US singer Chris Brown has been freed on bail by a court in London after being charged with inflicting an “unprovoked attack” in a nightclub in 2023.
The Grammy-winning star, who has not yet been asked to enter a plea in the case, is able to begin his world tour next month as planned as part of his bail conditions.
He was arrested last week and later charged with grievous bodily harm over an incident in which he allegedly attacked a music producer with a tequila bottle at the Tape nightclub in London’s Mayfair.
The 36-year-old was not present at Southwark Crown Court for Wednesday’s bail hearing, at which the judge said he must pay a £5m (approximately Sh868 million) security fee to the court.
A security fee is a financial guarantee to ensure a defendant returns to court. Mr Brown could be asked to forfeit the money if he breaches bail conditions.
The musician had been held in custody since being arrested in Salford last Thursday, and was initially refused bail on Friday.
But bail was granted on Wednesday, on the condition that he pay £4m immediately, with a further £1m due in seven days.
His tour is scheduled to start in Amsterdam on 8 June, with stadium and arena dates in Manchester, London, Cardiff, Birmingham and Glasgow later that month and in July.
The two-time Grammy-winner is known for hits like Loyal, Run It and Under the Influence.
His next court date is 20 June, between shows at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium and London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
He must surrender his passport if he is not travelling on tour, Judge Tony Baumgartner said.
Other bail conditions include living at a specific address known to the court, not contacting the alleged victim, not visiting the Tape nightclub, and not applying for international travel documents.
He will appear at court next month with his co-defendant, Omololu Akinlolu, a 38-year-old who performs under the name HoodyBaby, also from the US.
Cassie’s mother, Regina Ventura, testified about threats and violence experienced by her daughter during her decade-long relationship with Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Ventura took the stand after several days of gruelling testimony by her daughter, Casandra Ventura, the singer known as Cassie, who detailed harrowing abuse by Combs and his coercive, drug-fueled sex marathons known as “freak-offs.”
Combs, 55, is facing federal charges of sex trafficking and leading an illegal sex ring that enforced its power with crimes including arson, kidnapping and bribery.
Prosecutors on Monday asked Ventura about an email her daughter, a key witness in the trial, had sent her on December 23, 2011.
Cassie, 38, testified last week that Combs in late 2011 had become enraged when he discovered she had been seeing rapper Kid Cudi, whose real name is Scott Mescudi.
Mescudi may testify at the trial in coming days.
Combs subsequently threatened to release videos of her participating in his sex parties as retaliation, Cassie told her mother in the email.
Ventura read the email aloud: “The threats that have been made to me by Sean Puffy Combs are that he is going to release two explicit tapes of me.”
“He also said he will be having someone hurt me and Scott Mescudi physically.”
Ventura said she felt “physically sick” to learn of the threats. “I did not understand it, the sex tape threw me.”
Combs’s defense attorneys sought to undermine Cassie’s testimony on the sex parties, alleging she took part voluntarily.
Ventura said Tuesday that Combs, who was already very wealthy at the time and whose fortune is now estimated by Forbes magazine at $700 million, demanded $20,000 to recoup money he had spent on her.
The money was eventually paid, Cassie’s mother said, justifying it as ensuring her daughter’s “safety.”
Ventura was also asked Tuesday about photos of Cassie showing bruises on her body, again at the same time in late 2011.
“She was bruised. We wanted to make sure we’d memorialized (that) she was beaten by Sean Combs,” she said.
Combs’ lawyer Xavier Donaldson questioned another witness at length on Tuesday — Sharay Hayes, nicknamed “The Punisher,” a stripper who had been hired by the couple many times.
Hayes said that in his opinion Cassie never showed any “discomfort” as Combs directed them to have sex while he watched, but that it was Combs giving the instructions.
Combs made hundreds of millions in the music, fashion, media and liquor industries and is often credited with helping to bring hip-hop into the mainstream.
But the rap producer and global superstar once famous for his lavish parties now appears visibly aged after months in prison.
He has pleaded not guilty to all charges but faces life in prison if convicted.
The defense contends that while Ventura’s relationship with Combs was complicated and included domestic abuse, it did not amount to sex trafficking.
Google is introducing a new artificial intelligence (AI) mode that more firmly embeds chatbot capabilities into its search engine, aiming to give users the experience of having a conversation with an expert.
The “AI Mode” was made available in the US on Tuesday, appearing as an option in Google’s search bar.
The change, unveiled at the company’s annual developers conference in Mountain View, California, is part of the tech giant’s push to remain competitive against ChatGPT and other AI services, which threaten to erode Google’s dominance of online search.
The company also announced plans for its own augmented reality glasses and said it planned to offer a subscription AI tool.
Sundar Pichai, the chief executive of Google parent Alphabet, said the incorporation of the company’s Gemini chatbot into its search signalled a “new phase of the AI platform shift”.
“With more advanced reasoning, you can ask AI both longer and more complex queries,” Pichai told the audience.
The company’s foray into AI-powered glasses comes more than a decade after it pioneered smart glasses with its “Google Glasses”, which ultimately flopped.
The new Google glasses are being developed with eyeglass retailers Warby Parker and Gentle Monster and will feature a camera, microphone, and speakers.
With the renewed effort, Google hopes to compete against Meta’s AI-powered glasses made with Ray-Ban.
