France’s parliament on Monday ousted the government of Prime Minister Francois Bayrou after just nine months in office, leaving President Emmanuel Macron scrambling to find a successor and plunging the country into a new political crisis.
Bayrou, who has been in the job for just nine months, had blindsided even his allies by calling a confidence vote to end a lengthy standoff over his austerity budget, which foresees almost 44 billion euros ($52 billion) of cost savings to reduce France’s debt pile.
Bayrou, the first premier in the history of modern France to be ousted in a confidence vote rather than a no-confidence vote, will submit his resignation on Tuesday morning, according to a person close to him who asked not to be named.
In the vote in the National Assembly, 364 deputies voted that they had no confidence in the government while just 194 gave it their confidence. “In line with article 50 of the constitution, the prime minister must submit the resignation of his government,” said speaker Yael Braun-Pivet.
Bayrou is the sixth prime minister under Macron since his 2017 election but the fifth since 2022. Bayrou’s ousting leaves the French head of state with a new domestic headache at a time when he is leading diplomatic efforts on the Ukraine war.
But defending his decision to call the high-risk confidence vote, Bayrou told the National Assembly: “The biggest risk was not to take one, to let things continue without anything changing… and have business as usual.”
Describing the debt pile as “life-threatening” for France, Bayrou said his government had put forward a plan so that the country could “in a few years’ time escape the inexorable tide of debt that is submerging it”.
“You have the power to overthrow the government” but not “to erase reality”, Bayrou told the MPs in a doomed final bid to save his government before the vote.
– Unpopular president –
Macron now faces one of the most critical decisions of his presidency — appoint a seventh prime minister to try to thrash out a compromise, or call snap elections in a bid to have a more accommodating parliament.
There is no guarantee an election would result in any improvement in the fortunes of Macron’s centre-right bloc in parliament.
And although the Socialist Party (PS) has expressed readiness to lead a new government, it is far from clear whether such an administration could survive.
Heavyweight right-wing cabinet ministers, such as Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin, are trusted by Macron but risk being voted out by the left.
According to a poll by Odoxa-Backbone for Le Figaro newspaper, 64 percent of the French want Macron to resign rather than name a new prime minister, a move he has ruled out.
He is forbidden from standing for a third term in 2027.
Around 77 percent of people do not approve of his work, Macron’s worst-ever such rating, according to an Ifop poll for the Ouest-France daily.
– Le Pen ruling –
Alongside political upheaval, France is also facing social tensions.
A left-wing collective named “Block Everything” is calling for a day of action on Wednesday, and trade unions have urged workers to strike on September 18.
The 2027 presidential election meanwhile remains wide open, with analysts predicting the French far right will have its best-ever chance of winning.
Three-time presidential candidate for the National Rally (RN) Marine Le Pen suffered a blow in March when a French court convicted her and other party officials over an EU parliament fake jobs scam.
Le Pen was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment, two of which were suspended, and a fine of 100,000 euros ($117,000).
The ruling also banned her from standing for office for five years, which would scupper her ambition of taking part in the 2027 vote unless overturned on appeal.
But a Paris court said Monday her appeal would be heard from January 13 to February 12, 2026, well before the election — potentially resurrecting her presidential hopes.
Cheered by her MPs, Le Pen urged Macron to call snap legislative elections, saying holding the polls is “not an option but an obligation” and describing Bayrou’s administration as a “phantom government”.
RIVALTA, Italy, Sept 8 (Reuters) – Family and close friends were set to gather in a private funeral on Monday for Giorgio Armani, the legendary Italian fashion designer who died last week at the age of 91.
Armani will be laid to rest next to his parents and older brother in a family chapel in Rivalta, a village about 100 km (62 miles) south-east of Milan and near the city where he was born, Piacenza.
In a mark of respect, Armani stores will close in the afternoon.
“We will say goodbye to him as a family and then move forward as he would have wanted. Everything is ready to remember him with his fashion,” his partner Pantaleo Dell’Orco was quoted as saying by Corriere della Sera daily.
Right up to his death, Armani was working on a retrospective exhibition and a fashion show to celebrate 50 years of being in business, during Milan Fashion Week in late September. His company has to date not announced any changes to the programme.
The designer’s death was announced on Thursday, sparking an outpouring of international grief, with tributes flowing in from Hollywood stars, sporting champions, business and political leaders and ordinary people.
Over the weekend, thousands came to pay their respects to the man known as “Re Giorgio” (King Giorgio) as his wooden casket, adorned with white roses, was put on display at Armani’s headquarters in Milan.
“I feel very saddened, because he was a man of great style who, of course, has left an indelible mark… We are definitely losing a great, truly great talent”, Milan resident Alessandra Torchio said on Monday.
Armani died after a five-decade career in which he built a business empire spanning haute couture to home furnishing, with his name becoming synonymous with elegant simplicity.
He had no children but worked with a trusted group of family members and long-term confidants who are expected to carry on running the business over which he exercised tight control.
Israel claimed Sunday that it is “seriously considering” a comprehensive ceasefire and hostage swap deal proposed by US President Donald Trump.
“Israel is seriously considering President Trump’s proposal,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
According to Israel’s public broadcaster KAN and Channel 12, Trump’s proposal carries “fundamental changes compared to previous proposals.”
The proposal suggests the release of all 48 Israeli hostages, including the deceased, on the first day of the ceasefire, in exchange for thousands of Palestinian detainees, including hundreds with long jail terms, the channel said.
It also requires Israel to stop its offensive to occupy Gaza City and launch immediate negotiations, to be directly led by Trump himself, to end the war.
Trump said on Friday that he is engaged in “very deep” negotiations with the Palestinian group Hamas, which had agreed to the latest proposal of mediators Qatar and Egypt on Aug. 18.
There was no immediate comment from Hamas on the report.
Hamas has repeatedly declared its readiness to conclude a comprehensive deal with Israel to release all Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, end the war on Gaza, and withdraw Israeli forces. However,
Netanyahu has rejected such proposals, insisting instead on partial arrangements that allow him to delay and impose new conditions at each stage of negotiations.
Israel has killed nearly 64,400 Palestinians in a brutal offensive in Gaza since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, which is facing famine.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
M23 rebels on Sunday recaptured the town of Shoa in Democratic Republic of Congo’s North Kivu province after clashes with pro-government forces, residents said.
Shoa, located in Masisi territory, had briefly fallen under the control of the Congolese army and allied Wazalendo militia on Saturday before the rebels struck back.
“We are now under the authority of the M23 rebels, who attacked early this Sunday and forced out the Wazalendo who had been here since Saturday,” resident Steven Bwema told Anadolu.
The area was calm on Sunday after heavy exchanges of fire the previous day.
Masisi has been a flashpoint for more than three months as rebels and pro-government fighters vie for control. The territory is rich in gold, cobalt, and tantalum, minerals that have long helped finance armed groups.
Congo and a coalition of rebel groups, including the M23, signed a ceasefire deal in July in Doha, Qatar, known as the Declaration of Principles. But fighting has escalated despite the ongoing political negotiations.
Kinshasa, the UN, and Western governments accuse neighboring Rwanda of backing M23, an allegation Kigali denies.
Last week, M23-allied Twigwaneho rebels fought Wazalendo militia supported by the army in the villages of Mi’enge, Rukezi, and Minembwe.
