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Abbie Humphries, snatched from UK hospital as a baby, dies of brain tumour age 30 in NZ
World News

Abbie Humphries, snatched from UK hospital as a baby, dies of brain tumour age 30 in NZ

Abbie Humphries and Karl Sundgren on their wedding day. Photo: Supplied A woman who was snatched from an English hospital ward when she was a baby by a woman posing as a nurse, but who later shifted to New Zealand, has died of a brain tumour aged 30. Abbie Humphries was taken from her cot at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham in July 1994 when she was just three hours old, The Sun reported. She had walked into Karen Humphries' room and taken Abbie from her father Roger's arms, saying the baby had to have a hearing test, the AFP reported. Police found her just over a fortnight later in the Nottingham suburb of Wollaton - not far from the hospital. They had been tipped off that a former dental nurse called Julie Kelley, 22 at the time, who had been pregnant and was expecting a boy, ...
China sends largest naval fleet in decades to region, threat level severe, Taiwan says
World News

China sends largest naval fleet in decades to region, threat level severe, Taiwan says

By Yimou Lee and Ben Blanchard, Reuters Sun Li-fang (C), spokesperson of Taiwan's Defence Ministry, speaks to the media at an airforce base during an inspection of the troops as part of Taiwan's annual Han Kuang military drills in Hualien on 23 July 2024. Photo: AFP / Sam Yeh China has deployed its largest navy fleet in regional waters in nearly three decades, posing a threat to Taiwan that is more pronounced than previous Chinese war games, the Taiwanese defence ministry have said. Speaking in Taipei, defence ministry spokesperson Sun Li-fang said the scale of the current Chinese naval deployment in an area running from the southern Japanese islands down into the South China Sea was the largest since China held war games around Taiwan ahead of 1996 Taiwanese presidential elections. ...
Princess Catherine, Donald Trump and Joe Rogan among Time magazine Person of the Year 2024 shortlist
World News

Princess Catherine, Donald Trump and Joe Rogan among Time magazine Person of the Year 2024 shortlist

By Jessica Riga, ABC Republican presidential nominee, former US President Donald Trump arrives to speak during an election night event at the Palm Beach Convention Center on 6 November 2024 in West Palm Beach, Florida. Photo: CHIP SOMODEVILLA / Getty Images via AFP Time magazine's shortlist for their annual Person of the Year honour features royalty, political power players and podcasting chart-toppers. Catherine, Princess of Wales, is among the 10 figures selected by the publication, along with US president elect-Donald Trump, who was bestowed with the title back in 2016. Since 1927, Time magazine has named a person, group or concept that it argues "had the biggest impact - for good or for ill - on the world over the previous 12 months". Last year, superstar Taylor Swift was named T...
Israel has ‘destroyed the most important military sites in Syria’: war monitor
World News

Israel has ‘destroyed the most important military sites in Syria’: war monitor

Smoke billows on the outskirts of the Syrian capital Damascus following Israeli airstrikes on December 9, 2024. Photo: AFP / Aaref Watad A war monitor said on Tuesday that Israel had "destroyed the most important military sites in Syria" with a flurry of air strikes since the fall of president Bashar al-Assad's government. Israel, which borders Syria, sent troops into a buffer zone on the east of the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights after Assad's fall, in what Foreign Minister Gideon Saar described as a "limited and temporary step" for "security reasons". This picture taken from the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights shows smoke billowing above the Syrian Governorate of Quneitra during Israeli bombardment, on December 9, 2024. Photo: AFP / Jalaa Marey It has also carried out "about 250 ai...
Sweetened beverages can raise risk of cardiovascular diseases: Study
Health

Sweetened beverages can raise risk of cardiovascular diseases: Study

A large-scale Swedish study on Monday suggested that drinking sweetened drinks can significantly increase your risk of serious cardiovascular diseases like stroke, heart failure, and atrial fibrillation. The study also showed that eating too much-added sugar can increase the risk of stroke or aneurysm. However, limited consumption of treats can be safe. “Consuming sweet drinks was worse for your health than any other form of sugar," noted the study published in the journal Frontiers in Public Health. Suzanne Janzi, a doctoral candidate at Lund University said that the sweetened beverages, which contain liquid sugars, "typically provide less satiety than solid forms" Janzi said this makes people feel less satiated "potentially leading to overconsumption”. Moreover, unlike treats that a...
Suspect in killing of UnitedHealth executive Brian Thompson charged with murder
World News

