London’s Heathrow shut after power outage
A loss of power forced London Heathrow Airport, one of the world’s busiest, to shut down on Friday morning, prompting chaos and disrupting travel for tens of thousands of air passengers. In a post on social media website X, the airport blamed a fire at an electrical substation in North Hyde in Hayes, west London, for the power outage and said it did not expect to reopen until early on Saturday. Aviation analyst Alex Macheras told Al Jazeera the knock-on…
Kamala Harris’ husband tells people she is the party leader now but where is she?
Dem donors fret that Kamala Harris is missing in action even months after the election loss. California governor Gavin Newsom has started a new podcast hosting prominent supporters of President Donald Trump puzzling his followers about what Newsom plans to do as his tenure as the governor comes to an end. But at least Newsom is doing something unlike former vice president Kamala Harris, who is one of the frontrunners to be the next California Governor if she considers to…
US and Germany are torching Tesla cars, US also burning Tesla charging stations and shooting up Tesla dealerships
1. Germany Several Tesla vehicles were set on fire in Germany on Friday, as protests against Elon Musk’s car company continue across the world. German police said that four vehicles were set ablaze in the Plänterwald and Steglitz neighborhoods of Berlin, and that political motives could not be ruled out. Newsweek reports: Tesla sites have been targeted by protesters around the world following Musk’s appointment as head of the Department of Government Efficiency in President Donald Trump’s administration. The electric…
Putin’s Reply to Cease-Fire Talks, Conditions
On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir V. Putin suggested tentative support for a cease-fire proposal from the United States and Ukraine but outlined several conditions that could significantly delay or prevent its implementation. Speaking at a news conference in Moscow, Putin publicly addressed the cease-fire for the first time as U.S. officials arrived in Russia to discuss the plan already approved by President Zelensky. Putin: “The concept itself is correct, and we certainly support it, but important issues must be thoroughly discussed…
French nuclear attack submarine “Barracuda” surfaces in Canada
A curious discovery in Canadian waters. A French attack submarine , the FS Tourville, appeared Monday in the port of Halifax in Nova Scotia, a Canadian province. Photos of the vessel were posted on social media, fueling speculation amid geopolitical turmoil . Some see it as evidence of a show of force by the European Union in the face of Donald Trump’s multiple provocations. The submarine is owned by French Naval Group, the European leader in the sector. It made its first Atlantic crossing on Monday as a test, as Canada prepares to renew its submarine fleet. Last February, the French naval group responded to a request for information from Ottawa, which aims to put 6 to 12 new submarines into service from 2035.
News from Russia: Bosnia issues arrest warrant for Bosnian Serb leadership, Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik
Bosnian prosecutors have issued arrest warrants for the president, prime minister, and parliament speaker of Republika Srpska, the predominantly-Serb region within Bosnia and Herzegovina. They are accused of having launched an “attack on the constitutional order” by enacting laws that restrict the operations of Bosnia’s state-level judiciary and law enforcement agencies. Following a brutal civil war that pitted the former Yugoslav region’s ethno-religious groups against one another, Bosnia and Herzegovina was divided into two self-governing entities, the ethnically Serbian Republika Srpska…
News from Russia: US statements on readiness to negotiate with Iran are hoax -Khamenei
Statements made by the United States about its willingness to negotiate with Iran are a deception of the global public opinion, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday.
“Statements that the US president is ready to hold negotiations and invites to the negotiating table are the deception of the global public opinion,” the ISNA news agency quoted Khamenei as saying. “We have been sitting at the negotiating table for several years, and this very same person cast aside a completed and signed document tearing it up. What kind of negotiations we must hold if we know well that they will not work? This is why all calls and statements about negotiations are the deception of the public opinion,” he added. US President Donald Trump announced on March 7 that he had sent a message to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei calling for negotiations on the Iranian nuclear program.
Trump says imposing 50-percent tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminium
President Donald Trump says increased tariffs come in response to Ontario’s surcharge on electricity exports to US. US President Donald Trump has announced he will double planned tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium imports to 50 percent, escalating a trade war with the United States’s northern neighbour. In a social media post on Tuesday morning, Trump said the increased tariffs come in response to a decision by the province of Ontario to put a 25-percent surcharge on electricity exports to…
“Impeachment Is a Remedy for a Runaway President”: Rep. Al Green on Why He Disrupted Trump’s Address
Democracy Now speaks with Democratic Congressmember Al Green of Texas a day after he was censured by the House of Representatives for disrupting President Donald Trump’s joint address to Congress on Tuesday night. His dramatic protest came near the start of Trump’s record-long speech. In instantly iconic images, Green rose and shook his walking cane at the president on the rostrum, telling him “You have no mandate” to cut vital government programs. Green was ejected from the chamber. This comes…
State Dept. suspends reporting air quality levels staff relied on overseas
State Department staff were taken aback this week by a department directive instructing embassies and consulates to stop publishing air quality monitoring data. CBS News has reviewed the message that was sent to staff on March 4, which says “currently there is no anticipated date for real-time data to be available.” Embassy staff and their families relied on the reports to alert them to poor air quality days. “I was shocked by the announcement,” said a current staffer, who asked…
FCA to ease rules restricting mortgage lending
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced plans to ease British mortgage lending rules, aiming to help more people buy homes. The regulator is preparing to review and potentially relax stress-testing requirements that assess borrowers’ ability to handle higher interest rates. Additionally, the FCA will launch a public debate in June on the mortgage market, focusing on risk appetite, affordability testing, product innovation, lending to older borrowers, and consumer information needs. A consultation in May will explore ways to simplify remortgaging,…
U.S. News: Veterans Affairs Set To Lay Off Thousands
The Trump administration plans to reduce the Department of Veterans Affairs workforce by around 72,000 employees, from approximately 470,000 to 398,000. Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins stated that the cuts would not impact veterans’ healthcare or benefits, and the department would continue hiring for essential roles. Collins emphasized that this move was part of efforts to make the department more efficient and transparent. The cuts are expected to take place in August. The American Federation of Government Employees, representing over…
US Fed, GSA Pauses Federal Property Sales Amid Backlash, Lawmaker Criticism
Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Wash.) criticized the General Services Administration’s (GSA) plan to sell hundreds of federal properties, though a U.S. News article mistakenly attributed his comments to Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.). The GSA initially listed about 440 federal buildings, totaling nearly 80 million square feet, for sale as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to reduce government size and spending. However, following backlash from workers, officials, and others, the GSA paused the sales and removed the listings from its website….
We will fight to the end’: Beijing stands its ground
Beijing’s 7.2% increase in its military budget this week follows tense rhetoric from Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian, who responded to the US’s new 10% tariffs by stating China was ready to fight any kind of war the US provoked. Though Lin later softened the language, the message remained clear: China is prepared for conflict if its interests are harmed. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also indicated the US was ready for war. This exchange is happening during China’s “Two…
Starmer slaps down Vance over ‘insult’ about British war dead
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer emphasized that the bravery of British soldiers who died in Iraq and Afghanistan will never be forgotten, responding to US Vice-President JD Vance’s controversial remark suggesting Britain hadn’t fought a war in 40 years. Vance’s comments, made during a Fox News interview, sparked outrage when he implied that countries like Britain and France lacked recent wartime experience and questioned their ability to provide meaningful security guarantees for Ukraine. British media and commentators criticized Vance, with…
