Author: admin@primenews

A cash boost of hundreds of millions of dollars and more control of land in the occupied West Bank are among Palestinian demands in the event of a three-way deal involving the US, Saudi Arabia and Israel, the BBC has learned. Officials from the Palestinian Authority (PA) held talks in Riyadh with Saudi counterparts on Wednesday. They were also due to see US officials. The Americans are long thought to have been pushing for a landmark pact to normalise Israel-Saudi ties. It would be underwritten by Washington and would include a major security deal the Saudis want to achieve with…

The shape of the sprawling Fulton County, Georgia, trial against former President Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants began to emerge Wednesday at the first televised hearing in the case since the indictment was filed last month. The Fulton County district attorney’s office said it’s planned a four months-long trial with more than 150 witnesses, while defense attorneys for two of the defendants, pro-Trump lawyers Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell, argued their cases should be severed from the other defendants. The state judge presiding over Trump’s election subversion case, Scott McAfee, denied the motion for Chesebro and Powell – who have both filed to hold a…

Dinner invites referring to India by its Sanskrit name have fueled a political row and public debate over what the country should be called, its history and colonial legacy as New Delhi prepares to welcome world leaders for the G20 summit. Invites issued by the “President of Bharat,” instead of the customary “President of India,” were sent to delegates from the world’s 20 top economies for a dinner to be hosted by Indian President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday, according to a source in her office. Both India and Bharat are used officially in the nation of 1.4 billion people, which has more than…

Love Islanders from the past will get another chance at romance in a new “All Stars” edition, ITV has said. After months of rumours, the broadcaster confirmed its plan to bring back familiar faces to the villa in South Africa. The cast of past contestants – yet to be announced – will attempt to couple up when the series debuts next year. Ratings of the reality show, now hosted by Maya Jama, have seen a steady drop since its launch in 2015. The recent summer series in Majorca – won by Sammy Root and Jess Hardin – attracted 1.3m viewers…

In a rare move, Sean “Diddy” Combs has returned some music rights to artists and songwriters who were signed to his label, instead of cashing in on them. Bad Boy Records was one of the biggest rap labels of the 1990s, home to artists like Ma$e, Faith Evans, 112, The Lox and Notorious B.I.G. Those acts have now been given back control of their songwriting rights. A source with knowledge of the deal said Combs had previously been offered millions of dollars to sell the rights. The value of music publishing rights has increased dramatically in recent years, with artists…

Luckin Coffee has joined forces with Kweichow Moutai, the maker of China’s fiery national liquor baijiu, for an unusual offering: alcoholic lattes. The popular Chinese coffee chain rolled out the so-called “sauce-flavored latte” with a jolt of liquor for 38 yuan ($5.20) on Monday. Customers who order with an online coupon will be able to receive 50% off for a limited time, it said. The “sauce” in the name is an apparent reference to the slightly savory notes of Moutai’s liquor that has been compared by some drinkers to soy sauce. The new drink quickly became a hot topic on Chinese social…

Novo Nordisk has dethroned Bernard Arnault’s luxury goods giant LVMH as Europe’s most valuable company. Shares of the Danish drugmaker have soared 40% so far this year, boosted by an explosion in demand for its weight-loss drugs Wegovy and Ozempic. At the close of trading Monday, Novo Nordisk (NVO) had a market capitalization of 2.96 trillion Danish krone ($428 billion). LVMH’s market value was around $416 billion. The French firm — which sells Louis Vuitton handbags and Hennessy cognac — has been hurt by the slowing Chinese economy. Its stock has dropped 8% over the past six months, trimming this year’s gains to 12%. Sales of Wegovy…

A bid of £13,000 fell short of the reserve price of an original proof of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone rediscovered at a primary school. The book was found during the summer at St Kenelm’s Primary School in Minster Lovell, Witney, Oxfordshire. It was bought for £1 in 1997. It went under the hammer at Hansons Auctioneers but failed to sell. The book has a plain yellow and white cover, and lists the author as “J. A Rowling” on the title page. Former head teacher Bob Alder, 75, said the book was originally bought from a bookshop sale to…

Woody Allen’s return to the Venice Film Festival was greeted with cheers and positive reviews from some, but also by loud protests on the red carpet at the premiere of the US director’s new film. Most reviews called Coup De Chance, Allen’s first film entirely in French, his best work in a decade. But scuffles broke out when protestors attempted to get on to the red carpet. Allen is a controversial figure, having been accused of molesting his daughter Dylan, which he has always denied. No charges have ever been brought against the star. The 87-year-old has largely been shunned…

The Electoral Commission has confirmed it failed a basic cyber-security test around the same time hackers gained entry to the organisation. A whistleblower told the BBC that the Commission was given an automatic fail during a Cyber Essentials audit. Last month the Commission revealed that “hostile actors” accessed its emails and potentially the data of 40 million voters. A spokeswoman said the Commission had still not passed the basic test. In August the election watchdog announced hackers broke into their IT systems in August 2021 and had access to sensitive data until they were discovered and removed in October 2022. The unnamed…