World

For beach-walking South Carolinians, it would have been quite the Saturday afternoon spectacle.  Two US fighter jets soaring above them, armed with air-to-air missiles. Then a launch. From an altitude of 58,000ft, one of the two jets fired a single ‘Sidewinder’ short range missile. It was 2.39pm eastern US time. Eyewitnesses on the ground in

Half a million people have been left without power after a “significant” accident at an electricity substation in Odesa, southern Ukraine. The Black Sea port and its surrounding areas were plunged into darkness following a large-scale network failure, Ukraine‘s grid operator Ukrenergo reported. It said the failure involved equipment “repeatedly repaired” after Russia’s attacks on

China has claimed the flight of an “airship” over the US was an accident and accused politicians and the media of taking advantage of the situation. The US claims the craft is a suspected spy balloon and said it had committed a “clear violation” of US sovereignty. China insisted it is used for meteorological and

In an era of orbital satellites so advanced that they are able to make out objects half the size of cars from space, a spy balloon might seem like a bit of a relic. They were a prominent tool for reconnaissance during the Cold War and were even used in a more basic form for

A 30-year-old dog who lives in Portugal has been named as the world’s oldest by Guinness World Records. Bobi, born on 11 May, 1992 is not just the oldest dog living – he’s the oldest dog ever. He is 30 years and 268 days old as of today – and was certified the new record

A tube runs from Jeanette Mahlangu’s nose to an at-home oxygen concentrator positioned on the side of her couch. The 85-year-old’s chest rises steadily as she stares at a clock on the wall of her South Africa home in Soweto’s Meadowlands. It is just after 6pm when the electricity goes out and her oxygen support

A former commander of Russia’s notorious mercenary Wagner Group who is seeking asylum in Norway has apologised for fighting in Ukraine. Andrei Medvedev said he wanted to speak out about his experiences in the war – and within the private group owned by millionaire Yevgeny Prigozhin, who has ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin –

A young couple in Iran have been jailed for more than 10 years each after a video on social media showed them dancing at one of Tehran’s main landmarks. Astiaj Haghighi and her fiancé Amir Mohammad Ahmadi were also banned from social activities on the internet and from leaving the country for two years. The

Ukraine is preparing for a major escalation by Russia – possibly even in the next two to three weeks, the Ukrainian president’s top security official has said. Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, told Sky News that the hardest fighting was yet to come and said the next few

Arriving in Haiti’s capital, Port-au-Prince, the sheer scale of the poverty takes your breath away. The streets are teeming with people but everywhere is shrouded in acrid smoke from piles of burning rubbish. From the hills above Port-au-Prince, the city at times disappears in a fog of polluted air. Wherever you walk people ask for

President Biden has said the US will not give Ukraine any F-16 fighter jets. It comes after Ukrainian officials stepped up calls for allies to donate advanced warplanes so they can control their airspace. They are currently using old Soviet-era jets. Mr Biden responded “no” when asked by a reporter if he would send F-16s

At least 59 people have been killed and 157 injured after a suicide bomber struck a mosque in Pakistan. The bomber detonated his suicide vest as a large number of worshipers – including many policemen from nearby police offices – were praying inside. Local police officer Zafar Khan said the impact of the explosion caused

Boris Johnson has claimed Vladimir Putin threatened to kill him with a missile in a call ahead of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The former prime minister has alleged the Russian leader told him “I don’t want to hurt you, but with a missile, it would only take a minute” in an “extraordinary” conversation which took

Novak Djokovic has won the Australian Open to equal Rafael Nadal’s Grand Slam record, a year after he was deported over his COVID vaccination status. The Serbian tennis star beat Greek player Stefanos Tsitsipas in three sets in the final in Melbourne on Sunday. It is Djokovic’s 10th Australian Open title and he has now

Forty people have died after a bus fell into a ravine in Balochistan in Pakistan, local media reported. The incident took place at Lasbela, a mountainous region in the south of the country. The bus was carrying 44 passengers. Lasbela Assistant Commissioner, Hamza Anjum Nadeem, said the bodies of 40 people, including women and children,