List of All Articles with Tag 'world'

Donald Trump has shared a QAnon post on his Truth Social platform as he continues to lash out at President Joe Biden, special counsel Jack Smith and Attorney General Merrick Garland ahead of his third potential looming criminal indictment. The former president reTruthed a post from a QAnon supporter which showed an image of Mr Trump along with the ominous message: “Nothing can stop what is coming. Nothing.” Mr Trump has gone on the attack in recent days over the grand jury investigation into the January 6 Capitol riot and his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. In one of the clearest signs Mr Trump could face federal charges in the case, the former president said last week that he had received a letter saying he is a target of a grand jury investigation. Court documents revealed on Monday that former New York City Police Department commissioner Bernie Kerik, who collected spurious evidence of alleged voter fraud and manipulation for Mr Trump’s campaign, has agreed to turn over hundreds of documents to the DOJ as part of its probe. Mr Kerik was working for Rudy Giuliani and had previously refused to share the evidence. Read More What Donald Trump’s trial date means for the 2024 election Trump demands cameras in courtroom for potential election fraud case Trump legal team tries again to block Georgia election interference grand jury probe Is Donald Trump a legal unicorn?

Startup chipmaker Cerebras Systems Inc. announced that it’s built the first of nine artificial intelligence supercomputers in a

President Joe Biden’s German shepherd Commander reportedly bit seven people in a four-month span last year, making him the second White House dog to exhibit aggressive behaviour after former first dog Major was removed from the residence due to similar conduct. The report of Commander’s aggressiveness comes from internal Secret Service communications obtained by the New York Post. On 3 November, the White House physician’s office referred a bitten Secret Service officer to a local hospital for treatment after the dog bit down on the officer’s arm and thigh, according to emails obtained by Judicial Watch. A second incident took place on 10 November, when Commander allegedly bit an officer’s thigh while on a walk with first lady Jill Biden in the Kennedy Garden. Days later, another officer described having to fend off the pet with a chair. Weeks later, Commander tore the skin of another Secret Service officer’s hand and arm, according to the Post. One month later, Commander bit the back of a security technician at the president’s Wilmington, Delaware residence. A Christmas Eve email from a Secret Service inspector suggested issues with Commander were widespread. “Nearly every official in the room with me today spoke about specific incidents surrounding the First Family’s dog,” the email read. Commander’s behaviour resembles Major’s, a rescue adopted by the Bidens in 2018, who was rehomed in 2021 after a number of incidents in which the dog bit Secret Service agents. “As as you all know, the White House complex can be unique and very stressful. And that is something I’m sure you all can understand,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on Tuesday. “The first family is working through ways to make the situation better for everyone.” The White House press secretary also relayed a message from Elizabeth Alexander for communications director for First Lady Jill Biden. Ms Alexander said, “They have been partnering with the Secret Service and Executive Residence staff on additional leashing protocols and training, as well as establishing designated areas for Commander to run and exercise,” Alexander said. She added, that the president and first lady are “incredibly grateful to the secret service and executive resident staff for all they do to keep them and their family and the country safe.” Read More Israel's government has passed the first part of its legal overhaul. The law's ripples are dramatic DeSantis cuts a third of his presidential campaign staff as he mounts urgent reset Biden signs proclamation creating Emmett Till national monument

PacWest Bancorp is merging with smaller rival Banc of California as it seeks to navigate a bout of