Congolese army spokesperson Gen. Sylvain Ekenge on Saturday condemned a wave of attacks by M23/AFC fighters on army positions in North and South Kivu, calling them a “blatant violation of the Washington peace agreements and the Doha Declaration of Principles,” which were meant to bring stability to eastern Congo.
US President Donald Trump said Sunday he is prepared to implement a new phase with additional sanctions on Russia, speaking in the wake of overnight attacks that killed four people and injured dozens in Ukraine.
Talking to reporters before departing for the US Open tennis final in New York City, Trump answered affirmatively when asked if he was ready to move forward with more sanctions on Russia.
The confirmation comes after Russia launched a record 818 drones and missiles overnight, according to Ukraine’s Air Force command, surpassing the previous high of 728 from July.
Trump also addressed domestic policy questions, saying that federal intervention in Chicago would not constitute warfare but rather urban cleanup efforts, despite his social media posting on Chicago alluding to a famous Vietnam War movie.
Asked about embattled Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who faced tough questioning before a congressional committee last week, Trump described him as “a different kind of a guy” with “a lot of good ideas.”
Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has announced he is stepping down after less than a year in the role, following two major election losses.
The move comes a day before his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) was expected to vote on whether to hold an internal leadership vote that could have forced him out.
The LDP has governed Japan for almost seven decades, but under Ishiba it lost its majority in the lower house for the first time in 15 years and then lost its majority in the upper house in July.
Japan, the world’s fourth-largest economy and a key US ally, now faces a period of political uncertainty as tensions rise with China and regional insecurity mounts.
“Now that a conclusion has been reached in the negotiations concerning the US tariff measures, I believe this is precisely the appropriate time,” Ishiba said, referring to a deal signed last week to ease tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on Japanese cars and other exports.
Until Sunday, he had resisted calls to resign, saying it was his responsibility to settle the dispute with Washington before stepping down.
“I have strongly believed that negotiations concerning the US tariff measures, which could be described as a national crisis, must be brought to a conclusion under our administration’s responsibility,” he said.
The 68-year-old said he would continue his responsibilities “to the people” until a new prime minister was selected.
Ishiba, who took office in October 2024 promising to tackle rising prices, struggled to inspire confidence as the country faced economic headwinds, a cost-of-living crisis and fractious politics with the US.
Inflation, particularly the doubling of rice prices in the past year, was politically damaging.
Public support further slid after a series of controversies, including criticism of his decision to appoint only two women to his cabinet and handing out expensive gifts to party members.
Jersey authorities are investigating Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich in connection with suspected money laundering, according to court records that show hundreds of millions of dollars moving through Swiss bank accounts.
Details of the ongoing investigation are revealed in a series of Swiss court judgments issued in May, obtained by OCCRP, which also show that Jersey authorities suspect companies “under [his] control” violated economic sanctions. The legal rulings gave Swiss authorities permission to provide banking information to Jersey.
Separately, officials in Cyprus told reporters they passed along information about companies linked to the probe upon request from Jersey authorities.
Kobre & Kim, a law firm representing Abramovich, said its client had not been charged with any crime in Jersey and “denies any allegations of wrongdoing.” The firm declined to answer questions about the contents of the Swiss judgments.
“Our client was not a party to those proceedings and no submissions were made on his behalf,” the firm told OCCRP. “For that reason, he is not in a position to respond.”
Details of Jersey’s investigation, outlined in the Swiss judgments, were first reported by the publication Gotham City in June.
The Swiss judgments discuss a businessman referred to only as “G,” but they include background information, including business dealings, that enabled reporters to conclusively identify Abramovich.
The details coincide with Abramovich’s well-publicized $13 billion sale of the Russian oil company, Sibneft, in 2005. The proceeds were paid into accounts of companies controlled by two Jersey-based entities, according to the Swiss judgments.
Prosecutors in Jersey suspect that G made “corruption payments” in the 1990s to maintain control over a Russian company, according to recent Swiss court judgments. Proceeds of the subsequent $13 billion sale of that company were deposited in the bank accounts of companies linked to him, according to the judgments.
Separately, an English High Court judge ruled in 2012 that Abramovich made “substantial cash payments” in the 1990s to obtain indispensable political patronage and influence, a type of support known as “krysha” (or “roof”), allowing him to maintain control of Sibneft.
Lawyers for Abramovich told OCCRP that the English judgment “makes no finding that our client broke any law in respect of his business dealings and there was no suggestion in our client’s defence that his acquisition of the relevant entity was achieved through corruption. Any suggestion to the contrary is misleading, false and defamatory.”
In a request for assistance to Swiss authorities, Jersey prosecutors stated they suspect that “companies indirectly under G’s control” violated Jersey law by carrying out transactions and providing financial services after he was sanctioned there on March 10, 2022.
Along with jurisdictions including the U.K. and European Union, Jersey sanctioned Abramovich for his relationship with the Kremlin following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Jersey sets its own laws, but depends on the U.K. for defense and matters of foreign affairs.
Jersey’s attorney general’s office said it was “not able to comment on live investigations.” The Swiss attorney general’s office confirmed it had executed a request for mutual legal assistance from Jersey, but declined to provide further information.
The Swiss judgments show how federal prosecutors in 2023 and 2024 ordered a Swiss bank to hand over records relating to three companies registered in Cyprus, the British Virgin Islands and Jersey. Each company contested the order in its case, but in May a Swiss criminal court dismissed their appeals.
Subsequent appeals by the three companies to Switzerland’s Supreme Court were ruled inadmissible.
The law firm MME, which represents the three unnamed companies that contested the release of bank account information, did not respond to a request for comment.
The Swiss judgments referenced more than 20 firms and five trusts, including several registered in Cyprus.
The Cypriot police press office confirmed that information was provided to Jersey authorities, but added: “No further information can be disclosed at this time since the investigation is ongoing.”
A law enforcement official in Cyprus, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, described the requests by Jersey as “extensive.”
“We provided a lot of material,” the official told CIReN, OCCRP’s Cypriot member center.
Jersey received information about “opening bank accounts, records of companies from the registrar, and records for trusts from the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission,” the official said.
US President Donald Trump on Friday signed an executive order to rename the Department of Defence as the “Department of War,” reverting to a title it held until after World War II. The switch was signal that the department was “a force to be reckoned with”, said Trump after months of complaining that the original name was “woke”.
After months of campaigning for the Nobel Peace Prize, President Donald Trump sent a sharply different message on Friday when he signed an executive order aimed at rebranding the Department of Defence as the Department of War.
Trump said the switch was intended to signal to the world that the United States was a force to be reckoned with, and he complained that the Department of Defence’s name was “woke.”
“I think it sends a message of victory. I think it sends, really, a message of strength,” Trump said of the change as he authorised the Department of War as a secondary title for the Pentagon.
Congress has to formally authorise a new name, and several of Trump’s closest supporters on Capitol Hill proposed legislation earlier Friday to codify the new name into law.
But already there were cosmetic shifts. The Pentagon’s website went from “defense.gov” to “war.gov.” Signs were swapped around Hegseth’s office while more than a dozen employees watched. Trump said there would be new stationery, too.
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, whom Trump has begun referring to as the “secretary of war,” said during the signing ceremony that “we’re going to go on offense, not just on defense,” using “maximum lethality” that won’t be “politically correct.”
The attempted rebranding was another rhetorical salvo in Trump’s efforts to reshape the US military and uproot what he has described as progressive ideology. Bases have been renamed, transgender soldiers have been banned and websites have been scrubbed of posts honoring contributions by women and minorities to the armed forces.
