🇮🇳India refuses to sign joint statement at defence summit over Kashmir
India has refused to sign a joint statement at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in China as it did not reflect the country's concerns on terrorism, India's foreign ministry has said.
Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday that India's desire for its concerns to be reflected was "not acceptable to one particular country".
While he did not share more details, Indian media reported that Delhi refused to sign the statement after it omitted the Pahalgam attack, a deadly militant attack that killed 26 tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir.
India has blamed its neighbour Pakistan for sheltering a militant group it blames for the attack. Pakistan has rejected the allegations.
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🇦🇲Armenia's PM offers to expose himself in escalating Church row
A bitter standoff between Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and the Armenian Apostolic Church has seen mass arrests, allegations of a coup plot, and an extraordinary offer by Armenia's leader to reveal his private parts to prove he is a Christian.
Earlier this week, Pashinyan told his 1.1 million followers on Facebook he was prepared to expose himself to the head of the Armenian Church and his spokesman, to prove they were wrong that he had been circumcised.
Social media became his preferred means of communication after he came to office after Armenia's so-called Velvet Revolution of 2018.
Pashinyan faces pivotal elections next year and the Church has become a prominent anti-government voice since Armenia was defeated in a 2020 war with neighbouring Azerbaijan.
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🇨🇲Ally of Cameroon president, 92, quits 'broken' government to challenge him
Issa Tchiroma Bakary - a prominent minister and long-time ally of President Paul Biya - has quit Cameroon's government, in the hope of ending 92-year-old Biya's four-decade grip on power in upcoming elections.
Just four months before the central African nation goes to the polls, Tchiroma said the Biya administration he belonged to had "broken" public trust and he was switching to a rival party.
"A country cannot exist in the service of one man," he said on Wednesday.
While he was communications minister, Tchiroma notably came under fire for denying - then backtracking on his denial
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🇹🇭Thailand bans tourists from going to 🇰🇭Cambodia as border dispute persists
Thailand has imposed restrictions on all travellers heading into Cambodia, as the two countries remain locked in a bitter border dispute.
The ban applies to any vehicle or person trying to cross into Cambodia from checkpoints across several Thai provinces, as well as foreign tourists flying into Siem Reap.
The military said in a statement on Monday that the new restrictions "matched the current security situation".
Bilateral relations between the two countries are at their worst in more than a decade, after armed clashes along the border in May left one Cambodian soldier dead.
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🇺🇸Watch: US strikes against Iran spark protests in North America
Demonstrators took to the streets in New York, Los Angeles, Washington DC and Toronto on Sunday to protest US President Donald Trump's decision to launch major strikes against Iran's nuclear program.
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🇪🇸Spain's embattled PM Sánchez defies clamour for resignation
Seven years after taking office by ousting corruption-ridden conservatives from government, Pedro Sánchez is fighting for his political life amid investigations into alleged graft in his Socialist party (PSOE).
On June 12, an ashen-faced prime minister apologised to Spaniards after audio gathered by civil guard investigators was made public and appeared to show the PSOE secretary, Santos Cerdán, discussing commissions paid by companies in exchange for public contracts.
Sánchez has not himself been directly implicated, but the Socialist leader who came to power promising to clean up politics is now facing calls to resign from an invigorated opposition.
Cerdán, who was party number three, has resigned from the PSOE and stepped down as a member of parliament. He is due to appear before the Supreme Court on 25 June. He maintains he has never committed a crime nor been implicit in one.
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🇷🇼🇨🇩Rwanda and DR Congo agree draft peace deal to end conflict
Officials from Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo have reached a draft agreement aimed at ending decades of conflict.
The breakthrough, mediated by the US and Qatar, provides for the "disengagement, disarmament and conditional integration" of armed groups fighting in eastern DR Congo.
Rwanda denies widespread accusations that it backs one of those groups, the M23, which has seized large parts of the region this year.
It also includes provisions for a joint security mechanism to prevent future flare-ups. The peace deal is expected to be formally signed next week.