The company said it expected to start building the new product later this year.
Leo Gebbie, principal analyst and director for the Americas at CCS Insight, said Google had been expected to wrap AI more tightly into its products.
He said he thought the chatbot would help minimise the number of web pages that users must sift through while also allowing people to ask more complicated queries.
“For the end user, this should mean less time spent browsing the web itself and more time spent talking with Google’s AI tools,” he said.
Any updates that Google makes to search are “of critical importance”, added Gebbie, since the search business contributes the vast majority of Google’s revenues.
Google’s attempts to keep up with ChatGPT could fundamentally change the nature of its search engine, which could impact its profits.
“Google is getting more efficient at answering questions but less efficient at generating clicks – and clicks is how they get paid,” said Cory Johnson, chief market strategist at Epistrophy Capital Research.
The announcements also come as the company fights a court battle in the US over potential changes to its business after a judge ruled it had a monopoly in search.
Rocky road
Google has had mixed success in its recent attempts to incorporate more AI into its services.
Its AI Overviews feature, unveiled by Google at its developers conference last year, offers AI-generated summaries that currently appear at the top of search results.
It initially generated ridicule from users who posted some of the odd responses they received, as when it advised one user that non-toxic glue could help make cheese stick to pizza.
Another widely circulated response stated that geologists recommend humans eat one rock each day.
A Google spokesperson said at the time that these were “isolated examples”.
Mr Pichai said on Tuesday that AI Overviews now gets 1.5 billion uses per month in more than 200 countries and territories.
In its biggest markets – the US and India – AI Overviews drive more than 10% of growth in the types of queries that show them, Pichai said.
“It’s one of the most successful launches in search in the past decade,” he added.
May 20 – A Channel Islands business has signed a deal with the Kenyan government to enable staff to be recruited to work in the three UK Crown dependencies.
The agreement between recruitment firm GR8 and the Kenyan government would pave the way for staff to be recruited to work in Jersey and Guernsey and on the Isle of Man, organisers said.
Leaders said the agreement would make it easier for east African hospitality, construction, childcare and health workers to fill vacancies in the Crown dependencies.
GR8 CEO Lee Madden signed a memorandum of understanding with Roseline Njogu, who heads Kenya’s State Department for Diaspora Affairs, in a ceremony in Jersey.
A GR8 spokesperson said the company was now a strategic partner for recruiting Kenyans into the Crown dependencies, strengthening business links with the east African country.
Njogu said: “We are inviting good employers to come and recruit from Kenya from the talent that we have that is abundant in IT, healthcare, education, engineering and so on.”
Njogu, who heads Kenya’s State Department for Diaspora Affairs, is on an official visit to Jersey, alongside Kenyan politicians and senior government officials.
During their visit, they will also meet the Minister for External Relations Ian Gorst and representatives from organisations including Highlands College, Jersey Chamber of Commerce and the Jersey Construction Council.
‘Hundreds recruited’
Minister for Sustainable Economic Development Kirsten Morel, said: “I hope this partnership flourishes, ensuring that Jersey remains an attractive and welcoming place for overseas skilled workers from multiple industries to live and work.”
Lee Madden, the chief executive of GR8, said the agreement enabled them to speak on behalf of the Kenyan government in terms of recruitment.
He said the recruitment of hospitality staff from Kenya had been “instrumental in solving the recruitment crisis that was three to four years ago”.
GR8 began working with partners in Kenya five years ago, starting a close business relationship with a college that saw trained hospitality workers brought over to help support businesses struggling to recruit staff following Brexit.
Since then, it has recruited hundreds of skilled workers from sectors including hospitality, construction and health care sectors into roles in Jersey and Guernsey, with the majority coming from Kenya.
US President Donald Trump says Russia and Ukraine will “immediately” start negotiating towards a ceasefire and an end to the war, after a two-hour phone call with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
Trump, who described the conversation as having gone “very well”, also said conditions for peace would need to be negotiated between the two parties.
Despite the note of optimism from Trump, who also spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, any ceasefire or peace deal does not appear close.
Putin said he was ready to work with Ukraine on a “memorandum on a possible future peace agreement”, while Zelensky said “this is a defining moment”, and urged the US not to distance itself from talks.
In his remarks, the Russian president did not address demands from the US and European countries for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire.
After his one-on-one call with Trump, Zelensky reaffirmed Ukraine’s desire for a “full and unconditional ceasefire”, and warned if Moscow is not ready, “there must be stronger sanctions”.
Speaking earlier before Trump’s conversation with Putin, Zelensky said he had asked that any decisions about Ukraine were not made without his country, calling them “matters of principles” for Ukraine.
He added he did not have any details on a “memorandum” but said once they have received anything from the Russians, they will “be able to formulate their vision accordingly”.
Writing on his Truth Social page after the call, Trump said: “Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War,” adding he had informed Zelensky of this in a second call, which also included other world leaders.
He added: “The conditions for that will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of.”
Zelensky said the negotiation process “must involve both American and European representatives at the appropriate level”.
“It is crucial for all of us that the United States does not distance itself from the talks and the pursuit of peace, because the only one who benefits from that is Putin,” he explained.
Talking at a White House event later in the day, Trump said the US would not be stepping away from brokering talks between Russia and Ukraine, but that he has a “red line in his head” on when he will stop pushing on them both.
