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Pressure is mounting on Prime Minister Keir Starmer, but senior British ministers have rallied behind him as he tries to contain the fallout from a scandal involving Peter Mandelson, the long-time associate of Jeffrey Epstein. Mr Starmer is set to face MPs in parliament tomorrow, where he will be pressed on how Mr Mandelson came to be appointed Britain's ambassador to the United States in late 2024 despite failing security vetting. The prime minister, under fire for months over the affair, said on Friday that neither he nor…

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who led Iran’s delegation in the latest talks with the United States in Islamabad, said on X that Donald Trump had "made seven claims in one hour, all seven of which were false". "They did not win the war, and they will certainly not get anywhere in negotiations either with these lies," Ghalibaf added. Turning to the Strait of Hormuz, he warned that if the "continuation of the blockade" persisted, the waterway "will not remain open". His comments echoed earlier remarks…

AXADLE, Somalia — Puntland State has said Somalia has slipped into a constitutional vacuum, warning that the country’s political atmosphere is growing more fragile and urging immediate talks to avert deeper instability. In a statement issued Thursday, Puntland State’s cabinet said that under Article 60 of Somalia’s provisional constitution, the mandate of the Federal Parliament expired on April 14, 2026. It also said the term of the president of the Federal Government of Somalia will come to an end on May 15, 2026, in line…

Donald Trump has declined to apologise for attacking Pope Leo XIV, escalating an extraordinary public clash after the pontiff renewed his call for an end to the violence in the Iran war. "There's nothing to apologise for. He's wrong," Mr Trump told reporters, doubling down a day after a social media post and public remarks aimed at the US-born pope. "Pope Leo said things that are wrong. He was very much against what I'm doing with regard to Iran, and you cannot have a nuclear Iran," said Trump, who also argued that Leo was…

"Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes." Oscar Wilde’s line is a reminder that setbacks can sharpen judgment as much as successes do. People test an idea, assess the outcome and, ideally, use what they learned to navigate the next challenge with greater care. For the most part, that has defined how Democrats have responded during the second Trump administration. Until this week, that approach included a notable hesitation to embrace demands to force Mr Trump from office. That caution may have reflected worries…

With a ceasefire now taking hold between the United States and Iran, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is pressing for Washington to restore full energy sanctions on Russia, arguing that the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz removes the rationale for easing pressure on Moscow’s oil exports. "Now a ceasefire is beginning in the Middle East and the Gulf. And I am waiting for sanctions on Russian oil to be fully reimposed, as they were before," Mr Zelensky said. Last month, the United States relaxed some sanctions on…

As Easter approaches, countries across Africa are ramping up plans for a weekend defined by faith, family, and heavy travel, with leaders using the moment to press safety and security messages nationwide. In Mozambique, immigration authorities expect close to 400,000 people to cross the nation’s borders during the Easter period—about 17,000 more than last year. To cope with the uptick, officials are tightening procedures and staffing to keep checkpoints moving smoothly. In Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu has arrived in…

MOGADISHU - Member of the Federal Parliament Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame has sharply denounced the Federal Government's decision to install an administration for South West State, calling the move an unlawful breach of both the federal and state constitutions. He said the central government has no constitutional authority to appoint an administration for a federal member state that already has its own institutions in place. Abdishakur pointed to the South West State Constitution, which requires a presidential election…

Visiting the flood-swamped Zambezi region, President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah urged displaced residents to accept government-distributed rice and to cooperate with relocation plans. She delivered the appeal while assessing the unfolding disaster on the ground. Weeks of heavy rain since January have submerged villages in the Kabbe South and Kabbe North constituencies. The rice, donated by South Korea, has drawn pushback from some residents who prefer maize meal and say they are unfamiliar with how to prepare it.…

President Donald Trump struck an upbeat note on the standoff with Iran, saying the two sides have been in contact "directly and indirectly" and describing Tehran's new leadership as "very reasonable", even as additional US troops arrived in the region and Iranian officials vowed they would not submit to humiliation. The comments, made last night, followed word from Pakistan — acting as an intermediary between Tehran and Washington — that it was preparing to host "meaningful talks" in the coming days in an effort to bring the…