Author: admin@primenews

When Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met in Beijing for the opening of the 2022 Winter Olympics, they confidently outlined their vision for a new international order no longer dominated by the United States and its democratic allies. Now, nearly two years on, and with geopolitical fault lines hardening globally, the world’s two most powerful autocrats are preparing to see each other again in the Chinese capital. The meeting comes under the shadow of conflict, with Russia’s grinding invasion of Ukraine – launched just three weeks after the leaders’ last get-together in Beijing – and Israel’s war against Hamas,…

Gaza is being “strangled” by Israel’s week-long siege and aerial bombardment, UN experts have warned, as concerns grow that further escalation and a lack of safety for fleeing civilians risks drawing regional foes into the long-running conflict. Israel has vowed to wipe out Hamas in response to the unprecedented October 7 terrorist attacks by the Islamist militant group, which controls the enclave. At least 1,400 people were killed and many taken hostage during Hamas’ rampage, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in what US President Joe Biden has called “the worst massacre of Jewish people since the Holocaust.” Diplomatic efforts to establish a humanitarian corridor to send desperately-needed supplies into Gaza are…

After dealing with the death of her mother, losing her job of 10 years and finalizing her divorce, Barbara Barto was at a crossroads in her life. The 62-year-old, from Fort Worth, Texas, who had been working as an office manager, struggled to find another role and felt as though she had passed her “expiration date.” Barto decided that now was probably the right time to retire, but was concerned that she wouldn’t be able to live comfortably afterwards due to the rising cost of living in the US. An avid viewer of the Home & Garden Television (HGTV) channel…

The exit polls from Poland’s election have Eurocrats grinning like Cheshire cats. After years of estrangement and antagonism, Poland’s centrist opposition Civic Coalition, has a simple message for Brussels: “We, the fifth-largest country in the EU fold, are back!” The fact that they’re led by former European Council chief Donald Tusk means the EU believes them. Brussels has been deeply worried about Poland’s election. Little was said in public. EU figures don’t want to be seen as interfering in national votes, but behind closed doors there was a tonne of euro-nail-biting. Poland and Hungary have long been viewed as the…

A court in India has freed two men who were on death row for the rape and murder of 19 women and children in 2005. Surinder Koli and his businessman employer Moninder Singh Pandher were convicted in 2009 in a gruesome case that shocked the country. They were held in 2006 after body parts were found near their home near Delhi. On Monday, the Allahabad High Court found Koli innocent in 12 cases in which he was sentenced to death. The court also found Pandher not guilty in the two cases against him. The two men were acquitted due to…

Businessman Daniel Noboa is to become the youngest president in Ecuador’s history, at 35 years old. Mr Noboa won Sunday’s election with 52.3% of the vote, ahead of Luisa González’s 47.7%. She conceded defeat and congratulated her rival. The 35-year-old, of the National Democratic Action party, is the son of Álvaro Noboa, who ran unsuccessfully for the presidency five times. Mr Noboa will only have 17 months in office. He will govern only to May 2025, due to the fact that the current election was triggered early when outgoing President Guillermo Lasso dissolved parliament amid an impeachment trial. He can…

The former chairman of the Bank of China has been arrested over suspicions of bribery and giving illegal loans. Liu Liange, chairman of the state-owned bank from 2019 to 2023, had resigned from his position in March this year. Weeks later, authorities announced Mr Liu was facing corruption charges. The 62-year-old is one of the most senior bankers to be ensnared in President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption probe into China’s $60 trillion (£49 trillion) financial sector. The push to weed out corruption from the country’s financial industry appears to be ramping up, with officials in April warning that the crackdown was…

Australia on Monday issued a fine of $610,500 Australian dollars ($386,000) against the company formerly known as Twitter for “falling short” in disclosing information on how it tackles child sex abuse content, in yet another setback for the Elon Musk-owned social media platform. Just days earlier, the European Commission formally opened an investigation into X after issuing a previous warning about disinformation and illegal content on its platform linked to the Israel-Hamas war. Australia’s e-Safety Commission, the online safety regulator, said in a statement Monday that X had failed to adequately respond to a number of questions about the way it was dealing with…

The men in the wedding hall at the Dheisheh refugee camp in the West Bank spend most of their days and nights glued to their phones, smoking, constantly refreshing their news feeds. They look exhausted, the horrors of the last few days clearly visible on their faces. These 180 men – they are all men – are refugees from Gaza. They are among the roughly 18,000 residents of the enclave who have Israeli work permits and are allowed to cross the border back and forth. When the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shut all access to Gaza following Hamas’ deadly attack…

It wasn’t love at first sight when Aditi Anand met Susan Dias at a book club in Mumbai. “We didn’t get along with each other at all,” Anand, a filmmaker, said with a smile as she recalled the encounter. “We were always antagonistic toward each other’s views on the books we were reading.” Weeks later, when the two women bumped into each other at a phone shop, Dias even ignored Anand. “She tried so hard not to acknowledge me. But unfortunately, or rather fortunately for both of us, we found each other at the phone counter,” Anand said. “We said hi…