He also denied that the US was stepping back from its negotiating role.
In recent weeks, Trump has repeatedly warned that the US would step away from negotiations as he became increasingly frustrated at the lack of developments from both Moscow and Kyiv in the way of peace.
When asked on what he believes on Russia, he said he thinks Putin has had enough of the war and wants it to end.
Meanwhile, Putin – who described the call with Trump, which he took from a music school on a visit to the city of Sochi, as “frank, informative and constructive” – also spoke of the potential for a ceasefire.
“We have agreed with the US president that Russia will offer and is ready to work with Ukraine on a memorandum on a possible future peace agreement,” he said.
This, he added would define “a number of positions” including “principles of the settlement and a timeline for concluding a possible peace agreement…including a possible ceasefire for a certain period of time, should relevant agreements be reached”.
Zelensky held a second call with Trump after the US president spoke to Putin, which also included President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, and the leaders of France, Italy, Germany and Finland.
“I want to thank President Trump for his tireless efforts to bring a ceasefire to Ukraine,” von der Leyen said, adding: “It’s important that the US stays engaged.”
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Pope Leo’s offer to host potential peace talks was a gesture welcomed by the US and the other leaders in the call, and “judged positively”.
Earlier this month, the new Pope offered the Vatican as a venue for possible peace talks after Putin turned down Zelensky’s offer to meet face-to-face in Turkey for negotiations.
Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu has said that she will not allow activists from the neighbouring Kenya to “destabilise” her country.
She made the statement hours after several Kenyans, including Martha Karua, former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga, Hussein Khalid and Hanifa Adan, were denied entry into Tanzania.
In a terse address, the head of State expressed her distaste with the “flocking” of activists from around the region to Dar es Salaam to “meddle” with the affairs of Tanzania.
The activists had travelled to Tanzania separately on Sunday and Monday to follow court proceedings against opposition chief Tundu Lissu, whose treason trial began on Monday. They were detained and deported from Julius Nyerere International Airport.
“We should not give a chance for them to destroy our country. If there is a country that has people who have peace and are safe, it is here (Tanzania)… We will not give a chance to any creature to come and destroy us, whether it comes from within or without our borders.
She instructed Tanzanian authorities not to allow “those who have spoiled their countries to cross over to Tanzania…and spread their bad manners here”.
“We will not give space to anyone trying to destabilise us here,” she said.
Critics accuse her regime of tightening its grip on civil liberties, and view the deportations as part of a broader crackdown on freedoms in Tanzania.
“I have seen several clips saying I am biased, but what I am doing is protecting my country which is the key mandate I was given,” said President Suluhu.
US former president Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an “aggressive form” of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones, his office said in a statement on Sunday (May 18).
The disease is the most common cancer affecting males. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for every 100 males, 13 will develop prostate cancer at some point in their lives. Although, all men are at risk of having prostate cancer, age is a crucial factor in this disease. The prostate is located just near the bladder and in front of the rectum.
According to the American Cancer Society, prostate cancer that appears very abnormal is given the highest grade, Grade 5. A Gleason score can go up to 10, showing how serious Biden’s condition is. A prostate cancer termed as “aggressive” based on the stage and grade.
Former US president Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an “aggressive form” of prostate cancer. The disease has now spread to his bones, his office announced in a statement on Sunday (May 18). The statement said Biden was diagnosed with “prostate cancer, characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone.” It further revealed that the former president is struggling with the disease, which appears to be hormone-sensitive.
“The President and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians,” Biden’s office said.
This came after Biden a small nodule was found in prostate after which Biden was evaluated.
After the announcement came, US President and Biden’s political rival Donald Trump said he was “saddened” by the news.
Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social and wrote, “We extend our warmest and best wishes to Jill and the family, and we wish Joe a fast and successful recovery.”
Former US President Joe Biden, 82, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer that has spread to his bones, a statement from his office said on Sunday.
Biden, who left office in January, was diagnosed on Friday after he saw a doctor last week for urinary symptoms.
The cancer is a more aggressive form of the disease, characterised by a Gleason score of 9 out of 10. This means his illness is classified as “high-grade” and the cancer cells could spread quickly, according to Cancer Research UK.
Biden and his family are said to be reviewing treatment options. His office added that the cancer was hormone-sensitive, meaning it could likely be managed.
In Sunday’s statement, Biden’s office said: “Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms.
“On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterised by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone.
“While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management.”
After news broke of his diagnosis, the former president received support from both sides of the aisle.
President Donald Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social that he and First Lady Melania Trump were “saddened to hear about Joe Biden’s recent medical diagnosis”.
“We extend our warmest and best wishes to Jill and the family,” he said, referring to former First Lady Jill Biden. “We wish Joe a fast and successful recovery.”
Former Vice-President Kamala Harris, who served under Biden, wrote on X that she and her husband Doug Emhoff are keeping the Biden family in their prayers.
“Joe is a fighter – and I know he will face this challenge with the same strength, resilience, and optimism that have always defined his life and leadership,” Harris said.
In a post on X, Barack Obama – who served as president from 2009 to 2017 with Joe Biden as his deputy – said that he and his wife Michelle were “thinking of the entire Biden family”.