He’s also favored aggressive — critics say illegal — military action despite his criticism of “endless wars” under other administrations. He frequently boasts about the stealth bomber strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, and he recently ordered the destruction of a boat that the US says was carrying drugs off the coast of Venezuela.
The Republican president insisted that his tough talk didn’t contradict his fixation on being recognized for diplomatic efforts, saying peace must be made from a position of strength. Trump has claimed credit for resolving conflicts between India and Pakistan; Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and Armenia and Azerbaijan, among others. (He’s also expressed frustration that he hasn’t brought the war between Russia and Ukraine to a conclusion as fast as he wanted.)
“I think I’ve gotten peace because of the fact that we’re strong,” Trump said, echoing the “peace through strength” motto associated with President Ronald Reagan.
When Trump finished his remarks on the military, he dismissed Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, from the room.
“I’m going to let these people go back to the Department of War and figure out how to maintain peace,” Trump said.
Florida Republican Rep. Greg Steube proposed legislation in the House to formally change the name of the department.
“From 1789 until the end of World War II, the United States military fought under the banner of the Department of War,” Steube, an Army veteran, said in a statement. “It is only fitting that we pay tribute to their eternal example and renowned commitment to lethality by restoring the name of the ‘Department of War’ to our Armed Forces.”
Sens. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Mike Lee, R-Utah, are introducing companion legislation in the Senate.
The Department of War was created in 1789, then renamed and reorganized through legislation signed by President Harry Truman in 1947, two years after the end of World War II. The Department of Defense incorporated the Department of War, which oversaw the Army, plus the Department of the Navy and the newly created independent Air Force.
Hegseth complained that “we haven’t won a major war since” the name was changed. Trump said, “We never fought to win.”
Trump and Hegseth have long talked about restoring the Department of War name.
In August, Trump told reporters that “everybody likes that we had an unbelievable history of victory when it was Department of War. Then we changed it to Department of Defence.”
When confronted with the possibility that making the name change would require an act of Congress, Trump told reporters that “we’re just going to do it.”
“I’m sure Congress will go along,” he said, “if we need that.”
Trump and Hegseth have been on a name-changing spree at the Pentagon, sometimes by sidestepping legal requirements.
For example, they wanted to restore the names of nine military bases that once honored Confederate leaders, which were changed in 2023 following a congressionally mandated review.
Because the original names were no longer allowed under law, Hegseth ordered the bases to be named after new people with similar names. For example, Fort Bragg now honors Army Pfc. Roland L. Bragg, a World War II paratrooper and Silver Star recipient from Maine, instead of Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg.
In the case of Fort A.P. Hill, named for Confederate Lt. Gen. Ambrose Powell Hill, the Trump administration was forced to choose three soldiers to make the renaming work.
The base now honors Union soldiers Pvt. Bruce Anderson and 1st Sgt. Robert A. Pinn, who contributes the two initials, and Lt. Col. Edward Hill, whose last name completes the second half of the base name.
The move irked Republicans in Congress who, in July, moved to ban restoring any Confederate names in this year’s defense authorization bill.
Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska, a Republican who co-sponsored the earlier amendment to remove the Confederate names, said that “what this administration is doing, particularly this secretary of defense, is sticking his finger in the eye of Congress by going back and changing the names to the old names.”
US celebrity judge and social media star Frank Caprio has died aged 88, his family has said.
His death following a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer was announced on his official Instagram account, where he was remembered for his “warmth” and “unwavering belief in the goodness of people”.
David Caprio, his son, thanked fans for their love and support and urged people to “spread a little kindness” in his father’s memory.
Beloved for his compassion and humour in the courtroom, videos of Judge Caprio presiding over cases on his hit show Caught in Providence have had billions of views on social media, earning him the title the “nicest judge in the world”.
In an the Instagram statement to his 3.4 million followers, Judge Caprio was remembered for the “countless acts of kindness he inspired”.
“His warmth, humour, and kindness left an indelible mark on all who knew him,” the statement said.
Judge Caprio had presided over thousands of cases in his hometown of Providence, Rhode Island before embarking on a TV career.
The company behind Caught in Providence, Debmar-Mercury, paid tribute to Judge Caprio’s “unique brand of compassion and common sense approach”.
“We will miss him dearly,” co-presidents Mort Marcus and Ira Bernstein said in a statement.
During its run, Caught in Providence was nominated for three Daytime Emmys, with Judge Caprio earning two of his own nominations last year.
His signature courtroom style produced viral clips ranging from him inviting children to sit with him behind the bench during cases, to announcing a “mini-judge” plushie of himself.
A TikTok video showcasing his morning routine – brushing his teeth, signing his book and watching videos of his own show – has had more than 5m views.
In an 2019 interview, Judge Caprio said his courtroom proceedings “show a slice of life of Rhode Island that is very interesting, and it reflects the same issues people are experiencing nationwide”.
After being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2023, Judge Caprio said he was “fully prepared to fight as hard I can” and thanked followers for their support.
In one of his last social media posts, Judge Caprio announced he was back in hospital after suffering a “setback” in his treatment and asked his followers for their prayers.
Judge Caprio is survived by his wife, Joyce Caprio, of almost 60 years, their five children, seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Al Jazeera correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohamed Qraiqea were killed Sunday, along with three other Al Jazeera journalists, in an Israeli strike targeting a journalists’ tent near the Al-Shifa Hospital in western Gaza City, according to the Gaza Media Office.
The Qatar-based channel quoted the director of the Al-Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza, who said, “Al Jazeera correspondents Anas al-Sharif and Mohamed Qraiqea were martyred in an Israeli strike on their tent,” without providing details.
The channel later confirmed that al-Sharif and Qraiqea were killed in an Israeli strike.
Al Jazeera Media Network early Monday condemned the “planned” assassination of its correspondents and cameramen in the Gaza Strip, calling it “a desperate attempt to silence voices ahead of the occupation of Gaza.”
“The order to kill Anas al-Sharif, one of Gaza’s bravest journalists, and his colleagues is a desperate attempt to silence voices ahead of the occupation of Gaza,” it said.
Al Jazeera’s statement noted that “many Israeli army officials repeatedly incited and called for targeting Anas al-Sharif and his colleagues,” as it held “the occupation army and its government responsible for targeting and assassinating its team.”
The statement added that “the assassination of our correspondents by the Israeli occupation forces is another blatant and deliberate attack on press freedom.”
The Gaza Media Office announced in a statement that the number of journalists killed since the start of Israel’s genocide in Gaza on Oct. 7, 2023, has risen to 237, following the killing of al-Sharif and Qraiqea, along with three other journalists.
It identified the other journalists killed as photojournalists Ibrahim Dahir and Moumin Alaywa and an assistant photojournalist, Mohammed Noufal.
“The assassination was carried out with premeditation and deliberation, through a deliberate, intentional, and direct targeting of the journalists’ tent in the vicinity of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. This heinous crime also resulted in the injury of several other fellow journalists,” it added
The Director of the Al-Shifa Medical Complex in Gaza City, Dr. Mohammed Abu Salmiya, told Anadolu that the deaths from the strike on the tent in front of the complex’s gate have risen to seven, including five journalists.
Meanwhile, the Israeli army admitted in a statement to killing al-Sharif in Gaza City, while ignoring the killing of Qraiqea and the three other journalists in the same strike.
