The UK government will not sign off a deal to hand back the Chagos Islands to Mauritius until Donald Trump’s administration has had a chance to consider the future of the joint military base, Downing Street has confirmed. Allies of the US president-elect have been critical of the deal because of the implications for the…
Risk of ‘rapid fire spread’ as near hurricane-force winds forecast in some areas Forecasters have warned of another “particularly dangerous weather situation” across northern Los Angeles where residents are braced for new wildfire evacuation orders. Los Angeles, and parts of Ventura county to the north, faced “extreme fire risk” warnings through Wednesday, with officials warning…
The chief secretary to the Treasury, Darren Jones, has said he would be “very happy” if Tulip Siddiq returned as a minister, despite criticisms of her by the government’s adviser on ministerial standards over her family ties to the ousted regime in Bangladesh. On Tuesday, Siddiq resigned as minister for the City and anti-corruption after…
Netanyahu’s office denies Hamas has agreed to outline of ceasefire deal despite reports An Israeli official has said that Hamas has agreed an outline deal for a limited release of hostages and a ceasefire and partial withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, however the office of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu almost immediately issued a denial…
Global leaders have said that escalating armed conflict is the most urgent threat in 2025 but the climate emergency is expected to cause the greatest concern over the next decade, according to the World Economic Forum. Ahead of its yearly gathering in the Swiss ski resort of Davos next week, the WEF asked more than…
Sydneysiders have been warned that more than 1,000 train services are expected to be cancelled by the end of Wednesday while those that do run could suffer hours-long delays, as the state government vows to explore legal action to quash “intolerable” industrial action from continuing into Thursday. By Wednesday afternoon, about 400 services had been…
The European Union has been urged to clamp down on illegal imports of conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) after evidence was found that current regulations had been breached. The advocacy group Global Witness (GW) said there remained a “high risk” of the EU’s mineral imports being used to fund militias…
Celebrities are chipping in to help the region that’s helped them grow to prominence – southern California – as wildfires continue to sweep across the state. As of Tuesday afternoon, the Los Angeles-area fires had killed at least 25 people, displaced thousands of others and destroyed more than 12,000 structures. Two of the largest blazes,…