Suspect in killing of UnitedHealth executive Brian Thompson charged with murder

adds video By Julio-Cesar Chavez, Andrew Hay and Joseph Ax for Reuters New York prosecutors have filed a murder charge against the suspect in the killing of a UnitedHealth executive, a brazen shooting that set off a manhunt that culminated in his capture in Pennsylvania earlier on Monday. The action brought an end to a tense five-day manhunt for the suspected killer. The suspect, identified as Luigi Mangione, 26, was captured in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after he was spotted eating at a McDonald's by a customer and an employee who believed he resembled the gunman, officials said at a news conference. When approached by two police officers inside the McDonald's and asked if he had recently been in New York, Mangione began to shake and went quiet, one of the responding officers said at a pre...
Syria’s rebels work to form government, restore order
World News

Syria’s rebels work to form government, restore order

By Maya Gebeily and Michelle Nichols for Reuters Syrians sit on an abandoned government tank in front of a slogan that reads "We are your men, Bashar" and "Long Live Syria", in the Damascus suburb of Daraya. Photo: AFP / Rami Al Sayed Syrian banks, oil sector set to resume work on Tuesday US seeking ways to engage with Syrian rebel leaders now in charge Israel criticized by Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia for seizing Syria buffer zone The lightning overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad has left Syrians, countries in the region and world powers nervous about what comes next, as the rebel alliance takes its first steps in a government transition. The United Nations Security Council met behind closed doors late on Monday, and diplomats said they were still in shock at how quickly Assad...
Sustainable Christmas shopping guide: fashion editor Bay Garnett on how to find unique and chic gifts
Life Style

Sustainable Christmas shopping guide: fashion editor Bay Garnett on how to find unique and chic gifts

Few people know London’s second-hand and vintage scene as well as Bay Garnett. The author and fashion stylist is the city’s best-known ‘thrifter’ — and a major advocate for sustainable style. So who better to guide you on how to shop smarter this Christmas? From the charity shops worth rooting around in, to the better-for-the-planet boutique and indie labels to know — and how not to shop — these are Bay’s rules for finding truly unique gifts.Take heed and you’ll be top everyone’s nice list for 2025...If I’m staying with people then I make a real effort to get them something great, because I think it makes them feel special. I try to buy them vintage because then it’s a one-off. It’s always a gamble but if it’s a good friend it usually pays off and they’re likely to love it! So it might b...
Suspect detained after CEO killing had document about motive, NYPD says
World News

Suspect detained after CEO killing had document about motive, NYPD says

A booking photo, taken on 9 December 2024, obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections shows Luigi Mangione. Photo: AFP / Pennsylvania Department of Corrections A man arrested in connection with the shooting of an insurance executive in New York was carrying a handwritten document suggesting he had "ill will towards corporate America", US police say. Luigi Mangione, 26, has been charged with weapons and other offences after he was arrested at a Pennsylvania McDonald's. A customer recognised his face from media coverage and notified an employee, who called police, officers said. They said Mangione initially produced a fake ID when approached by officers at the McDonald's. What we know about Luigi Mangione When they asked him to remove his face mask, they recognised him as a ...
Benjamin Netanyahu to take the stand for the first time in his corruption trial | World News
Business

Benjamin Netanyahu to take the stand for the first time in his corruption trial | World News

Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to appear in court later for the first time in his long-running corruption trial.The Israeli prime minister has been charged with bribery, fraud and breach of trust. Judges have ruled he must testify three times a week, despite the ongoing war in Gaza war and new threats in the Middle East, including neighbouring Syria.Netanyahu was indicted in 2019 in three cases involving gifts from millionaire friends and for allegedly seeking regulatory favours for media tycoons in return for favourable coverage.He denies any wrongdoing and has pleaded not guilty. Read more:Downing Street indicates Netanyahu would be arrested in UK In the run-up to his court date, Netanyahu described the investigations against him as a witch hunt. More on Benjamin Netan...