“Nobody has done more to find breakthrough treatments for cancer in all its forms than Joe, and I am certain he will fight this challenge with his trademark resolve and grace. We pray for a fast and full recovery,” Obama said. In 2016, Obama tasked Biden with leading a “cancer moonshot” government-wide research programme.
The news comes nearly a year after the former president was forced to drop out of the 2024 US presidential election over concerns about his health and age. He is the oldest person to have held the office in US history.
Biden, then the Democratic nominee vying for re-election, faced mounting criticism of his poor performance in a June televised debate against Republican nominee and current president Donald Trump. He was replaced as the Democratic candidate by his vice-president, Kamala Harris.
Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer affecting men, behind skin cancer, according to the Cleveland Clinic. The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that 13 out of every 100 men will develop prostate cancer at some point in their lives.
Age is the most common risk factor, the CDC says.
Dr William Dahut, the Chief Scientific Officer at the American Cancer Society and a trained prostate cancer physician, told the BBC that the cancer is more aggressive in nature, based on the publicly-available information on Biden’s diagnosis.
“In general, if cancer has spread to the bones, we don’t think it is considered a curable cancer,” Dr Dahut said.
He noted, however, that most patients tend to respond well to initial treatment, “and people can live many years with the diagnosis”.
Dr Dahut said that someone with the former president’s diagnosis will likely be offered hormonal therapies to mitigate symptoms and to slow the growth of cancerous cells.
Biden had largely retreated from the public eye since leaving the White House and he has made few public appearances.
The former president delivered a keynote speech in April at a Chicago conference held by the Advocates, Counselors, and Representatives for the Disabled, a US-based advocacy group for people with disabilities.
In May, he sat down for an interview with the BBC – his first since leaving the White House – where he admitted that the decision to step down from the 2024 race was “difficult”.
Biden has faced questions about the status of his health in recent months.
In an appearance on The View programme that also took place in May, Biden denied claims that he had been experiencing cognitive decline in his final year at the White House. “There is nothing to sustain that,” he said.
For many years, the president had advocated for cancer research.
In 2022, he and Mrs Biden relaunched the “cancer moonshot” initiative with the goal of mobilising research efforts to prevent more than four million cancer deaths by the year 2047.
Biden himself lost his eldest son, Beau, to brain cancer in 2015.
(Reuters) – At least 10 people were killed on Sunday after a suicide bomber targeted a queue of young recruits registering at the Damanyo military base in the Somali capital Mogadishu, witnesses told Reuters, in an attack claimed by militant group al Shabaab.
Teenagers were lining up at the base’s gate when the attacker detonated their explosives, they said.
A military captain who gave his name as Suleiman described the attack as he had seen it unfold.
“I was on the other side of the road. A speeding tuk-tuk stopped, a man alighted, ran into the queue, and then blew himself up. I saw 10 people dead, including recruits and passers-by. The death toll may rise,” he said.
Dozens of abandoned shoes and the remains of the suicide bomber were visible at the scene.
Another witness, Abdisalan Mohamed, said he had seen “hundreds of teenagers at the gate as we passed by in a bus”.
“Abruptly, a deafening blast occurred, and the area was covered by dense smoke. We could not see the details of casualties,” he said.
Medical staff at the military hospital told Reuters they had received 30 injured people from the blast and that six of them had died immediately.
Government forces quickly cordoned off the entire area.
In a statement on Sunday Islamist militant group al Shabaab said it was behind the attack and that it had killed as many as 30 soldiers and wounded 50 more. Government officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab has waged an insurgency in Somalia since 2007, and has recently been battling the army to extend gains in central Somalia.
The attack echoed a similar incident in 2023 when a suicide bomber killed 25 soldiers at the Jale Siyad base, located opposite the Damanyo facility.
Sunday’s attack followed the assassination on Saturday of Colonel Abdirahmaan Hujaale, commander of battalion 26, in the Hiiran region, after local reports of al Shabaab militant infiltration into government and security forces.
Pope Leo XIV set the tone for his papacy Sunday with a call to stop exploiting nature and marginalising the poor, before an audience including JD Vance and tens of thousands of pilgrims.
Ten days after Chicago-born Robert Francis Prevost became the first US head of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, he celebrated his inaugural mass in St Peter’s Square.
The 69-year-old began the day by making his debut tour in a popemobile, standing up in the custom-made white vehicle and smiling, waving and blessing the cheering crowds at the Vatican.
In front of dignitaries including US Vice President Vance and Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky, he then gave a homily calling for the Church to be a transformational force in a world of division and hatred.
“In this our time, we still see too much discord, too many wounds caused by hatred, violence, prejudice, the fear of difference, and an economic paradigm that exploits the Earth’s resources and marginalises the poorest,” he said.
The new pontiff, who spent many years as a missionary in Peru, also warned against “closing ourselves off in our small groups”.
“We are called to offer God’s love to everyone, in order to achieve that unity which does not cancel out differences but values the personal history of each person and the social and religious culture of every people,” he said.
Prevost, who was made a cardinal only in 2023 and is unknown to many Catholics, has repeatedly emphasised the importance of peace and social justice in his first few days as pope.
Inacia Lisboa, 71, a pilgrim from Cape Verde who lives in Rome, told AFP at the Vatican on Sunday that Leo had already “entered my heart”.
