World

House Democrats release 68 photos from Jeffrey Epstein estate ahead of DOJ disclosure deadline Democrats on the U.S. House Oversight Committee posted 68 images tied to Jeffrey Epstein’s estate on the eve of a federal deadline to release the so-called “Epstein files,” publishing photos that show public figures including Bill Gates, Noam Chomsky, Sergey Brin and Steve Bannon in Epstein’s orbit. The images, made public online, include Gates posing with women whose faces are redacted, and Chomsky seated alongside Epstein aboard…

WASHINGTON — The board of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has voted to rename the institution the Trump-Kennedy Center, according to White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt, a move that immediately sparked procedural questions and political backlash over altering the nation’s living memorial to President John F. Kennedy. It was not immediately clear how soon a change could take effect. A source with ties to the institution said Congress must approve any name alteration. US Representative Joyce Beatty, an…

French anesthetist Frédéric Péchier sentenced to life for poisoning 30 patients in Besançon; 12 died A French court has sentenced anesthetist Frédéric Péchier to life in prison for poisoning 30 child and adult patients over nearly a decade, 12 of whom died, in a case that shocked France’s medical community and raised fresh questions about hospital oversight. Péchier, 53, worked at two private clinics in the eastern city of Besançon between 2008 and 2017, where multiple low-risk patients suffered sudden cardiac arrests under…

LOS ANGELES — Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Reiner, died of multiple sharp force injuries, and their deaths have been ruled homicides, according to records released Wednesday by the Los Angeles County medical examiner. Their 32-year-old son, Nick Reiner, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder after the couple were found Sunday at their Brentwood home. The medical examiner’s office said both bodies are ready to be released to the family and that further investigative work is underway before additional…

The European Union is preparing a novel way to finance Ukraine’s war and budget needs in 2026 and 2027 by mobilizing frozen Russian central bank assets—without crossing the legal red line of outright confiscation. The plan, centered on Euroclear in Belgium and a European Commission-issued “Reparations Loan,” aims to turn immobilized Russian funds into immediate support for Kyiv while preserving Moscow’s legal claim to its principal. At stake is up to €165 billion of the roughly €210 billion in Russian sovereign assets frozen…

Clashes erupted in Brussels on Thursday as thousands of farmers protested the European Union’s planned trade deal with the Mercosur bloc, lighting fires and hurling potatoes at riot police who answered with teargas and water cannons outside EU institutions. At least 7,000 farmers converged on the Belgian capital with about 1,000 tractors to pressure EU leaders meeting nearby, where the fate of the EU-Mercosur agreement hung in the balance. A largely peaceful march through the European quarter gave way to tense scenes at the…

Israel carried out a series of strikes across southern and eastern Lebanon on Wednesday, targeting what it called Hezbollah infrastructure less than a day before an international committee overseeing a fragile ceasefire is due to convene. Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported multiple strikes in the south and east. The Israeli military said it hit “terror infrastructure sites in multiple areas across Lebanon,” including “a military compound used by Hezbollah to conduct training and courses” for members of the…

Trump touts ‘economic boom’ and blames Biden for prices in prime-time address WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump promised Americans “an economic boom” and said prices are “falling rapidly” in a nationally televised address from the White House, casting blame for high costs on his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, even as new polls show persistent voter anxiety over affordability. “Good evening America. Eleven months ago I inherited a mess, and I’m fixing it,” Trump, 79, said in the live speech at the end of his first year…

Albanese vows sweeping hate-speech crackdown after Bondi Beach mass shooting kills 15 Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has promised a sweeping crackdown on hate, division and radicalisation after a mass shooting killed 15 people at a Jewish festival on Bondi Beach. “Australians are shocked and angry. I am angry. It is clear we need to do more to combat this evil scourge, much more,” Mr Albanese told a news conference, outlining a suite of measures aimed at extremist preachers, hate speech and those who spread…

Cambodia accuses Thailand of bombing border casino town as pressure mounts to halt clashes Cambodia has accused Thailand’s military of bombing the casino town of Poipet, a major crossing between the two countries, as regional and global powers pressed both sides to halt reignited border clashes. Thai forces “dropped two bombs in the area of Poipet Municipality, Banteay Meanchey Province” at about 11 a.m. local time, the Cambodian defense ministry said in a statement. Thailand has not confirmed any strike on Poipet, a…