Thursday, July 23

Blog

‘Where are they?’: Flood-hit Spanish towns desperate for leadership | World News
Business

‘Where are they?’: Flood-hit Spanish towns desperate for leadership | World News

For days, the people of Paiporta have been dealing with the devastation of their town. But what hurts them now is the sense that they have been forgotten by their country.As we walk through this town, what we see is relentless hard work - clearing mud, pumping out water, recovering cars. But none of it is being done by people in uniform. Paiporta is being saved by its own residents, by friends, and by volunteers."The town feels like chaos," says Cristina Hernandez, who moved here a year ago from Madrid"Nobody has organised anything so we are doing our best. We feel we are abandoned by the government and there are also a lot of thieves in the night, so we are scared. "It is a nightmare not only because of the floods but also because of the anarchy that we are living through now. After the c...
The Diplomat was a smash hit in its first season, here’s what you need to know about the second
World News

The Diplomat was a smash hit in its first season, here’s what you need to know about the second

By Vyshnavee Wijekumar, ABC Entertainment The Diplomat has returned for season two on Netflix. It's already been renewed for season three. Photo: Supplied / Netflix With the US presidential elections around the corner, it's never been a better time to tune into a political drama. The Diplomat - which has just dropped its second season - is the sharply funny and fast-paced thriller you need in your life; and parallels with real-life events makes this an even more compelling watch. And the world agrees, with season one debuting at No.1 on the streaming charts, and appearing in the Netflix Top 10 in 86 different countries. As the title suggests, the protagonist here is ambassador Kate Wyler (Keri Russell; The Americans), a career diplomat who's spent most of her working life in boots-on...
Dmitry Medvedev warns US it should take Russia nuclear warnings seriously to avoid World War Three | World News
Business

Dmitry Medvedev warns US it should take Russia nuclear warnings seriously to avoid World War Three | World News

Moscow has warned the US it should take Russia's nuclear warnings seriously to avoid World War Three. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's security council and who served as the country's president from 2008 to 2012, warned the US on Saturday it was "wrong" to believe "that the Russians will never cross a certain line". He told Russian-state broadcaster RT that Moscow believed the current US and European political establishments lacked the "foresight and subtlety of mind" displayed by the late Henry Kissinger."If we are talking about the existence of our state, as the president of our country has repeatedly said, your humbleservant has said, others have said, of course, we simply will not have any choice," Mr Medvedev said.Russia has been signalling for weeks to the West that Mosco...
Why so many elections in 2024? Chalk it up to the ‘beauty of math,’ says professor – National
Politics

Why so many elections in 2024? Chalk it up to the ‘beauty of math,’ says professor – National

Tuesday’s vote in the United States may be dominating social media feeds, but it is just one of more than 70 national elections that will have taken place this year by the end of December. Mauritanians went to the polls in June, the same month Mexico elected its first female president and Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared victory in India. Azerbaijanis and Indonesians voted in February. Iceland goes to the polls on Nov. 30, Ghana on Dec. 7.“This is the biggest election year in human history,” the United Nations Development Program says on its website. “Half of the world’s population — some 3.7 billion people — will have the opportunity to go to the polls in 72 countries.”In Canada alone, four provinces held or will hold provincial elections this year: New Brunswick, Saskatchewan, Briti...
India lodges protest with Canadian government after Modi’s right-hand man linked to ‘violent criminal activity’ | World News
Business

India lodges protest with Canadian government after Modi’s right-hand man linked to ‘violent criminal activity’ | World News

India has officially protested against the Canadian government's allegation linking President Modi's right-hand man to alleged plots against Sikh separatists. Relations between the two countries have been tense for more than a year after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there were credible allegations the Indian government had links to the assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. India has vehemently rejected the accusation. Last month, the Washington Post reported that Canadian officials suspected Amit Shah, India's powerful home minister and Narendra Modi's right-hand man, had ordered the targeting of Sikh activists inside Canada.Canada's deputy foreign affairs minister David Morrison confirmed to a parliamentary panel on Tuesday that he had told the newspaper Mr ...
Supporters share cautious optimism and anxiety ahead of divisive U.S. election – National
Politics