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🇺🇸🇬🇧Trump signs order confirming parts of UK-US tariff deal
A deal removing some trade barriers between the UK and US has been signed off by President Donald Trump.
The move will bring into force parts of an agreement agreed between the two countries last month, and reduce tariffs on UK cars being shipped to the US.
It comes after weeks of talks to implement parts of the pact, which the UK government hopes will shield British businesses from the impact of Trump's tariffs.
But the deal includes a 10% levy on most UK goods, including cars, and did not address the expected removal of charges on steel imports.
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CIA analyst who leaked Israel strike plan sentenced to three years
A former CIA analyst who leaked classified documents about Israel's plans to strike Iran has been sentenced to 37 months in prison.
Asif William Rahman, 34, pleaded guilty in January to two counts of willful retention and transmission of national defence information under the Espionage Act.
Authorities say that, using his high-level security clearance, Rahman printed, photographed and sent out top secret documents. They later ended up being circulated on social media.
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🇬🇧UK agrees post-Brexit deal over Gibraltar
The UK has agreed a deal with the European Union over Gibraltar's status after Brexit.
Talks on rules governing the border between Spain and the British Overseas Territory have been ongoing since the UK left the EU in 2020.
The UK said the agreement would avoid the need for checks on people and goods crossing the Gibraltar-Spain border.
For travellers arriving at Gibraltar airport, passport checks will be carried out by Gibraltar and Spanish officials.
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🇰🇷🇰🇵South Korea turns off propaganda loudspeakers to North
South Korea's military says it has suspended its loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts across the border to North Korea, as part of a bid to "restore trust" between both countries.
The move comes a week after the country elected its new president Lee Jae-myung, who had campaigned on improving inter-Korean ties.
Pyongyang considers the loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts an act of war and has threatened to blow them up in the past.
They were paused for six years but resumed in June last year in response to Pyongyang's campaign of sending rubbish-filled balloons across the border to the South.
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🇺🇸Trump says relationship with Musk is over
US President Donald Trump has said his relationship with Elon Musk is over.
"I would assume so, yeah," Trump told NBC News on Saturday, when asked if he thought the pair's close relationship had ended. He replied "No" when asked if he wished to mend the damaged ties.
The comments were Trump's latest since the epic fallout between him and Musk unravelled on social media.
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🇺🇸Trump's 50% tariffs on metals come into effect
US President Donald Trump has signed an order doubling tariffs on steel and aluminium imports from 25% to 50%.
The move hikes import taxes on the metals, which are used in everything from cars to canned food, for the second time since March.
Trump has said the measures, which came into effect on Wednesday, are intended to secure the future of the American steel industry.
However, critics say the protections could wreak havoc on steel producers outside the US, spark retaliation from trade partners, and come at a punishing cost for American users of the metals.
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🇰🇷South Korean opposition wins presidency after months of political chaos
South Korea has handed a decisive victory to opposition candidate Lee Jae-myung six months after his predecessor's martial law bid failed.
The brief yet disastrous move set off huge protests and ended former president Yoon Suk Yeol's career: impeached and removed from office, he still faces criminal charges for abusing his power.
But the political chaos that followed means victorious Lee's biggest challenge is still ahead of him. He must unite a polarised country that is still reeling from it all.
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🇲🇳Mongolia PM resigns after son's luxury holiday stirs public fury
Mongolia's prime minister has resigned after social media photos of his son's lavish lifestyle sparked an anti-corruption investigation and weeks of mass protests.
Luvsannamsrain Oyun-Erdene, who has denied wrongdoing, lost a confidence vote in parliament on Tuesday.
The viral photos purport to show Oyun-Erdene's son and the son's girlfriend flaunting a black Dior shoulder bag and several shopping bags while on their engagement holiday.
Protesters questioned how Oyun-Erdene's family could afford such luxurious living. Local media reported that the country's anti-corruption body had been looking into their finances.
