World

Public anger in China towards continuing COVID-19 lockdowns has sparked rare protests in a number of major cities in recent days, with some demonstrators calling on the Communist Party to step down. The latest demonstrations were prompted by a fire in a high-rise apartment block in the northwestern Xinjiang region on Thursday. The fire, in

At least eight people have been killed in landslides on the Italian holiday island of Ischia, officials say. Multiple landslides were caused by rainstorms and flooding in the town of Casamicciola Terme, which is around 20 miles off the coast of Naples. Several people are believed to be missing after heavy rainfall destroyed at least

In the flicker of candlelight, a 91-year-old grandmother says she is scared as night falls, plunging her apartment block in Kyiv once more into darkness. Anna Abrosimova fell over during a blackout this week, hurting her legs. She is too frail to move somewhere safer. “I am living in a nightmare,” she said, standing in

Vladimir Putin is trying to freeze and starve Ukraine’s people into giving up this winter by attacking power and water supplies but he will fail, the foreign secretary has told Sky News. James Cleverly, on his first visit to Ukraine, said he had never seen such devastation before and said it was vital for the

FIFA has confirmed fans will be allowed to wear rainbow bucket hats and take rainbow flags into the stadium for Wales’ match against Iran – after they were confiscated ahead of the side’s 1-1 draw with the USA earlier this week. The Football Association of Wales said venues in Qatar had been contacted and instructed

Elon Musk has announced he will grant “amnesty” for suspended Twitter accounts – prompting experts to predict a rise in harassment, hate speech and misinformation. The billionaire asked his followers in a poll to vote on reinstatements for accounts that have not “broken the law or engaged in egregious spam”. The yes vote was 72%.

China has intensified its COVID restrictions and lockdowns as its daily infection figures climbed to a record high. On Wednesday it recorded 31,444 new COVID-19 cases – exceeding the previous peak in April when Shanghai was in a city-wide lockdown that would last two months. It is also the highest daily figure since the virus

As if there weren’t other things for Russian MPs to worry about nine months into the Kremlin’s war with Ukraine. But as their president seeks to exalt traditional Russian values above what he has called the “outright Satanism” of the West, his parliament has adopted in the second reading a bill that further tightens the

Tensions between Israel and Palestinians have been rapidly worsening The news of two bombings at bus stops in Jerusalem is an extremely concerning development, and will immediately bring back memories of the bad days of the 2nd Intifada. Tensions between Israel and Palestinians have been rapidly worsening, and attacks by Palestinian militants on Israeli checkpoints

It’s nearly 20 years since the American tycoon Malcolm Glazer bought his first stake in Manchester United – now his family’s controversial tenure at the club could finally be coming to an end. Chants of “Love United, hate Glazers” are regularly heard at Old Trafford and news that the owners are exploring a sale will

Children killed when their schools collapsed are among the 268 dead following an earthquake that devastated a town in Indonesia. More than 1,000 people were injured and 58,000 displaced after the 5.6-magnitude quake struck in mountains in West Java on Monday, causing significant damage to the town of Cianjur and burying at least one village

At least 46 people have been killed following an earthquake in Indonesia. Around 700 people have also been injured in the 5.6 magnitude quake. The number of fatalities could rise even further, Herman Suherman, a district official from Cianjur, told Kompas TV – with evacuation efforts being hampered by landslides in some places. Image: A

Twelve years ago, Qatar was awarded the World Cup and scrutiny has barely let up since. But on Sunday evening, after a build-up as strange and muted as anything that’s gone before, the controversy was put to one side as the football finally took centre stage. Outside Al Bayt stadium, designed to resemble a Bedouin

Football fans must keep their shirts on and not be “visibly under the influence of alcohol” at World Cup stadiums in Qatar, organisers have said in a prepared code of conduct for the tournament. Fifa has prepared a “stadium code of conduct” that applies to all 64 matches in the Gulf state. A section advises

Countries have agreed a historic dedicated fund to help vulnerable nations hit by climate disasters, but failed to step up efforts to tackle the damaging emissions that cause them. Many controversial decisions also remain about the hard-won compensation scheme, including who pays in and who is eligible for the cash. But it was seen as

Rishi Sunak has visited Ukraine for the first time since becoming prime minister, meeting President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv. The two world leaders discussed Ukraine‘s military advances and reconstruction plans, and the British PM pledged a £50m package to bolster Ukrainian air defence. The package comprises 125 anti-aircraft guns and technology to counter Iranian-supplied drones,