent in order to collect, process and store their personal information.

Ireland home to Metas European headquarters  has become the main enforcer of the General Data Protection Regulation, hitting Facebook parent Meta particularly with a string of eye-watering fines for breaches of the rules.

In May, Dublin fined Meta a record 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) over its tran...

Paris Saudi Arabias Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was on Wednesday heading to France where he will meet President Emmanuel Macron, with Paris seeking intensified support from the oil-rich kingdom for Ukraine against Russias invasion.

Macrons office said the two would speak on Friday over lunch at the presidents Elysee Palace, adding that they would discuss especially the war in Ukraine and its consequences for the rest of the world.

The de-facto ruler, known widely as MBS, is no stranger to France, owning the opulent Chateau Louis XIV near Versailles outside Paris, a modern building that seeks to replicate the look of French imperial palaces.

The princes stay in France could last some days, with MBS also due to attend a Paris summit on a New Global Financing Pact hosted by Macron on June 22-23.

On Monday, he will also attend an official Saudi reception for Riyadhs candidacy to host Expo 2030.

Shadow of Khashoggi murder

The trip underlines already close French ties with the resource-rich Gulf nation.

Prince Mohammed had already discussed the Ukraine conflict face-to-face with Macron on his last official visit to Paris in July 2022.

The pair said then that they wanted to cooperate to limit the effects on other countries from Russias invasion of its neighbour.

The 37-year-old prince, who is overseeing sweeping social and economic reforms, also faces criticism over rights in Saudi Arabia and Macron will again be under pressure for these issues to feature prominently in the talks.

In December 2021, Macron became one of the first Western leaders to meet Prince Mohammed in Saudi Arabia since Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed and dismembered inside Riyadhs Istanbul consulate in 2018.

The killing of Khashoggi was described by a UN probe as an extrajudicial killing for which Saudi Arabia is responsible.

US intelligence agencies determined that MBS had approved the operation that led to Khashoggis death. Riyadh denies this, blaming rogue operatives.

MBS 2022 visit to Paris was criticised by Frances left-wing opposition and human rights defenders, who accused Macron of abandoning principles to butter up Riyadh as energy prices soared in Europe after the Ukraine invasion.

Regional stability

Macron has a declared aim of convincing non-aligned countries to pressure Moscow to end its war on Ukraine.

He lent a French government jet to President Volodymyr Zelensky in May so the Ukrainian leader could join the G7 meeting in Japan as well as attend an Arab League summit.

Macron said afterwards that Zelensky received very clear support from Saudi Arabia and several powers in the Gulf region, calling the trip a real t...

Beijing Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated to Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas on Wednesday his call for a state of Palestine to become a full member of the United Nations, state media reported.

Xi expressed Beijings position during a summit with Arab countries in Saudi Arabia in December, although the latest call comes as the Asian powerhouse works to strengthen its role as mediator in the Middle East.

Xi met Abbas during the December trip and pledged to work for an early, just and durable solution to the Palestinian issue.

Beijing has since positioned itself as a mediator in the Middle East, brokering the restoration in March of ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia rivals in a region where the United States has for decades been the main powerbroker.

China supports Palestine in becoming a full member State of the United Nations, Xi said during a meeting with Abbas in Beijing, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

The fundamental way out of the Palestinian issue lies in the establishment of an independent Palestinian State, he said. 

Abbas will be in the Chinese capital until Friday, his fifth official visit to the worlds second-largest economy.

Xi told Abbas at a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People that China was ready to strengthen coordination and cooperation with the Palestinian side.

Today, we will jointly announce the establishment of a China-Palestine strategic partnership, which will be an important milestone in the history of bilateral relations, Xi said.

Old and good friend

Abbas arrived in Beijing on Monday to hold talks with top Chinese leaders including Xi and Premier Li Qiang. 

The two sides are using the opportunity to discuss ways to advance relations and resolve longstanding challenges to the Palestinian-Israel relationship.

Beijing has sought to boost its ties in the Middle East, challenging US influence efforts that have sparked unease in Washington.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin called long-time Palestinian leader Abbas an old and good friend of the Chinese people during a regular media briefing last week.

Finding a lasting solution to Israeli-Palestinian tensions may prove elusive, as peace negotiations between the two sides have been stalled since 2014.