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🇨🇦Canada passes law fast-tracking 'nation building' projects to counter Trump
Canada's parliament has passed a landmark bill giving Prime Minister Mark Carney's government new powers to fast-track major national projects.
The One Canadian Economy Act was passed by the Senate on Thursday, and allows the cabinet to streamline approvals processes and bypass certain provisions of federal laws for projects that could boost the economy.
Supporters have argued the legislation is a critical step in reducing Canada's dependence on the United States, amid trade tensions sparked by President Donald Trump's tariffs.
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🇺🇸🇮🇷US gained nothing from strikes, Iran's supreme leader says
Iran's supreme leader has insisted the US "gained no achievements" from strikes on its nuclear facilities, in his first public address since a ceasefire with Israel was agreed on Tuesday.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the strikes did not "accomplish anything significant" to disrupt Iran's nuclear programme, and described the retaliation against an American air base in Qatar as dealing a "heavy blow".
It came as Washington doubled down on its assessment that the strikes had severely undermined Iran's nuclear ambitions.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said intelligence gathered by the US and Israel indicated the operation "significantly damaged the nuclear programme, setting it back by years".
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🇺🇸US asks 🇨🇳China to stop Iran from closing Strait of Hormuz
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called on China to prevent Iran from closing the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important shipping routes.
His comments came after Iran's state-run Press TV reported that parliament had approved a plan to close the Strait but added that the final decision lies with the Supreme National Security Council.
Any disruption to the supply of oil would have profound consequences for the economy. China in particular is the world's largest buyer of Iranian oil and has a close relationship with Tehran.
Oil prices rose following the US attack on Iranian nuclear sites, with the price of the benchmark Brent crude reaching its highest level in five months.
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🇺🇸US Supreme Court allows Trump to resume deportations to third countries
The US Supreme Court has cleared the way for President Donald Trump's administration to resume deportations of migrants to countries other than their homeland.
By 6-3, the justices reversed a lower court order requiring the government to give migrants a "meaningful opportunity" to tell officials what risks they might face being deported to a third country.
The court's three liberal justices dissented from the majority ruling, saying it was "rewarding lawlessness".
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🇨🇳🇬🇧China criticises UK warship's patrol in Taiwan Strait
China's military has called a British warship's recent passage through the Taiwan Strait a disruptive act of "intentional provocation" that "undermines peace and stability".
The British Royal Navy says HMS Spey's patrol on Wednesday was part of a long-planned deployment and was in accordance with international law.
The patrol - the first by a British naval vessel in four years - comes as a UK carrier strike group arrives in the region for a deployment that will last several months.
China considers Taiwan its territory - a claim that self-ruled Taiwan rejects - and has not ruled out the use of force to "reunify" the island.
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🇿🇦🇬🇧South Africa's firebrand MP banned from entering UK
A controversial South African opposition MP, central to a row over race relations in the country, has been denied entry to the UK.
The Home Office said Julius Malema had been deemed "non-conducive to the public good" and that it was "undesirable" to grant him entry.
In a letter released by Malema's party, the Home Office cited his vocal support for Hamas, including a speech he made after the 7 October attacks in which he said his own party would arm the group if it came to power.
The UK said Malema had made "statements calling for the slaughter of white people [in South Africa] or hinted that it could be an acceptable option in the future", and also cited this as a reason for its decision.
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👀Watch: A trade deal, a family photo and the Middle East - Trump's short G7
US President Donald Trump has cut short his trip to attend the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, citing the Middle East conflict.
The summit, being hosted by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, includes leaders from France, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, United States, Japan, and the European Union.
Trump is not expected to sign the G7 statement on the Iran-Israel conflict, despite other leaders' plan to call for de-escalation and protection of civilians.
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🇺🇬Uganda leader signs new law allowing military trials for civilians
Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has signed into law an amendment that will allow, once again, civilians to be tried in a military court under certain circumstances.
A previous law permitting such trials was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in January.
Before that ruling, civilians could be taken to a military tribunal if they had been found with military equipment like guns or army uniforms. Activists had complained that the law was used to persecute government critics.
