World

OPINION — In 1943, a body washed up on a beach in Huelva, Spain. It was the body of a Royal Marine officer, Major William Martin. Martin was carrying papers, cuffed to his wrist in a briefcase, suggesting that the Allies would invade Greece and Sardinia, not Sicily. Spain was officially neutral, but a few Spanish officials sympathetic to the …

The Chinese state-owned construction giant that built the Mao Zedong-era Tanzania-Zambia railway is returning to the project with a US$1.4 billion commitment to overhaul and run the line as it increasingly becomes geoeconomically important for China. In a deal struck on Monday, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) agreed to an initial US$1.1 billion investment plus a further US$238 million …

Donald Trump should take an Alzheimer’s test after exhibiting “odd” behaviour, an expert has suggested. Dr Narinder Kapur, a consultant neuropsychologist and visiting professor of neuropsychology at University College London, said: “Obviously Trump’s behaviour in the last six months, some of his behaviour, has been quite odd and strange.” He highlighted the president’s desire for Canada to become the 51st …

The EU is not at war with Russia over Ukraine, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in a rebuke to his Polish counterpart. Orban made the comments on X after Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk delivered a staunchly pro-Ukraine speech at a security forum in Warsaw on Tuesday. “Dear Donald Tusk, you may think that you are at war with …

A man in Japan who earns 30 million yen (US$203,000) a year from rent and investments insists on continuing to work as a janitor to stay healthy and active. Koichi Matsubara, 56, cleans public areas and carries out basic maintenance in a block of flats in Tokyo, according to the Japanese media outlet The Gold Online. Matsubara reportedly works a …

The US Senate failed to pass a stopgap spending bill on Tuesday, just hours before the midnight deadline to avert a government shutdown. Although Republicans hold a majority in the chamber, they needed Democratic support to clear the bill under current rules. Democrats refused to back the measure and instead proposed an alternative that would permanently extend healthcare subsidies set …

Beneath the vast expanse of the Pacific Ocean lie small, black, potato-sized treasures – polymetallic nodules rich in valuable metals and rare earth elements – waiting to be unearthed. Strewn across the sea floor of the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans, the coveted nodules and other forms of ocean deposits are gaining widespread attention. Yet for all their vast potential, …

Drones have flown so close to a Norwegeian airport that air traffic staff were able to observe them from the control tower, according to reports. Drones were spotted near Brønnøysund Airport, a small regional hub in the far north of Norway, on Tuesday evening — just two days after drone sightings at the airport caused disruption on Sunday. Norwegian media …

Three people have been injured and more than 200 tourists evacuated from a hotel in Ibiza due to a rockslide. There was major panic in the Puig des Molins area of Ibiza when part of the mountain fell away suddenly, which has caused pieces of rock to directly hit two hotels that the Vibra Hotels chain has in the area. …

Emanuel Brunisholz was convicted of violating an anti-discrimination law after pointing out the differences between men and women A man in Switzerland is facing jail after refusing to pay a fine for a comment courts have ruled discriminates against the LGBTQ community after a three-year legal battle. Emanuel Brunisholz, a Swiss wind instrument repairman, was convicted under the country’s anti-discrimination …