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang told his Israeli and Palestinian counterparts in April that his country was willing to aid peace negotiations, Xinhua reported.

And Qin told Palestinian foreign minister Riyad Al-Maliki that Beijing supports the resumption of talks as soon as possible, according to the state news agency.

In both calls Qin emphasised Chinas push for peace talks on the basis of implementing a two-state solution.

Washington The Federal Reserve will announce Wednesday if it will press ahead with an 11th straight interest rate hike to tackle high inflation or skip an increase to give policymakers more time to take stock of the US economy. 

Analysts and traders broadly expect the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) to vote to hold rates where they are, while leaving the door open to another rate hike in July if needed. 

Policymakers began their second day of deliberations over the interest rate at 9am local time, the Fed confirmed in a statement. 

The Fed leadership has signaled that it sees pausing as the prudent course because uncertainty about both the lagged effects of the rate hikes it has already delivered and the impact of tighter bank credit increases the risk of accidentally overtightening, Goldman Sachs economists wrote in a recent note to clients. 

Although inflation remains above the Feds long-term target of two percent, it has moderated in recent months, leading some FOMC members to call for a pause on Wednesday. 

Skipping a rate hike at a coming meeting would allow the committee to see more data before making decisions about the extent of additional policy firming, Fed governor Philip Jefferson said late last month.

Jefferson, who was recently nominated for the vacant number two spot at the Fed, added that such a move should not be interpreted to mean that we have reached the peak rate for this cycle. 

Divisions remain

The Fed has lifted its benchmark lending rate by five percentage points since it began raising rates to fight inflation in March 2022.  

Since then, inflation appears to have peaked, while the economy has shown signs of slowing although the labor market has remained surprisingly resilient. 

The United States is also facing tighter bank lending conditions in the aftermath of a string of regional bank collapses earlier this year. 

Despite the signs of a slowing US economy, some FOMC members say the Fed must do more to bring inflation firmly back down to two percent. 

We should not be fooled by a few months of positive data, Minneapolis Fed president Neel Kashkari said last month. 

We still are well in excess of our two percent inflation target, and we need to finish the job, he added.

Although most analysts now expect the Fed to pause its interest-rate hikes, there are some notable outliers still predicting a 25-basis point hike. 

Despite markets pricing very little chance of a rate hike by the Fed tomorrow, we maintain our base case for a 25bp hike, Citi economists wrote in a note to clients on Tuesday. 

Slowing inflation

Data published Tuesday showed the consumer price index (CPI) measure of inflation slowed to an annual rate of 4.0 percent last month, its lowest level in...

Athens At least 78 migrants died after their fishing boat sank off the Peloponnese, Greeces coastguard said Wednesday, as fears mounted that the death toll could rise much higher.

Some 100 people were rescued after the boat capsized in international waters in the Ionian Sea in an operation complicated by strong winds, the coastguard said. 

A migration ministry source told AFP that according to the coastguard there could have been hundreds of people on the fishing boat.

We fear there will be a very large number of missing persons, the official said.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) acknowledged fears of a large number of missing people, noting in a tweet: We fear more lives were lost. Initial reports suggest up to 400 people were onboard.

Greeces head of state, President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, said she would visit the port of Kalamata later Wednesday to confer with senior officials on the rescue and accommodation response.

The worst migrant tragedy in Greece was in June 2016 when at least 320 people were listed as dead or missing, according to AFP records going back to 1993.

The IOM until Wednesday had listed 48 migrants missing in the eastern Mediterranean so far this year, compared to 378 a year earlier.

Along with navy vessels, the rescue operation included an army plane and helicopter as well as six other boats that were in the area.

Since very early Wednesday, an extensive rescue operation is underway off Pylos, after a fishing boat capsized with a large number of migrants onboard, the coastguard said.

Passengers refused help

Greek media reported that nearly 30 people have been taken to the ports hospital, though the coastguard limited the number to just four.

The coastguard said a surveillance plane with Europes Frontex agency had spotted the boat on Tuesday afternoon, but the passengers had refused any help.

It added that none on board were wearing life jackets, and did not immediately disclose their nationalities.

Authorities said it appeared the migrants had departed from Libya and were heading for Italy.

The migration ministry would begin looking for accommodation for those rescued once they are processed by the coastguard to determine gender and nationality, an official said.