In his will, which he requested be published after his death, Al Jazeera correspondent Anas al-Sharif wrote: “This is my will, and my final message. If these words reach you, know that Israel has succeeded in killing me and silencing my voice.”
“Allah knows that I gave all the effort and strength I had to be a support and a voice for my people, ever since I opened my eyes to life in the alleys and streets of Jabalia refugee camp,” he said. “I have lived pain in all its forms, and tasted grief and loss many times. Yet I never hesitated to convey the truth as it is, without distortion or falsification, hoping that Allah would bear witness against those who remained silent, those who accepted our killing, those who suffocated our breath, and whose hearts were unmoved by the scattered bodies of our children and women, and who did not stop the massacre our people have been subjected to for more than a year and a half.”
Israel is facing mounting condemnation for its genocidal war on Gaza, where it has killed more than 61,000 victims since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave and brought it to the verge of famine.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
Australia will formally recognize Palestine at the UN General Assembly in September, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Monday.
Albanese told reporters that the Palestinian Authority has given commitments to disarm, recognize Israel and exclude Hamas from any future governance of Palestine, Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.
Media reported earlier that Canberra was considering announcing a timeline to recognize Palestine but the Cabinet signed off on the plan shortly afterwards.
Asked whether the announcement could further embolden Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to continue its military offensive in the Gaza Strip, Albanese said he expressed his concerns with Netanyahu about Israel’s military action in Gaza.
“I think that I expressed it in a very clear way. But the prime minister’s comments were similar to what he had made a year ago, which is that they were determined to remove Hamas,” he said.
France has announced its intention to recognize Palestine at the UN General Assembly meeting in New York in September, while the UK has moved to support the recognition of Palestine if Israel fails to meet a set of conditions.
OpenAI launched on Thursday its GPT-5 artificial intelligence model, the highly anticipated latest installment of a technology that has helped transform global business and culture.
OpenAI’s GPT models are the AI technology that powers the popular ChatGPT chatbot, and GPT-5 will be available to all 700 million ChatGPT users, OpenAI said.
The big question is whether the company that kicked off the generative AI frenzy will be capable of continuing to drive significant technological advancements that attract enterprise-level users to justify the enormous sums of money it is investing to fuel these developments.
The release comes at a critical time for the AI industry. The world’s biggest AI developers – Alphabet, Meta, Amazon and Microsoft, which backs OpenAI – have dramatically increased capital expenditures to pay for AI data centers, nourishing investor hopes for great returns. These four companies expect to spend nearly $400 billion this fiscal year in total.
OpenAI is now in early discussions to allow employees to cash out at a $500 billion valuation, a huge step-up from its current $300 billion valuation. Top AI researchers now command $100 million signing bonuses.
“So far, business spending on AI has been pretty weak, while consumer spending on AI has been fairly robust because people love to chat with ChatGPT,” said economics writer Noah Smith. “But the consumer spending on AI just isn’t going to be nearly enough to justify all the money that is being spent on AI data centers.”
OpenAI is emphasizing GPT-5’s enterprise prowess. In addition to software development, the company said GPT-5 excels in writing, health-related queries, and finance.
“GPT-5 is really the first time that I think one of our mainline models has felt like you can ask a legitimate expert, a PhD-level expert, anything,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said at a press briefing.
“One of the coolest things it can do is write you good instantaneous software. This idea of software on demand is going to be one of the defining features of the GPT-5 era.”
In demos on Thursday, OpenAI showed how GPT-5 could be used to create entire working pieces of software based on written text prompts, commonly known as “vibe coding.”
One key measure of success is whether the step up from GPT-4 to GPT-5 is on par with the research lab’s previous improvements. Two early reviewers told Reuters that while the new model impressed them with its ability to code and solve science and math problems, they believe the leap from the GPT-4 to GPT-5 was not as large as OpenAI’s prior improvements.
Even if the improvements are large, GPT-5 is not advanced enough to wholesale replace humans. Altman said that GPT-5 still lacks the ability to learn on its own, a key component to enabling AI to match human abilities.
On his popular AI podcast, Dwarkesh Patel compared current AI to teaching a child to play a saxophone by reading notes from the last student.
“A student takes one attempt,” he said. “The moment they make a mistake, you send them away and write detailed instructions about what went wrong. The next student reads your notes and tries to play Charlie Parker cold. When they fail, you refine the instructions for the next student. This just wouldn’t work.”
MORE THINKING
Nearly three years ago, ChatGPT introduced the world to generative AI, dazzling users with its ability to write humanlike prose and poetry, quickly becoming one of the fastest growing apps ever.
In March 2023, OpenAI followed up ChatGPT with the release of GPT-4, a large language model that made huge leaps forward in intelligence. While GPT-3.5, an earlier version, received a bar exam score in the bottom 10%, GPT-4 passed the simulated bar exam in the top 10%.
GPT-4’s leap was based on more compute power and data, and the company was hoping that “scaling up” in a similar way would consistently lead to improved AI models.
But OpenAI ran into issues scaling up. One problem was the data wall the company ran into, and OpenAI’s former chief scientist Ilya Sutskever said last year that while processing power was growing, the amount of data was not.
He was referring to the fact that large language models are trained on massive datasets that scrape the entire internet, and AI labs have no other options for large troves of human-generated textual data.
Apart from the lack of data, another problem was that ‘training runs’ for large models are more likely to have hardware-induced failures given how complicated the system is, and researchers may not know the eventual performance of the models until the end of the run, which can take months.
At the same time, OpenAI discovered another route to smarter AI, called “test-time compute,” a way to have the AI model spend more time compute power “thinking” about each question, allowing it to solve challenging tasks such as math or complex operations that demand advanced reasoning and decision-making.
GPT-5 acts as a router, meaning if a user asks GPT-5 a particularly hard problem, it will use test-time compute to answer the question.
This is the first time the general public will have access to OpenAI’s test-time compute technology, something that Altman said is important to the company’s mission to build AI that benefits all of humanity.
Altman believes the current investment in AI is still inadequate.
“We need to build a lot more infrastructure globally to have AI locally available in all these markets,” Altman said.
A Brazilian judge on Monday placed former president Jair Bolsonaro under house arrest for breaking a social media ban, escalating a dramatic standoff between the court and the politician, who is accused of plotting a coup.
Bolsonaro is on trial at the Supreme Court for allegedly plotting to cling onto power after losing 2022 elections to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
President Donald Trump has sought to punish Brazil, a longtime US ally, for what he sees as a politically motivated “witch hunt” targeting Bolsonaro by imposing eye-watering tariffs on Latin America’s biggest economy.
The 70-year-old Bolsonaro is banned from social media for the duration of the proceedings, and third parties are barred from sharing his public remarks.
But on Sunday, his allies defied the order by sharing footage online of a call between the former army captain and his eldest son Flavio at a solidarity rally in Rio de Janeiro.
Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes reacted furiously, declaring that the judiciary would not allow a defendant to “treat it like a fool” because of his “political and economic power.”
Criticizing Bolsonaro’s “repeated failure” to comply with the court’s restrictions on him during the trial, he placed him under house arrest at his home in the capital Brasilia.
He also barred the country’s former leader (2019-2022) from receiving visitors, apart from his lawyers, and from using mobile phones, and warned that any new transgression would lead to him being detained.
Several mobile phones were seized at his home on Monday, the police said.
