Bill Gates, the Microsoft co-founder whose fortune and philanthropy have made him one of the most prominent figures in public life, is preparing to answer questions from US lawmakers about his past ties to Jeffrey Epstein — a connection that has remained under intense scrutiny for years. Gates is scheduled to sit for a transcribed interview with the House Oversight Committee as part of its examination of the disgraced financier and the circle of influential people around him. Epstein died in a New York jail cell in 2019…

Questions over the role of one of Ireland’s biggest industrial sites in Russia’s war economy moved sharply into focus after EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the facts around Aughinish Alumina must be fully established, while making clear that Brussels is relying on Ireland to carry out the investigation. The Limerick-based refinery is under scrutiny amid allegations that alumina shipped from the plant ultimately reaches Russia’s war machine, supporting a campaign that has killed thousands in Ukraine. Speaking on…

As the World Cup draws closer, the White House official overseeing US preparations has defended a decision that has already stirred controversy: denying entry visas to a Somali referee and several members of Iran’s support staff. Speaking at an Atlantic Council event in Washington, Andrew Giuliani, executive director of the White House Task Force for the World Cup, said the United States had already welcomed dozens of participating sides without blocking any players or coaches. "To this point we've had 35 teams that have…

Iran and the United States lurched back toward open confrontation after Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had struck a US base in Jordan and 21 other targets across the Gulf, retaliating for American attacks around the Strait of Hormuz, according to Iranian media. The fighting amounts to one of the most serious bursts of hostilities since the two sides agreed to a ceasefire in April. The Iranian attacks, which also hit Kuwait and Bahrain, followed US strikes that the military said on X targeted Iranian air defence…

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is heading to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for what the Pentagon described as an effort to “engage with troops,” placing fresh attention on a US base that sits at the center of one of Washington’s most fraught relationships. The trip, disclosed in a single-sentence Pentagon statement, comes as the United States intensifies pressure on Cuba through sanctions and a punishing oil blockade. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly indicated he wants to bring down Cuba’s communist government, tying that…

Washington has declared its response complete after a US Apache helicopter was shot down near the Strait of Hormuz, a dramatic escalation that again throws any prospect of a US-Iran peace deal into doubt. US Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees American forces in the Middle East, said on X that it had "completed self-defence strikes against Iran". "CENTCOM forces struck Iranian air defence, ground control stations, and surveillance radar sites near the Strait of Hormuz with precision munitions from US Air Force and Navy…

Behind a glass barrier and in handcuffs, five pro-Palestinian activists accused of attacking the offices of a major defence contractor in Ulm are being tried under conditions their lawyer says breach European human rights law. The defendants — among them Daniel Tatlow‑Devally, a 32-year-old from Dublin — are accused of smashing property and spray-painting walls at the German premises of Elbit Systems last September. The company is headquartered in Israel and supplies weapons systems to the Israeli Defence Forces. "Our…

Brussels has moved to tighten the screws on Moscow again, unveiling the European Commission’s 21st package of sanctions against Russia more than four years after the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Under the latest measures, Russian combatants would be barred from entering the European Union, 30 more ships will be added to a sanctions list that already covers 632 vessels, and a further 31 Russian banks will also come under restrictions. EU member states will now have several weeks to examine the measures…

North Western State of Somalia's greatest threat to peace and progress is not an invading army but the steady erosion of justice from within its own institutions. A nation cannot thrive when courts are run like businesses, when legal disputes are treated as revenue streams, and when delays make injustice an accepted part of life. Too many Somalilanders now believe the legal system shields the powerful and punishes the powerless. Cases are postponed, influence buys outcomes, and ordinary people watch as the law becomes a…

With the war grinding into a fifth year, Volodymyr Zelensky won fresh backing in London from the leaders of Britain, France and Germany for his push to open direct ceasefire talks with Russia, according to a joint statement released after defence discussions. Mr Zelensky joined British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at 10 Downing Street, where the four met as the conflict continued to exact a heavy toll across Ukraine. The leaders said they "supported the…