World News

Himars precision rockets shift the balance in Ukraine: experts

US-made precision rockets have given Ukraine forces a major battlefield boost since they were introduced in June, tilting the balance against the Russians and possibly forcing Moscow to pause its offensive, experts said.. Doing so would leave the frontline artillery that is the mainstay of the Russian offensive less protected from Ukraine air and ground forces.

G20 finance chiefs meet as Indonesia warns of energy, food catastrophe

Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank chiefs from top economies met in Indonesia Friday for talks on the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with the host warning them failure to tackle energy and food crises would be catastrophic.. A day before the meeting, Yellen set the tone, calling Russia's war in Ukraine the "greatest challenge" to the global economy and saying members of Putin's government "have no place" at the talks.

Biden to meet Palestinian leaders ahead of Saudi visit

US President Joe Biden will meet Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas in the occupied West Bank Friday, with talks expected to focus on economic measures but without striking any major diplomatic breakthrough.. - 'Side by side' -  With Palestinians banned by Israel from political activity in Jerusalem, the US president will travel to Bethlehem to meet Abbas.

Saudi opens airspace to 'all carriers' in gesture to Israel

Saudi Arabia announced Friday it was lifting restrictions on "all carriers" using its airspace, an apparent gesture of openness towards Israel ahead of US President Joe Biden's arrival.  . The Saudi civil aviation authority "announces the decision to open the Kingdom's airspace for all air carriers that meet the requirements of the authority for overflying", it said in a statement on Twitter.  

US says no restrictions on farm equipment to Russia

The United States said Thursday that it would not bar the sale of farm equipment to Russia, again denying Moscow's allegations that Western sanctions -- not its invasion of Ukraine -- are causing the global food crisis.. The Treasury Department, in a legal form on sanctions exemptions, said it would not stop US transactions related to the production, sale or transport of agricultural equipment.

Eight children trapped after Colombia landslide buries school: officials

At least eight children are believed trapped in northwest Colombia after a landslide buried a school on Thursday, local authorities said. . Daniel Quintero, the mayor of Medellin that is the capital of the Antioquia department where the landslide took place, issued an alert on Twitter about a landslide burying a school by the name of El Porvenir.

Ukraine war to dominate G20 finance chief meeting in Indonesia

Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank chiefs from top economies will meet in Indonesia Friday for talks on the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has roiled markets, spiked food prices and stoked breakneck inflation.. A day before the meeting, Yellen set the tone calling Russia's war in Ukraine the "greatest challenge" to the global economy and said members of Putin's government "have no place" at the talks.

Street party draws curtain on Sri Lanka's Rajapaksa era

Exhausted and drained after nearly 100 days of protests, a small crowd gathered its remaining strength Thursday to celebrate the resignation of Sri Lanka's leader at the seaside headquarters of their campaign to oust him.. For more than three months, the seafront boulevard has been home to a cluster of tents used as a staging post for protesters demanding the despised leader step down for his role in driving Sri Lanka's battered economy to ruin.

Sunak leads race for UK PM as rivals round on bookies' favourite Mordaunt

Former finance minister Rishi Sunak topped the latest vote Thursday by Conservative MPs to decide Britain's next prime minister followed by bookmaker favourite Penny Mordaunt, as attacks on her escalated within the ruling party.. The final pair of contenders to replace Prime Minister Boris Johnson, to be put to Conservative party members over the summer, will be decided by the middle of next week.  

Webb begins hunt for the first stars and habitable worlds

The first stunning images from the James Webb Space Telescope were revealed this week, but its journey of cosmic discovery has only just begun. . While today's galaxies are shaped like spirals or ellipticals, the earliest building blocks were "clumpy and irregular," and Webb should reveal older redder stars in them, more like our Sun, that were invisible to the Hubble Space Telescope.