Two pilots fighting wildfires in Greece joined the death toll from the extreme weather blistering Europe on Tuesday, as temperatures are forecast to peak on Wednesday and the wildfire risk is set to remain high until at least the end of the week. Commander Christos Moulas, 34, and copilot Pericles Stefanidis, 27, died when their plane, which had been dropping water, crashed near the town of Karystos on the island of Evia near Athens, where one of a number of fires has been burning. A senior meteorologist at the Met Office, Amy Bokota, told The Independent that the latest heatwave gripping the Mediterranean is set to further intensify on Wednesday, when the extremely warm weather is expected to peak, with a high risk of wildfires continuing until at least Friday. Parts of Greece, Italy, Turkey and the Balkans will experience temperatures in the low to mid-40s Celsius on Wednesday, she said, with records likely to be broken in places. Wildfires rely on high temperatures and windy conditions, so although the temperatures are forecast to drop to a little above average on Thursday and Friday, the wind is due to increase and consequently the elevated risk of wildfires will continue, especially as “everything is so dry”, said Ms Bokota. A third successive heatwave in Greece pushed temperatures back above 40C in parts of the country on Tuesday. Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from homes and resorts amid fires that have raged for days, exacerbated by strong winds. The holiday island of Rhodes has been hit particularly hard by the blazes, and the battle to contain the flames continued for a seventh day on Tuesday. The Greek government said authorities there were carrying out the largest evacuation ever undertaken in the country. Yet many British tourists are continuing to fly to Rhodes undeterred. Despite just 44 of the 85 scheduled passengers opting to travel on a morning flight from London Gatwick on Tuesday, the mood was mostly upbeat and the high number of empty seats went largely unnoticed, with one passenger remarking happily on the rarity of having enough space on a plane. “I’m sure you know it is hot,” the pilot announced as he began the descent, adding: “We all wish you luck in Rhodes, whatever the reasons are for you taking this flight out there today.” The crew returned to Gatwick with a packed flight of 186 passengers. “I want to get off the island as soon as possible,” one woman on holiday with her three young children told The Independent at the check-in queue at Rhodes international airport. Describing the terrifying moments prior to their party of seven’s escape from Lardos on Saturday afternoon, Jodie Sutton, a 31-year-old from Southport, said: “We were watching the fire coming over the mountain. It didn’t get too close, we were out of there. “[The evacuation was] chaotic, we were rammed on a coach with hundreds of people. It was hot and sweaty, and I’ve got three young kids with me.” “We got taken to a school in Archangelos, then that was in danger, so we had to move from there too, to Rhodos,” said the full-time mother, whose children are aged one, two and seven. “We had to sleep on the floor in a basketball court. The kids got blankets. The [volunteers] were amazing.” But she added: “Tui told us nothing. Jet2 told us nothing. We ended up phoning the fire brigade, the police and the British government and Greek government last night, and they said, ‘Stay where you are, you are safe.’” Another couple who visited nearby Lindos on Saturday, before the road to the village was shut because high winds were fanning the flames in unpredictable directions, recalled the smoke from the fires blocking out the sun like an eclipse. John Rennie, 49, a project manager from Southport, who was catching a flight to Manchester with his wife Marie-Claire, said they were ultimately only affected by power outages and water shortages. It was a minimal impact compared to that suffered by their host at Kremasti, whose family saw fire burn through two of their homes. “He was helping as a volunteer. There seems to be a big community circle on the island helping each other,” Mr Rennie told The Independent. Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has warned of difficult days ahead: “All of us are standing guard. In the face of what the entire planet is facing – especially the Mediterranean, which is a climate-change hot-spot – there is no magical defence mechanism. If there was, we would have implemented it.” Elsewhere, fire forced the temporary closure of Palermo airport in Sicily. Regional authorities said a woman died after an ambulance could not reach her home because of the blaze. Further north, the weather broke and an intense overnight storm tore off roofs and brought down trees in cities including Milan. Two women were killed in the northern provinces of Monza and Brescia. Algeria was fighting to contain devastating forest fires along its Mediterranean coast, where blazes have killed at least 34 people, including 10 soldiers encircled by flames during an evacuation, the country’s defence ministry said. Some 8,000 firefighters and 530 trucks, backed by military firefighting aircraft, fought the blazes in scorching heat. Wildfires spread to France on Tuesday afternoon, with several dozen firefighters using aircraft to battle a blaze in Cagnes-sur-Mer and Villeneuve-Loubet close to Nice international airport. While temperatures have been topping 40C in Europe, it has been even hotter in north Africa, with temperatures of 49C recorded in some cities in Tunisia. Extreme weather throughout July has caused havoc across the rest of the planet, mirroring the chaos wreaked throughout southern Europe, with record temperatures in China and the United States sparking forest fires, water shortages, and a rise in heat-related hospital admissions. Without human-induced climate change, the events this month would have been “extremely rare”, according to a study by World Weather Attribution, a global team of scientists that examines the role played by climate change in extreme weather. Read More Arsonists behind Corfu’s devastating wildfires as Greece ‘at war’ Tourists flying into Greece inferno reveal why they refuse to cancel holiday Greece wildfire: Video shows Rhodes hotel before and after blaze Playing with fire: We are not just breaking heat records, we are smashing them

Player power rankings at the 2023 Women's World Cup - updated throughout the tournament after each round of games.

Is there extra time in the group stages for the Women's World Cup?

