World News

right protesters have broken into an army base in a show of support for soldiers accused of severely mistreating a Palestinian prisoner. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Photo: AFP By Mark Lowen, BBC News Israeli far-right protesters have broken into an army base in a show of support for soldiers accused of severely mistreating a Palestinian prisoner there. Large crowds gathered outside the Sde Teiman compound after Israeli military police entered it to detain the reservists, who are now subject to an official investigation. Sde Teiman, near Beersheba in southern Israel, has for months been at the centre of reports of serious abuses against Gazan detainees. On Monday dozens of protesters, including far-right MPs from Israel's governing coalition, burst through the base's ga...

By Jarrett Renshaw and Stephanie Kelly for Reuters Vice President Kamala Harris. Photo: AFP / Jeff Kowalsky The list of candidates to run with Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic US presidential nominee, narrowed on Monday, with North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer both out. The high-stakes decision has taken center-stage since Vice President Harris became the Democratic frontrunner for the November election just over a week ago after President Joe Biden ended his White House bid. Vice presidential nominees can be used to balance a presidential candidate's ticket to appeal to a wider swath of voters, and Harris is weighing a list of mostly white, male candidates. Cooper withdrew from Harris' vice presidential candidate pool, saying in a stat...

By Ione Wells, BBC News Opponents of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government burn tires during a protest in Valencia, state of Carabobo, Venezuela, on July 29, 2024, a day after the Venezuelan presidential election. Photo: AFP / JUAN CARLOS HERNANDEZ Thousands of Venezuelans are heading towards the presidential palace in Caracas to protest against President Nicolás Maduro's claim of victory in the country's disputed election. Others posted pictures of the crowds on social media with captions including "knock down the dictator" and "everyone to Miraflores" - where the palace is located. The BBC has seen an armed military convoy travelling to the presidential palace, with soldiers in balaclavas standing on the back of the cars carrying large rifles. Tear gas was fired by polic...

Summer McIntosh. Photo: photosport Canada declared Summer time in the Paris Olympic pool and the country's 17-year-old sensation Summer McIntosh made it look easy while others celebrated medals won by barely a fingertip. The world record holder blew away her four-stroke rivals to win the women's 400 metres individual medley (IM) gold and add a second medal to her haul after Sunday's silver in the 400 freestyle. "It's Summer Time for Canada," declared one poolside banner at the La Defense Arena and it was no more than a statement of fact. McIntosh touched the wall a full 5.69 seconds clear of American Katie Grimes, with Emma Weyant taking bronze for the United States. Canada's first gold of the meet was followed in short order by Romania and South Africa's first, with David Popovici winn...

New Zealander Samuel Gaze and Czech Ondrej Cink pictured in action during the men's cross-country mountain bike cycling race at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Photo: DIRK WAEM / AFP During his darkest moments, the Paris Olympic Games had been Sam Gaze's light. The Rotorua mountain biker says standing on the Olympic podium was one of the guiding ambitions that motivated him when he battled mental illness during a tumultuous period from 2019 - 2021. The double world champion believed deep within himself that on Tuesday (NZ time), on Elancourt Hill course in Paris, he would complete the final act in his redemptive arc. For a brief burst there on the fourth lap of the 35.2 kilometre course, when Gaze was sitting in the bronze medal position after fighting his way back from a messy start, it ...

Huw Edwards. File picture. Photo: AFP Former BBC News presenter Huw Edwards has been charged with three counts of making indecent images of children. The offences were alleged to have taken place between 2020 and 2022 and relate to 37 images that were shared on a WhatsApp chat, according to the Metropolitan Police. The broadcaster was arrested last November and charged last month, the force revealed on Monday. He was due to appear in court in London on Wednesday. A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: "Huw Edwards, 62, of Southwark, London has been charged with three counts of making indecent images of children following a Met Police investigation. "The offences, which are alleged to have taken place between December 2020 and April 2022, relate to images shared on a WhatsApp chat. "Ed...

Nicolás Maduro vowed ahead of the election to win the poll "by hook or by crook". File picture. Photo: AFP/ Juan Barreto As the electoral authorities, which Nicolás Maduro controls, announced he had won a third term in office, an instant crackle of fireworks rippled around the Venezuelan Caracas. The city soundtracked in a carefully curated way, like many things in this election. The opposition claimed instantly that they, not the president, had won. But you would not know this from watching the news here. Television screens up and down the country only showed jubilant crowds, draped in the Venezuelan flag, dancing and cheering on the president. Maduro does have some loyal supporters still, known as "Chavistas" after his mentor Hugo Chavez and the brand of socialism he created. But thei...

Butte County Sheriff Office search and rescue member Trevor Skaggs flew a helicopter and ran 2.4km to save the mother and her puppies. Photo: Butte County Sheriff Office/Facebook By Sam Cabral, BBC News A first responder ran 1.5 miles (2.4km) through a fire-ravaged part of California to rescue two dogs and their litter of puppies, police say. The animals' owner was forced to leave them behind when his truck broke down as he evacuated the area on Wednesday. Trevor Skaggs found the Rottweilers on Saturday "alive, but tired and very thirsty" - although the adult male dog did not survive. The Park Fire in northern California is one of the largest the state has ever seen. Photo: Butte County Sheriff Office/Facebook The fire has burned through more than 360,000 acres - an area slightly...

Hayden Wilde won triathlon bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Photo: Photosport The Black Ferns Sevens, a world-leading triathlete and Erika Fairweather are going for medals on day four of the Paris Olympics. Due to the time difference, day four begins on Tuesday evening NZT and finishes on Wednesday morning. Here's who to look out for. All times are in NZT. For the full New Zealand athlete schedule, click here. Black Ferns captain Michaela Blyde runs through a tackle during the Black Ferns' game against China in pool play at the Olympics. Photo: AFP / Carl de Souza Black Ferns, rugby sevens quarter final 7am Tuesday. The Black Ferns play Fiji in their final group A match in the early hours of Tuesday, but are already into the quarter-finals. Tune in from 7am as the Ferns attempt ...

Passengers gather around the departure and arrival boards at the Gare Montparnasse train station in Paris on 26 July, 2024. Photo: THIBAUD MORITZ / AFP France is leaning towards the likelihood that far-left extremists were behind last week's sabotage of the country's SNCF rail network - which coincided with the Olympic Games opening ceremony, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin says. Saboteurs struck France's high-speed train network on Friday with pre-dawn attacks on signal substations and cables at critical points, causing travel chaos hours before the opening ceremony. "We have identified the profiles of several people," Darmanin told France 2 TV, regarding the hunt for those saboteurs. He added that the saboteurs' mode of operation bore the hallmarks of far-left extremists, without pr...