She said she wanted him to “pray for us all, for peace in the world — we need it so much”.
Leo has made history as first pontiff from the United States, and his home country was represented on Sunday by Vance, who converted to Catholicism in 2019, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, also a Catholic.
Before becoming pope, Leo reposted on his personal X account criticism of President Donald Trump’s administration over its approach to migration and also pilloried Vance, but the account is no longer accessible.
Vance was the last world leader to meet with Pope Francis, the day before the Argentine died on April 21 after 12 years as pontiff.
Leo’s elevation has sparked huge enthusiasm in the United States, but also some consternation elsewhere that a country with an already outsize political and military role in the world now boasts one its foremost spiritual leaders.
“There is going to be extra weight because he is American, I think there’s going to be a lot of extra eyes, and maybe criticisms,” said Sophia Tripp, a 20-year-old student visiting from Leo’s hometown of Chicago.
But she said she hoped he would “bring people together”, adding: “We are all human, and we should just all be loving to one another.”
Other guests on Sunday included German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Peruvian President Dina Boluarte, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Colombia’s Gustavo Petro and a host of European royals also attended.
Italian authorities deployed thousands of security officers for the event, alongside snipers on rooftops and anti-drone operations.
Leo XIV was elected the 267th pope on May 8 after a conclave vote of cardinals that lasted less than 24 hours.
Succeeding the charismatic but impulsive Francis, he takes over a Church still battling the fallout of the clerical child abuse scandal, and trying to adapt to the modern world.
Leo acknowledged on Sunday some trepidation in his new role.
“I was chosen, without any merit of my own, and now, with fear and trembling, I come to you as a brother who desires to be the servant of your faith and your joy,” he said.
Ahead of the mass, Leo visited the tomb of Saint Peter — who in the Christian tradition was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ, and the first pope — located under the altar of the basilica that bears his name.
He then received the pontifical emblems — the pallium, a strip of cloth worn over the chasuble, his robe and the fisherman’s ring, which is forged anew for each pope and which he will wear on his finger until he dies, when it will be destroyed.
Two people have died and 19 others were injured after a Mexican Navy training ship collided with the Brooklyn Bridge, according to New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Sunday.
The incident occurred late Saturday evening as onlookers enjoyed the spring weather and watched in horror as the ship struck the iconic landmark, snapping all three of its masts.
Mayor Adams confirmed the fatalities and injuries in a post on X, stating that out of the 277 people on board, 19 sustained injuries, with two initially in critical condition who later succumbed to their injuries.
Online footage captured the Mexican Navy ship Cuauhtemoc, whose sails were furled and decorative lights strung in its rigging. It attempted to pass under the bridge when its masts sheared off upon impact, crashing into the East River.
Just minutes before the collision, hundreds of spectators had gathered to bid farewell to the ship, which had been docked in southern Manhattan since Tuesday.
Brooklyn Bridge ship crash kills two people. Credit: ABC News
The Mexican Navy reported that two crew members died in the crash and an additional 22 were injured, with half of those injuries being critical.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum expressed her deep sadness over the deaths of the two crew members on X.
New York police chief of special operations Wilson Aramboles stated at a press conference that the ship lost power around 8:20 pm (0020 GMT Sunday) while the captain was manoeuvring the vessel, causing it to drift towards the Brooklyn side of the bridge.
Several sailors atop the ship were injured in the collision, though it remains unclear if they were among the deceased.
Eyewitness Nick Corso, 23, described the scene as “panic on the ship,” with screaming and sailors hanging from the damaged masts. He did not see anyone fall into the water.
The Mexican Navy clarified that no one fell into the water and no rescue operation was launched. At the time of the incident, the ship was departing New York, displaying flags and a large Mexican flag at its stern.
Another eyewitness, Arturo Acatitla, 37, recounted seeing the ship leave the dock moments before its lights collided with the bridge, causing sailors to fall.
Despite the collision, the New York transport department reported “no signs of structural damage to the Brooklyn Bridge” after initial inspections. The bridge, connecting Brooklyn and Manhattan, was temporarily closed for about 40 minutes before reopening.
Mexican ambassador Esteban Moctezuma Barragan informed a news conference that the injured were taken to hospitals. Sirens were heard in the vicinity following the incident.
The NYPD’s Aramboles identified the Cuauhtemoc as a barque built in 1982 with a mast height of 48.2 meters (158 feet), noting it was en route to Iceland. The Mexican embassy had previously celebrated the ship’s arrival in Manhattan with mariachi music and folk ballet.
The Mexican Navy confirmed the damage to the Cuauhtemoc and reaffirmed its commitment to the safety of its personnel and transparency in its operations. The ship was later moved near the Manhattan Bridge.
The New York Police Department advised residents to avoid the area due to heavy traffic and the presence of numerous emergency vehicles.
This incident marks the second fatal ship collision with a US bridge in just over a year, following the Baltimore bridge collapse in March 2024 that resulted in the deaths of six road workers.
The Vatican’s Office for Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff released an image of the new Ring of the Fisherman, which will be given to Pope Leo XIV during his Mass of Inauguration on May 18.
Bearing an image of St. Peter, the ring has New Testament roots and significance. In the Gospel of Matthew (16:19), St. Peter was given the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, and in the Gospel of Luke 22:32, Jesus tells Peter he must strengthen his brothers in the faith and mission.
