
European banks flag bad loan risks as global economy falters
By Iain Withers, Valentina Za and Jesús Aguado LONDON/MILAN/MADRID Europe's major banks, including Deutsche Bank and Lloyds Banking
2023-07-26 19:25

England retain Anderson in unchanged XI for Ashes finale
England have named an unchanged team for the fifth and final Ashes Test at The Oval starting Thursday, with record wicket-taker James Anderson keeping...
2023-07-26 19:25

Thailand's divisive ex-Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra readies return during political turmoil
Thailand's former prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, a billionaire populist who was ousted by a 2006 military coup, plans to return home next month from years of self-imposed exile, as Thailand grapples with the unexpectedly difficult task of naming a new prime minister
2023-07-26 19:18

Mohammed Kudus: Chelsea leading Arsenal in race for £40m Ajax star
Chelsea are leading the race for Ajax’s Mohammed Kudus, having so far put together a more convincing package than Arsenal. The 22-year-old midfielder has attracted a lot of interest from the Premier League as the Dutch club face up to the sale of a series of key players Having almost joined Everton last season, Kudus’ value has only increased after an impressive World Cup with Ghana, and there is a feeling that Chelsea are able to price Arsenal out of any prospective deal. One of the issues for Mikel Arteta’s side is that, although they want another midfielder - preferably Kudus - and a right-back, they need to sell to buy due to earlier expenditure. While the club could yet raise up to £70m on sales of players such as Kieran Tierney and Falorin Balogun, that is expected to take time. This has allowed Chelsea to move ahead, especially as they have already hugely trimmed down their squad with a series of exits this window. It is even possible the Stamford Bridge side bring in two midfielders, as negotiations continue over Brighton’s Moises Caicedo. As it stands, Chelsea have been in a position to offer more clarity on a price to Ajax and potential wages for Kudus. The Ghana international could go for around £40m. Read More A wasted year – but Kylian Mbappe’s Saudi transfer could bring him everything he wants Manchester United make ‘progress’ in transfer search for new striker Tottenham consider Brazil striker with Harry Kane’s future in the balance
2023-07-26 18:59

UK Energy Efficiency Policy At Risk in Tory Net Zero Retreat
The energy industry is warning that efficiency targets are likely to be on the chopping block as Conservative
2023-07-26 18:58

A Fed still wary of inflation is set to raise rates to a 22-year peak. Will it be the last hike?
Even after inflation has steadily eased this year, the Federal Reserve’s policymakers still think prices are rising too fast and are almost certain to lift their key interest rate by a quarter-point on Wednesday
2023-07-26 18:56

Does Bryan Kohberger have an alibi? Idaho murders suspect's lawyers suggest they have proof he was elsewhere when murders were committed
Bryan Kohberger's defense attorney, Anne Taylor, hinted that evidence pointing to his presence elsewhere would be disclosed during the trial
2023-07-26 18:55

Are Pokimane and Kevin Kim in relationship? Twitch queen unveils dating red and green flags to watch out for
The Twitch queen, Pokimane, surprises followers with personal revelations on Instagram while rumors circulate about Kevin Kim being her boyfriend
2023-07-26 18:55

Bayern Munich continuing efforts to sign Kyle Walker from Man City
Bayern Munich working hard to seal Kyle Walker deal.
2023-07-26 18:51

Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his presidency?
Donald Trump is leading the field to become the Republican Party’s presidential nominee once again in 2024, his supporters apparently undeterred by his mounting legal problems – or the 24-hour circus of his first-term – and keen to give him another shot at the White House, such is their animosity to incumbent Joe Biden. None of Ron DeSantis, Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, Chris Christie, Tim Scott or any of the other GOP stragglers are polling close to the former commander-in-chief as of summer 2023, despite the fact that Mr Trump has already been indicted twice this year and is staring down the barrel of a potential third and fourth. Having already stepped out to appeal not guilty at two arraignment hearings in New York and Miami over the alleged misrepresentation of his business records to conceal hush money payments and the alleged hoarding of classified documents in his Mar-a-Lago bathroom, the former reality TV star could now face charges over his role in inciting the Capitol riot of 6 January 2021 and, potentially, for attempting to influence the 2020 vote count in Georgia by pressuring state officials. None of which appears to discourage his loyal fanbase, who have been prepared to overlook the myriad disappointments of Mr Trump’s first tenure in the Oval Office, his historic double impeachment and his disastrous midterms picks last November to cheer him on at rallies, splash out on merchandise and generously donate to his campaign. While more traditional conservatives are ready to move on, the MAGA movement remains significant and its members are all too ready to cheerily swallow their idol’s baseless claims that the Biden administration has “weaponised” the US justice system against an innocent man in order to thwart the “American comeback” he has promised. Just in case you feel tempted to look back on the years 2017 to 2021 through rose-tinted spectacles, here is a refresher on precisely what happened during that angry whirlwind of a presidency, which began with government-by-Twitter and ended with the unprecedented and disgraceful spectacle of a president impeached not once but twice. House speaker Nancy Pelosi first announced she was launching an impeachment inquiry against Donald Trump on 24 September 2019 in response to a complaint raised against him by an anonymous CIA whistleblower. The issue related to a call the 45th US president had placed with Ukraine’s new president Volodymyr Zelensky (a great deal more famous now than he was then) on 25 July that year, in which the American appeared to proposition his counterpart in Eastern Europe with a quid pro quo. Mr Trump hinted that $400m in congressionally-approved US military aid to Kyiv to help fend off Russian aggression in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine would be withheld unless Mr Zelensky’s government launched a politically embarrassing anti-corruption probe into Mr Trump’s own domestic rival, one Joseph R Biden, who was then leading the Democratic field to challenge him in 2020. “I would like you to do us a favour though…” was how the president introduced his condition on the call, pressuring Mr Zelensky to pursue a conspiracy theory alleging that Mr Biden, while serving as US vice president to Barack Obama, had sought the dismissal of a Ukrainian prosecutor investigating a local gas company, Burisma, on whose board his troubled son Hunter Biden sat, a matter already pursued by Mr Trump’s personal attorney Rudy Giuliani. Following Ms Pelosi’s bombshell announcement, the House Intelligence, Oversight and Foreign Affairs committees began interviewing State Department, Pentagon and National Security Council (NSC) officials behind closed doors throughout October, peacing the truth together from their depositions before summoning several back to testify in public across a series of dramatic mid-November hearings. The inquiry’s public phase introduced a memorable cast of characters, including former US ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch, Ukraine charge d’affaires Bill Taylor, displaced Durhamite and Russia expert Dr Fiona Hill, the nattily bowtied George Kent, vice presidential aide Jennifer Williams, decorated NSC director Lt Col Alexander Vindman in full dress uniform and ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland, a smirking ex-hotelier who had donated $1m to the Trump campaign for the privilege of ending up in the mess. By and large, the witnesses proved themselves to be impressive and principled experts in their fields and made fools of the MAGA Republicans attempting to pick holes in their testimony – Devin Nunes, Jim Jordan, Doug Collins, Elise Stefanik and Louie Gohmert among them. Mr Trump, predictably, spent his time denouncing the proceedings on Twitter as a “scam” and a second “witch hunt” following on from Robert Mueller’s investigation of his alleged ties to Russia, even engaging in some live witness intimidation when he tweeted nastily about Ms Yovanovitch as she gave evidence. The House went on to formally accuse the president on two counts, abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, on 10 December. Eight days later, representatives backed both articles, casting their votes largely along party lines and pushing the matter forward to a trial in the Republican-held Senate. The Democrats, led by California congressman Adam Schiff, made their case admirably but, in the end, only Mitt Romney dared to break ranks and vote for Mr Trump’s conviction in the upper chamber, despite some heavy signalling from “rebel” GOP senators Lamar Alexander, Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins that they might join him, before hopelessly bottling it. Impeached but not convicted, Mr Trump was free to carry on regardless. Ms Collins’ excuse that she believed he had “learned his lesson” from the Zelensky affair would later prove to be an even more laughable contention than it had sounded when she first uttered it. The other side of his disastrous mishandling of the coronavirus pandemic, a summer of Black Lives Matter demonstrations over the police murder of George Floyd and his comprehensive defeat in the 2020 presidential election to Mr Biden, Mr Trump was impeached for a history-making second time on 13 January 2021 when the House found that he had incited the attempted insurrection at the US Capitol a week earlier by leading his disappointed supporters on with the “Big Lie” that only (non-existent) mass voter fraud had stopped him securing a second term. The tragic events of 6 January – on which a mob of QAnon zealots, Proud Boys and Oath Keepers stormed the legislative complex to try to stop the certification of the election results, five people were killed, a gallows was erected to hang Mr Pence and Congress was attacked for the first time since it was set alight by British soldiers in 1814 – are well documented. In its aftermath, Mr Trump, who declined to call off his supporters, preferring instead to watch the “American carnage” he had predicted at his inauguration finally unfold on live TV, was booted off social media and the House moved quickly to impeach him for an unheard-of second time, passing an article accusing him of incitement to insurrection. Speaker Pelosi said as she cast her vote to impeach that the president represented “a clear and present danger” so long as he remained in the Oval Office and accused him of trying to “repeal reality” in challenging the election result. The vote passed 232-197 in the lower chamber but, again, the Senate granted him an acquittal on 13 February, with only seven Republicans crossing the aisle to join the 50 Democrats in demanding accountability – not enough to land the two-thirds majority needed. Had just 10 more listened to their consciences and joined the rebellion, the US Constitution would have barred Mr Trump from ever running for high office again, ruling as it does that “judgement in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honour, trust or profit under the United States”. Twice impeached but convicted on neither occasion, Mr Trump was entirely free to announce a fresh bid for the White House, as he did last November, seemingly as untroubled by burning shame as ever. Read More Trump news – live: Georgia grand jury could weigh conspiracy charge as ex-NYPD boss hands docs to Jan 6 probe Mark Meadows laughed off Trump’s claims of election fraud in text to White House attorney, says report Unanswered questions about Trump’s looming January 6 indictment What is an indictment? Donald Trump facing third of 2023 over Capitol riot Donald Trump is the first former president arrested on federal charges. Can he still run in 2024?
2023-07-26 18:49