Washington condemned the new restrictions on Monday night, with the State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs issuing a statement on X.
“Minister Alexandre de Moraes, already sanctioned by the United States for human rights violations, continues to use Brazilian institutions to silence the opposition and threaten democracy,” the bureau posted. “Let Bolsonaro speak!”
US officials added that they would “hold accountable all those who collaborate with or facilitate sanctioned conduct.”
The US post was re-shared by Bolsonaro’s politician son Eduardo Bolsonaro, who had successfully lobbied Washington to take punitive action against Brazil over the case.
In a separate post, he wrote: “Brazil is no longer a democracy.”
He called Moraes, who is presiding over Bolsonaro’s trial and has styled himself a defender of Brazilian democracy in the face of the far right, an “out-of-control psychopath.”
Last month, Moraes ordered Bolsonaro to wear an ankle bracelet and instituted the social media ban.
Trump responded in unprecedented fashion by banning Moraes from the United States and freezing his assets in US banks.
‘Thank you Trump’
Supporters of Brazilian ex-president Jair Bolsonaro rally against the government. AFP
Trump’s pressure campaign has angered many Brazilians but endeared him to Bolsonaro’s conservative base.
At rallies in Rio, Brasilia and Sao Paulo on Sunday, some demonstrators waved US flags or held signs reading “Thank you Trump.”
Bolsonaro himself did not attend the rallies, having been ordered by the Supreme Court to stay home at night and at weekends throughout the trial.
Prosecutors say he and seven co-accused tried to overturn his 2022 election defeat in a plot that only failed because the military did not get on board.
He faces a 40-year sentence if convicted at the trial, which is expected to wrap up in the coming weeks.
Bolsonaro’s supporters stormed Brazil’s congress in January 2023, after Lula was inaugurated, ransacking the chambers and attacking police, in scenes reminiscent of an attack by Trump supporters on the US Capitol two years before.
Despite being barred from running, Bolsonaro hopes to mount a Trump-style comeback in Brazil’s 2026 presidential election.
Lula, 79, has said he may seek a fourth term, health permitting.
Last year, he was hospitalized for a brain hemorrhage caused by a bathroom fall.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has said she no longer identifies as Nigerian and has not renewed her passport since the early 2000s.
Badenoch, who was born in the UK, grew up in both Nigeria and the US. She returned to England aged 16 because of Nigeria’s worsening political and economic climate, as well as to continue her education.
Speaking on former MP and television presenter Gyles Brandreth’s Rosebud podcast, she said she was “Nigerian through ancestry” but “by identity, I’m not really”.
Last year, Badenoch faced criticism from Nigeria’s vice-president, who said she had “denigrated” the West African country.
Badenoch, who previously lived in Lagos, spoke at length about her upbringing on the podcast.
“I know the country very well, I have a lot of family there, and I’m very interested in what happens there,” she said. “But home is where my now family is.”
On not renewing her passport, she said: “I don’t identify with it anymore. Most of my life has been in the UK and I’ve just never felt the need to.”
She added: “I’m Nigerian through ancestry, by birth, despite not being born there because of my parents… but by identity, I’m not really.”
Badenoch said that when she had visited the country when her father died, she had to get a visa, which was “a big fandango”.
She said her early experiences in Nigeria shaped her political outlook, including “why I don’t like socialism”.
As a child, “I remember never quite feeling that I belonged there”, she went on, adding that she recalled “coming back to the UK in 1996 thinking: this is home”.
The Tory leader added the reason she returned to the UK was “a very sad one”.
“It was that my parents thought: ‘There is no future for you in this country’.”
She said she had not experienced racial prejudice in the UK “in any meaningful form”, adding: “I knew I was going to a place where I would look different to everybody, and I didn’t think that that was odd.
“What I found actually quite interesting was that people didn’t treat me differently, and it’s why I’m so quick to defend the UK whenever there are accusations of racism.”
At the end of last year, Badenoch was criticised for saying she had grown up in fear and insecurity in Nigeria at a time it was plagued by corruption.
The country’s vice-president Kashim Shettima responded that his government was “proud” of Badenoch “in spite of her efforts at denigrating her nation of origin”. A spokesperson for Badenoch rebuffed the criticism.
A BBC Africa Eye investigation has revealed how women, known as “madams”, have involved children as young as 13 in prostitution in Kenya.
In the transit town of Maai Mahiu, in Kenya’s Rift Valley, trucks and lorries pound the streets day and night transporting goods and people across the country into Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The key transport hub, just 50km (31 miles) east of the capital, Nairobi, is known for prostitution, but it is also a breeding ground for child sexual abuse.
Two undercover investigators, posing as sex workers wanting to learn how to become madams, spent months earlier this year infiltrating the sex trade in the town.
Their secret filming reveals two different women who say they know it is illegal and then introduce the investigators to underage girls in the sex industry.
The BBC gave all its evidence to the Kenyan police in March. The BBC believes the madams have moved location since then. The police said the women and young girls we filmed could not be traced. To date there have been no arrests.
Convictions are rare in Kenya. For successful prosecutions, police need testimonies from children. Often vulnerable minors are too afraid to testify.
The BBC’s grainy footage filmed on the street in the dark showed one woman, who calls herself Nyambura, laughing as she says: “They’re still children, so it’s easy to manipulate them by just handing them sweets.”
“Prostitution is a cash crop in Maai Mahiu; the truckers basically fuel it. And that’s how we benefit. It’s been normalised in Maai Mahiu,” she explained, adding that she had one girl as young as 13, who had already been “working” for six months.
“It becomes very risky when you’re dealing with minors. You can’t just bring them out openly in town. I only sneak them out at night in great secrecy,” Nyambura said.
The act of prostitution by a consenting adult is not explicitly criminalised under Kenyan national law but it is banned by many municipal by-laws. It is not banned in Maai Mahiu, which is part of Nakuru county.
Under the penal code it is illegal to live from the earnings of prostitution, either as a sex worker or third party facilitating or profiting from prostitution.
The trafficking or sale of minors under the age of 18 carries a prison sentence ranging from 10 years to life.
When asked whether the clients wear condoms, Nyambura said she usually made sure they had protection but the odd one did not.
“Some children want to earn more [so don’t use them]. Some are forced [not to use them],” she said.
In another meeting, she led the undercover investigator to a house where three young girls sat huddled on a sofa, another on a hard-backed chair.
Nyambura then left the room, giving the investigator an opportunity to speak to the girls alone.
They described being repeatedly abused for sex, on a daily basis.
“Sometimes you have sex with multiple people. The clients force you to do unimaginable things,” said one of the girls.
Maai Mahiu in Nakuru county, is a key transport hub with many lorries passing through heading to countries west of Kenya. At night the town, with a population of some 50,000, comes to life and is in an area known for its sex trade
There are no recent statistics on the number of children forced to work in Kenya’s sex industry. In 2012, the US State Department Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Kenya cited an estimate of 30,000, a figure derived from the Kenyan government and now defunct non-governmental organisation (NGO), Eradicate Child Prostitution in Kenya.
Other studies have focused on specific areas, especially along the country’s coast – known for its tourist resorts. A 2022 report for the NGO Global Fund to End Modern Slavery found almost 2,500 children were forced into sex work in Kilifi and Kwale counties.
A second undercover investigator gained the trust of a woman who called herself Cheptoo and had multiple meetings with her.