Parliamentarians passed the amendment last month amid a heavy police presence and a boycott by opposition lawmakers, who argued that it violated the ruling by the country's highest court.
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🇺🇸US to partially evacuate embassy in Iraq as Iran tensions rise
Non-essential US embassy staff and their dependants in Baghdad are to be evacuated from Iraq due to heightened security risks, US government sources have said.
Officials did not say exactly what prompted the removal, however, on Wednesday, US officials were told Israel was ready to launch an operation into Iran, the BBC's US partner CBS reported, citing officials familiar with the matter.
The officials said this was part of the reason the US advised some Americans to leave the region, and that the US anticipated Iran could retaliate on certain US sites in Iraq
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🇵🇱Polish PM Donald Tusk wins confidence vote
Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk has won a vote of confidence in his pro-EU government after his political camp narrowly lost the recent presidential election.
Some 243 parliamentarians voted in favour of the coalition government, with 210 voting against and no abstentions.
This vote has been seen by some as a piece of political theatre on the part of Tusk - a way of showing his broad coalition still has a mandate despite the presidential election defeat.
Wednesday's vote was also a formality. Tusk's coalition has a 12-seat majority in the lower house, the Sejm, and only a simple majority in the presence of half the 460 parliamentarians was required to win.
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🇨🇴Colombia presidential hopeful shot in head at rally
A Colombian presidential candidate has been shot three times - reportedly twice in the head - at a campaign event in the capital, Bogota.
Miguel Uribe Turbay, 39, was attacked while addressing a small crowd in a park on Saturday. Police arrested a 15-year-old suspect at the scene, local media say.
Uribe's wife, Maria Claudia Tarazona, called on the nation to pray for his survival. "Miguel is currently fighting for his life. Let us ask God to guide the hands of the doctors who are treating him," she said.
Uribe's Centro Democratico party condemned the attack, saying it endangered "democracy and freedom in Colombia".
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🇺🇦🇷🇺Biggest drone strike hits Ukraine's second city
Russia has hit Ukraine's second-largest city, Kharkiv, with a massive drone and bomber attack, killing four people and injuring nearly 60, officials say.
Two people were also killed in Russian strikes on Kherson, in southern Ukraine, local authorities said.
Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said 48 drones, two missiles and four glide bombs had been used against his city on Friday night, while more glide bombs were reportedly dropped on Saturday.
Earlier, Moscow said a massive wave of drone and missile attacks across Ukraine on Thursday night was in response to "terrorist attacks by the Kyiv regime", after attacks on Russian railway infrastructure and air bases last weekend.
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🇨🇦Canada proposes sweeping immigration and security bill
The Canadian government has proposed a bill to restrict some asylum claims and give authorities more power to halt the processing of immigration applications.
Canada's immigration minister Lena Diab said the Strong Borders Act is meant to curb organised crime and the flow of illegal drugs and weapons, while boosting the "integrity" of the country's immigration system.
It includes provisions that would give police more power to monitor Canada's shared border with the US.
It could also bar those who have been in Canada for more than year from filing a claim for asylum. But critics said the bill, which seeks to expand authorities' ability to open and inspect mail, would breach civil liberties.
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🇰🇷Record turnout in South Korea election after failed martial law bid
Turnout hits record high at 4pm.Voter turnout has reached a record high of over 71% as of 16:00 local time, according to South Korea's Election Commission. Voting will run through to 20:00.
There are about 44.4 million eligible voters nationwide.
The total turnout at the last presidential election in 2022 was 77%.
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🇨🇦Canada to expedite nation building projects to counter Trump
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said his government will start pushing legislation that would fast-track ambitious national projects to boost Canada's economy, now faced with Donald Trump's tariffs.
Carney outlined his plan on Monday after a meeting - described as "very productive" - with the leaders of Canada's provinces and territories.
"This has been the best meeting we've had in 10 years," Ontario premier Doug Ford told reporters.
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