The Ring of the Fisherman thus authenticates the faith and symbolizes the duty with which the first Pope was entrusted.
As Peter is known as the fisherman Apostle, the ring is referred to as the Ring of the Fisherman, or the Piscatory Ring, symbolizing the continuous lineage from the first Pope to today.
A ring for the ages
This ring has been part of the symbols of the papacy since at least the 13th century. It was used as a signet ring to seal official documents signed by the Pope until 1842. Now, it is used symbolically, but every Pope still has a ring.
When the Pope dies, his Ring of the Fisherman, along with the Lead Seal, is marked with a chisel, thereby ensuring the seal cannot be forged. Therefore, every ring is unique and personal to each Pope.
In 2013, Pope Francis received a gold-plated silver ring, which was previously owned by the secretary to Pope Paul VI. His predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, had a gold ring engraved with a bas-relief of St. Peter fishing from a boat.
Now, Pope Leo XIV continues the tradition of the Ring of the Fisherman, with an image of St. Peter with the keys and the net—signaling the passing of the torch, as the 266th Successor to St. Peter now officially undertakes the mission entrusted to St. Peter over 2 millennia ago.
The Trump administration is working on a plan to permanently relocate as much as one million Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Libya, NBC News reported on Friday, citing five people with knowledge of the matter.
Citing two people with direct knowledge and a former US official, NBC also reported that the plan is under serious enough consideration that the US has discussed it with Libya’s leadership.
In exchange for resettling the Palestinians, the administration would release to Libya billions of dollars of funds the US froze more than a decade ago, according to NBC and citing the same three people
Singer Justin Bieber was not a victim of Sean “Diddy” Combs but supports others who were and are seeking justice from the hip-hop mogul facing federal sex trafficking charges, TMZ and People reported on Friday, quoting Bieber’s representative.
Why are we doing this story? The allegations against Diddy and the link to Justin Bieber attracted significant public interest, leading to widespread speculation on social media. This article clarifies Bieber’s official position on the allegations against Diddy and his stance on the alleged victims in the case.
Bieber rose to fame in the music world as a teenager and had socialised and performed with Combs, who is 24 years his senior. Videos of the two spending time together prompted online speculation that Combs may have abused Bieber.
“Although Justin is not among Sean Combs’ victims, there are individuals who were genuinely harmed by him,” a spokesperson for Bieber said in a statement reported by TMZ and People.
“Shifting focus away from this reality detracts from the justice these victims rightfully deserve,” the spokesperson added.
Representatives for Combs and Bieber did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
On trial in Manhattan, Combs, 55, has pleaded not guilty to five felony counts of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution.
Lawyers for Combs say he never forced anyone to engage in sexual acts against their will, and the days-long, drug-fueled parties Combs called “Freak Offs” were consensual sexual activity.
Bieber, 31, became a star at age 13 after a manager discovered videos of the Canadian singing on YouTube. Allegations of abuse by Combs emerged on social media along with a video of a teenage Bieber with an adult Combs.
One video, posted on Bieber’s YouTube page in 2009, showed Combs saying the pair were spending two days together.
“Where we hanging out and what we’re doing, we can’t really disclose. But it’s definitely a 15-year-old’s dream,” Combs said in the video.
“For the next 48 hours, he’s with me. And we’re gonna go full, buck full crazy,” Combs added.
When asked what he wanted to do, Bieber, aged 15, said, “Let’s just go get some girls.”
The pair also appeared together on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” in 2011. “He knows better than to be talking about things that he does with Big Brother Puff on national television,” said Combs, who performed previously as Puff Daddy.
In 2023, they collaborated on a song called “Moments.”
VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV affirmed Friday that the family is founded on the “stable union between a man and a woman,” and that the unborn and elderly enjoy dignity as God’s creatures, articulating clear Catholic teaching on marriage and abortion at the start of his pontificate.
Leo, the first American pope, also called for reviving multilateral diplomacy and promoting dialogue between religions in the search for peace, in his first meeting with the Vatican diplomatic corps. The audience was private, but the Vatican released Leo’s prepared text and that of the dean of the diplomatic corps.
The encounter is one of the protocol requirements after a conclave, allowing a new pope to greet representatives of world governments ahead of his formal installation Mass this Sunday. The Holy See is a sovereign state under international law, has diplomatic relations with over 180 countries and enjoys observer status at the United Nations.
Leo, a member of the Augustinian religious order, has emphasized peace as a priority of his pontificate, from the first words he uttered on the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica after his May 8 election, “Peace be with you all.”
In his remarks, he said the search for peace was one of the pillars of the papacy. He insisted that peace isn’t just the absence of conflict but a “gift” that requires work, from an end to the production of weapons to choosing words carefully. “For words too, not only weapons, can wound and even kill.”
He said it was up to governments to build peaceful societies “above all by investing in the family, founded upon the stable union between a man and a woman.”
“In addition, no one is exempted from striving to ensure respect for the dignity of every person, especially the most frail and vulnerable, from the unborn to the elderly, from the sick to the unemployed, citizens and immigrants alike,” he said.