Television footage showed emergency tents being set up at Kalamata.

Also Wednesday, a sailing boat in distress carrying about 80 migrants off Crete was rescued by a coastguard patrol and towed to port, Greeces port police said.

Along with Italy and Spain, Greece has been one of the main landing points for tens of thousands of people seeking to reach Europe from Africa and the Middle East.

Greece is also facing an increase of crossing attempts from Turkey on southern rout...

Lukavac Bosnian police on Wednesday arrested a child who allegedly shot a teacher at an elementary school in the northeastern city of Lukavac, officials and the family of the victim said. 

The incident comes a month after back-to-back shootings rocked neighbouring Serbia, including a rampage at an elementary school in Belgrade where a 13-year-old gunned down 10 people including nine fellow classmates.

The child, who is not yet 14, is under police supervision in the premises of the Lukavac Police Department, while firearms and other discarded items are secured until the investigation begins, the interior ministry of Tuzla canton said. 

Officials described the suspect as a former student who had recently moved to another school. 

The child was transferred to another school from the start of the second semester as a result of a disciplinary measure, Ahmed Omerovic, education minister for Tuzla, told reporters.

Today was the end of classes in all schools in the territory of Tuzla canton, he added.

Following the shooting, police cordoned off the area around the school. 

The wounded victim is an English teacher and assistant principal at the school, said Ismet Osmanovic who is the father of the victim according to local broadcaster N1.

According to the hospital in the nearby city of Tuzla, the victim in the shooting had sustained gunshot wounds to the neck.

The patient was intubated and he is being operated on, the University Clinic Centre of Tuzla said in a statement, according to local media.

The operation is still ongoing. Doctors told me he was stable, Osmanovic said.

The shootings in Serbia widely reverberated throughout the Balkans, with makeshift shrines and memorial services held in cities across the former Yugoslavia, including Bosnia. 

During the war in Bosnia in the 1990s, an untold number of weapons were trafficked into the country due to an arms embargo. 

Following the wars end in 1995, officials repeatedly called for Bosnians to hand over their weapons during a years-long amnesty period, as security forces raided homes believed to harbour weapons.

Despite the efforts, a large number of guns are scattered throughout Bosnia. 

According to the Small Arms Survey research group, approximately 31 out of every 100 citizens owns a gun in the Balkan nation.

The post Teacher wounded in Bosnia school shooting, child arrested appeared first on Iraqi News.

Jakhau More than 100,000 people have been evacuated from the path of a fierce cyclone heading towards India and Pakistan, with forecasters warning Wednesday it could devastate homes and tear down power lines.

Biparjoy, meaning disaster in Bengali, is making its way across the Arabian Sea and is expected to make landfall as a very severe cyclonic storm on Thursday evening, government weather monitors said.

Powerful winds, storm surges and lashing rains were forecast to hammer a 325-kilometre (200-mile) stretch of coast between Mandvi in Indias Gujarat state and Karachi in Pakistan.

Indias Meteorological Department predicted the storm will hit near the Indian port of Jakhau late Thursday, warning of total destruction of traditional mud and straw thatched homes.

At the usually bustling Jakhau port, sounds of activity were replaced by the howls of wind and the roar of rough seas.

Gusts battered more than 30 large fishing boats dragged up out of the water onto the shore, as dozens of stray dogs roamed around the ports entrance.

At sea, winds were already gusting at speeds up to 180 kilometres per hour (112 miles per hour), forecasters said.

Wind speeds are predicted to reach 125-135 kph, with gusts up to 150 kph, by the time it makes landfall.

Over 47,000 people have been evacuated from coastal and low-lying areas to shelter, said C.C. Patel, an official in charge of relief operations in Gujarat.

More were expected to be moved inland throughout Wednesday.

Indias meteorologists warned of the potential for widespread damage, including the destruction of crops, bending or uprooting of power and communication poles and disruption of railways and roads.

High to phenomenal

Pakistans climate change minister Sherry Rehman said Wednesday that 62,000 people had been evacuated from the countrys southeastern coastline, with 75 relief camps set up at schools and colleges.

She said fishermen had been warned to stay off the water and small aircraft were grounded, while urban flooding was possible in the megacity of Karachi, home to around 20 million people.

