Author: admin@primenews

Go to a major tennis tournament and it’s hard to miss the Carota Boys, a team of six men decked in full-body, bright-orange carrot costumes. But you might hear them before you see them. The group of 20-somethings are most likely to be found vociferously supporting world No. 4 Jannik Sinner, who, like them, also heralds from northern Italy. It’s only over the past seven or so months that the Carota Boys’ love for Sinner has really blossomed, endearing themselves to the tennis public in the process. “They are more famous than I am, to be honest,” Sinner told reporters during last…

A US regulator has hit the China arm of prestigious “Big Four” firm PwC with a $7 million fine. The company failed to detect or prevent extensive cheating by its staff during internal training exams in mainland China and Hong Kong, the US Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) said Thursday, leading to one of the highest fines it has ever imposed. In its announcement, the PCAOB said the practice was widespread, involving more than 1,000 employees from PwC Hong Kong, and hundreds more from PwC China. The penalties are the first the US agency has enforced against Chinese companies since a 2022…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said defences must be quickly beefed up across the front line, after meeting commanders in some of the main pressure points in the south and east. “In all major sectors where reinforcement is needed, [we must] speed up building of structures,” he said in his nightly address. Russian forces are trying to encircle the eastern town of Avdiivka. And they are targeting the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. Overnight Ukraine’s air force said it had shot down 18 out of 25 Russian drones and one of two cruise missiles. With temperatures falling below freezing…

King Charles III told world leaders Friday that the warning signs of the climate crisis are being ignored and that the world is heading for “dangerous uncharted territory,” with devastating consequences for lives and livelihoods. Delivering an opening address to delegates at the World Climate Action Summit, part of the COP28 climate talks in Dubai, the King said he prayed “with all my heart that COP28 will be a critical turning point towards genuine transformational action.” “Some important progress has been made but it worries me greatly that we remain so dreadfully far off track,” he said, adding, “we are…

Olivia DeRamus was 19 and studying at university in California when she was sexually assaulted. The situation was made worse when she found she couldn’t speak out about it. “I was sexually assaulted. And my story doesn’t end there,” says Olivia. After reporting the incident, the university launched an investigation and took action against the alleged perpetrator. Olivia chose not to go to the police to avoid more trauma. But she still found she was caught up in a legal battle that lasted for years. “I was actually sued by the perpetrator of my assault, for defamation.” In the United…

Two Chinese business executives at companies controlled by the embattled financial conglomerate Zhongzhi have gone missing, according to statements by their respective firms. The development comes just days after Chinese authorities launched a criminal investigation into the troubled shadow bank, one of China’s largest. Last week, Zhongzhi told its investors that it is “severely insolvent.” Dalian My Gym Education Technology, a listed education firm, said it is unable to get in touch with its chairwoman Ma Hongying. “The company is not sure of the specific reason why it cannot get in touch with Ms. Ma Hongying,” the company said in a filing to the…

Heavy gunfire was reported in Guinea-Bissau’s capital on Friday morning hours after some National Guard soldiers went to free a detained minister and a senior state official. Members of the National Guard took the officials before seeking refuge in barracks south of the capital. Special forces then intervened after attempts to negotiate failed, resulting in an exchange of gunfire. Calm is said to have been restored later. The finance minister, Souleiman Seidi, and the secretary of state for the treasury, Antonio Monteiro, had been detained amid investigations into the alleged irregular withdrawal of $10m (£8m) of state funds. They were…

Hackers are increasing their attacks on Booking.com customers by posting adverts on dark web forums asking for help finding victims. Cyber-criminals are offering up to $2,000 (£1,600) for login details of hotels as they continue to target the people who are staying with them. Since at least March, customers have been tricked into sending money to cyber-criminals. New research shows the sneaky tactics being used by the unknown hackers. Booking.com is one of the largest websites for holidaymakers, but customers from the UK, Indonesia, Singapore, Greece, Italy, Portugal, the US and Netherlands have complained online about being victims of fraud through the…

Celebrated photographer Elliott Erwitt, known for his candid and often funny black and white images, has died at 95. He died “peacefully at home surrounded by family,” Magnum, the collective of photographers that he had been part of since 1953, said in a statement. Born in Paris to Russian parents, Erwitt moved to the US as a child. He captured major moments including an infamous spat in 1959 between then US Vice-President Richard Nixon and Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev. In 2017, on the centenary of Russia’s October Revolution, he spoke to the BBC about what it was like to witness two world…

US prosecutors have charged an Indian man with a plot to kill at least four Sikh activists in North America. The indictment links the case to the murder of a Canadian citizen earlier this year, and has prompted questions about what US agents knew in the days before his death. On 18 June, Nikhil Gupta watched a video of a Canadian Sikh activist who had been shot dead in his car, his bloody body slumped over the steering wheel. Mr Gupta then forwarded the video to a man he is accused of hiring as a hitman for another murder, in…