News Trending War

Ukraine war: Four more grain ships leave Ukraine as hopes grow for export stability

By 611 0

Through a secure maritime route, four more ships transporting grain and sunflower oil have departed Ukrainian ports. Due to Russian blockades, millions of tonnes of grain were delayed in Ukraine, causing shortages and higher food costs outside.

However, the first ship to leave Ukrainian ports since February did so last week. The most recent ships to leave port are headed for Turkey where they will be examined as part of an agreement negotiated with Russia and the UN. They began their journey over the Bosphorus strait on Sunday from the ports of Odessa and Chornomorsk.

Two are then slated to dock in Turkey following the inspections, with the other two sailing to Italy and China.

On Sunday afternoon, a new empty ship made her way to Chornomorsk and is now waiting to be loaded with grain for export.

Russia agreed last month not to attack ships that were in transit, and Ukraine said it would direct ships through mined seas as part of a pact mediated by Turkey and the UN.

If both parties concur, the 120-day agreement may be extended.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

Croatia bus crash: Twelve Polish pilgrims killed and 32 injured

By 603 0

Twelve people were killed on Saturday in Croatia when a bus transporting Polish pilgrims ran off the road and into a ditch. According to reports, all 32 still alive passengers had injuries, 19 of them badly. Three priests and six nuns were part of the journey, which was planned by the Catholic organisation Brotherhood of St. Joseph. They were going to the Bosnian Catholic site of Medjugorje.

The Polish Foreign Ministry reported that all of the passengers were adults from Poland.

When the bus they were riding in drove off the A4 road between Jarek Bisaski and Podvorec, northeast of Zagreb, the accident occurred at about 05:40 local time (04:50 GMT).

Two Polish ministers are travelling to Croatia in response to the catastrophe, and Poland’s justice minister and prosecutor general have directed the Warsaw Prosecutors Office to begin an investigation into the circumstances leading up to the disaster.

Although 11 deaths were first reported, one more passed away later in a hospital.

They were all pilgrims, mostly from the Masovian province’s Radom and Sokolow, which also contains Warsaw, the capital of Poland.

The driver was not believed to be one among the dead, according to the Polish Foreign Ministry, but this has not yet been verified. Andrej Plenkovi, the prime minister of Croatia, sent his sympathies to the relatives of the victims and said in a tweet that the emergency services were doing everything they could to assist. Poland is a very famous destination for pilgrims because of rumours that in the 1980s, local youngsters witnessed an apparition of the Virgin Mary there.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

French mayor threatens €15,000 deposit to climb Mont Blanc

By 570 0

According to a French mayor, climbing the Mont Blanc now requires a €15,000 (£12,640; $15,370) deposit to cover rescue and potential funeral expenses. Mayor of Saint-Gervais, a town at the base of Western Europe’s tallest mountain, with a summit elevation of 4,807 meters, is Jean-Marc Peillex.

He claimed that those who disregarded warnings and climbed the mountain through the Goûter route were “playing Russian roulette.” Rockfalls have risen due to the hot wave. According to Mayor Peillex, the average cost of a mountain rescue is €10,000, while the average cost of a burial is €5,000. In a press release, he stated that it was unacceptable for the French taxpayer to bear those expenses.

According to his statement on the village’s official website, mountaineers coming from Saint-Gervais or the adjacent Alpine resort of Chamonix were no longer being taken by mountain guides up the well-known Goûter route, also known as the Royal Way. Their ruling is valid until no later than the middle of August.

Some “pseudo climbers,” according to Mayor Peillex, insisted on going up the mountain “with death in their knapsack.”

“I wanted to make people respond, to understand that today going up is incredibly risky, nearly suicidal,” he told the BBC.

Rockfalls have forced him to close the mountain refuges at Goûter and Tête Rousse until further notice.

He has not yet issued a legal ruling on the proposed deposit, but has the power to impose it, he told the BBC. He said the amount “has to be startling to focus attention on this”. “If anyone thinks it’s illegal they can go to court to challenge it,” he added.

He said a group of Romanians were found on the mountain on 30 July wearing shorts and trainers. A police helicopter ordered them through a loudhailer to turn back, he said, “and while they did so, they said they would return the next day”!

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

French sailor survives 16 hours in capsized boat in Atlantic

By 541 0

When a boat capsized, a 62-year-old Frenchman kept himself alive for 16 hours at sea by employing an air bubble. The 12-meter ship, which had departed from Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, sent out a distress call from the Atlantic Ocean late on Monday night.

The sailor had to wait till dawn when the Spanish coastguards discovered the capsized boat since the sea was too choppy for a rescue. According to coastguard divers, the man’s survival was “verging on the impossibly.”
At 20:23 local time on Monday, his yacht broadcast a distress signal 14 nautical miles (26 nautical kilometres) off the coast of Spain’s Sisargas Islands, close to the Galicia area in the country’s northwest.

The unnamed individual was searched for and saved by a rescue ship carrying three helicopters and five divers.

The individual responded by hammering from inside the ship as a diver was winched onto the hull to look for signs of life. The rescue team affixed buoyancy balloons to the boat to prevent it from sinking and waited till daylight because the sea was choppy and it had already darkened.