We are following a policy of caution rather than wait and see, she told reporters in Islamabad. Our first priority is saving lives.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department forecast gusts up to 140 kph in the southeastern province of Sindh, accompanied by a storm surge reaching 3.5 metres (11.5 feet).

Fishing has also been suspended along the Gujarat coast, with conditions expected to escalate from rough to very rough on Wednesday to high to phenomenal.

Indias armed forces were ready to provide every possible assistance, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh wrote o...

Oslo Scandinavian organisations are boycotting US group Mondelez, maker of snacks like Oreo and Toblerone, due to the groups continued presence in Russia, as Norways government held a meeting Wednesday with several actors.

Airlines SAS and Norwegian, hotel chains, the Norwegian football federation and the Swedish military are among those rejecting products made by the company formerly known as Kraft Foods and its subsidiaries Freia in Norway and Marabou in Sweden.

In late May, Mondelez was added to a list of international sponsors of war drawn up by Ukrainian authorities, accused of being susceptible of financing Moscows war in Ukraine by maintaining activities in Russia and paying taxes there.

The Swedish military therefore this week asked its suppliers to replace Mondelez products with other brands.

We are doing this to be in line with our other actions towards Ukraine, spokeswoman Guna Graufelds told AFP.

Several actors, including retail chains none of which have joined the boycott at this stage requested guidelines from Norwegian authorities during a meeting on Wednesday. 

Our message is clear that it is up to companies themselves to make these choices and for consumers to decide, and not up to authorities, said Halvard Ingebrigtsen, a state secretary in Norways Trade and Industry Ministry.

Mondelez insisted it has only limited operations in Russia and that none of its subsidiary Freias products are made in the country.

Our parent company, Mondelez International, respects all political decisions and sanctions, Freia said.

Other groups on the Ukrainian list of sponsors of war include Auchan, Procter & Gamble, Metro, Yves Rocher and Bonduelle.

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Washington Consumer inflation in the United States cooled for an 11th straight month on an annual basis in May, the Labor Department said Tuesday, in an encouraging sign for policymakers.

The data comes as Federal Reserve officials are set to begin a two-day policy meeting on Tuesday, with the figures expected to have a bearing on their interest rate decision at the end of the gathering.

While the US central bank has embarked on an aggressive campaign of rate hikes, lifting the benchmark lending rate 10 times in a row since early last year, it is widely anticipated to pause this week.

Government figures released Tuesday show that the consumer price index (CPI), a key gauge of inflation, jumped 4.0 percent from a year ago in May, in line with analyst expectations and down from a 4.9 percent rise in April.

This brings it to the lowest level in around two years, and less than half the peak rate of 9.1 percent in mid-2022.

But analysts caution that Fed policymakers are likely looking for a more sustained trend of cooling growth before they end their cycle of rate hikes.

On a monthly basis, CPI rose 0.1 percent in May, decelerating from 0.4 percent in April, the Labor Department said.

Excluding the volatile food and energy components, consumer inflation was up 5.3 percent over the last 12 months.

The index for shelter was the largest contributor to the monthly all items increase, followed by an increase in the index for used cars and trucks, said the Labor Department in a statement.

Lingering worries

Oren Klachkin, lead US economist at Oxford Economics, told AFP: A months worth of data wont ease policymakers worries. They want to see clear trends that inflation is cooling and that the economy is slowing.

We havent had that so far, so theres a risk of more rate hikes in the second half of 2023, he added.

For now, halting further rate hikes will allow policymakers more time to assess the economic impact of existing increases, which come on top of recent pressures in the banking sector.

Rubeela Farooqi, chief US economist at High Frequency Economics, added in a note that the figures reflect that underlying inflation remained elevated but showed improvement, and would unlikely change expectations of the Feds rate decision.

As for the future path of policy, incoming information on inflation, the labor market as well as considerations about credit conditions will determine whether the (Federal Open Market Committee) is done raising rates or if more tightening is needed, she said.

The post US consumer inflation eases for 11th straight month appeared first on...

Champagne France will bring home production of around 50 crucial medications for which it currently depends on imports, President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday, hoping to battle shortages of items like antibiotics and paracetamol.

Of the initial slate of drugs with a clear dependence on imports from outside the EU, 25 will have their production re-shored or significantly increased in the coming weeks, Macron said during a visit to a pharmaceuticals factory in southern France.

The announcement comes after a March survey by pollsters BVA found 37 percent of people had already run into shortages at the pharmacy.

Up to 80 percent of familiar medications like antibiotics and painkillers used in France are produced abroad, especially in China.

Some of the drugs are still made in France, but at volumes that fail to match demand.

Over the winter, Europe faced shortages of key antibiotic amoxicillin and other medications as surging illnesses particularly among children have increased demand for the drugs.

Under Macrons plan, public money to the tune of 160 million euros ($173 million) will go to support eight of the new projects, including for amoxycillin produced by British pharma giant GSK in northwestern France as well as anaesthetics, painkillers and cancer drugs.

Companies would be able to apply for a share of a further 50 million euros in funding, Macron said.

The 50 drugs flagged by Macron are among a list of 450 drawn up by the health ministry for which we must absolutely secure our supply chains, either by completely re-shoring or diversifying (supply) and continuing to innovate, the president said.

Tuesdays pharma announcements mark the first step in a week dedicated to industrial projects, which Macron hopes will move public attention on from the battles over his widely-disliked pension reform.

The post France to re-shore production of 50 key medicines appeared first on Iraqi News.

Kyiv Russian strikes early Tuesday on the hometown of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky killed ten people, as Moscow said it had captured Western armoured vehicles from Kyivs forces.

The strikes overnight hit multiple sites and smashed into a five-storey apartment building in the central city of Kryvyi Rig, leaving smoke billowing from the housing block strewn with debris.

Ten people have died. One is under rubble. Twenty-eight are injured and 12 of them are in the citys hospitals in medium, serious and very serious condition, said Oleksandr Vilkul, the head of the citys military administration.

Rescue operations are ongoing, he added.

Zelensky said after the strikes that Russian forces were waging a war against residential buildings, ordinary cities and people.

He promised Ukrainians that those responsible would be held to account.

Terrorists will never be forgiven, and they will be held accountable for every missile they launch, he said in a statement on social media.

Air raid sirens earlier had sounded across Ukraine as the capital Kyiv and the northeast city of Kharkiv also came under missile and drone attacks.

Ukraines air force said Russia launched 14 cruise missiles and four Iranian-made drones overnight, with 10 missiles and one drone intercepted.

Trophies

In the morning, another missile was fired by Russian forces before being shot down by the Ukrainian air defences.

The fresh wave of attacks came shortly before Moscow claimed to have captured several German Leopard tanks and US Bradley infantry fighting vehicles.  

The defence ministry released footage showing Russian troops surveying the equipment supplied to Ukraine by Western countries.

Leopard tanks and Bradley infantry fighting vehicles. These are our trophies. Equipment of the Ukrainian armed forces in the Zaporizhzhia region, the Russian defence ministry said in a statement.

Servicemen of the Vostok group inspect enemy tanks and infantry fighting vehicles captured in battle.

Kyiv has appealed to its allies in the West to deliver a broad range of modern military equipment to help Ukrainian forces recapture large swathes of territory controlled by Russia.

The defence ministry said several of the captured vehicles had working engines, suggesting that battles they were involved in had been short and that Ukrainian troops had fled their offensive positions.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has asked Australia about the condition of dozens of retired F-18 fighter jets, the countrys ambassador told AFP on Tuesday, eyeing a potential weapons transfer that could significantly bolster Kyivs airpower.

Flooding toll rises

The strikes across Ukraine came shortly after Kyiv claime...

Nottingham Police arrested a man Tuesday after three people were found dead and a van tried to mow down three others in the central English city of Nottingham in incidents authorities believe are linked.

Nottinghams centre was cordoned off, with a heavy police presence, including some armed officers following the series of events that left residents shaken.

A 31-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder, police said.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak thanked emergency services who had dealt with the shocking incident.

My thoughts are with those injured, and the family and loved ones of those who have lost their lives, he added.

Police were called just after 4:00 am (0300 GMT) after two people were found dead in Ilkeston Road, which runs west out of the city centre.

The body of a man was also found just over a mile (1.6 kilometres) away on Magdala Road, about two miles away.

The three people hit by the van, in Milton Street, in the city centre, were being treated in hospital, a police statement added.

Sirens

Witness Lynn Haggitt said she saw a van hit two people at around 5:30 am (0430 GMT) near the citys Theatre Royal after the vehicle pulled up beside her on her way to work.