She said selling young girls meant she could “earn a living and be comfortable”.
“You carry out this kind of business in great secrecy because it is illegal,” she said.
“If anyone says they want a young girl, I ask them to pay me. We also have our regulars who always come back for them.”
Cheptoo took the undercover investigator to a club to meet four of her girls. The youngest said she was 13 years old. The others said they were 15.
She opened up about the profit she makes from them, saying for every 3,000 Kenyan shillings ($23; £17) the girls deliver, her share was 2,500 shillings ($19; £14).
At another meeting, in a house in Maai Mahiu, Cheptoo left the undercover investigator alone with two underage girls.
One of them told her she had, on average, sex with five men a day.
When asked what happened if she refused to have sex without a condom, she said she had no choice.
“I have to [have sex without a condom]. I will be chased away, and I have nowhere to run to. I am an orphan.”
Kenya’s sex industry is a complex, murky world where both men and women are involved in facilitating child prostitution.
It is not known how many children are forced into sex work in Maai Mahiu, but in this small town of around 50,000 people it is easy to find them.
A former sex worker, known as “Baby Girl”, now provides refuge in Maai Mahiu for girls who have escaped sexual abuse.
The 61-year-old worked in the sex industry for 40 years – first finding herself on the streets in her early twenties. She was pregnant and had her three young children with her after fleeing her husband because of domestic violence.
At her wooden kitchen table in a bright parlour at the front of her house, she introduced the BBC to four young women who were all forced into sex work by madams in Maai Mahiu when they were children.
Each girl shared similar stories of broken families or abuse at home – they came to Maai Mahiu to escape, only to be violently abused again.
Michelle described how, at 12 years old, she lost her parents to HIV and was evicted on to the streets where she met a man who gave her somewhere to live and began sexually abusing her.
“I literally had to pay him in kind for educating me. I reached my limit, but I had no-one,” she said.
Two years later, she was approached by a woman who turned out to be a madam in Maai Mahiu and forced her into sex work.
“I am not afraid any more, because Baby Girl is there for me. She is helping us bury the past” Lilian, a 19-year-old orphan studying photography as she recovers from abuse
Lilian, who is now 19, also lost her parents at a very young age. She was left with an uncle who filmed her in the shower and sold the images to his friends. The voyeurism soon turned into rape.
“That was my worst day. I was 12 then.”
When she escaped, she was raped again by a truck driver who took her to Maai Mahiu. It was here, like Michelle, where she was approached by a woman who forced her into sex work.
These young women’s short lives have been fuelled by violence, neglect and abuse.
Now, housed by Baby Girl, they are learning new skills – two in a photography studio and two in a beauty salon.
They also assist Baby Girl with her outreach work in the community.
Nakuru county has one of the highest rates of HIV infection in Kenya, and Baby Girl, supported by US aid agency USAID, is on a mission to educate people about the risks of unprotected sex.
She has an office at Karagita Community Health Centre, near Lake Naivasha, where she works providing condoms and advice.
However, with US President Donald Trump’s decision to pull USAID funding, her outreach programmes are about to stop.
As part of her outreach work, Baby Girl hands out condoms on the streets near Lake Naivasha in Nakuru county
“From September we will be unemployed,” she told the BBC World Service, adding how worried she was about the young women and girls who depend on her.
“You see how vulnerable these children are. How would they survive on their own? They are still healing.”
The US government did not respond to comments in this investigation about the likely impact of its funding cuts. USAID officially closed last month.
For now, Lilian is focused on learning photography and recovering from abuse.
“I am not afraid any more, because Baby Girl is there for me,” she said. “She is helping us bury the past.”
As Kenya prepares its biggest-ever football hosting job this weekend, locals are wondering why they can’t buy tickets, with some accusing the government of filling the stadium with supporters to avoid hostile chants.
Kenya has seen multiple deadly protests for more than a year over economic stagnation and police brutality, leaving dozens dead or missing.
It is hoping for a more positive vibe as it co-hosts the African Nations Championship (CHAN) with Tanzania and Uganda this month.
But local fans are puzzled over the difficulty of securing tickets for Kenya’s first match, against Democratic Republic of Congo, at Nairobi’s 48,000-capacity Kasarani Stadium on Sunday.
Kenyan fans start arriving at Kasarani stadium ahead of Harambee Stars’ first Chan 2024 tournament match against DR Congo at 3pm.
Tickets have been sold out since Monday evening — the result of a “more than eager” fanbase, according to Nicholas Musonye, head of the local organising committee, speaking to AFP.
Some die-hard supporters find that hard to believe.
“We haven’t found any fan who managed to buy a ticket,” said a Kenyan sports journalist interviewed by AFP, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisals by the government due to the “political” nature of the issue.
He accuses the government of President William Ruto of buying up tickets in a bid to avoid chants like “Ruto Must Go” and “Wantam” (meaning “one term”) that have become widely used since the protests began.
In March, “the last time Kenya played at home, against Gabon, there were many anti-government chants”, which are still visible online, he said, adding that the government was likely handing tickets to people less likely to be critical.
Registering supporters
PropesaTV, an online media critical of Ruto, told its 150,000 followers on X that the government had “bought over half of the Kenya Vs Congo CHAN opening match tickets for the Sunday clash in a bid to stop or avoid the Wantam and Ruto Must Go chants”.
It said tickets were being distributed to “government supporters” who will be transported to the stadium by bus from Kibera, a huge Nairobi slum that has seen fewer protests against the president than other areas.
A resident of the neighbourhood, also asking to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals, told AFP he saw a “massive” group of people hired by local officials to “register” and collect personal data in exchange for tickets to Sunday’s match.
Kariuki Ngunjiri, a national youth leader for the president’s party, told AFP he had “not seen the accusations”.
“Tickets are available online, we are encouraging a lot of people to come in large numbers on Sunday and enjoy the game,” he said, though tickets could not be found then or since by AFP.
Meanwhile, tickets were still available for the tournament’s first match in Tanzania, who play Burkina Faso on Saturday.
Kenyan Football Federation president Hussein Mohammed told AFP he was not responsible for ticketing, which falls under the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
(REUTERS) – Just after midnight on May 7, the screen in the Pakistan Air Force’s operations room lit up in red with the positions of dozens of active enemy planes across the border in India.
Air Chief Mshl. Zaheer Sidhu had been sleeping on a mattress just off that room for days in anticipation of an Indian assault.
New Delhi had blamed Islamabad for backing militants who carried out an attack the previous month in Indian Kashmir, which killed 26 civilians. Despite Islamabad denying any involvement, India had vowed a response, which came in the early hours of May 7 with air strikes on Pakistan.
An Indian Air Force pilot gets out of a Rafale fighter jet during its induction ceremony at an air force station in Ambala, India, September 10, 2020. REUTERS
Sidhu ordered Pakistan’s prized Chinese-made J-10C jets to scramble. A senior Pakistani Air Force (PAF) official, who was present in the operations room, said Sidhu instructed his staff to target Rafales, a French-made fighter that is the jewel of India’s fleet and had never been downed in battle.
“He wanted Rafales,” said the official.
The hour-long fight, which took place in darkness, involved some 110 aircraft, experts estimate, making it the world’s largest air battle in decades.
The J-10s shot down at least one Rafale, Reuters reported in May, citing U.S. officials. Its downing surprised many in the military community and raised questions about the effectiveness of Western military hardware against untested Chinese alternatives.
Shares of Dassault, which makes the Rafale, dipped after reports the fighter had been shot down. Indonesia, which has outstanding Rafale orders, has said it is now considering purchasing J-10s – a major boost to China’s efforts to sell the aircraft overseas.
But Reuters interviews with two Indian officials and three of their Pakistani counterparts found that the performance of the Rafale wasn’t the key problem: Central to its downing was an Indian intelligence failure concerning the range of the China-made PL-15 missile fired by the J-10 fighter. China and Pakistan are the only countries to operate both J-10s, known as Vigorous Dragons, and PL-15s.
The faulty intelligence gave the Rafale pilots a false sense of confidence they were out of Pakistani firing distance, which they believed was only around 150 km, the Indian officials said, referring to the widely cited range of PL-15’s export variant.
Rafale fighter jet taxis on the tarmac during its induction ceremony at an air force station in Ambala, India, September 10, 2020. REUTERS
“We ambushed them,” the PAF official said, adding that Islamabad conducted an electronic warfare assault on Delhi’s systems in an attempt to confuse Indian pilots. Indian officials dispute the effectiveness of those efforts.
“The Indians were not expecting to be shot at,” said Justin Bronk, air warfare expert at London’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) think-tank. “And the PL-15 is clearly very capable at long range.”
The PL-15 that hit the Rafale was fired from around 200km (124.27 mi) away, according to Pakistani officials, and even farther according to Indian officials. That would make it among the longest-range air-to-air strikes recorded.
India’s defense and foreign ministries did not return requests for comment about the intelligence mistakes. Delhi hasn’t acknowledged a Rafale being shot down, but France’s air chief told reporters in June that he had seen evidence of the loss of that fighter and two other aircraft flown by India, including a Russian-made Sukhoi. A top Dassault executive also told French lawmakers that month that India had lost a Rafale in operations, though he didn’t have specific details.
Pakistan’s military referred to past comments by a spokesperson who said that its professional preparedness and resolve was more important than the weaponry it had deployed. China’s defense ministry did not respond to Reuters’ questions. Dassault and UAC, the manufacturer of the Sukhoi, also did not return requests for comment.
“SITUATIONAL AWARENESS”
Reuters spoke to eight Pakistani and two Indian officials to piece together an account of the aerial battle, which marked the start of four days of fighting between the two nuclear-armed neighbors that caused alarm in Washington. The officials all spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss national security matters.
Not only did Islamabad have the element of surprise with its missiles’ range, the Pakistani and Indian officials said, but it managed to more efficiently connect its military hardware to surveillance on the ground and in the air, providing it with a clearer picture of the battlefield. Such networks, known as “kill chains,” have become a crucial element of modern warfare.
Four Pakistani officials said they created a “kill chain,” or a multi-domain operation, by linking air, land and space sensors. The network included a Pakistani-developed system, Data Link 17, which connected Chinese military hardware with other equipment, including a Swedish-made surveillance plane, two Pakistani officials said.
The system allowed the J-10s flying closer to India to obtain radar feeds from the surveillance plane cruising further away, meaning the Chinese-made fighters could turn their radars off and fly undetected, according to experts. Pakistan’s military did not respond to requests for comment on this point.
Delhi is trying to set up a similar network, the Indian officials said, adding that their process was more complicated because the country sourced aircraft from a wide range of exporters.
A Pakistan Army soldier stands at the premises of the Bilal Mosque, after it was hit by an Indian strike in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, May 7, 2025. REUTERS
Retired U.K. Air Mshl. Greg Bagwell, now a fellow at RUSI, said the episode didn’t conclusively prove the superiority of either Chinese or Western air assets but it showed the importance of having the right information and using it.
“The winner in this was the side that had the best situational awareness,” said Bagwell.
CHANGE IN TACTICS
After India in the early hours of May 7 struck targets in Pakistan that it called terrorist infrastructure, Sidhu ordered his squadrons to switch from defense to attack.
Five PAF officials said India had deployed some 70 planes, which was more than they had expected and provided Islamabad’s PL-15s with a target-rich environment. India has not said how many planes were used.
The May 7 battle marked the first big air contest of the modern era in which weaponry is used to strike targets beyond visual range, said Bagwell, noting both India and Pakistan’s planes remained well within their airspaces across the duration of the fight.
Five Pakistani officials said an electronic assault on Indian sensors and communications systems reduced the situational awareness of the Rafale’s pilots.
The two Indian officials said the Rafales were not blinded during the skirmishes and that Indian satellites were not jammed. But they acknowledged that Pakistan appeared to have disrupted the Sukhoi, whose systems Delhi is now upgrading.
Other Indian security officials have deflected questions away from the Rafale, a centerpiece of India’s military modernization, to the orders given to the air force.
India’s defense attaché in Jakarta told a university seminar that Delhi had lost some aircraft “only because of the constraint given by the political leadership to not attack (Pakistan’s) military establishments and their air defenses.”
India’s chief of defense staff Gen. Anil Chauhan previously told Reuters that Delhi quickly “rectified tactics” after the initial losses.
After the May 7 air battle, India began targeting Pakistani military infrastructure and asserting its strength in the skies. Its Indian-made BrahMos supersonic cruise missile repeatedly sliced through Pakistan’s air defenses, according to officials on both sides.
On May 10, India said it struck at least nine air bases and radar sites in Pakistan. It also hit a surveillance plane parked in a hangar in southern Pakistan, according to Indian and Pakistani officials. A ceasefire was agreed later that day, after U.S. officials held talks with both sides.
‘LIVE INPUTS’
In the aftermath of the episode, India’s deputy army chief Lt. Gen. Rahul Singh accused Pakistan of receiving “live inputs” from China during the battles, implying radar and satellite feeds. He did not provide evidence and Islamabad denies the allegation.
When asked at a July briefing about Beijing’s military partnership with Pakistan, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters the work was “part of the normal cooperation between the two countries and does not target any third party.”
Beijing’s air chief Lt. Gen. Wang Gang visited Pakistan in July to discuss how Islamabad had used Chinese equipment to put together the “kill chain” for the Rafale, two PAF officials said.
China did not respond when asked about that interaction. The Pakistani military said in a statement in July that Wang had expressed “keen interest in learning from PAF’s battle-proven experience in Multi Domain Operations.”
London’s Heathrow Airport on Friday unveiled a £49-billion ($65 billion) expansion plan, including the costs of building a long-awaited third runway, approved by the UK government after years of legal wrangling.
The runway would cost £21 billion, with flights expected to take off within a decade, while the rest of the privately-funded investment will go toward expanding and modernising the airport.
Heathrow, Europe’s busiest airport by passenger numbers, said the expansion would provide at least 30 new daily routes, more domestic connections and improved flight times.
The increased capacity would almost double the number of annual passengers from 84 million currently to up to 150 million passengers annually.
“It has never been more important or urgent to expand Heathrow,” said chief executive Thomas Woldbye.
“We are effectively operating at capacity to the detriment of trade and connectivity,” he added.
Despite fierce opposition from environmentalists and local residents, London mayor Sadiq Khan and some Labour MPs, the Labour government backed the new runway in January in a bid to boost UK economic growth.
It would be a rare expansion in Europe, where countries are split between efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the needs of a strategic sector that has seen demand grow.
Heathrow has submitted its proposal for the 3,500 metre runway to the UK government, which has also invited a rival proposal.