Supporters share cautious optimism and anxiety ahead of divisive U.S. election – National

Tens of thousands of people from opposite sides of the political divide gathered at duelling rallies in Wisconsin on Friday, hosted by Vice-President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump as they made a final push for votes in the critical swing state. “It feels great,” said William Dahms, holding a giant Trump 2024 flag outside the arena in Milwaukee where Trump rallied supporters later that evening. “It’s a beautiful day. I took the day off from work and here I am.”Republicans and Democrats are both vying for Wisconsin’s 10 electoral college votes. Trump narrowly squeaked out a Wisconsin win in 2016 and it swung back to President Joe Biden in 2020.The candidates are spending the final weekend before the election in battleground states that could ultimately hold the key to the W...
PM2.5 exposure may impair cognitive abilities in kids, raise Alzheimer’s risk
Health

PM2.5 exposure may impair cognitive abilities in kids, raise Alzheimer’s risk

Long-term exposure to air pollution particles like PM2.5 can prove to be detrimental to memory and cognition in people of all ages, finds a study, even as the air quality in the national capital continues to remain in the poor category.  On Saturday morning, a layer of smog covered Delhi-NCR with the Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national Capital registering a `poor` rating. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Delhi`s average AQI was 294 at 7:30 A.M. on Saturday, with 18 areas reporting AQI levels above 300, indicating a `very poor` category. The peer-reviewed study based on 8,500 children found that air pollution caused by ammonium nitrate -- which is usually a result of agricultural and farming operations -- can lead to poor learning and memory performance in chi...
New York Mayor Eric Adams corruption trial set for April 2025
World News

New York Mayor Eric Adams corruption trial set for April 2025

New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Photo: AFP / Angela Weiss By Luc Cohen, Reuters New York City Mayor Eric Adams will go on trial on corruption charges starting 21 April, 2025, a US judge ruled on Friday, placing the proceedings in the middle of what promises to be a bruising reelection campaign for the embattled Democrat. US District Judge Dale Ho set the date at a hearing in Manhattan federal court over the opposition of Adams' defence lawyer Alex Spiro, who wanted the trial over the mayor's alleged dealings with Turkish officials to end by March, well before the Democratic primary election in June. Adams, 64, pleaded not guilty last month. Spiro predicted he would be acquitted at trial, and warned of "grave, grave democratic concerns" if he does not have enough time to clear his name b...
‘Election seems really close’: Americans in Canada cast ballot ahead of U.S. election
Politics

‘Election seems really close’: Americans in Canada cast ballot ahead of U.S. election

Stephen Winters says watching the U.S. election campaign from Canada as a dual citizen is like a parent watching their kid play sports. “When you’re on the sideline it makes you more nervous than when you’re in it,” Winters said in an interview from Calgary.“My friends and family at home are like, ‘Don’t worry that much’ because they’re there and they know things are going OK. When you’re outside, it can look worse than it is.”Winters, from Minnesota, teaches linguistics at the University of Calgary. He is one of about 600,000 eligible voters in Canada able to cast their vote in Tuesday’s election.Winters said he has cast his absentee ballot but has taken a step back from reading political news because of how helpless he feels afterwards. Story continues below advertisement ...
Kemi Badenoch becomes new leader of UK Conservatives
World News

Kemi Badenoch becomes new leader of UK Conservatives

By Elizabeth Piper and Andrew MacAskill, Reuters Kemi Badenoch smiles beside her husband Hamish (left) after being announced as the Conservatives' new leader in London. Photo: AFP / Benjamin Cremel Kemi Badenoch has won a race to become the new leader of Britain's Conservative Party, vowing to return the once dominant party to its founding principles to win back voters who handed the Conservatives their worst election defeat in July. Badenoch, 44, replaces former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and has pledged to lead the party through a period of renewal, saying it had veered towards the political centre by "governing from the left" and must return to its traditional ideas. The first Black woman leader of a major political party in Britain, Badenoch will bring a right-wing tone to the ro...