Vladimir Putin was reportedly left “paralysed” when the Wagner coup began and no orders were given that day. The mercenary group launched its short-lived mutiny on 24 June, driving its forces towards the Kremlin and preaching open rebellion against Russia’s military leadership – only to abandon its mission just hours later. Now, security officials from Ukraine and other parts of Europe have spoken out, claiming the Russian president was unable to act when he first heard the news. According to intelligence assessments shared with the Washington Post, Mr Putin got a warning from Russian security services that the leader of the Wagner Group Yevgeniy Prigozhin was possibly planning a rebellion, two or three days before it began. But while security was increased at some strategic facilities, such as the Kremlin, including increasing the presidential guard and handing out more weapons, no other action was taken in response to the threat. One European security official, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Washington Post: “Putin had time to take the decision to liquidate [the rebellion] and arrest the organisers. “Then when it began to happen, there was paralysis on all levels … There was absolute dismay and confusion. For a long time, they did not know how to react.” This account of the standoff, which is being viewed as one of the most severe threats to Mr Putin’s presidency in 23 years of his rule, has reportedly been corroborated by officials in Western governments. It’s also consistent with the public comments from William J. Burns, the CIA director, who said that for the majority of the 36 hours when the coup was happening, the military, security services and decision-makers “appeared to be adrift”. According to the analysis, Mr Putin’s indecision shows his fear of countering a warlord like Mr Prigozhin. The Wagner Group leader had played an essential role in the Kremlin’s global ambitions, having previously run troll farms which disseminated disinformation in the US and paramilitary operations in the Middle East and Africa. He then took up the Wagner leader position in the war against Ukraine. But Kremlin spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, denied the “paralysis” claims, telling the Washington Post, they were made by “people who have zero information”. European security officials added that Mr Putin’s lack of direction meant local officials were then left to decide what to do. Acting without any clear orders, local military decided not to try to stop the Wagner troops, which were heavily armed, as they advanced towards Moscow. Such lack of action led some people to believe the Wagner troops were acting with at least some agreement from the Kremlin. This was despite Mr Putin’s televised address on 24 June saying he promised there would be tough action against the rebels. The way the events unfolded also shows serious cracks and a worsening divide in Russia’s military and security over how the Ukraine war is being handled. Many individuals in the upper sections of the military and security services have reportedly shown support for Mr Prigozhin’s efforts to overturn Russia’s military leadership. Critics of Russia’s president say his lack of direction during the rebellion has left him a lot weaker. Former colonel in the Russian security services and now an opposition politician in exile, Gennady Gudkov, told the Washington Post: “Putin showed himself to be a person who is not able to make serious, important and quick decisions in critical situations. He just hid.” A month after the coup, thousands of Wagner group mercenaries have arrived in Belarus, prompting Nato member Poland to reinforce its eastern border against the “potential threat” they pose. Between 3,450 and 3,650 soldiers have travelled to a camp close to Asipovichy, a town 230 kilometres (140 miles) north of the Ukrainian border, according to Belaruski Hajun, an activist group that tracks troop movements within the country. Read More Why are Wagner mercenaries in Belarus – and would they try to invade Poland? Russia-Ukraine war – live: Putin launches fresh drone strikes on Kyiv as air raid sirens wail across capital Putin signs off law banning Russians from changing gender in latest blow to LGBT+ community The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

United Parcel Service Inc. reached a tentative agreement to renew a five-year labor contract with the Teamsters union,

Florida Gov Ron DeSantis’s presidential campaign laid off a third of its campaign staff as it continues to tighten its belt amid numerous negative news stories and lacklustre fundraising numbers, Politico reported. The campaign will cut a total of 38 jobs, advisers told Politico, including 10 event planning roles the campaign announced weeks ago as well as that of top DeSantis advisers Dave Abrams and Tucker Obenshain. The latter two will advise a pro-DeSantis outside group. “Following a top-to-bottom review of our organisation, we have taken additional, aggressive steps to streamline operations and put Ron DeSantis in the strongest position to win this primary and defeat Joe Biden,” campaign manager Generra Peck said in a statement. “Gov DeSantis is going to lead the Great American Comeback and we’re ready to hit the ground running as we head into an important month of the campaign.” The slim-down comes after the DeSantis campaign announced it had raised $20m in the governor’s first quarter as a candidate. But the campaign had also spent $7.8m in its first quarter, an incredibly high burn rate. Many of the donors who had contributed had given the maximum legal limit, meaning they cannot donate again. As of the end of June, the DeSantis campaign had more than 90 staffers. Politico previously reported that the DeSantis campaign had admitted to donors at a Utah retreat that it had spent too much money. Mr DeSantis has failed to gain momentum in the Republican presidential nomination since he announced in May. A new poll from Fox Business showed that Mr DeSantis now trails former South Carolina governor in the state while he trails former president Donald Trump in Iowa. The governor had previously let go of roughly a dozen staffers amid the bevy of negative headlines and weak fundraising numbers. Read More Trump news – live: Georgia grand jury could weigh conspiracy charge as ex-NYPD boss hands docs to Jan 6 probe Who is Jack Smith? The ex-war crimes prosecutor who is coming for Trump

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s presidential campaign is accelerating layoffs initiated in recent weeks to cut more than a

Eni SpA’s Plenitude renewables arm is on track to meet its profit target for 2023, as it prepares