He looked in his mirror, saw a police car behind him, he then quickened up, there were two people he went straight into these two people, she told BBC news.

Another man, Glen Gretton, said he was woken up at around 5:00 am by the sound of a series of police cars passing his home.

I heard a police car go past. It was driving extremely quickly, followed by another one, another one, the 46-year-old delivery driver said.

They just kept coming so I knew something quite major was happening somewhere around the city centre, he said.

This is an horrific and tragic incident which has claimed the lives of three people, said Nottinghamshire Police Chief Constable Kate Meynell.

We believe these three incidents are all linked and we have a man in custody, she added.

The citys tram network was suspended while the investigation took place.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman said she was shocked and saddened by the deaths.

The citys three members of parliament Nadia Whittome, Lilian Greenwood and Alex Norris said they were shaken by the events and expressed their condolences to the families of the dead and injured.

Our city has been devastated by the deaths of three people this morning. Nottingham is a beautiful city, home to brilliant people from all backgrounds.

We are shaken by todays events but will meet them collectively as a community and heal together, they said in a joint statement on Twitter.

The post...

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) The Egyptian President, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, during his meeting on Tuesday with the Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, affirmed Egypts constant support for Iraqs security and stability.

El-Sisi emphasized that Egypt is keen to strengthen and diversify the bilateral cooperation with Iraq in various fields such as politics, economy, trade, and culture, whether at the bilateral level or through the tripartite cooperation mechanism with Jordan.

The Egyptian President valued the depth and strength of the strategic relations between the two countries.

The Iraqi Prime Minister is visiting Egypt for the second time in about 100 days, where he heads a high-level delegation that includes 12 Iraqi ministers, in addition to several Iraqi businessmen, to meet with their Egyptian counterparts.

The Iraqi Ministry of Trade revealed that 10 agreements between Cairo and Baghdad have been completed and will be signed by the prime ministers of the two countries during Al-Sudanis visit to Egypt.

The agreements are in the fields of sports and youth, housing, construction, labor, and social affairs.

The meeting between the two leaders addressed the most important regional and international issues, according to a statement issued by the Prime Ministers Office.

El-Sisi and Al-Sudani emphasized the need to continue mutual cooperation to strengthen the partnership between Egypt and Iraq, INA added.  

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London A final Beatles record, created with the help of artificial intelligence, will be released later this year, Paul McCartney told the BBC in an interview broadcast Tuesday.

It was a demo that John (Lennon) had, and that we worked on, and we just finished it up, said McCartney, who turns 81 next week.

The Beatles Lennon, McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr split in 1970, with each going on to have solo careers, but they never reunited.

Lennon was shot dead in New York in 1980 aged 40 while Harrison died of lung cancer in 2001, aged 58.

McCartney did not name the song that has been recorded but according to the BBC it is likely to be a 1978 Lennon composition called Now And Then.

The track one of several on a cassette that Lennon had recorded for McCartney a year before his death was given to him by Lennons widow Yoko Ono in 1994.

Two of the songs, Free As A Bird and Real Love, were cleaned up by the producer Jeff Lynne, and released in 1995 and 1996.

An attempt was made to do the same with Now And Then but the project was abandoned because of background noise on the demo.

McCartney, who has previously talked about wanting to finish the song, said AI had given him a new chance to do so.

Now and Then

Working with Peter Jackson, the film director behind the 2021 documentary series The Beatles: Get Back, AI was used to separate Lennons voice and a piano.

They tell the machine, Thats the voice. This is a guitar. Lose the guitar,' he explained.

So when we came to make what will be the last Beatles record, it was a demo that John had (and) we were able to take Johns voice and get it pure through this AI.

Then we can mix the record, as you would normally do. So it gives you some sort of leeway.

McCartney performed a two-hour set at last years Glastonbury festival in England, playing Beatles classics to the 100,000-strong crowd.

The set included a virtual duet with Lennon of the song Ive Got a Feeling, from the Beatles last album Let It Be.

Last month, Sting warned that defending our human capital against AI would be a major battle for musicians in the coming years.

The use of AI in music is the subject of debate in the industry, with some denouncing copyright abuses and others praising its prowess.

McCartney said the use of the technology was kind of scary but exciting because its the future, adding: Well just have to see where that leads.

Exhibition

After the Beatles, the singer-songwriter went on to have hits with his band Wings, but a...

Dubai Salvage teams are close to starting the transfer of more than one million barrels of oil from a decaying tanker anchored off Yemen after two weeks of preparatory inspections, the United Nations said.

The FSO Safer, long used as a floating storage platform and now abandoned off the rebel-held Yemeni port of Hodeida, has not been serviced since the Arabian Peninsula country plunged into civil war more than eight years ago.

A team of experts last month started inspecting conditions aboard the vessel and kickstarted preparations for the operation intended to avert a major oil spill.

I think we are getting very close to the point where we can start the ship-to-ship transfer which will be the next and perhaps most important phase, David Gressly, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, told a news conference in The Hague on Monday.

We have a few steps to take care of in terms of insurance and other issues that we need to resolve before bringing in a replacement vessel, he said.

The operation will see private company SMIT Salvage pump the oil from the Safer to the Nautica, a super-tanker the United Nations purchased for the operation, then tow away the empty tanker.

After two weeks of inspection, our crew are convinced that the Safer is strong enough for such an operation, said Peter Berdowski, CEO of Boskalis, the parent company of SMIT Salvage.

I think we are almost there. As far as we are concerned, we are ready to start the ship-to-ship transfer any day in the coming days.

Environmental threat

Berdowski was speaking on the same panel as Gressly ahead of the opening of the Yemen International Forum in The Hague on Monday.

Berdowski said the removal of the oil could take between one week and one month, depending on how easily it can be pumped.

The most important next step obviously is the arrival of the Nautica replacement vessel, he said.

Berdowski said some issues still needed to be resolved, including inspections to determine whether there is any oxygen inside the oil tanks which could result in an explosion if exposed to a spark.

His team would also need to embark on an underwater inspection of the Safers hull to make sure it is strong enough for a ship-to-ship transfer.

The Safer is carrying four times as much oil as that which spilled in the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster off Alaska, one of the worlds worst ecological catastrophes.

A spill could cost up to $20 billion to clean up, to say nothing of the environmental and human toll, and the UN is negotiating with an insurance consortium to insure the operation.

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Seoul South Korea has charged a former Samsung executive accused of stealing company secrets worth hundreds of millions of dollars to set up a copycat chip factory in China, prosecutors told AFP on Tuesday.

Semiconductors have become a flashpoint issue between the United States and China, which are locked in a fierce battle over access to chip-making technology and supplies.

South Korean prosecutors said the 65-year-old former Samsung employee allegedly stole the companys factory blueprints and clean-room designs from 2018 and 2019.

The Suwon district prosecutors office said he unsuccessfully tried to set up a copycat production facility in the Chinese city of Xian where Samsung already has a chip factory.

The man, who has not been identified and is in detention pending trial, stole material that is classified by South Korea as a national core technology a category of tech that could potentially harm national security and the economy if disclosed overseas.

Prosecutors said he had been in custody for some time and was formally charged on Monday.

They described him as a top expert in semiconductor manufacturing, who had worked in the industry for decades.

South Korean authorities said the information allegedly targeted in the theft would have been worth at least 300 billion won ($236 million) to Samsung.

It is a serious crime that can have a tremendous negative impact on our economic security by shaking the foundation of the domestic semiconductor industry at a time when competition for chip production is intensifying every day, prosecutors said in a statement on Monday.

The semiconductor industry accounted for 16.5 percent of South Koreas total exports in 2022 and is a national security asset.

Six other people who worked with the executive have been charged over suspected involvement in the theft.

Samsung declined to comment when contacted by AFP on Tuesday.

Chip war

Samsung Electronics is one of the worlds largest producers of chips and smartphones, and its parent groups turnover is equivalent to about one-fifth of South Koreas GDP.

Like many of the worlds biggest chip makers, a large portion of its production is based in China.

Chips are the lifeblood of the modern global economy, and China the worlds second-largest economy relies on a steady supply of chips made by foreign firms for its huge electronics manufacturing industry.

The United States imposed a series of export controls last year to prevent China from acquiring the most advanced chips that could be used in cutting-edge weapons and frontier tech such as artificial intelligence.

The Netherlands and Japan followed this year with restrictions of their own, without naming China.

But the curb...