Ukraine Recap: NATO-Ukraine Council to Discuss Black Sea Ports
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said a Wednesday meeting of the new NATO-Ukraine Council at the level of ambassadors will
2023-07-26 18:47

Who is Quinn? The first trans and non-binary player to feature at a World Cup
Canada midfielder Quinn made history when they became the first transgender and non-binary person to appear at either a men’s or women’s World Cup, playing 90 minutes in the 0-0 draw with Nigeria in Melbourne last week. The Ontario native, 27, is already a gold medallist for their country, part of the side that triumphed at the Covid-delayed Tokyo Olympics in summer 2021 and has designs on going all the way in Australia and New Zealand too. Hailing from a sporting family – Quinn’s father and mother played college rugby and basketball respectively – the midfielder quickly took to football as a child, rejecting all other after-school pursuits in favour of the beautiful game. They played at youth level for North Toronto, Richmond Hill and Erin Mills Eagles and briefly for Toronto Lady Lynx in 2013 before heading due south and enrolling as a biology major at prestigious Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. There, Quinn played for the Duke Blue Devils, making 69 appearances and scoring four between 2013 and 2017. Turning professional after graduation, they signed first for Washington Spirit in 2018 before a short-lived stint with Paris FC in France followed. Quinn subsequently transferred to OL Reign in Seattle in 2019, where they have played alongside US Women’s National Team greats Rose Lavelle and Megan Rapinoe ever since – outside of a brief loan spell with Swedish side Vittsjo GIK in 2020. For the Canadian national team, Quinn made their debut for the under-17s in 2012 and subsequently played for the under-20 and under-23 sides before graduating to the senior squad in 2014, subsequently picking up 89 caps and scoring five, as well as a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Quinn became known by the mononym in 2020 after coming out as transgender and non-binary, opting for gender-neutral pronouns. They were granted permission to continue playing professional women’s football based on a sex-assigned-at-birth basis. “I want to be a visible figure for young trans folks or people questioning their gender, people exploring their gender,” Quinn has said of their decision to come out. “Because unfortunately when I was growing up, and even going through that process of figuring out myself in college, I didn’t have those people in the public sphere to look up to. “There are several trans athletes and several trans people in media and politics, but I just think those faces are not common enough. “I want to be a visible trans person succeeding in my job, so that younger trans folks could see that they did have an avenue to go and that they would have a future and a career ahead of them.” Read More Women’s World Cup 2023 LIVE: Spain and Japan through before Ireland vs Canada Women’s World Cup TV schedule: How to watch every match today Tuesday at the World Cup: Philippines stun New Zealand as Norway are held New Jersey Governor keen to host Premier League and Champions League matches Vera Pauw ‘a bit concerned’ about Louise Quinn fitness for Republic-Canada game Denise O’Sullivan hails ‘unbelievable’ Ireland fans at World Cup
2023-07-26 18:45