Two divers swam under the boat the following day to rescue the sailor, who they discovered knee-deep in water and wearing a neoprene survival suit. The man then leaped into the chilly water and dove beneath the boat in the direction of the water’s surface.

Picture Courtesy: google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

Dev Patel: Actor breaks up knife fight in Australia

By 652 0

According to his representatives, Dev Patel was successful in stopping a knife fight that broke out earlier this week in Adelaide. The actor, who starred in Slumdog Millionaire, saw the altercation on Monday in Adelaide.

The victim was stabbed in the chest while the two were apparently fighting in the street and a convenience shop. According to a publicist for Patel, the actor “acted on his natural instinct.” The victim of the stabbing is anticipated to live.

Representatives for Dev Patel informed BBC News, “We can confirm that last night in Adelaide, Dev Patel and his pals observed a violent brawl that was already taking place outside of a convenience store.”

“Dev acted on his natural instinct to try and de-escalate the situation and break up the fight. The group was thankfully successful in doing so and they remained on site to ensure that the police and eventually the ambulance arrived.”

According to South Australia Police, officers responded to complaints of a man and woman fighting in the street at around 8.45 p.m. (local time). Before the lady allegedly stabbed the man in the chest, the couple proceeded to argue inside a neighbouring service station where bystanders attempted to break up the fight.

An ambulance officer provided on-site care to a 32-year-old Glengowrie resident before transporting him to the Royal Adelaide Hospital. There are no heroes in this circumstance, and regrettably this particular instance exposes a wider systemic problem of marginalised sections of society not receiving the respect and dignity they deserve.

Patel made his film debut in the British teen drama Skins. He has since gone on to star in such films as The Green Knight, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and Lion, for which he was nominated for an Oscar.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending War

Ukraine war: Russia accuses US of direct role in Ukraine war

By 543 0

For the first time, Russia has charged that the US is directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine. The US, according to a spokesperson for Moscow’s defence ministry, is approving targets for the Himars artillery that Kyiv’s soldiers utilise.

Intercepted calls between Ukrainian authorities, according to Lt Gen Igor Konashenkov, showed the connection. The BBC was unable to confirm this independently. US government representatives did not immediately respond to the accusations. Previously, Russia charged that the United States was waging a “proxy war” in Ukraine.

The Biden administration is “directly liable” for all missile attacks that Kyiv authorised against residential areas and infrastructures used by the general public in the towns of the Donbass and other regions, according to Mr. Konashenkov.

Himars, a multi-rocket system, is much more powerful than Ukraine’s previous artillery and can fire precision-guided missiles up to 70 kilometres (45 miles) distant from their target. Additionally, they are thought to be more accurate than their Russian counterparts.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed in April that NATO was essentially fighting Russia through a proxy and arming that proxy as a result of US President Joe Biden’s decision to provide Ukraine with billions of dollars’ worth of weapons. The 72-year-old said, “War means war.”

Russia has been charged with various war crimes and crimes against humanity throughout the Ukrainian conflict. Ukraine accused Moscow this week of bombing a prison in Donetsk, which is controlled by separatists, in order to hide claims of abuse.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

Beyoncé is criticised for using an offensive lyric on her Renaissance album

By 695 0

Beyoncé has come under fire for some of the lyrics of her new album, Renaissance, which contain an ableist slur. The offensive phrase, which is frequently used to belittle persons with spastic cerebral palsy, appears twice in the song Heated, which Canadian superstar Drake co-wrote.

Only a few weeks prior, US pop sensation Lizzo issued an apology for using the same phrase in her song GRRRLS. Disability rights activist Hannah Diviney claims that Beyoncé’s latest song “feels like a slap in the face” after that occurrence. She tells the BBC, “I’m tired and angry that we’re having this topic again so soon after we got such a profound and forward-thinking response from Lizzo.

Disability advocacy Beyoncé is being urged by Scope to redo the song without the insult.

According to media manager Warren Kirwan, “Words matter because they perpetuate the negative sentiments disabled people deal with on a daily basis.” Beyoncé has long fought for equality and inclusivity, therefore we implore her to take down this insensitive line. The Beyoncé team has been approached by the BBC for a response.

According to Nikki Fox, a BBC disability journalist, “It’s so annoying because it’s so catchy.” But that word is awful. Although we acknowledge it is occasionally used differently in the US, it is a word we would never, ever use in the UK. Fox points out that there are 11 writers on the song, and multiple people at Beyoncé’s record label would have approved it.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

Entertainment News Trending

Will Smith says he has ‘reached out’ to Chris Rock about Oscars slap

By 507 0

After slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars, Will Smith claims he “reached out” to him, but the comedian has stated he is “not ready to talk.”

After the comedian made a joke about Smith’s wife at the Academy Awards in March, the actor smacked Rock on stage.

Smith renewed his apology in a video that he published on Friday in which he reflected on the slap. This was the first time Smith had been seen talking about the incident.

“Chris, I apologise to you. My behaviour was unacceptable,” he said.

“I’m here whenever you’re ready to talk.”