Johannesburg South Africa has never been touched by Islamist attacks. Its three-decade-old democracy is solid, and its financial system is respected.

Yet experts say the continents most industrialised nation is now a nerve centre for jihadist financing in Africa. 

South Africa is open hunting ground, Pretoria-based counter-terrorism expert Jasmine Opperman told AFP. 

Islamist financiers gather money in the country and transfer it into the hands of terrorism, she said, adding it was internationally recognised that we are now a hub. 

Its a stark indictment for a country that, apart from the odd alerts issued by the US embassy, hardly registers on the radar of extremist activities worldwide. 

Yet Oppermans assessment is widely shared by analysts across Africa, Europe and the United States. 

Red flags were first raised last year when the US government levied sanctions on several South Africans it accused of belonging to an Islamic State (IS) cell. 

The group facilitated the transfer of money to IS branches across Africa, according to Washington. 

It provided technical, financial, or material support to the terrorist group, the US treasury said in November.

Complacency

Some analysts have suggested that jihadist financing flourished because South African authorities grew complacent at the lack of visible Islamist activity.

I dont think South Africa realised it. It was the Americans who said, something not okay is going on in your country,' Hans-Jakob Schindler, director of the Counter-Extremism Project think-tank, told AFP.

The entire government is now put to task, he said.

One of the clearest signs something was amiss came in March this year when the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a global illicit cash flow watchdog that aims to tackle money laundering and terrorist financing, placed South Africa on its grey list over gaps in monitoring and stemming illegal financial activities.

A cocktail of conditions, including a functional financial system, liberties, porous borders, corruption and criminality have made South Africa fertile ground for Islamists to raise funds, experts say.

A lot of the money comes from organised crime syndicates which raise funds through drugs and precious minerals trafficking as well as kidnapping for ransom. 

Extortion, with the use of fake Tinder profiles to lure victims, is also widespread. 

Organised crime is rife

Kidnapping cases doubled to 4,000 between July and September last year, compared to the previous quarter, police statistics show.

Organised crime itself is rife, in South Africa, said Opperman.

To avoid detection, the money is then transferred to Islamist cells...

Kyiv A Russian missile strike killed three people and wounded 32 in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih on Tuesday, authorities said, as air attacks were reported in Kyiv and other cities.

In Kryvyi Rih, the birthplace of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, a five-storey building was destroyed, said the governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region that includes the city.

According to initial reports, three of its residents died. 25 people were injured, Serhiy Lysak said on Telegram. There are still people under the rubble.

Lysak said three cruise missiles were shot down but others got through.

Air raid alerts were sounded across Ukraine as the capital Kyiv and the northeast city of Kharkiv also came under missile and drone attacks.

According to initial reports, the enemy used Kh-101/555 cruise missiles, the Kyiv city military administration said.

All enemy targets in the airspace around Kyiv were detected and successfully destroyed by the forces and means of air defence, it said, adding there was no immediate information on any casualties or damage.

The fresh wave of air attacks came after Ukraine claimed to have retaken several villages and made advances in its counter-offensive against Russian forces.

More terrorist missiles, Russian killers continue their war against residential buildings, ordinary cities and people. Unfortunately, there are dead and wounded, Zelensky said on Twitter.

The rescue operation in Kryvyi Rih continues.

In Kharkiv, civilian infrastructure was hit in a drone attack, said the citys mayor Ihor Terekhov.

According to initial reports, a utility company in the Kyivskyi district, as well as a warehouse in Saltivskyi district got damaged. A fire broke out as a result of the explosion on the latter, he said.

Air alerts were also sounded in the Dnipropetrovsk oblast and the neighbouring Donetsk and Poltava regions.

Tough counter-offensive

The wave of overnight strikes comes a day after Zelensky said Ukraine was making small gains in a tough counter-offensive.

The fighting is tough, but we are moving forward, this is very important, Zelensky said Monday.

I thank our guys for every Ukrainian flag that is now returning to its rightful place in villages on the newly de-occupied territory, he said.

Ukraines defence minister Ganna Malyar said seven settlements were liberated referring to the villages of Lobkovo, Levadne and Novodarivka in the southern Zaporizhzhia region, which houses Europes largest nuclear plant, now under Russian occupation.

Malyar said Ukrainian forces had also regained control of the village of Storozheve in the south of the Donetsk region, near three villages recap...