Pope Francis strongly reaffirmed core Catholic teaching opposing abortion and euthanasia, saying they were evidence of today’s “throwaway culture.” But he also made reaching out to LGBTQ Catholics a hallmark, insisting they are welcome in the church. He never changed church doctrine defining marriage as a union between man and woman and homosexual acts as “intrinsically disordered.”
As the then-head of the Augustinian order, the Rev. Robert Prevost in 2012 criticized the “homosexual lifestyle” and the role of mass media in promoting acceptance of same-sex relationships that conflicted with Catholic doctrine. A decade later, during Francis’ pontificate, he acknowledged Francis’ call for a more inclusive church, and said he didn’t want people excluded just on the basis of their lifestyle.
US President Donald Trump’s plan to accept a $400 million (Sh51.7 billion) airplane from Qatar raises a raft of questions about the scope of laws that relate to gifts from foreign governments and are intended to thwart corruption and improper influence, legal experts said.
Below is a look at some of the laws and legal precedents:
What does the US Constitution say?
There are two provisions in the US Constitution that place restrictions on the president receiving an emolument, or gift, from foreign governments or from federal or state governments.
One provision states that the US Congress must approve any gift from a “King, Prince, or foreign State” to an elected official in the United States. The other, referred to as the “domestic” emoluments clause, prohibits the president from receiving a gift beyond salary for the job.
Congress has expressly approved gifts from foreign governments in the past. In 1877, Congress accepted the Statue of Liberty as a gift from France.
The foreign emoluments clause did not bar President Barack Obama in 2009 from receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, which included $1.4 million (Sh181 million) in cash, without congressional consent.
A memo from the Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel determined the prize did not violate the Constitution because the Norwegian Nobel Committee is not a “King, Prince, or foreign State.” Obama donated the money to charity.
Qatari military aircraft perform a flyover before U.S. President Donald Trump departs on Air Force One from Al Udeid Air Base, en-route to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in Doha, Qatar, May 15, 2025. Photo credit: Reuters
Who can enforce the provisions?
That’s unclear, and the Supreme Court has not addressed the question, according to a report by the Congressional Research Service.
Legal experts said members of Congress, US states and even potentially some private businesses could try to sue the president if they believe a gift violates the foreign Emoluments Clause, but they face challenges.
US courts require plaintiffs to have legal “standing” to bring claims, meaning they must be the proper party to bring the case, which is a threshold issue for any litigation to advance.
What have US courts said about emoluments?
Until Trump’s first term, there had not been substantial litigation over the clauses, and even the meaning of the term “emolument” is a matter of legal dispute.
Democratic members of Congress sued Trump in 2017 after his global businesses allegedly received payments from foreign governments, including when Kuwait hosted an event at the Trump International Hotel in Washington.
That case was dismissed by the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, which said the 215 members of Congress lacked standing to sue as an institution because they did not comprise a majority. Republicans controlled both houses of Congress at the time, as they do now.
The US Supreme Court declined in October 2020 to review that ruling.
Attorneys general for Maryland and the District of Columbia also jointly brought an emoluments cases related to Trump’s businesses during his first term. Their case was dismissed by a panel of three judges, appointed by Republican presidents, of the US Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, also for a lack of standing.
The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit determined in 2019 that restaurants and hotels in New York and Washington had standing to bring an emoluments lawsuit claiming they were harmed by Trump’s competing businesses. The case was dismissed without addressing the merits when Trump left office after losing the 2020 election.
Do other US laws govern foreign gifts?
The Foreign Gifts and Decorations Act sets requirements for gifts and allows the president to keep any that are worth less than $480 (Sh62079).
Gifts worth more than $480 (Sh62079) may be accepted on behalf of the United States, which retains ownership. Presidents are allowed to keep gifts above the threshold level if they reimburse the government for the fair market cost.
Are there possible exceptions?
It might be possible for the plane to be accepted by the Department of Defence under a statute that was enacted in 1990 to govern contributions to defence programs.
The law allows the Secretary of Defence to accept from individuals, foreign governments and international organisations contributions of money or property and could be put to use by the Air Force, which operates the president’s plane.
Trump has said the plane would eventually be donated to his presidential library, a repository housing research materials from his administration.
He said he has no plans to keep it for personal use after leaving office. It is unclear if such a donation would run afoul of the domestic emoluments clause, which prevents a president from accepting gifts beyond the salary for the job.
The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has stepped down temporarily pending the outcome of an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct, the court announced Friday.
Karim Khan has categorically denied accusations that he tried for more than a year to coerce a female aide into a sexual relationship and groped her against her will.
The ICC’s announcement was welcomed by women’s rights groups, who had called for Khan to step down after the allegations emerged last year.
“In any other professional setting, someone facing such serious allegations would have been expected to step down months ago,” said Eimear Shine, a spokesperson for The Hague-based Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice.
An investigation by The Associated Press last year found that two court employees, in whom the alleged victim confided, reported the alleged misconduct in May 2024 to the court’s independent watchdog.
That was a few weeks before Khan sought arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu, his defense minister and three Hamas leaders on war crimes charges.
The watchdog said it interviewed the woman and ended its inquiry after five days when she opted against filing a formal complaint. Khan himself wasn’t questioned at the time.
While the watchdog could not determine wrongdoing, it nonetheless urged Khan in a memo to minimize contact with the woman to protect the rights of all involved and safeguard the court’s integrity.
