Global News

South African court orders Zuma back to jail after ruling medical parole was unlawful

South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal ruled on Monday that the decision to release former President Jacob Zuma on early medical parole was “unlawful” and that he should return to prison to finish his sentence for contempt of court. Zuma was sentenced last year to 15 months imprisonment after ignoring a court order to testify at a government inquiry into…

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Earthquake rocks Indonesia killing dozens; wounding hundreds

A shallow earthquake rattled Indonesia’s main island of Java, killing dozens of people and injuring hundreds of others with fears the casualty figures could rise. The US Geological Survey said the magnitude 5.6 earthquake on Monday was centred in the Cianjur region in West Java province at a depth of 10km (6.2 miles). It sent residents in the capital, Jakarta,…

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‘I’ll mother as I see fit’, Italian leader Giorgia Meloni hits back at criticism for taking daughter to G20 summit

Italy’s prime minister has rebuked criticism she faced for taking her six-year-old daughter to the G20 summit in Indonesia. Giorgia Meloni brought Ginevra to the summit, where she met US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Ms Meloni was later criticised in an article in the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica, which read: “Why in these four days that…

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Nancy Pelosi stands down as leader of US House Democrats

Nancy Pelosi, who has led Democrats in the US House of Representatives for almost two decades, has announced she is standing down from the role. The 82-year-old is the most powerful Democrat in Congress and the first woman to serve as speaker of the House. She will continue to represent her California district in the lower chamber of Congress. It…

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The $450bn screenshot that signals a thawing in China’s relations with West

Mysterious photo pointing to the end of zero Covid indicates a country coming in from the cold It was the $450bn (£379bn) screenshot that sparked hope across China. An unconfirmed photo, supposedly detailing Xi Jinping’s reopening plan, circulated widely across Chinese social media site WeChat earlier this month. After a year marred by draconian stop-start lockdowns as the rest of…

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G20 leaders’ declaration condemns Russia’s war ‘in strongest terms’

Russia’s international isolation grew Wednesday, as world leaders issued a joint declaration condemning its war in Ukraine that has killed thousands of people and roiled the global economy. The Group of 20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, concluded Wednesday with a leaders’ statement that “deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine and demands its complete…

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Princess Anne, Prince Edward to become stand-ins for King

King Charles has begun the process of increasing the number of royals who can stand in for the monarch for official duties – proposing Princess Anne and Prince Edward as additions. At present the “counsellors of state” are Camilla, the Queen Consort, plus four other senior royals. But two of these are Prince Andrew and Prince Harry, who are no…

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US midterms: Republicans narrowly win back the House

Republicans have secured the 218 seats needed for a majority in the lower chamber of Congress a week after the midterm elections, the BBC’s US partner CBS News projects. While the party’s margin in the House of Representatives is razor-thin, it is enough to stall President Joe Biden’s agenda for the next two years. Kevin McCarthy, the Republicans’ leader in…

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Jeremy Hunt to unveil package of tax hikes and spending cuts in autumn statement to plug £54bn black hole

Jeremy Hunt will promise to weather an economic “storm” by raising taxes, cutting public spending and scaling back energy support to fill a £54bn black hole in the nation’s finances. The chancellor will insist to MPs on Thursday that his autumn statement puts the UK on a “balanced path to stability” as he tackles the “enemy” of inflation, which has…

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Former British envoy Vicky Bowman released from Myanmar prison

The UK’s former ambassador to Myanmar, Vicky Bowman, who was jailed for allegedly breaching immigration laws, has been released. Ms Bowman and her husband, Burmese artist, Htein Lin, were among a number of prisoners released “under amnesty” to mark the country’s National Victory Day. In September, the pair were sentenced to a year in prison for “failing to register as…

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