World News

Robert Downey Jr has been announced to return for two Avengers movies - as the villain. Photo: CHRIS DELMAS / AFP Robert Downey Jr is returning to Marvel movies - but not as Iron Man. A panel at the San Diego Comic Con today announced that Oscar winner Downey will be returning to play an entirely different character, the iconic comic book villain Dr. Doom, in two new Avengers movies, Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. Downey was unveiled as Dr. Doom, a foe who first appeared in Fantastic Four comics in the 1960s, to a rapturous crowd at the comic convention. "New mask, same task," Downey said. "What can I tell you? I like playing complicated characters." In the comics, he's the evil ruler of the European nation Latveria and has battled the Avengers and Fantastic Four many tim...

Firefighters watch as flames and smoke move through a valley in the Forest Ranch area of Butte County as the Park Fire continues to burn near Chico, California. Photo: AFP / Josh Edelson By Joseph Ax, Reuters Thousands of firefighters were battling a rapidly growing wildfire in northern California on Saturday after the blaze more than doubled in size in a 24-hour span. The Park Fire had burned more than 350,000 acres (141,640ha) about 144km north of the state capital city of Sacramento as of Saturday afternoon, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire. Cooler temperatures and more humid air were expected in the region, potentially helping efforts to slow the spread of the fire, which was still 0 percent contained. The fire has destroyed 134 str...

By Danielle Broadway and Rollo Ross, Reuters Yvette Nicole Brown, Patrick Mckay, Charlie Vickers, JD Payne, Morfydd Clark, Daniel Weyman, Benjamin Walker, Megan Richards, Robert Aramayo, Tyroe Muhafidin, Charles Edwards, Maxim Baldry, Sophia Nomvete, Ismaël Cruz Córdova, Ema Horvath, Lloyd Owen, Trystan Gravelle and Cynthia Addai-Robinson speak onstage during "he Lord Of The Rings: Rings Of Power Panel during 2024 Comic-Con International. Photo: Matt Winkelmeyer / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP Note: This story contains spoilers for season one of The Rings of Power. Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power unveiled the first look at season two on Friday (US time) as the cast shared insights into what is coming next in the fantasy series at San Diego Comic-Con. The fantasy...

By Maayan Lubell, Maya Gebeily and Laila Bassam, Reuters Israeli emergency services and local residents gather near a soccer field where a rocket hit in Majdal Shams. Photo: AFP / Jalaa Marey A rocket attack on a football ground in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights killed 11 people including children on Saturday, Israeli authorities said, blaming Hezbollah and vowing to respond against the Iran-backed Lebanese group. Hezbollah denied any responsibility for the strike, the deadliest in Israel or Israeli-annexed territory since the start of the conflict in Gaza. "The Hezbollah attack today crossed all red lines, and the response will be accordingly. We are approaching the moment of an all-out war against Hezbollah and Lebanon," Foreign Minister Israel Katz told Axios. In a written sta...

By Lucy Clarke-Billings, BBC News Gianmarco Tamberi of Team Italy celebrating his wife Chiara Bontempi after winning the gold medal in the Men's High Jump Final during day five of the 26th European Athletics Championships at Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy, on 11 June, 2024. Photo: Massimo Valicchia / NurPhoto / NurPhoto via AFP Italian high jumper Gianmarco Tamberi has issued a grovelling apology to his wife after losing his wedding ring during the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. The 32-year-old world champion was flag-waving for Italy, as the boat carrying its athletes sailed down the River Seine, when the ring slipped off his finger. "I'm sorry my love, I'm so sorry," he wrote on Instagram in a post dedicated to his wife, Chiara Bontempi Tamberi. The athlete blamed "losing ...

In this 24 July, 2024, image obtained from the Jasper National Park in Canada, smoke rises from a wildfire burning in the park. Photo: Handout / Jasper National Park / AFP Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has thanked New Zealand firefighters for their help battling a wildfire raging through Jasper National Park. Trudeau posted a message on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), thanking the brave first responders and mentioning firefighters from New Zealand, Australia, Mexico and South Africa. And, to reinforce their efforts, over 400 firefighters from our friends in Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, and South Africa are on their way to fight wildfires in Alberta, shoulder-to-shoulder with our Canadian teams.— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) July 25, 2024 Rain and ...

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is rushed offstage during a rally on 13 July, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images/AFP Donald Trump's former White House physician disputed on Friday a suggestion by the FBI director that shrapnel, not a bullet, could have caused the injury to the Republican presidential candidate's right ear during an assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania on 13 July. The narrative that a bullet ripped through Trump's ear, and that he escaped death by just a quarter of an inch, has become a major element of the former president's White House campaign. Many of his supporters say the fact he survived was divine intervention and Trump mentions his brush with death in his speeches. "I took a bullet for democ...

Smoke rises from a wildfire burning at the Jasper National Park in Canada. Photo: Jasper National Park / AFP A massive wildfire that destroyed about a third of the western Canadian tourist town of Jasper is still out of control but rain and cooler conditions are helping firefighters, authorities said on Friday. Jasper, located in the middle of Alberta's picturesque Jasper National Park, is a major tourist destination. The town and park, which draw more than 2 million tourists a year to this area of the Rocky Mountains, were evacuated on Monday. "Rain and cooler temperatures and the incredibly hard work of firefighters have resulted in fire activity that is significantly subdued," said Alberta premier Danielle Smith. "It is important to note that the fire is still out of control, and it ...

Former US President Donald Trump and current Vice-President Kamala Harris. Photo: AFP By Anthony Zurcher for the BBC Analysis - At a moment of unprecedented turbulence in modern American political history, Kamala Harris is having a remarkably smooth ride. It may not last long. Tony Fabrizio, Donald Trump's campaign pollster, calls it a "Harris Honeymoon" - where a combination of good press and positive energy have combined to give the Democrat a surge of momentum. The thing about honeymoons, of course, is that they come to an end. The realities of married life, or in this case the relationship between Ms Harris and the American voting public, has a way of reasserting itself. For now, the champagne corks are flying for team Harris and Democrats may be experiencing an unfamiliar emotion -...

Justin Timberlake will be re-arraigned virtually in court next month. Photo: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP By Ruth Comerford, BBC News Justin Timberlake's lawyer has said the popstar was "not intoxicated" when he was arrested by police officers last month for driving under the influence. The 43-year-old pop star was detained in New York for running a stop sign and failing to stay on the right side of the road. His first court hearing took place on Friday, where his lawyer Edward Burke said police made "a very significant number of errors" in the case. "The most important fact to know about this case is that Justin was not intoxicated and should not have been arrested for DWI," he added. Speaking outside Sag Harbor Village Justice Court, Mr Burke said Timberlake "respects law enforcement" a...