The ICC statement on Friday said Khan “communicated his decision to take leave until the end” of an external investigation being carried by the Office of Internal Oversight Services, the U.N. internal watchdog.
The court’s deputy prosecutors will be in charge of managing the prosecutor’s office while Khan is on leave, the statement said.
The work of the court will continue, according to Danya Chaikel, the ICC representative from the International Federation for Human Rights. “The cases and investigations have been carried out by professionals,” she told the AP.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration filed sanctions against Khan in February in relation to his Israel warrants. The sanctions are hampering work on a broad array of investigations at the court.
Gabon’s former President, Ali Bongo, who was deposed in a 2023 coup, has left the country and is now in Angola, the authorities there have announced.
The Angolan presidency added in a statement posted on social media that Bongo’s family had been released from detention and were with him in Luanda.
Bongo’s wife and son, Sylvia and Noureddin, faced corruption charges and had been imprisoned in 2023.
They have not yet publicly commented on the charges, however Ms Bongo’s lawyer has described her detention as arbitrary and illegal.
The family’s release comes after Angolan President João Lourenço, who currently heads the African Union, visited Libreville and held talks with his Gabonese counterpart Brice Oligui Nguema – the former general who led the coup against Bongo before being elected president last month.
It remains unclear if the legal proceedings against Sylvia and Noureddin Bongo will continue.
Ali Bongo, whose father Omar Bongo ruled Gabon for more than four decades, led the country for 14 years until the 2023 coup.
After his toppling he was placed under house arrest where he reportedly remained, although Gabonese authorities say he was free to move about as he wished.
His wife and son were detained in prison and then reportedly released to house arrest last week.
Bongo has been vocal in condemning what he described as the “violence and torture” faced by his wife and son, although the authorities had denied subjecting the pair to cruel treatment.
During their 14 years in power, the Bongo family had been accused of accumulating wealth for themselves at the expense of the country – allegations they deny.
Despite Gabon being an oil-rich nation, a third of its population lives below the poverty line, according to the UN.
Former FBI director James Comey is being investigated by the Secret Service after he shared then deleted a social media post, which Republicans alleged was an incitement to violence against President Donald Trump.
Comey posted on Instagram a photo of seashells that spelled the numbers “8647”, which he captioned: “Cool shell formation on my beach walk.”
The number 86 is a slang term whose definitions include ‘to reject’ or ‘to get rid of’, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, which also notes that it has more recently been used as a term meaning ‘to kill’.
Trump is the 47th US president. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem alleged the message was a call for the assassination of Trump, but Comey said he opposed violence.
In a post in X, Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said: “We vigorously investigate anything that can be taken as a potential threat against our protectees.
“We are aware of the social media posts by the former FBI Director & we take rhetoric like this very seriously. Beyond that, we do not comment on protective intelligence matters.”
Comey deleted the Instagram post, saying in a follow-up that he “assumed [the sea shells] were a political message”.
“I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence,” he added. “It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.”
“Cool shell formation,” Comey commented before deleting the post
Trump survived two assassination attempts last year.
Current FBI Director Kash Patel responded on social media, saying that the bureau was “aware of the recent social media post by former FBI Director James Comey, directed at President Trump”.
“We are in communication with the Secret Service and Director Curran. Primary jurisdiction is with SS [Secret Service] on these matters and we, the FBI, will provide all necessary support.”
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said on X: “Disgraced former FBI Director James Comey just called for the assassination of Trump.”
She said her department and the Secret Service would investigate the matter.
White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino posted on X, accusing Comey of “a plea to bad actors/terrorists to assassinate the POTUS’ while traveling internationally”, referring to Trump’s current tour of the Middle East.
The president’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr, also responded on X, commenting: “James Comey causally [sic] calling for my dad to be murdered.”
Comey served as the FBI’s director between 2013-17.
He had a tumultuous tenure that included overseeing the high-profile inquiry into Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton’s email just weeks before the 2016 election that she ended up losing to Trump.
He was fired by Trump amid an investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
American R&B singer Chris Brown, the former boyfriend of superstar Rihanna, was arrested Thursday in the UK on suspicion of a serious 2023 assault at a London nightclub, reports said.
Police detained Brown, 36, in the early hours of Thursday at a hotel in the northwestern city of Manchester, The Daily Telegraph and The Sun reported.
London’s Metropolitan Police said a 36-year-old man was in custody on suspicion of grievous bodily harm, without naming him.
Officers arrested the Grammy winner at Manchester’s five-star Lowry Hotel for having allegedly attacked music producer Abe Diaw with a bottle at Tape nightclub in London’s exclusive Mayfair district in February 2023, The Sun daily reported.
The star reportedly flew into Manchester airport by private jet on Wednesday afternoon.
He is due to perform a number of dates in Britain next month.
A Metropolitan Police spokesperson told AFP: “A 36-year-old man was arrested at a hotel in Manchester shortly after 2:00 am (0100 GMT) on Thursday, 15 May on suspicion of grievous bodily harm.
“He has been taken into custody where he remains.”
Brown rose to fame at a young age with his rich R&B voice and later rap, but his reputation was later tarnished by allegations of domestic violence and other abuse.
He was convicted of having beaten Rihanna, then his girlfriend, before the 2009 Grammy Awards, forcing the pop star to miss the annual gala.