– Green trade-offs –
Heathrow’s proposal includes £12 billion to fund a new terminal and £15 billion for modernisation.
“A third runway and supporting infrastructure can be ready within a decade, and the full investment across all terminals would take place over the coming decades,” Heathrow said in a statement.
(FILES) An aerial photograph taken on March 21, 2025 shows planes parked on the tarmac of Heathrow Airport following its closure after a fire broke out at a substation supplying power of the airport, in Hayes, west London. London’s Heathrow Airport on August 1, 2025 announced its £49 billion ($65 billion) expansion plan, which includes the costs of its long-awaited third runway, approved in January after years of legal wrangling. (Photo by AFP)
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is determined to deliver major infrastructure projects to revive the UK economy that has struggled to take off since the party came to power a year ago.
The government is expected to also back expansion at Gatwick airport, south of the capital, in October — having recently approved upgrades to London’s Stansted, Luton and City airports.
Britain’s Supreme Court ruled at the end of 2020 that Heathrow could build the third runway, overturning a legal decision to block construction on environmental grounds.
Local residents “will see their lives put on hold for a few more years while more money and time is wasted on a doomed scheme,” said Douglas Parr, policy director for Greenpeace UK.
He added the plans “export more tourism wealth out of the UK in the most polluting way possible.”
Arora Group, one of Heathrow’s largest landowners, on Thursday said it will submit a rival bid to build a shorter third runway, promising lower costs and less disruption to local residents and the environment.
“This is the first time the government has invited a competing proposal for Heathrow expansion,” the UK-based property and hotel firm said in a statement.
British Airways owner IAG’s chief executive Luis Gallego said the rival bid was “credible” as the group announced its net profit jumped 44 percent to 1.3 billion euros ($1.5 billion) in the first six months of the year on “strong demand”.
“We always think that competition is good to improve things, and we have seen that in commercial aviation in the past,” he added.
Airport-owner Heathrow’s latest investment proposal comes in addition to plans to invest £10 billion over the next five years in upgrades to boost passenger numbers, which would be largely funded by higher charges on airlines.
Ghislaine Maxwell, the accomplice of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, has been moved from a prison in Florida to a minimum security facility in Texas, the Bureau of Prisons said Friday, triggering an angry reaction from some of their victims.
No reason was given for Maxwell’s transfer but it comes a week after a top Justice Department official met with her to ask questions about Epstein, who died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for allegedly sex trafficking underage girls.
“We can confirm Ghislaine Maxwell is in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons at the Federal Prison Camp (FPC) Bryan in Bryan, Texas,” a Bureau of Prisons spokesman said.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer, interviewed Maxwell for two days at a Florida courthouse last week in a highly unusual meeting between a convicted felon and high-ranking Justice official.
Blanche has declined so far to say what was discussed but Maxwell’s lawyer, David Markus, said she answered every question she was asked.
Maxwell has offered to testify before Congress about Epstein if given immunity and has also reportedly been seeking a pardon from Trump, a one-time close friend of Epstein.
She had been subpoenaed to give a deposition to the House Oversight Committee on August 11, but Politico reported Friday it had been postponed indefinitely.
The former British socialite is serving a 20-year sentence after being convicted in 2021 of recruiting underage girls for Epstein.
Two women who said they were sexually abused by Epstein and Maxwell and the family of another accuser who recently committed suicide condemned the prison transfer.
“It is with horror and outrage that we object to the preferential treatment convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell has received,” Annie and Maria Farmer and the family of Virginia Giuffre said in a statement Friday.
“Ghislaine Maxwell is a sexual predator who physically assaulted minor children on multiple occasions, and she should never be shown any leniency,” they said.
“Yet, without any notification to the Maxwell victims, the government overnight has moved Maxwell to a minimum security luxury prison in Texas,” they said. “This move smacks of a cover-up. The victims deserve better.”
US President Donald Trump ordered the deployment of two nuclear submarines Friday in an extraordinary escalation of what had been an online war of words with a Russian official over Ukraine and tariffs.
Trump and Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russia’s security council, have been sparring on social media for days.
Trump’s post on his Truth Social platform abruptly took that spat into the very real — and rarely publicized — sphere of nuclear forces.
“Based on the highly provocative statements,” Trump said he had “ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that.”
“Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances,” the 79-year-old Republican posted.
The nuclear sabre rattling came against the backdrop of a deadline set by Trump for the end of next week for Russia to take steps to ending the Ukraine war or face unspecified new sanctions.
Despite the pressure from Washington, Russia’s onslaught against its pro-Western neighbor continues to unfold at full-bore.
An AFP analysis Friday showed that Russian forces had fired a record number of drones at Ukraine in July.
Russian attacks have killed hundreds of Ukrainian civilians since June. A combined missile and drone attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early Thursday killed 31 people, including five children, said rescuers.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has consistently rejected calls for a ceasefire, said Friday that he wants peace but that his demands for ending his nearly three-and-a-half year invasion were “unchanged”.
Those demands include that Ukraine abandon territory and end ambitions to join NATO.
– Insults, nuclear rhetoric –
Trump did not say in his post whether he meant nuclear-powered or nuclear-armed submarines. He also did not elaborate on the deployment locations, which are kept secret by the US military.
The United States and Russia control the vast majority of the world’s nuclear weaponry, and Washington keeps nuclear-armed submarines on permanent patrol as part of its so-called nuclear triad of land, sea and air-launched weapons.
Trump also did not refer specifically to what Medvedev had said to prompt his order.
Medvedev had criticised Trump on his Telegram account Thursday and alluded to the “fabled ‘Dead Hand’” — a reference to a highly secret automated system put in place during the Cold War to control the country’s nuclear weapons.
This came after Trump had lashed out at what he called the “dead economies” of Russia and India.
Medvedev had also harshly criticized Trump’s threat of new sanctions against Russia over Moscow’s continuing invasion of Ukraine.
Accusing Trump of “playing the ultimatum game,” he posted Monday on X that Trump “should remember” that Russia is a formidable force.
Trump responded by calling Medvedev “the failed former President of Russia, who thinks he’s still President.”
Medvedev should “watch his words,” Trump posted at midnight in Washington on Wednesday. “He’s entering very dangerous territory!”
Medvedev is currently deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council and a vocal proponent of Putin’s war in Ukraine — and generally antagonistic to relations with the West.
He served as president between 2008-2012, effectively acting as a placeholder for Putin, who was able to circumvent constitutional term limits and remain in de facto power.
The one-time reformer has rebranded over the years as an avid online troller, touting often extreme versions of official Kremlin nationalist messaging. His influence within the Russian political system remains limited.
– Flowers for the children –
Residents mourned the 31 people killed in the attack on Kyiv, including five children (Sergei SUPINSKY) Sergei SUPINSKY/AFP/AFP
In Kyiv, residents held a day of mourning for the 31 killed on Thursday, most of whom were in a nine-storey apartment block torn open by a missile.
Rescue workers pulled bodies from the debris Friday.
Iryna Drozd, a 28-year-old mother of three, was laying flowers at the site to commemorate the five children killed.
The youngest, whose body was found early Friday, was two years old.
“These are flowers because children died. We brought flowers because we have children. Our children live across the street from here,” she told AFP.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said only Putin could end the war and renewed his call for a meeting between the two leaders.
“The United States has proposed this. Ukraine has supported it. What is needed is Russia’s readiness,” he wrote on X.