Smith has only ever made written statements regarding the altercation in the past. He responds to questions that seem to have been submitted by fans in the video on his personal YouTube account. He speaks to the camera directly while reading out the questions.

I have spent the last three months going over what transpired in that instant and trying to understand its complexity and subtleties “explained the actor.

“I wasn’t considering how many people were injured at the time. No part of me believes that was the appropriate course of action at that particular time.”

“I’ve reached out to Chris,” Smith said, “and the word that came back is that he’s not ready to discuss and he will contact out when he is.”

Additionally, he said that Jada Pinkett Smith did not ask him to defend her after Rock made the joke. Jada wasn’t involved, according to Smith.

“I want to say sorry to my kids and my family for the heat that I brought on all of us.”

Rock had targeted Pinkett Smith’s shaved head, which was a result of the alopecia ailment.

In a recent interview, Pinkett Smith expressed her “deepest wish” that her husband and Rock will “reconcile” following the event. After the slap, she had earlier stated on her social media that it was a “season for healing.”

Smith earned his first Oscar for his performance in King Richard, a movie about the father of Serena and Venus Williams, after the incident on stage.

Smith has been prohibited from attending Academy functions for the next 10 years as a result of what the Oscars have called his “unacceptable and damaging behaviour” on stage.

It was stated that following the slap, Smith was asked to leave the award ceremony, but he refused. A producer later clarified that Rock himself had not intended for Smith to be expelled violently or taken into custody by the police.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending War

Ukraine condemns Russia’s ‘humiliating death’ tweet after prison attack

By 574 0

After the Russian embassy in the UK tweeted that Ukrainian soldiers from the Azov battalion deserved to die a “humiliating death” by hanging, Ukraine branded Russia a “terrorist state.” The post from the embassy occurred after more than 50 Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) detained by Russia died, purportedly including Azov soldiers.

They perished in an assault on the Russian-controlled Olenivka prison in eastern Ukraine. Russia and Ukraine each lay blame for the attack that killed the detainees. The message from the Russian Embassy in the UK was left up by Twitter since it violated their anti-hate standards, but it was not taken down. Along with the Ukrainian government, a sizable number of Twitter users condemned the remark. According to Twitter, keeping the post accessible might be in the public interest.

The self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic, which has Russian support, is in charge of the Olenivka prison camp (DNR). Unknown is what occurred there on Friday. Unconfirmed Russian video footage from the scene depicts a jumble of demolished bunk beds and severely burned victims.

The Russian embassy in the UK tweeted during the incident that Azov “Since militants aren’t actual troops, they should be hanged rather than put to death by firing squad. They should be executed in humiliation “. The tweet includes a video clip of a couple in a destroyed structure claiming that Azov forces shelled their house. The individual in the video repeats what is stated in the embassy’s call for execution.

The attack, according to Russia’s defence ministry, was carried out with US-produced Himars artillery, and Ukraine was charged with having “deliberately perpetrated” the provocation. The ministry displayed pieces of what it claimed to be Himars system rockets.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright

News Trending

Shakira Faces Call For 8-Year Jail Term In Spain Over Tax Fraud Charge

By 536 0

After she rejected a plea agreement in connection with allegations of tax evasion, Spanish prosecutors announced Friday that they would seek a prison term of more than eight years for international music sensation Shakira.

The 45-year-old “Hips don’t Lie” singer will also be required to pay a fine of over 24 million euros ($24.5 million) after being accused by Barcelona prosecutors of defrauding the Spanish tax authority of 14.5 million euros in income between 2012 and 2014.

Shakira, whose albums have sold more than 60 million copies worldwide, rejected a plea deal on Wednesday, saying in a statement released through her attorneys that she was “absolutely certain of her innocence” and had chosen to take the case to trial, “confident” that her innocence would be established.

A trial date has not yet been established, nor has a formal referral to court been published. Up to the start of any trial, according to Shakira’s attorneys, one of the biggest names in the world of music.

Shakira, according to the prosecution, relocated to Spain in 2011 after her relationship with FC Barcelona defender Gerard Pique became well-known, yet she continued to file her taxes in the Bahamas until 2015. The two children that the couple has together announced their separation in June.

The actress criticised the prosecutor’s office on Wednesday for using “abusive methods” and “completely violating her rights.”

She said that while she was “not yet resident in Spain,” prosecutors “insisted on demanding money earned during my foreign tours and the show ‘The Voice,'” on which she served as a judge in the United States.

Between 2013 and 2014, Shakira appeared on the singing competition programme.

Her attorneys claim that up until 2014, she mostly made her money from overseas tours, only permanently relocated to Spain in 2015, and has complied with all tax requirements.

She claims that she has paid 17.2 million euros in taxes to the Spanish government and that she hasn’t owed the Treasury anything in “many years.”

The “Pandora Papers,” one of the biggest financial document breaches ever, which included public people connected to offshore assets, included Shakira in its list of names in October 2021.

Shakira, a three-time Grammy winner, achieved enormous global success with songs like “Hips don’t Lie,” “Whenever, Wherever,” and “Waka Waka,” the official World Cup song, by fusing Latin and Arabic rhythms with rock influences.

Picture courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright